Peter Straughan

Peter Straughan
Born	1968 (age 56–57)
Occupation	Dramatist
Spouse	Bridget O'Connor ​ ​ (m. 2008;died 2010)​
Children	1

Peter Straughan (born 1968) is a British playwright, screenwriter and author, based in the north-east of England. He was writer-in-residence at Newcastle's Live Theatre Company. Whilst there, Live staged his plays Bones and Noir. He has been commended^{[ by whom? ]} for having a talent for writing dark and twisted stories.

Early life

Straughan's first ambition was to be a professional musician and he achieved this while playing bass guitar with Newcastle-based band The Honest Johns. He spent four years touring and recording with the band through the late 1980s and into the early 1990s before leaving to take up full-time education at Newcastle University. While Straughan was a student he was also a member of the band Cactusman. He wrote the song "Killer", which appeared on the CD album North of London, a collection of music by North East bands released through Newcastle Arts. ^[1]

Screenwriting

Straughan co-wrote the 2006 feature film, Mrs Ratcliffe's Revolution and adapted Toby Young's memoir How to Lose Friends & Alienate People . He is the writer of the 2009 film The Men Who Stare at Goats , and co-writer of the 2011 film Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy , for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Adapted Screenplay, a screenplay he wrote in collaboration with his late wife Bridget O'Connor. O'Connor died of cancer, aged 49, in 2010, before the film was released. They were awarded a BAFTA for Best Adapted Screenplay. ^[2]

He adapted Wolf Hall for television. ^{[3] [4]} Series 2 of Wolf Hall was confirmed to be in development on 27 May 2019. ^[5]

In 2025, he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay for Conclave . ^[6]

Filmography

Short film

Year	Title	Director	Writer
2011	Gee Gee	Yes	Yes

Film writer

• Sixty Six (2006)
• Mrs Ratcliffe's Revolution (2007)
• How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008)
• The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009)
• The Debt (2010)
• Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)
• Frank (2014)
• Our Brand Is Crisis (2015)
• The Snowman (2017)
• The Goldfinch (2019)
• Conclave (2024)
• Crime 101 (2025)

Television

Year	Title	Director	Writer	Notes
2014	Playhouse Presents	Yes	Yes	Episode "Nosferatu in Love"
2015, 2024	Wolf Hall	No	Yes	12 episodes

Awards and nominations

Year	Title	Award/Nomination
2011	Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy	BAFTA Award for Best British Film BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay British Film Bloggers Circle Awards for Best Adapted Screenplay International Cinephile Society Awards for Best Adapted Screenplay Italy Screenplay Award for Best International Adapted Screenplay Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Richard Attenborough Regional Film Awards for Best Screenplay San Francisco Film Critics Circle Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – Association of Women Film Journalists Award for Best Screenplay Nominated – British Independent Film Award for Best Screenplay Nominated – London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Screenplay Nominated – USC Scripter Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
2015	Wolf Hall	Nominated – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special
2024	Conclave	BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay St. Louis Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Runner-up – Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – Astra Film and Creative Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle Award for Best Adapted Screenplay

References

1. Whetstone, David (5 August 2014). "Bafta-winning Gateshead writer Peter Straughan on his forthcoming projects - The Journal". www.thejournal.co.uk. Archived from the original on 8 August 2014.
2. "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy scoops two BAFTA awards". Curtis Brown.
3. "Wolf Hall - A Q&A with Screenwriter Peter Straughan". 21 January 2015.
4. "Wolf Hall is to be a BBC drama". The Daily Telegraph . 23 August 2012. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
5. Radiotimes Wolf Hall season 2 adaptation confirmed.
6. Stephan, Katcy (6 January 2025). "'Conclave' Screenwriter Defends Film Amid Megyn Kelly's Claims It's 'Anti-Catholic': 'I Stand By It'". Variety.

External links

• Peter Straughan at British Council : Literature
• Peter Straughan at IMDb