Mark Gatiss
Encyclopedia
Mark Gatiss is an English actor, screenwriter and novelist. He is best known as a member of the comedy team The League of Gentlemen
, and has both written for and acted in the TV series Doctor Who
and Sherlock.
, England, where he grew up opposite the Edwardian psychiatric hospital where both his parents worked. His childhood passions included watching Doctor Who
and Hammer Horror films on television, reading Sherlock Holmes
and H. G. Wells
, and collecting fossils. All of these interests have fuelled his creative work as an adult.
He attended Heighington CE Primary School
and Woodham Comprehensive School
in Newton Aycliffe
; at the latter, he was two years ahead of Paul Magrs
, who would also go on to write Doctor Who fiction.
He is openly gay and featured on The Independent on Sunday's Pink List of influential gay people in the UK in 2010 and 2011. He is married to actor Ian Hallard, and has a Labrador
, 'Bunsen'. He once built a Victorian
laboratory in their London home, as the fulfilment of another childhood dream.
series of Doctor Who stories, beginning with Nightshade
in 1992. In these works, Gatiss tried to correct the problems which had led to the show's decline in the late 1980s.
The first television scripts he wrote were for a BBV
video series called P.R.O.B.E.
, four low budget, short Doctor Who spin-off films which were on video. Although the films featured the ex-Doctors Jon Pertwee
, Colin Baker
and Peter Davison
, they have not been reissued on DVD. Gatiss said in a 2004 interview that he would not authorise their re-release as regarded them as having been a learning exercise.
His other early contributions to the Doctor Who franchise included four novels, two audio plays for BBV and two audio plays for Big Finish Productions
.
(along with fellow performers Reece Shearsmith
, Steve Pemberton
and co-writer Jeremy Dyson
). He first met his co-writers and performers in his late teens at Bretton Hall, West Yorkshire, a drama school which he attended after finishing school and having spent a gap year travelling around Europe.
The League of Gentlemen began as a stage act in 1995, which won the Perrier Award at Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1997. In the same year the show transferred to BBC Radio 4
as On the Town with the League of Gentlemen, and later arrived on television on BBC Two
in 1999. The television programme has earned Gatiss and his colleagues a British Academy Television Award, a Royal Television Society
Award and the prestigious Golden Rose of Montreux.
In 2005, the film The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse
was released, to less enthusiastic reviews. The comedy team has never split up, and may work together again in future.
and script editing the popular sketch show Little Britain
in 2003, making guest appearances in both. In 2001 he guested in Spaced
as a villainous government employee modelled on the character of Agent Smith
from The Matrix
film series. In the same year he appeared in several editions of the documentary series, "SF:UK". Other acting appearances include the comedy-drama In the Red (BBC Two
, 1998), the macabre sitcom Nighty Night
(BBC Three
, 2003), Agatha Christie's Marple as Ronald Hawes in The Murder at the Vicarage, a guest appearance in the Vic & Bob series Catterick
in 2004 and the live 2005 remake
of the classic science fiction serial The Quatermass Experiment
. A second series of Nighty Night and the new comedy-drama Funland
, the latter co-written by his League cohort Jeremy Dyson
, both featured Gatiss and aired on BBC Three in the autumn of 2005. He appeared as Johnnie Cradock
, alongside Nighty Night star Julia Davis
as Fanny Cradock
, in Fear of Fanny on BBC Four in October 2006, and featured as Ratty in a new production of The Wind in the Willows
shown on BBC One on 1 January 2007. He wrote and starred in the BBC Four docudrama The Worst Journey in the World
, based on the memoir by polar explorer Apsley Cherry-Garrard
.
Gatiss has also appeared twice in Doctor Who. In 2007, he played Professor Lazarus in "The Lazarus Experiment
" and in 2011 he returned in the Series 6 episode "The Wedding of River Song
" as a character known as Gantok.
Also in 2007, he appeared as Robert Louis Stevenson
in Jekyll
, a BBC One serial by his fellow Doctor Who scriptwriter Steven Moffat
. In 2008 he appeared in Clone
as Colonel Black. He also made a guest appearance in Pemberton and Shearsmith's comedy series Psychoville
. In 2010 he portrayed Malcolm MacLaren
in the BBC drama Worried About The Boy
which focused on the life and career of Boy George
, and also appeared uncredited as Mycroft Holmes
in the BBC drama Sherlock, which he co-created with Steven Moffat
.
He adapted HG Wells' The First Men In the Moon
as a 2010 television film of the same name
for the BBC, also playing Professor Cavor.
In 2010 he also made a three-part BBC documentary series entitled A History of Horror
, a personal exploration of the history of horror cinema.
productions, including the science fiction comedy Nebulous
and The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
story The Shameful Betrayal of Miss Emily Smith. In 2009 he was The Man in Black when BBC Radio 7 revived the character (originally played by Valentine Dyall
and Edward de Souza
) to introduce a series of five creepy audio dramas. He is also involved with theatre, having penned the play The Teen People in the early 1990s, and appeared in a successful run of the play 'Art'
in 2003 at the Whitehall Theatre in London. In film, he has starred in Sex Lives of the Potato Men
(2004) and had minor roles in Birthday Girl
(2001), Bright Young Things
(2003), Match Point (2005) and Starter for 10 (2006). The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse
, a film based on the television series, co-written by and starring Gatiss, was released in June 2005. He also plays the recurring character of Gold in the audio revivial of Sapphire and Steel produced by Big Finish Productions
. Gatiss also appeared in Edgar Wright
's fake trailer for Grindhouse, Don't, a homage to 70's Hammer Horrors.
