Tom Rob Smith | |
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 Smith at 2013Frankfurt Book Fair | |
| Born | (1979-02-19)February 19, 1979 (age 46) London, England |
| Occupation |
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| Genre | Thriller,Mystery |
| Website | |
| tomrobsmith | |
Tom Rob Smith (born February 19, 1979[1]) is an English author, screenwriter and producer. He is best known as the author ofChild 44, a novel about the investigation of child murders during theSoviet Union. The book was adapted into a film of the same name, and Smith has written two sequels:The Secret Speech andAgent 6. His first standalone novel,The Farm, was published in 2014.
The son of Swedish mother Barbro and English father Ron, both antiques dealers,[2] Smith was born and raised atNorbury,South London.[3] He went to school atDulwich College between the years of 1987 and 1997.[1] Following his graduation fromSt John's College, Cambridge, in 2001, he received the Harper Wood Studentship for English Poetry and Literature and continued his Creative Writing studies for a year at theUniversity of Pavia, in Italy. He was formerly the partner ofBen Stephenson.[4][5][6]
After completing his studies, Smith worked as a writer and a script editor, including a stint with the BBC. Among his projects was story-lining Cambodia's first soap opera, set inPhnom Penh.[2]
His first novel,Child 44, published in early 2008, was inspired by the true-life case ofAndrei Chikatilo, who committed a series of child murders in Soviet Russia. It was awarded the 2008Ian Fleming Steel Dagger for best thriller of the year by theCrime Writers' Association, named on the long list for the 2008Man Booker Prize, and nominated for the2008 Costa First Novel Award (former Whitbread). In July 2009, he won theWaverton Good Read Award for first novels and theGalaxy Book Award for Best Newcomer withChild 44. It has been translated into 36 languages and in January 2011, Richard Madeley and Judy Finnegan listed it in their Book Club "100 Books of the Decade".[7] In 2007,Ridley Scott optioned thefilm rights.[8]
Fox 2000 bought the project. A film based on the novel was announced in 2009, withRidley Scott originally attached as both director and producer.[9]The 2015 film was produced by Scott and his longtime production collaboratorMichael Costigan, viaScott Free Productions, and directed byDaniel Espinosa.Child 44 starsGary Oldman,Tom Hardy,Noomi Rapace,Charles Dance, andJoel Kinnaman.[citation needed]
Smith's sequel toChild 44,The Secret Speech, was published in April 2009, and the final novel in the trilogy,Agent 6, was published in July 2011.[10] Smith's fourth book, a standalone novel entitledThe Farm, was published in February 2014.[11]
Smith also wrote a drama television series,London Spy, which was first broadcast onBBC Two in November 2015.
Smith was selected as executive producer and writer for season 2 ofAmerican Crime Story, anFX true crime anthology series. It is titledThe Assassination of Gianni Versace and explores the murder of designerGianni Versace by serial killerAndrew Cunanan.[12]
| Production | Episodes | Broadcaster |
|---|---|---|
| Doctors |
| BBC One |
| Dream Team |
| Sky One |
| London Spy |
| BBC Two |
| The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story |
| FX |
| MotherFatherSon |
| BBC Two |
| Class of '09 |
| FX on Hulu |
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)