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Hull Hall of Fame: Authors, Poets, Scriptwriters and Books from Hull

Hull's outstanding arts scene has never been any secret to those lucky enough to know the city. Today it's a booming vibrant scene that's seeing an increasing recognition and growing reputation reaching far beyond the city walls. Over the years, the city has molded and produced many brilliant writers, actors, musicians, poets and more - something it will undoubtedly continue to do for years to come. In this section of the Hull Hall of Fame, you can explore some of Hull's many poets, writers, directors and authors. There seem to be so many Poets featuring in Hull history we should be known as the country's Eastern Poets Corner. Phillip Larkin, Andrew Marvell, Andrew Motion, Tom Paulin all have huge Hull connections.

Hull's Famous Poets followed by authors, directors, screenwriters below

Phillip Larkin One of the most characterful poets in UK History, Phillip Larkin, was based in Hull for over 30 years. Working at Hull Universities Brynmor Library. He wrote many and edited many Poetry collections; Philip Larkin: Collected Poems , The Whitsun Weddings There is a statue of Larkin in Hull station. There are also the words of  The Whitsun Weddings Poem at both Hull and London's King Cross rail stations. Try the Larkin Trail in Hull. Watch out for the Phillip Larkin Coloured Toads around Hull and East Yorkshire.
Andrew Marvell Prolific poet  and politician who lived 1621-1678. His collections include; His Coy Mistress, The Garden, Upon Appleton House. He also wrote some satirical pieces; Flecknoe and The Character of Holland.
Roger McGough Another Hull University Poet. He was a founder member of sixties band the Scaffold. (Thank U Very Much - The Very Best Of Scaffold). His Poetry collections include; Summer with Monika, Collected Poems
He also wrote some children's books; The Magic Fountain, Great Pet Sale, etc.
Andrew Motion Hull  Andrew Motion Lecturer at Hull University and knew Philip Larkin. He was Poet Laureate for 1999-2009. Collections include; In the Blood: A Memoir of My Childhood , The Customs House, Poetry by Heart: A Treasury of Poems to Read Aloud, Andrew Motion: Selected Poems, Coming in to Land: Selected Poems.
Tom Paulin Another Poet with Hull University connections; The Secret Life of Poems: A Poetry Primer , New Selected Poems of Tom Paulin , Fivemiletown, The Invasion Handbook.
Stevie Smith (Florence Margaret Smith) Poet and author (1902 -1971). Her works include; Novel On Yellow Paper, Over The Frontier, Stevie Smith's Resistant Antics , Stevie Smith and Authorship.

Hull's; Authors, Directors, Producers and Writers

John Godber Hull Hall of Fame John Godber Outstanding playwrite and actor. Been a living legend at Hulls Spring Street AKA as Hull Truck Theatre. Plays include Up 'n' Under I and II , Shakers, Shakers (Re-stirred), On the Piste, Bouncers, Teechers and many more. Married to Jane Godber nee  Jane Thornton, who has acted in many and co-written some of the above plays.
Shakers John Godber Jane Thornton Jane Thornton   Jane Thornton now Jane Godber. Actor and Playwright married to John Godber. She has used a few names in her career; Jane Thornton, Jane Godber, Jane Thornton-Clifford, Jane Clifford,  Plays include Up 'n' Under, Shakers and Shakers (Re-stirred), Odd Squad and Bloomin Marvellous. Mother of Elizabeth Gobder who is also an actor and writer.
Jean Rook Famous Hull born journalist Jean Rook (1931-1991). worked  for the Daily Mail and Daily Express and was known as the First Lady of Fleet Street. She started out on the Sheffield Telegraph then the Yorkshire Post. Listen to her on BBC Desert Island discs.
Chris Hees Hull born BAFTA award winning, OSCAR nominated film-maker and Producer. He is also on the Hull City of Culture board. Works include; The Bigger Picture, How I Didn't Become a Piano Player.
Anthony Minghella CBE Oscar winning Director and Sciptwriter  (1954  -2008) who attended Hull University and was also a Professor there for a while. The movie The English Patient was probably his vanguard, winning 9 Oscars
Reece Shearsmith Hull born Actor, Writer and Comedian. Reece is one of the creators of the iconic series the League of Gentlemen - Complete Collection .  He also co-wrote Psychoville Series 1 and 2 . As an actor he has been in many plays, Radio and TV Series; including, Dr Who, Car Share, Burke and Hare, Would I lie to you, The First Men in the Moon, Chasing Shadows, etc.
Alan Plater Alan Plater CBE   Alan Plater CBE was a BAFTA and EMMY winning screenwriter has a huge portfolio of work and was raised in Hull. His work included; Z-Cars, The Beiderbecke Trilogy, A Very British Coup, Barchester Chronicles, Land of Green Ginger. He was also a fan of Jazz and Hull City.
Tolkein in Hull JRR Tolkein  