In the 2008 English language DVD re-release of the cult 2006 Norwegian animated film Free Jimmy
, Gatiss voiced the character of "Jakki", a heavy-set, bizarrely dressed biker member of the "Lappish Mafia". In this his voice is used along with the other actors of League of Gentlemen such as Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith. The dialogue was written by Simon Pegg
and other actors included Pegg himself, Woody Harrelson
, and David Tennant
, who worked with Gatiss on Doctor Who.
Mark appeared in the stage adaptation of Pedro Almodóvar
's All About My Mother
at the Old Vic
in London from 25 Aug-24 Nov 2007. He won much critical acclaim for his portrayal of the semi-transsexual Agrado.
Mark was scheduled to perform in Darker Shores by Michael Punter, a ghost story for all the family, at Hampstead Theatre
3 December 2009 - 16 January 2010 but had to withdraw after a serious family illness. Tom Goodman-Hill
took over his role.
In March 2010 he was a guest on Private Passions
, the biographical music discussion programme on BBC Radio 3
.
From December 2010 to March 2011 Gatiss was playing the role of Bernard in Alan Ayckbourn
's Season's Greetings at the Royal National Theatre
in London alongside Catherine Tate
.
" was only the third episode of the revived series in 2005; the second, "The Idiot's Lantern
", aired the following year in the second series. After a sabbatical from the third series (in which he acted in rather than wrote for), and his submitted script for the fourth series, involving Nazis and the British Museum, remaining unmade, he eventually returned to the programme as of 2010, writing "Victory of the Daleks
" for the fifth series, and "Night Terrors
" for the sixth.
Gatiss has written two episodes of Sherlock, a modern Sherlock Holmes
series co-produced by himself and Steven Moffat
. The unaired pilot was shot in January 2009 and a full series was commissioned, eventually airing a three-episode series in August 2010 (including Gatiss's episode "The Great Game
"). A second series (featuring Gatiss's second contribution "The Hounds of Baskerville") has been shot and is awaiting transmission.
Gatiss wrote and performed the comedy sketches The Web of Caves, The Kidnappers and The Pitch of Fear for the BBC's "Doctor Who Night
" in 1999 with Little Britain's David Walliams
, and played the Master
in the Doctor Who Unbound play Sympathy for the Devil
under the name "Sam Kisgart", a pseudonym he later used for a column in Doctor Who Magazine
. (The pseudonym is an anagram]of "Mark Gatiss", a nod to Anthony Ainley
, who was sometimes credited under an anagram to conceal the Master's identity from the viewers.) The pseudonym was used again in television listings magazines when he appeared in episode four of Psychoville, so as not to spoil his surprise appearance in advance.
In mainstream print, Gatiss is responsible for a biography of the film director James Whale
. His first non-Doctor Who novel, The Vesuvius Club
, was published in 2004, for which he was nominated in the category of Best Newcomer in the 2006 British Book Awards
. A follow up, The Devil in Amber
, was released on 6 November 2006. It transports the main character, Lucifer Box
, from the Edwardian era in the first book to the roaring Twenties/Thirties. A third and final Lucifer Box novel, Black Butterfly
, was published on 3 November 2008 by Simon & Schuster
.
Gatiss also wrote, co-produced and appeared in Crooked House
, a ghost story that was broadcast on BBC Four
during Christmas 2008.
The League of Gentlemen
The League of Gentlemen are a group of British comedians formed in 1995, best known for their radio and television series.The League of Gentlemen may also refer to:* The League of Gentlemen ,...
, and has both written for and acted in the TV series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
and Sherlock.
Personal life
Gatiss was born in SedgefieldSedgefield
Sedgefield is a small town and civil parish in County Durham, England. It has a population of 4,534.Sedgefield has attracted particular attention as the Member of Parliament for the wider Sedgefield constituency was the former Prime Minister Tony Blair; he was the area's MP from 1983 to 2008,...
, England, where he grew up opposite the Edwardian psychiatric hospital where both his parents worked. His childhood passions included watching Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
and Hammer Horror films on television, reading Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
and H. G. Wells
H. G. Wells
Herbert George Wells was an English author, now best known for his work in the science fiction genre. He was also a prolific writer in many other genres, including contemporary novels, history, politics and social commentary, even writing text books and rules for war games...
, and collecting fossils. All of these interests have fuelled his creative work as an adult.
He attended Heighington CE Primary School
Heighington CE Primary School
Heighinton CE Primary School is a voluntary controlled Church of England primary school located in the village of Heighington, near Newton Aycliffe, County Durham. It educates around 260 pupils aged 4–11. It has a rural locality and has been assessed by Ofsted as providing an outstanding education...
and Woodham Comprehensive School
Woodham Community Technology College
Woodham Community Technology College previously known as "Woodham Comprehensive School" is a comprehensive school and former sixth form college in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, England.-Admissions:...
in Newton Aycliffe
Newton Aycliffe
Newton Aycliffe is a town in County Durham, England. Founded in 1947 under the New Towns Act of 1946, it is the oldest new town in the north of England.-Geography:...
