Papers of Norman J. Crisp

This material is held atUniversity of Southampton Special Collections

  • Reference
    • GB 738 MS 199
  • Dates of Creation
    • 1955-1992
  • Language of Material
    • English
  • Physical Description
    • 150 boxes

Scope and Content

Papers, 1954-92, including drafts of short stories from 1954; story outlines, scripts and correspondence relating to screenplays, including the film Murder elite ; drafts, research notes, correspondence and reviews of Crisp's novels, including The Gotland deal , The odd job man and In the long run , 1961-89. Scripts, from first draft to rehearsal and camera scripts, for television series, including 'Dixon of Dock Green', 'Dr Finlay's casbook, 'Compact', 'The expert' and 'The brothers'; scripts and papers for television plays, including 'The gentle assassin', 'Stella' and 'Love in the shadows'. Writers' Guild committee papers and correspondence, 1959-71.

Administrative / Biographical History

Norman J.Crisp (1923-) was born in Southampton. He had a number of jobs, including a period in the RAF, before he became a full-time writer. He wrote principally short stories before selling his first script to the BBC in the late 1950s. He has written extensively for the screen and the stage, contributing to series including 'Dixon of Dock Green', 'Dr Finlay's casebook, 'Secret army' and 'Compact', as well as creating, with his collaborator the producer Gerard Glaister two other series, 'The brothers' and 'The expert'. He won a Writers' Guild of Great Britain screenwriters award in 1968. Crisp was a member of the executive of the Writers' Guild of Great Britain.

Access Information

The Special Collections Division is available for anyone to use, regardless of whether you are attached to an academic institution. Access to the Archives and Manuscripts and Rare Books reading room, however, is by prior appointment to access the manuscript material. See our website for more details.