Introduction
Stephen Beresford (born c. 1972) is an English actor and writer.He is best known for writing the play The Last of the Haussmans, produced by the National Theatre in 2012, and the 2014 motion picture Pride, which won the Queer Palm award at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival.
Early life
Beresford was born in London and raised in Dartmouth. He began acting with a local children's drama group when he was nine years old, and later attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
Career
In a 2012 review, Kate Kellaway of The Observer wrote: "It is with disbelief that one discovers that The Last of the Haussmans is actor Stephen Beresford's first play. It is a knockout – entertaining, sad and outrageous. If he has more of this quality to write, he is going to be a major name."
He was a new entry in 2014 to The Independent on Sunday's Rainbow List at number 17.
Beresford has also worked on screenplays. He said that when working on screenplays, he always looks for projects with an "element of subversion" in them, so that he can find ways to smuggle in messages and meaning.
He co-wrote Tolkien, a 2019 biopic of the author J.R.R. Tolkien. The film, starring Nicholas Hoult, touches on many different themes in Tolkien's early life, including his friendships, love of languages, religion, and romance with Edith Bratt. The Tolkien Estate, without viewing the film, stated that it does not endorse the film or its content.
Awards and nominations
Films
- 2014 – British Independent Film Awards, Nominated, Best Screenplay – For Pride (2014)
- 2014 – British Academy Film Awards, Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer – For Pride (2014), with David Livingstone, producer