; at the latter, he was two years ahead of Paul Magrs
Paul Magrs
Paul Magrs is a writer and lecturer. He was born in Jarrow, Tyne and Wear, England, and now lives in Manchester with his partner, author and lecturer Jeremy Hoad.-Early life:...
, who would also go on to write Doctor Who fiction.
He is openly gay and featured on The Independent on Sunday's Pink List of influential gay people in the UK in 2010 and 2011. He is married to actor Ian Hallard, and has a Labrador
Labrador Retriever
The Labrador Retriever is one of several kinds of retriever, a type of gun dog. A breed characteristic is webbed paws for swimming, useful for the breed's original purpose of retrieving fishing nets. The Labrador is the most popular breed of dog by registered ownership in Canada, the United...
, 'Bunsen'. He once built a Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
laboratory in their London home, as the fulfilment of another childhood dream.
Early writing work
Following his childhood interest in Doctor Who, Gatiss's early writing was devoted to the series. His earliest published fiction was a sequence of novels in Virgin Publishing's New AdventuresVirgin New Adventures
The Virgin New Adventures were a series of novels from Virgin Publishing based on the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who...
series of Doctor Who stories, beginning with Nightshade
Nightshade (Doctor Who)
Nightshade is an original novel written by Mark Gatiss and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Seventh Doctor and Ace. A prelude to the novel, also penned by Gatiss, appeared in Doctor Who Magazine #190.-Synopsis:The Doctor and Ace end up...
in 1992. In these works, Gatiss tried to correct the problems which had led to the show's decline in the late 1980s.
The first television scripts he wrote were for a BBV
BBV
BBV is a video and audio production company specialising in science fiction drama, known for its links with the British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
video series called P.R.O.B.E.
P.R.O.B.E.
P.R.O.B.E. is a series of four videos written by Mark Gatiss and produced by BBV Productions. It predates Torchwood as the first ongoing spin-off of the Doctor Who universe....
, four low budget, short Doctor Who spin-off films which were on video. Although the films featured the ex-Doctors Jon Pertwee
Jon Pertwee
John Devon Roland Pertwee , was an English actor. Pertwee is best known for his role in the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, in which he played the third incarnation of the Doctor from 1970 to 1974, and as the title character in the series Worzel Gummidge...
, Colin Baker
Colin Baker
Colin Baker is a British actor who is known for playing Paul Merroney in The Brothers from 1974 to 1976 and as the sixth incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who, from 1984 to 1986.- Background:Colin Baker was born in London, but moved north to...
and Peter Davison
Peter Davison
Peter Davison is a British actor, best known for his roles as Tristan Farnon in the television version of James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small and the fifth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, which he played from 1982 to 1984.-Early life:Davison was born Peter Moffett in Streatham,...
, they have not been reissued on DVD. Gatiss said in a 2004 interview that he would not authorise their re-release as regarded them as having been a learning exercise.
His other early contributions to the Doctor Who franchise included four novels, two audio plays for BBV and two audio plays for Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
.
The League of Gentlemen
Gatiss is perhaps best known as a member of the sketch comedy team The League of GentlemenThe League of Gentlemen
The League of Gentlemen are a group of British comedians formed in 1995, best known for their radio and television series.The League of Gentlemen may also refer to:* The League of Gentlemen ,...
(along with fellow performers Reece Shearsmith
Reece Shearsmith
Reeson "Reece" Shearsmith is an English actor and writer. He is most famous for his work as part of The League of Gentlemen along with fellow performers Steve Pemberton, Mark Gatiss and co-writer Jeremy Dyson.-Early life:...
, Steve Pemberton
Steve Pemberton
Steve James Pemberton is an English actor, comedian, writer and performer, most famous as a member of The League of Gentlemen along with fellow performers Reece Shearsmith, Mark Gatiss and co-writer Jeremy Dyson.-Early life:...
and co-writer Jeremy Dyson
Jeremy Dyson
Jeremy Dyson is an English screenwriter and, along with Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, a participant in The League of Gentlemen.-Early life:...
). He first met his co-writers and performers in his late teens at Bretton Hall, West Yorkshire, a drama school which he attended after finishing school and having spent a gap year travelling around Europe.
The League of Gentlemen began as a stage act in 1995, which won the Perrier Award at Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1997. In the same year the show transferred to BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
as On the Town with the League of Gentlemen, and later arrived on television on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
in 1999. The television programme has earned Gatiss and his colleagues a British Academy Television Award, a Royal Television Society
Royal Television Society
The Royal Television Society is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present and future. It is the oldest television society in the world...
Award and the prestigious Golden Rose of Montreux.
In 2005, the film The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse
The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse
The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse is a feature film spin-off of the popular British television comedy series The League of Gentlemen. Starring Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, the film was written by the cast with Jeremy Dyson, and directed by Steve Bendelack...
was released, to less enthusiastic reviews. The comedy team has never split up, and may work together again in future.