JRR Tolkein author and poet was in the Hull area recuperating during World War one. He stayed in Hull at what is noiw the Denison Centre in Hull University. He also stayed in Roos and Kilnsea. These areas have been dubbed the Tolkein Triangle. Some of the local place names feature in his books. Get The DVDS The Hobbit Trilogy, The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy.
Loiuse Beech - Hull Author Hull Hall of Fame Louise Beech   Award winning author, playwright and journalist Louise Beech lives just outside Hull latest book Lion Tamer Who Lost, will be out in the Summer of 2018. Her other books include; Maria In The Moon, The Mountain in My Shoe, How To Be Brave.
Val Wood Hull Hall of Fame Val Wood   Best selling award winning author Val Wood who has written over 20 books featuring Hull, East Yorkshire and other Yorkshire beauty spots Scarborough for example. Val Wood is based in Beverley. Examples of her many books include; The Kitchen Maid, Far From Home, No Place for a Woman, A Mother's Choice, The Harbour Girl, Homecoming Girls.
Brian Lavery - Hull Hall of Fame Brian Lavery   Hull based author Brian Lavery AKA Brian W Lavery has written some well researched books, many with Hull connections. He did a PHD at Hull University. Books include;  The Headscarf Revolutionaries: Lillian Bilocca and the Hull Triple-Trawler Disaster and The Luckiest Thirteen: The forgotten men of St Finbarr - A trawler crew's battle in the Arctic
Winifred Holtby - Author East Yorkshire Winifred
Hotlby		   Winifred Holtby, author from the East Yorkshire area. Holtby's papers were donated to the Hull University and now reside at the Hull History Centre. Her most famous novels would be South Riding and The Land Of Green Ginger. Both have been made into TV and Radio Plays. TV version Land of Green Ginger for was made with Alan Plater another local involved!  Her biography is called The Clear Stream: The Life of Winifred Holtby.
Lord Brian Rix Lord Brian Rix CBE Cottingham born Lord Brian Rix famous for writing and acting in many farces. He grew up in Hornsea. His work included; Life in the Farce Lane, Nothing Barred. Lord Rix was also an advocate for people with Learning Difficulities. He was Chair of Mencap for many years. Donate to Mencap. Lord Rix has a son who is a prolific childrens author, Jamie Rix known for his Grizzly Tales series. See also his sister Sheila Mercier.
Gerald Thomas - Hull Hall of Fame Gerald Thomas Hull born producer (1920 - 1993), involved in the "Carry On" movies throughout the many years they ran.  Support us by adding to library the Carry On - The Complete Collection.
Russ Litten Hull Hall of Fame Russ Litten   Hull author Russ Litten. Books include; Swear Down, Scream if you want to go faster and Kingdom.
Francis Durbridge Hull Hall of Fame Francis Durbridge   Francis Durbridge proflic author of the famous Paul Temple series that ran on the BBC Radio from the late 40's till early 70s e.g., Paul Temple And The Margo Mystery. They are now also re-playing on Radio 4 extra regularly. They were really popular on German Radio too. They were also made into a TV Series. He also wrote many other TV series; The World of Frazer, The Scarf, Broken Horseshoe, Melissa and Francis Durbridge Presents. Some of his works including Paul Temple were made into films too. Some of the Radio episodes have been lost, so if you have tapes in the loft the BBC would love to hear from you!
Hall of Fame Paul Hudson Paul Hudson   Paul Hudson is a weather presenter on many of the local BBC regions in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. He has been involved in several weather books including some with Ian McCaskill, Michael Fish. Recent books includes; Frozen Britain
Robb Robbinson - Hull Hall of Fame Robb Robinson   Robb Robinson Hull born author and working in the History Faculty at Hull University. This dedicated historian has written many books on Hull and proclaimed our great Cities impact on the world. He is also fantastic atdsicovering great people from Hull that might have slipped unnoticed like Captain Henry Hulbert and Captain Mutt Summers. His Books include; Far Horizons: From Hull to the Ends of the Earth, Viola: The Life and Times of a Hull Steam Trawler,.
      Coming to this page soon; Phil Mathison,
Val Wood, David F Walford.
Feel free to contribute and suggest via contactus@hulloffame.com

Hull Hall of Fame, Books that Feature Hull & East Yorkshire

Robinson Crusoe sailed from Hull  Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe  Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe. The start of the book eludes to Crusoe setting sail down the Humber but later in the book he laments, "Had I the sense to return to Hull, I would have been happy". There is a Robinson Crusoe plaque in Hull's Queen Gardens. Add the book to your collection Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe and the Robinson Crusoe movie starring Pierce Brosnan.
Humber Boys Dugdale Humber Boy B   Ruth Dugdale - Humber Boy B: Shocking. Psychological Thriller, I must read it to find out about all the connections with the Hull and East Yorkshire area.
David Mark - Hull author David Mark    Local author with a Global fan base David Mark has a colourful policeman Detective Sergeant Aector McAvoy solving crimes in the Hull area. Scorched Earth, Dark Winter
Unsworth - Hall Hull of Fame  Cathi Unsworth The Singer.   Cathi Unsworth has family in the area. This helped her to write the book The Singer. It is about the early days of a punk band forming in Hull.
Russ Litten - Hull Hall of Fame Russ Litten- Scream if you want to go faster   Russ Litten's book Scream if you want to go faster is related to Hull Fair in the year of the flooding 2007.
Love Strike - Doreen Wayne Love Strike by Doreen Wayne   Love Strike by Doreen Wayne. Doreen Wayne was Step Mother to Jeff Wayne of War of the Worlds Fame. But wrote this book related to the Hull fishing industry. Doreen Wayne also wrote Love Is A Well-Raped Word
  Hull Hall of Fame More to follow...
Feel free to contribute and suggest via contactus@hulloffame.com