Graeme Fife
Encyclopedia
Graeme Fife is a prolific English
writer
, playwright
and broadcaster
. His first career was as a schoolmaster
and university lecturer.
and Durham University
, where he gained a General Arts degree with first class honours in Greek language and literature.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
and broadcaster
Presenter
A presenter, or host , is a person or organization responsible for running an event. A museum or university, for example, may be the presenter or host of an exhibit. Likewise, a master of ceremonies is a person that hosts or presents a show...
. His first career was as a schoolmaster
Schoolmaster
A schoolmaster, or simply master, once referred to a male school teacher. This usage survives in British public schools, but is generally obsolete elsewhere.The teacher in charge of a school is the headmaster...
and university lecturer.
Education
Fife was educated at schools in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Durham University
Durham University
The University of Durham, commonly known as Durham University, is a university in Durham, England. It was founded by Act of Parliament in 1832 and granted a Royal Charter in 1837...
, where he gained a General Arts degree with first class honours in Greek language and literature.
Teaching career
- Head of Classics for one year at a school in Lancashire
- Head of Classics at Gresham's SchoolGresham's SchoolGresham’s School is an independent coeducational boarding school in Holt in North Norfolk, England, a member of the HMC.The school was founded in 1555 by Sir John Gresham as a free grammar school for forty boys, following King Henry VIII's dissolution of the Augustinian priory at Beeston Regis...
, HoltHolt, NorfolkHolt is a market town and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The town is north of the city of Norwich, west of Cromer and east of King's Lynn. The town is on the route of the A148 King's Lynn to Cromer road. The nearest railway station is in the town of Sheringham where access to the...
, from 1970 to 1978 - Lecturer in Greek and Roman literature, University of ReadingUniversity of ReadingThe University of Reading is a university in the English town of Reading, Berkshire. The University was established in 1892 as University College, Reading and received its Royal Charter in 1926. It is based on several campuses in, and around, the town of Reading.The University has a long tradition...
Books
- Polly Polestar (Ginn & Co., 1989)
- The Wrong Side of the Bed (Ginn & Co., 1988) ISBN 0-602-28462-7
- Story in anthology: The Man in Black (1990)
- Arthur the King: a study of mediaeval romance in its social, literary and historical context (BBC Books, 1990, ISBN 0-563-21510-0)
- George Francis: Trainer of Champions (with George Francis, Mainstream, 1998, ISBN 1-84018-059-5)
- Tour de France: the history, the legend, the riders (Mainstream, 1999, ISBN 1-84018-918-5)
- Tour de France: Tour de Souffrance (translated from the French of Albert Londres, Cycle Sport, 1999)
- Inside the Peloton: Riding, Winning and Losing the Tour de France (2001, ISBN 1-84018-672-0)
- The Terror: The Shadow of the Guillotine, France 1792-1794 (2004, ISBN 0-7499-5005-6)
- Bob Chicken: A Passion for the Bike (2005, ISBN 0-9551225-0-3)
- Great Road Climbs of the Pyrenees (Rapha, 2006)
- The Beautiful Machine (2007, ISBN 1-84596-241-9)
- Angel of the Assassination (novel) (Merit, 2009)
- Great Road Climbs of the Southern Alps (Rapha, 2010)
- Brian Robinson, Pioneer (Mousehold Press 2010)
- Great Road Climbs of the Northern Alps (Rapha 2011)
Plays
- Praise Be to God (performed by Edward de Souza Orange Tree, London, 1987)
- Reg (performed by Edward de Souza, Orange Tree, 1987)
- The Great French Revolution Show (Deia Majorca, 1984)
- Lysistrata by Aristophanes (translated and adapted, Deia Majorca, 1984)
- The Silver Nutmeg (musical, with Peter Thorne)
- Grimaldi (musical drama, with Peter Thorne)
- Once Upon a Time... (dramatic song sequence for narrator and singers, with Peter Thorne)
- The Andria (translation from The AndriaAndria (comedy)Andria is a comedy by Terence, a Roman playwright. It was Terence's first play, and he wrote it when he was approximately 19 years old. Terence adapted through translation from Menander's play, although as he is at pains to point out in his prologue he goes beyond mere translation. It was first...
of TerenceTerencePublius Terentius Afer , better known in English as Terence, was a playwright of the Roman Republic, of North African descent. His comedies were performed for the first time around 170–160 BC. Terentius Lucanus, a Roman senator, brought Terence to Rome as a slave, educated him and later on,...
, with Sebastian Eden) (Gresham's SchoolGresham's SchoolGresham’s School is an independent coeducational boarding school in Holt in North Norfolk, England, a member of the HMC.The school was founded in 1555 by Sir John Gresham as a free grammar school for forty boys, following King Henry VIII's dissolution of the Augustinian priory at Beeston Regis...
) - The Weaker Sex (SouthamptonSouthamptonSouthampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
) - Gesualdo (EdinburghEdinburghEdinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
) - Mr Shakespeare...Mr Liebowitz (DeiàDeiàDeià is a small coastal village on the northern ridge of the Spanish island of Majorca. It is located about ten miles north of Valldemossa, and it is known for its literary and musical residents...
, Majorca) - Jam (LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, EdinburghEdinburghEdinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, SwindonSwindonSwindon is a large town within the borough of Swindon and ceremonial county of Wiltshire, in South West England. It is midway between Bristol, west and Reading, east. London is east...
) - The Door (opera) FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Screenplays
- Chavasse Park (promotional film for architectural development in Liverpool)
- Ghosts of Deptford (six short films about celebrated denizens of DeptfordDeptfordDeptford is a district of south London, England, located on the south bank of the River Thames. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne, and from the mid 16th century to the late 19th was home to Deptford Dockyard, the first of the Royal Navy Dockyards.Deptford and the docks are...
)
Radio Scripts
- Elias Howe
- Some thirty Stories about composers, Monologues and Duologues
- Snipe 607
- Earth to Earth
- Vivaldi
- Revolutionary Portraits
- The Whisper of the Axe
- Arthur the King
- La Mogador
- The March of the Ten Thousand
- The Misfortune at Seaham
- A Breath of Fresh Air
- Pearls Go with Pearls (script consultant)
- Godslots
- Surviving Wagner
- St Cecilia of Sicilia
- Wilf
- Cat’s Whiskers, six short playlets
- The Figaro Letters
- The Athenian Trireme
- Doggett’s Coat and Badge
- The Night Stairs
- Timbuktu: Drowning in Sand
- Vegetarian Cyclists
- over a hundred scripts for Pause for Thought
- Bikesongs
- Bicycle Music
- Saint-Saens, Samson et Dalila and the Lost Glory
- The Fighting Temeraire, The Battle and the Breeze
- The Sweetness of the Garden
- Spem in Alium
- Beau Geste (adapted for R4 Classic Serial)
- Robert Graves and Myth R3 Essays