Other television work
Outside of the League, Gatiss' television work has included writing for the 2001 revival of Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased)Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased)
Randall & Hopkirk is a British television series, produced by Working Title Films for BBC One. It is a remake of the 1960s television series Randall and Hopkirk and stars Vic Reeves as Hopkirk and Bob Mortimer as Randall, Emilia Fox as Jeannie, and Tom Baker as Wyvern.- Background :Two series...
and script editing the popular sketch show Little Britain
Little Britain
Little Britain is a British character-based comedy sketch show which was first broadcast on BBC radio and then turned into a television show. It was written by comic duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas...
in 2003, making guest appearances in both. In 2001 he guested in Spaced
Spaced
Spaced is a British television sitcom written by and starring Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson, and directed by Edgar Wright. It is noted for its rapid-fire editing, frequent pop culture references and jokes, eclectic music, and occasional displays of surrealism and non-sequitur humour...
as a villainous government employee modelled on the character of Agent Smith
Agent Smith
Agent Smith is the main antagonist of The Matrix film series and multimedia franchise, mainly played by actor Hugo Weaving and briefly by actor Ian Bliss in the films and voiced by Christopher Corey Smith in The Matrix: Path of Neo.In 2008, Agent Smith was selected by Empire Magazine as number 84...
from The Matrix
The Matrix
The Matrix is a 1999 science fiction-action film written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, and Hugo Weaving...
film series. In the same year he appeared in several editions of the documentary series, "SF:UK". Other acting appearances include the comedy-drama In the Red (BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
, 1998), the macabre sitcom Nighty Night
Nighty Night
Nighty Night is a British dark comedy sitcom written by and starring Julia Davis. It was first broadcast on 6 January 2004 on BBC Three before moving to BBC2....
(BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
, 2003), Agatha Christie's Marple as Ronald Hawes in The Murder at the Vicarage, a guest appearance in the Vic & Bob series Catterick
Catterick (TV series)
Catterick, aka Vic and Bob in Catterick, is a surreal 2004 BBC situation comedy in 6 episodes, written by and starring Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer, with Reece Shearsmith, Matt Lucas, Morwenna Banks, Tim Healy, Mark Benton and Charlie Higson. The series was originally broadcast on BBC Three and...
in 2004 and the live 2005 remake
The Quatermass Experiment (2005)
The Quatermass Experiment was a 2005 live remake of the 1953 TV series of the same name by Nigel Kneale.-Production:The remake was commissioned as part of a "TV on Trial" season being run by BBC Four, examining past television trends and productions...
of the classic science fiction serial The Quatermass Experiment
The Quatermass Experiment
The Quatermass Experiment is a British science-fiction serial broadcast by BBC Television in the summer of 1953 and re-staged by BBC Four in 2005. Set in the near future against the background of a British space programme, it tells the story of the first manned flight into space, overseen by...
. A second series of Nighty Night and the new comedy-drama Funland
Funland
Funland is a comedy / thriller serial, produced by the BBC that was first screened from Sunday 23 October 2005 to Monday 7 November 2005 , on the digital channel BBC Three...
, the latter co-written by his League cohort Jeremy Dyson
Jeremy Dyson
Jeremy Dyson is an English screenwriter and, along with Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, a participant in The League of Gentlemen.-Early life:...
, both featured Gatiss and aired on BBC Three in the autumn of 2005. He appeared as Johnnie Cradock
Johnnie Cradock
Major John "Johnnie" Whitby Cradock was a cook, writer and broadcaster and the fourth husband of television cook and writer Fanny Cradock....
, alongside Nighty Night star Julia Davis
Julia Davis
Julia Davis is an English comedy writer and performer, best known for writing and starring in the BBC Three comedy Nighty Night.-Background:...
as Fanny Cradock
Fanny Cradock
Phyllis Nan Sortain Pechey , better known as Fanny Cradock, was an English restaurant critic, television cook and writer who mostly worked with her then common-law husband Johnnie Cradock, adopting his surname long before they married. She was the daughter of the novelist and lyricist Archibald...
, in Fear of Fanny on BBC Four in October 2006, and featured as Ratty in a new production of The Wind in the Willows
The Wind in the Willows (2006 film)
The Wind in the Willows is a 2006 live-action television adaptation of Kenneth Grahame's classic novel The Wind in the Willows. It was a joint production of the BBC and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and starred Matt Lucas , Bob Hoskins , Mark Gatiss , and Lee Ingleby . Rachel Talalay directed...
shown on BBC One on 1 January 2007. He wrote and starred in the BBC Four docudrama The Worst Journey in the World
The Worst Journey in the World (docudrama)
The Worst Journey in the World is a 2007 BBC Television docudrama based on the memoir of the same name by polar explorer Apsley Cherry-Garrard.-Synopsis:...
, based on the memoir by polar explorer Apsley Cherry-Garrard
Apsley Cherry-Garrard
Apsley George Benet Cherry-Garrard was an English explorer of Antarctica. He was a survivor of the Terra Nova Expedition and is acclaimed for his historical account of this expedition, The Worst Journey in the World....
.
Gatiss has also appeared twice in Doctor Who. In 2007, he played Professor Lazarus in "The Lazarus Experiment
The Lazarus Experiment
"The Lazarus Experiment" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 5 May 2007 and is the sixth episode of Series 3 of the revived Doctor Who series. It stars David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor and Martha Jones as his companion, played...
" and in 2011 he returned in the Series 6 episode "The Wedding of River Song
The Wedding of River Song
"The Wedding of River Song" is the thirteenth and final episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was first broadcast on BBC One, BBC America and Space on 1 October 2011.-Plot:...
