Matthew Holness | |
|---|---|
 Holness in 2023 | |
| Born | Matthew James Holness 1974 or 1975 (age 50–51)[1] Whitstable,Kent, England |
| Alma mater | Trinity Hall, Cambridge |
| Occupations | Actor, comedian, writer, director |
| Known for | Garth Marenghi |
Matthew James Holness (born 1974 or 1975) is an English comedian, actor, director and author. He is known for creating and portraying the fictional horror authorGarth Marenghi.
Born inWhitstable, Kent, Holness became a fan ofHammer horror films at a young age, to the extent that when, at the age of six, he asked Hammer star and fellow Whitstable residentPeter Cushing for his autograph, Cushing expressed concern that the child knew so much about the films.[2] Holness attendedChaucer Technology School in Canterbury and went on to read English atTrinity Hall, Cambridge, where he received aMaster of Arts degree from Cambridge,graduatingin absentia due to his comedy work.[3] As a member of theCambridge Footlights, he appeared in a number of shows at theEdinburgh Festival Fringe in the mid-1990s. He also served as vice-president whenDavid Mitchell was president. Other contemporaries includedRobert Webb,Richard Ayoade andJohn Oliver.[2][4]
Holness first appeared on television as a cast-member of the short-lived BBC Two comedy seriesBruiser in 2000.[5] In the same year,Garth Marenghi's Fright Knight, a stage show written by Holness and Ayoade and starring the pair along withAlice Lowe, was nominated for thePerrier Award at the Edinburgh Fringe.[6] The show was built around aspoof horror writer namedGarth Marenghi. The sequel,Garth Marenghi's Netherhead, won the Perrier Award the following year.[7]
He played the role of Simon, an arrogant and sarcastic computer technician in series two ofThe Office, which aired in 2002.[8] About the same time, he appeared in the comedy stage playThe Mighty Boosh, filling the role of Bob Fossil while regular cast memberRich Fulcher was overseas.[9]
In 2004, the character of Garth Marenghi transferred to television with the Channel 4 horror comedyGarth Marenghi's Darkplace. Despite critical acclaim and later, a cult following, the series suffered from relatively low ratings when first broadcast.[2]
In 2009, he appeared in the Channel 4 sitcomFree Agents. A year later he played the part of a bandleader inCemetery Junction, adramedy film byRicky Gervais andStephen Merchant.
In 2011, he played a minor role in the first episode of the Channel 4 sitcomFriday Night Dinner. The same year, "A Gun for George" was released. This was a short film written and directed by Holness in which he plays an angry loner who writes pulp-fiction crime novels about a vigilante called the Reprisalizer. He played the part of a smug lawyer inLife's Too Short, a sitcom starringWarwick Davis.[8]
Holness wrote and directed a 2012 short film for Sky Arts'Playhouse Presents series entitled "The Snipist", which depicted a dystopian alternative 1970s Britain stricken by rabies.Douglas Henshall starred, withJohn Hurt providing the voice of the Ministry.[10]
Holness wrote and directed the 2016 "Smutch", a Halloween Comedy Short shown on Sky Arts, in which he played an embittered author haunted by aghostwriter.[11]
In 2018, he played the part of brooding Swedish detective Knut Ångström in the BBC Radio 4 Nordic noir parodyAngstrom.[12]
The following year, he played Prince Hector of Bulgaria in an episode of the Channel 4 sitcomYear of the Rabbit.[13] The same year, Holness made his debut as a feature director withPossum, a psychological horror film set in Norfolk. He described the film as "not remotely funny".[2] In interviews to promotePossum, Holness said he had written a script for another horror film which he was also hoping to get made.[14]
