Arthur Hopcraft Papers

As well as material relating to his broadcast and published works, the archive also includes many scripts which were never produced, and ideas and projects which were never developed. The collection has been arranged into six series: Television plays, series and adaptations; books; films; scripts not produced; ideas and projects without scripts and awards.

Arthur Hopcraft was one of the great scriptwriters of his day, well known for his TV plays such as The Nearly Man, and for his small screen adaptations such as Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, Hard Times and Bleak House. Before taking up writing for TV, he was a highly respected sports journalist for the Guardian and the Observer, writing The Football Man: People and Passions in Soccer, generally regarded as a masterpiece among sports books. He also had four other books published, including an autobiographical account of his childhood, and wrote the screenplay for the film Hostage. Hopcraft won the Bafta writer's award in 1985.

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Multilevel description created by Ian Johnston, December 2006. Supplementary information was obtained from obituaries of Hopcraft, and the British Film Institute's Film and TV Database.