" as a character known as Gantok.
Also in 2007, he appeared as Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
in Jekyll
Jekyll (TV serial)
Jekyll is a British television drama serial produced by Hartswood Films and Stagescreen Productions for BBC One. The series also received funding from BBC America...
, a BBC One serial by his fellow Doctor Who scriptwriter Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat is a Scottish television writer and producer.Moffat's first television work was the teen drama series Press Gang. His first sitcom, Joking Apart, was inspired by the breakdown of his first marriage; conversely, his later sitcom Coupling was based upon the development of his...
. In 2008 he appeared in Clone
Clone (TV series)
Clone is a 2008 BBC Three comedy series starring Jonathan Pryce and Mark Gatiss, centred on the creation and education of the world's first human clone...
as Colonel Black. He also made a guest appearance in Pemberton and Shearsmith's comedy series Psychoville
Psychoville
Psychoville is an award-winning British dark comedy television serial written by and starring The League of Gentlemen members Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton. It debuted on BBC Two on 18 June 2009. Pemberton and Shearsmith each play numerous characters, with Dawn French and Jason Tompkins in...
. In 2010 he portrayed Malcolm MacLaren
Malcolm McLaren
Malcolm Robert Andrew McLaren was an English performer, impresario, self-publicist and manager of the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls...
in the BBC drama Worried About The Boy
Worried About The Boy
Worried About the Boy is a 2010 television drama centred around the life of George O'Dowd . It starred Douglas Booth as George and Mathew Horne as lover Jon Moss. It was shown on BBC2 as part of 80's season...
which focused on the life and career of Boy George
Boy George
Boy George is a British singer-songwriter who was part of the English New Romantic movement which emerged in the early 1980s. He helped give androgyny an international stage with the success of Culture Club during the 1980s. His music is often classified as blue-eyed soul, which is influenced by...
, and also appeared uncredited as Mycroft Holmes
Mycroft Holmes
Mycroft Holmes is a fictional character in the stories written by Arthur Conan Doyle. He is the elder brother of the famous detective Sherlock Holmes.- Profile :...
in the BBC drama Sherlock, which he co-created with Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat is a Scottish television writer and producer.Moffat's first television work was the teen drama series Press Gang. His first sitcom, Joking Apart, was inspired by the breakdown of his first marriage; conversely, his later sitcom Coupling was based upon the development of his...
.
He adapted HG Wells' The First Men In the Moon
The First Men in the Moon
The First Men in the Moon is a 1901 scientific romance novel by the English author H. G. Wells. The novel tells the story of a journey to the moon undertaken by the two protagonists, the impoverished businessman Mr Bedford and the brilliant but eccentric scientist Dr. Cavor...
as a 2010 television film of the same name
The First Men in the Moon (2010 film)
The First Men in the Moon, also promoted as H.G. Wells' The First Men in the Moon is a 2010 made for TV drama written by Mark Gatiss and directed by Damon Thomas. It is an adaptation of H. G. Wells's science fiction novel The First Men in the Moon...
for the BBC, also playing Professor Cavor.
In 2010 he also made a three-part BBC documentary series entitled A History of Horror
A History of Horror
A History of Horror is a 2010 three-part documentary series made for the BBC by British writer and actor Mark Gatiss...
, a personal exploration of the history of horror cinema.
Radio, stage and film
Gatiss appears frequently in BBC RadioBBC Radio
BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...
productions, including the science fiction comedy Nebulous
Nebulous
Nebulous is a post apocalyptic science fiction comedy radio show written by Graham Duff and produced by Ted Dowd from Baby Cow Productions; it is directed by Nicholas Briggs. The series premiered in the United Kingdom on BBC Radio 4...
and The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
This article is about the BBC Radio 4 series transmitted from 2002 to 2010. There is also a U.S. produced series, which began in 1998, that transmits under the same title....
story The Shameful Betrayal of Miss Emily Smith. In 2009 he was The Man in Black when BBC Radio 7 revived the character (originally played by Valentine Dyall
Valentine Dyall
Valentine Dyall was an English character actor, the son of veteran actor Franklin Dyall. Dyall was especially popular as a voice actor, due to his very distinctive sepulchral voice, he was known for many years as "The Man in Black", narrator of the BBC Radio horror series Appointment With Fear.In...
and Edward de Souza
Edward de Souza
Edward James de Souza is a British character actor and graduate of RADA with ethnic Portuguese Indian and English origins.-Early life:...
) to introduce a series of five creepy audio dramas. He is also involved with theatre, having penned the play The Teen People in the early 1990s, and appeared in a successful run of the play 'Art'
'Art' (play)
‘Art’ is a French language play by Yasmina Reza that premiered on 28 October 1994 at Comédie des Champs-Élysées in Paris. The English language adaptation, translated by Christopher Hampton opened in London's West End on 15 October 1996, starring Albert Finney. It played on Broadway in New York...
in 2003 at the Whitehall Theatre in London. In film, he has starred in Sex Lives of the Potato Men
Sex Lives of the Potato Men
Sex Lives of the Potato Men is a British comedy film released in 2004.The film is about the sexual antics of a group of potato delivery men in Birmingham and stars Johnny Vegas and Mackenzie Crook....
