Jane Elizabeth Mary Fallon (born 9 December 1960)[1] is an English author and television producer.
Jane Fallon | |
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| Born | Jane Elizabeth Mary Fallon 9 December 1960 Harrow, London, England |
| Occupation |
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| Alma mater | University College London |
| Period | 1994–present |
| Genre |
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| Partner | Ricky Gervais (1982–present) |
| Website | |
| janefallonauthor | |
Early life and education
editBorn as the youngest of five children in Harrow, northwest London, Fallon's family moved to Buckinghamshire when she was a child, and she grew up in a flat above her parents' newsagent's shop.[2]
She was educated at St Bernard's Convent School in Slough, Berkshire, and University College London, where she studied history, graduating with a bachelor of arts in 1982.[3] Alongside her studies, she started writing for the history department's magazine, for the university newspaper, London Student, and for Pi Magazine.[4]
Career
editAfter her studies, she began working for a theatrical literary agency. After a few years there, she decided to become a freelance script reader and script editor for different theatrical productions and television, and in 1994, she advanced to become a producer on the series EastEnders. This was followed by a number of awarded series, such as This Life, 20 Things to Do Before You're 30, and Teachers.[4]
By 2006, Fallon had decided to leave television and become a full-time novelist. A year later, she debuted with her first national bestseller, Getting Rid of Matthew. She has followed this with Got You Back, Foursome, The Ugly Sister, Skeletons, Strictly Between Us, My Sweet Revenge, Faking Friends, Tell Me a Secret, Queen Bee, Worst. Idea. Ever. and Just Got Real.[5] Her books have been translated into more than 20 languages.[4]
Her 2008 novel, Got You Back, was made into a musical titled Joyride, with music by the Swedish pop group Roxette. The world premiere took place in Sweden at Malmö Opera on 6 September 2024.[6]
In 2011, Foursome was nominated for the Melissa Nathan Award for Romantic Comedy Fiction and in 2018, Faking Friends was nominated in the popular fiction category of the National Book Awards.[7][8] In 2019, it was longlisted for the Comedy Women in Print Prize.[9] In 2020 she was awarded an honorary fellowship of University College London.[4]
Personal life
editFallon has been in a relationship with comedian Ricky Gervais since 1982; they met while studying at University College London. The couple have lived together since 1984 and reside in Hampstead.[10][11][12][13] Fallon's niece, Elsie Fallon, is an actress.[14]
Filmography (producer)
edit- EastEnders (1985–1994)
- This Life (1996–1997)[15]
- Undercover Heart (1998)
- Massive Landmarks of the 20th Century (1999)
- Teachers (2001)[15]
- 20 Things to Do Before You're 30 (2002)
- Single (2003)
Bibliography
editAll published by Penguin, unless otherwise stated:
- Getting Rid of Matthew (2007) ISBN 0141025298 featured in the 2007 Richard and Judy Book Club
- Got You Back (2008) ISBN 0141034408
- Foursome (2010) ISBN 1782920307
- The Ugly Sister (2011) Pub. CB Creative Books ISBN 1782920323
- Skeletons (2014) ISBN 1444825232
- Strictly Between Us (2016) ISBN 1405917679
- My Sweet Revenge (2017) ISBN 9781405917759
- Faking Friends (2018) ISBN 9781405933094
- Tell Me a Secret (2019) ISBN 1405933127
- Queen Bee (2020) ISBN 1405943343 featured in the 2020 Richard and Judy Book Club
- Worst. Idea. Ever. (2021) ISBN 0241515335 shortlisted for the British Book Awards "Page Turner of the Year" award in May 2022
- Just Got Real (2022) ISBN 1405951117
References
edit- ^ Sharp, Rob (13 March 2010). "My secret life: Jane Fallon, author & TV producer, 49". Independent. London. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
- ^ "My Secret Life: Jane Fallon, author & TV producer, 49". The Independent. 13 March 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
- ^ www.janefallon.co.uk. "Jane Fallon". Archived from the original on 27 August 2015. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
- ^ a b c d UCL 11 February, 2020, "Top novelist and television producer Jane Fallon awarded UCL Honorary Fellowship"
- ^ Curtis Brown, "Jane Fallon books"
- ^ "Joyride the Musical". malmoopera.se. 15 November 2023. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
- ^ The Bookseller, 4 February, 2011, "Two Pan Mac on Melissa Nathan shortlist"
- ^ Curtis Brown, 30 October, 2018, "Specialers National Book Awards 2018 shortlist announced"
- ^ British Comedy Guide, 1 April, 2019, "Comedy Women in Print Prize 2019 linguists"
- ^ "Tricky Ricky". W Magazine. June 2008. Archived from the original on 4 February 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
- ^ Jane Fallon [@JaneFallon] (10 March 2020). "I have awful news" (Tweet). Retrieved 8 August 2020 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Talking cats with... Ricky Gervais". Your Cat. 7 November 2014. Archived from the original on 4 February 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
- ^ Ricky Gervais—Friday Night with Jonathan Ross—14/11/2003 Part 2 of 2. Put The Telly On. YouTube. 27 July 2010. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
- ^ Jane Fallon [@JaneFallon] (11 August 2016). "Proud auntie :)" (Tweet). Retrieved 8 August 2020 – via Twitter.
- ^ a b Adam Jacques (10 January 2016). "Adele Parks & Jane Fallon: 'I was worried I'd be scared of her because of the way the heroines are in her books: ballsy, arsey, in your face'". independent.co.uk. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