In 2022, Holness announced a short fiction collection entitledGarth Marenghi's TerrorTome. This was written as Marenghi and presented as one of the character's own works, which Marenghi began working on in the 1980s. It was also released as an audiobook narrated by Holness as Marenghi. The collection was released in November 2022.[15]
Two follow-ups toGarth Marenghi's TerrorTome were released:Garth Marenghi’s Incarcerat in October 2023 andGarth Marenghi’s This Bursted Earth in October 2025.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Festival | Roger | |
| 2010 | Cemetery Junction | The Band Leader | |
| 2011 | A Gun for George | Terry Finch | Short film; also director, writer and composer |
| 2018 | Possum | N/a | Director and writer[16] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Bruiser | Various roles | 6 episodes; also writer |
| 2002 | The Office | Simon | Episode: "Motivation" |
| 2004 | Garth Marenghi's Darkplace | Garth Marenghi / Dr. Rick Dagless M.D. | 6 episodes; also co-creator and writer |
| 2005 | Casanova | Landlord | Episode #1.1 |
| 2006 | Time Trumpet | Himself | 6 episodes |
| Man to Man with Dean Learner | Various roles | 6 episodes; also co-creator, writer and executive producer | |
| 2009 | Free Agents | Dan Mackey | 6 episodes |
| 2011 | Friday Night Dinner | Chris | Episode: "The Sofa Bed" |
| 2011 | Life's Too Short | Ian Wold | 3 episodes[17] |
| 2012 | Playhouse Presents | N/a | Episode: "The Snipist"; director and writer |
| 2014 | Toast of London | Max Gland | Episode: "Buried Alive" |
| 2016 | Smutch | Oswin | Television short; also director, writer and composer |
| 2017 | Back | Laurie | 4 episodes |
| 2019 | Year of the Rabbit | Prince Hector of Bulgaria | Episode #1.4 |
| 2020 | The Haunting of Bly Manor | Dominic Wingrave | 2 episodes |
| 2021 | Bloods | Phil | 1 episode |
| 2021 | We Are Lady Parts | Gameshow Host | Episode: "Sparta" |
| 2022 | Toast of Tinseltown | Richard Chickentoss | Episode: "Doctor Grainger" |
| 2023 | Dodger | Sir Denholm Havers | 1 episode |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | The Department | Keith Bilk | 14 episodes |
| 2018 | Angstrom[18] | Knut Ångström | 4 episodes |
| Year | Title | Book | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | ? | Phobic: Modern Horror Stories[19] | Anthology |
| 2008 | 'Possum' | The New Uncanny[20] | Anthology |
| 2008 | 'The Toad and I' | Black Static 3[21] | Magazine |
| 2014 | 'Possum'?[22] | Dead Funny: Horror Stories by Comedians[23] | Anthology |
| 2014 | 'Introduction' | Reminiscences of a Bachelor[24] | Reprint |
| 2016 | (voiceover) | From Frazzled to Fabulous: How to Juggle Fatherhood, a Successful Career, 'Me Time' and Looking Good[25] | Audiobook |
| 2017 | (voiceover) | The Scarifyers: The Gnomes of Death[26] | Audiobook |
| 2017 | 'The Mastiff: A story of The Diggers' | Protest: Stories of Resistance[27] | Anthology |
| 2017 | (cast: Eric Drazen) | Doctor Who: The Lure of the Nomad[28] | Audiobook |
| 2022 | (Original author; audiobook narrator) | Garth Marenghi's TerrorTome[29] | Novel; audiobook |
| 2023 | (Original author; audiobook narrator) | Garth Marenghi's Incarcerat[30] | Novel; audiobook |
| 2025 | (Original author; audiobook narrator) | Garth Marenghi's This Bursted Earth[31] | Novel; audiobook |
(Julian Barratt:) Rich wasn't in the country at the time, so we got Matt Holness to do... (Noel Fielding:) From Garth Marenghi. (Julian Barratt:) Yeah. (Caption:) Matthew Holness, Guest Appearance as 'Bob Fossil'.
(end creditsP
Most of the tales explore damaged minds, whether it'sReece Shearsmith's dog-murdering boy,Mitch Benn's vengeful doctor orMatthew Holness's deranged puppeteer...
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