(2004) and had minor roles in Birthday Girl
Birthday Girl
Birthday Girl is a 2001 British-American drama and crime film directed by Jez Butterworth. The plot focuses on English bank clerk John Buckingham who orders a Russian mail-order bride, Nadia. It becomes clear upon her arrival that Nadia cannot speak English, and early into her stay, two mysterious...
(2001), Bright Young Things
Bright Young Things
Bright Young Things is a 2003 British drama film written and directed by Stephen Fry. The screenplay, based on the 1930 novel Vile Bodies by Evelyn Waugh, provides satirical social commentary about the Bright Young People: young and carefree London aristocrats and bohemians, as well as society in...
(2003), Match Point (2005) and Starter for 10 (2006). The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse
The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse
The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse is a feature film spin-off of the popular British television comedy series The League of Gentlemen. Starring Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, the film was written by the cast with Jeremy Dyson, and directed by Steve Bendelack...
, a film based on the television series, co-written by and starring Gatiss, was released in June 2005. He also plays the recurring character of Gold in the audio revivial of Sapphire and Steel produced by Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
. Gatiss also appeared in Edgar Wright
Edgar Wright
Edgar Howard Wright is an English film and television director and writer. He is most famous for his work with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost on the films Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, the TV series Spaced, and for directing the film Scott Pilgrim vs...
's fake trailer for Grindhouse, Don't, a homage to 70's Hammer Horrors.
In the 2008 English language DVD re-release of the cult 2006 Norwegian animated film Free Jimmy
Free Jimmy
Free Jimmy is a Norwegian/British computer animated feature film first released in Norwegian language in 2006, and later in English language in 2008. The film was written and directed by acclaimed Norwegian subculture comic book artist Christopher Nielsen...
, Gatiss voiced the character of "Jakki", a heavy-set, bizarrely dressed biker member of the "Lappish Mafia". In this his voice is used along with the other actors of League of Gentlemen such as Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith. The dialogue was written by Simon Pegg
Simon Pegg
Simon Pegg is an English actor, comedian, writer, film producer, and director. He is best known for having co-written and stared in various Edgar Wright features, mainly Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and the comedy series Spaced.He also portrayed Montgomery "Scotty" Scott in the 2009 Star Trek film...
and other actors included Pegg himself, Woody Harrelson
Woody Harrelson
Woodrow Tracy "Woody" Harrelson is an American actor.Harrelson's breakthrough role came in the television sitcom Cheers as bartender Woody Boyd...
, and David Tennant
David Tennant
David Tennant is a Scottish actor. In addition to his work in theatre, including a widely praised Hamlet, Tennant is best known for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, along with the title role in the 2005 TV serial Casanova and as Barty Crouch, Jr...
, who worked with Gatiss on Doctor Who.
Mark appeared in the stage adaptation of Pedro Almodóvar
Pedro Almodóvar
Pedro Almodóvar Caballero is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Almodóvar is arguably the most successful and internationally known Spanish filmmaker of his generation. His films, marked by complex narratives, employ the codes of melodrama and use elements of pop culture, popular...
's All About My Mother
All About My Mother
All About My Mother is a 1999 Spanish drama film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar. The film deals with complex issues such as AIDS, transvestitism, faith, and existentialism....
at the Old Vic
Old Vic
The Old Vic is a theatre located just south-east of Waterloo Station in London on the corner of The Cut and Waterloo Road. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, it was taken over by Emma Cons in 1880 when it was known formally as the Royal Victoria Hall. In 1898, a niece of Cons, Lilian...
in London from 25 Aug-24 Nov 2007. He won much critical acclaim for his portrayal of the semi-transsexual Agrado.
Mark was scheduled to perform in Darker Shores by Michael Punter, a ghost story for all the family, at Hampstead Theatre
Hampstead Theatre
Hampstead Theatre is a theatre in the vicinity of Swiss Cottage and Belsize Park, in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. In 2009 it celebrates its 50 year anniversary.The original theatre was...
3 December 2009 - 16 January 2010 but had to withdraw after a serious family illness. Tom Goodman-Hill
Tom Goodman-Hill
Tom Goodman-Hill is an English actor of radio, film, stage and television.Born as Tom Hill and raised near Newcastle upon Tyne, he qualified as a teacher before turning to acting. During his time in Newcastle, he regularly acted in amateur performances at the People's Theatre...
took over his role.
In March 2010 he was a guest on Private Passions
Private Passions
Private Passions is a weekly music discussion programme which has been running for over 10 years on BBC Radio 3, presented by the composer Michael Berkeley...
, the biographical music discussion programme on BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
.
From December 2010 to March 2011 Gatiss was playing the role of Bernard in Alan Ayckbourn
Alan Ayckbourn
Sir Alan Ayckbourn CBE is a prolific English playwright. He has written and produced seventy-three full-length plays in Scarborough and London and was, between 1972 and 2009, the artistic director of the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough, where all but four of his plays have received their...
's Season's Greetings at the Royal National Theatre
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
in London alongside Catherine Tate
Catherine Tate
Catherine Tate is an English actress, writer, and comedian. She has won numerous awards for her work on the sketch comedy series The Catherine Tate Show as well as being nominated for an International Emmy Award and four BAFTA Awards...
.
Writing
Fulfilling a lifelong dream, Gatiss has written four episodes for the 2005-revived BBC television series Doctor Who. His first, "The Unquiet DeadThe Unquiet Dead
"The Unquiet Dead" is an episode in the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who that was first broadcast on 9 April 2005 and is the first episode of the revival to be set in the past. In Victorian Cardiff, the dead are walking, and creatures made of gas are on the loose...
" was only the third episode of the revived series in 2005; the second, "The Idiot's Lantern
The Idiot's Lantern
"The Idiot's Lantern" is an episode in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on 27 May 2006.-Plot:...
", aired the following year in the second series. After a sabbatical from the third series (in which he acted in rather than wrote for), and his submitted script for the fourth series, involving Nazis and the British Museum, remaining unmade, he eventually returned to the programme as of 2010, writing "Victory of the Daleks
Victory of the Daleks
"Victory of the Daleks" is the third episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is written by Mark Gatiss and first broadcast on BBC One on 17 April 2010....
" for the fifth series, and "Night Terrors
Night Terrors (Doctor Who)
"Night Terrors" is the ninth episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was first broadcast on BBC One and BBC America on 3 September 2011.-Synopsis:...
" for the sixth.
Gatiss has written two episodes of Sherlock, a modern Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
series co-produced by himself and Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat is a Scottish television writer and producer.Moffat's first television work was the teen drama series Press Gang. His first sitcom, Joking Apart, was inspired by the breakdown of his first marriage; conversely, his later sitcom Coupling was based upon the development of his...
. The unaired pilot was shot in January 2009 and a full series was commissioned, eventually airing a three-episode series in August 2010 (including Gatiss's episode "The Great Game
The Great Game (Sherlock)
"The Great Game" is the third episode of the television series Sherlock. It was first broadcast on BBC One and BBC HD on 8 August 2010.-Plot:...
"). A second series (featuring Gatiss's second contribution "The Hounds of Baskerville") has been shot and is awaiting transmission.
Gatiss wrote and performed the comedy sketches The Web of Caves, The Kidnappers and The Pitch of Fear for the BBC's "Doctor Who Night
Doctor Who spoofs
The long running science fiction television series Doctor Who has over the years been the subject of many comedy sketches and specially made comedy programmes, from Spike Milligan's "Pakistani Dalek" to the Comic Relief episode Doctor Who and the Curse of Fatal Death...
" in 1999 with Little Britain's David Walliams
David Walliams
David Edward Walliams is an English comedian, writer and actor, known for his partnership with Matt Lucas on the TV sketch show Little Britain and its predecessor Rock Profile...
, and played the Master
Master (Doctor Who)
The Master is a recurring character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He is a renegade Time Lord and the archenemy of the Doctor....
in the Doctor Who Unbound play Sympathy for the Devil
Sympathy for the Devil (Doctor Who audio)
Sympathy for the Devil is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The Doctor Who Unbound dramas pose a series of "What if...?" questions.-Plot:What if.....
under the name "Sam Kisgart", a pseudonym he later used for a column in Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
. (The pseudonym is an anagram]of "Mark Gatiss", a nod to Anthony Ainley
Anthony Ainley
Anthony Ainley was an English actor best known for his work on British television and particularly for his role as the third Master in Doctor Who. He was the fourth actor to play the role of the Master, and the first actor to portray the Master as a recurring role after the death of Roger Delgado...
, who was sometimes credited under an anagram to conceal the Master's identity from the viewers.) The pseudonym was used again in television listings magazines when he appeared in episode four of Psychoville, so as not to spoil his surprise appearance in advance.
In mainstream print, Gatiss is responsible for a biography of the film director James Whale
James Whale
James Whale was an English film director, theatre director and actor. He is best remembered for his work in the horror film genre, having directed such classics as Frankenstein , The Old Dark House , The Invisible Man and Bride of Frankenstein...
. His first non-Doctor Who novel, The Vesuvius Club
The Vesuvius Club
The Vesuvius Club is a historical spy story by Mark Gatiss. It is the first novel in a series featuring the spy, Lucifer Box. The second novel, The Devil in Amber, was initially published in October 2006 and became more widely available from 6 November 2006.-Plot summary:Joshua Reynolds, of the...
, was published in 2004, for which he was nominated in the category of Best Newcomer in the 2006 British Book Awards
British Book Awards
The Galaxy National Book Awards are a series of British literary awards focused on the best UK writers and their works, as selected by an academy of members from the British book publishing industry...
. A follow up, The Devil in Amber
The Devil in Amber
The Devil in Amber is the second novel in a series featuring the fictional spy, Lucifer Box. It was initially published in October 2006 and became more widely available from 6 November 2006.-Plot introduction:...
, was released on 6 November 2006. It transports the main character, Lucifer Box
Lucifer Box
Lucifer Box is a fictional character created by Mark Gatiss. He appears in the novels The Vesuvius Club, The Devil in Amber and Black Butterfly. A "lucifer box" is the same as a match box, lucifer being the old name for matches.- Persona :...
, from the Edwardian era in the first book to the roaring Twenties/Thirties. A third and final Lucifer Box novel, Black Butterfly
Black Butterfly (novel)
Black Butterfly is the third and final novel in Mark Gatiss' Lucifer Box trilogy, which deals with the exploits of a bisexual British detective and secret agent. The previous volumes were The Vesuvius Club and The Devil in Amber.-Plot summary:...
, was published on 3 November 2008 by Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster, Inc., a division of CBS Corporation, is a publisher founded in New York City in 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. It is one of the four largest English-language publishers, alongside Random House, Penguin and HarperCollins...
.
Gatiss also wrote, co-produced and appeared in Crooked House
Crooked House (TV series)
Crooked House is a supernatural drama mini-series which aired on BBC Four in December 2008.The three-part series was broadcast on consecutive nights from 22 to 24 December 2008. It was written and co-produced by actor and writer Mark Gatiss, who found fame in the BBC series The League of Gentlemen...
, a ghost story that was broadcast on BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
during Christmas 2008.
Doctor Who novels
- NightshadeNightshade (Doctor Who)Nightshade is an original novel written by Mark Gatiss and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Seventh Doctor and Ace. A prelude to the novel, also penned by Gatiss, appeared in Doctor Who Magazine #190.-Synopsis:The Doctor and Ace end up...
(ISBN 0-426-20376-3) - St Anthony's FireSt Anthony's Fire (Doctor Who)St Anthony's Fire is an original novel written by Mark Gatiss and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Seventh Doctor, Ace and Bernice. A prelude to the novel, also penned by Gatiss, appeared in Doctor Who Magazine #217....
(ISBN 0-426-20423-9) - The RoundheadsThe Roundheads (Doctor Who)The Roundheads is a BBC Books original novel written by Mark Gatiss and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
(ISBN 0-563-40576-7) - Last of the GadereneLast of the GadereneLast of the Gaderene is a BBC Books original novel written by Mark Gatiss and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Third Doctor, Jo, the Brigadier, Sergeant Benton, Mike Yates and other members of UNIT.- Plot :RAF Culverton, East Anglia,...
(ISBN 0-563-55587-4)
Doctor Who anthology contributions
- Doctor Who: The Shooting Scripts (teleplay "The Unquiet Dead") (ISBN 0-5634-8641-4)
- The Doctor Who Storybook 2007 (short story "Cuckoo-Spit") (ISBN 1-84653-001-6)
- The Doctor Who Storybook 2009 (short story "Cold") (ISBN 1-846-53067-9)
- The Doctor Who Storybook 2010 (short story "Scared Stiff") (ISBN 1-84653-095-4)
- The Brilliant Book Of Doctor Who 2011 (short fiction "The Lost Diaries of Winston Spencer Churchill") (ISBN 1-8460-7991-7)
- The Brilliant Book Of Doctor Who 2012 (short fiction "George's Diary") (ISBN 1-8499-0230-4)
The League Of Gentlemen (with Jeremy Dyson, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith)
- A Local Book for Local PeopleA Local Book for Local PeopleA Local Book For Local People is a book by the British comedy team The League of Gentlemen. It is similar to comedy books by Monty Python and The Goodies in that it is a collection of loose material collected in a scrap book format...
(ISBN 1-84115-346-X) - The League of Gentlemen: Scripts and That (ISBN 0-563-48775-5)
- The League of Gentlemen's Book of Precious Things (ISBN 1-853-75621-0)
Lucifer Box novels
- The Vesuvius ClubThe Vesuvius ClubThe Vesuvius Club is a historical spy story by Mark Gatiss. It is the first novel in a series featuring the spy, Lucifer Box. The second novel, The Devil in Amber, was initially published in October 2006 and became more widely available from 6 November 2006.-Plot summary:Joshua Reynolds, of the...
(ISBN 0-7432-5706-5) - The Devil in AmberThe Devil in AmberThe Devil in Amber is the second novel in a series featuring the fictional spy, Lucifer Box. It was initially published in October 2006 and became more widely available from 6 November 2006.-Plot introduction:...
(ISBN 0-7432-5709-X) - Black ButterflyBlack Butterfly (novel)Black Butterfly is the third and final novel in Mark Gatiss' Lucifer Box trilogy, which deals with the exploits of a bisexual British detective and secret agent. The previous volumes were The Vesuvius Club and The Devil in Amber.-Plot summary:...
(ISBN 0-7432-57114)
Miscellaneous non-fiction
- James Whale: A Biography (ISBN 0-3043-2863-5)
- They Came From Outer Space!: Alien Encounters In The Movies (with David MillerDavid Miller (editor)David Miller is a British writer and journalist based in Wimbledon, London.-Journalism:David Miller has contributed to many publications including the magazines Film Review, TV Zone and Starburst .Until 2007 he was editor of the UK-based horror genre magazine Shivers...
) (ISBN 978-1901018004)
Miscellaneous fiction
- The King's Men (as 'Christian Fall') (ISBN 0-3523-3207-7).
- The EsseX Files: To Basildon and Beyond (with Jeremy DysonJeremy DysonJeremy Dyson is an English screenwriter and, along with Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, a participant in The League of Gentlemen.-Early life:...
) (ISBN 1-8570-2747-7).
Doctor Who (and related)
- Time Travellers: Republica
- Time Travellers: Island of Lost Souls
- PhantasmagoriaPhantasmagoria (Doctor Who audio)Phantasmagoria is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The story was written by Mark Gatiss and stars Peter Davison and Mark Strickson...
- Invaders from MarsInvaders from Mars (Doctor Who audio)Invaders from Mars is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...