Laurence Marks (born 8 December 1948) is a British screenwriter and one half of writing duo Marks and Gran (with Maurice Gran).
Biography Born to a Jewish family, Marks attended Holloway Comprehensive School (formerly Holloway County Grammar School until 1955).[https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/06/24/laurence-marks-maurice-gran-writers/ Laurence Marks & Maurice Gran, Writers ]
Marks became a reporter for a local weekly paper, the Tottenham Weekly Herald.Who's Who 2008, A & C Black, In 1975, he was working as a freelance journalist when he was asked to report from the scene of the Moorgate tube crash. He only discovered later that his father, Bernard Marks, was one of 43 victims of the accident.
Soon after, Marks joined The Sunday Times Insight investigative journalism team, and reported in depth on the investigation into the crash. In 2006, Marks made a documentary for Channel 4, Me, My Dad and Moorgate, in which he rejected the verdict of accidental death by the coroner's jury, and advocated his theory that the driver of the train had committed suicide by crashing the train.Me, My Dad and Moorgate, 2006, programme details, BFI.. Retrieved 10 February 2009
Marks also worked as writer/researcher for Thames Television's current affairs programme, This Week. Following a chance encounter with comedy writer Barry Took, he and childhood friend Maurice Gran got an opportunity to write a radio show for comedian Frankie Howerd, which led to their becoming full-time comedy writers.
Marks subsequently wrote with Gran the TV comedy-drama Shine on Harvey Moon (1982–85, 1995) and the popular sitcoms The New Statesman (1987–92), Birds of a Feather (1989–98, 2014–2020) and Goodnight Sweetheart (1993–99, 2016). They are also the authors of Prudence at Number 10, a fictional diary written as though by a P.A. of prime minister Gordon Brown. Their theatre works include Dreamboats and Petticoats, Von Ribbentrop’s Watch, Love Me Do, Playing God, Save the Last Dance for Me, and Dreamboats and Miniskirts.
Marks is an Arsenal fan and wrote the book A Fan for All Seasons (1999), a diary of his life as a writer and an Arsenal supporter. He is a member of the Labour Party.
Writing credits Production Notes BroadcasterThe Marti Caine Show5 episodes (1980)BBC2Roots6 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1981)ITVHolding the Fort20 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1980–1982)ITVShine on Harvey Moon25 episodes (1982, 1984–1985, 1995)ITVRoll Over Beethoven12 episodes (1985)ITVRelative Strangers3 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1985–1987)Channel 4The Bretts3 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1987)ITVAlan B'Stard Closes Down the BBCComic Relief special (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1988)BBC1Young, Gifted and Broke7 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1989)ITVSnakes and Ladders7 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1989)Channel 4Birds of a Feather102 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1989–1994, 1996–1998)BBC1Bullseye!Feature film (co-written with Leslie Bricusse, Maurice Gran, Nick Mead and Michael Winner, 1990)N/ASo You Think You've Got Troubles6 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1991)BBC1Screen One"Wall of Silence" (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1993)BBC1Get Back10 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1992–1993)BBC1Love Hurts30 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1992–1994)BBC1The New Statesman29 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1987–1992)ITVBBC1A. B'Stard ExposedTelevision film (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1994)BBC1Goodnight Sweetheart59 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1993–1999, 2016)BBC1Mosley4 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran and Nicholas Mosley, 1998)Channel 4Unfinished Business12 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1998–1999)BBC OneStarting Out8 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 1999)BBC OneBelieve Nothing6 episodes (co-written with Maurice Gran, 2002)ITVThe Last Laugh"Pilot" (co-written with Maurice Gran, 2005)BBC ThreeMumbai Calling"Pilot" (co-written with Maurice Gran and Sanjeev Bhaskar, 2007)ITVBirds of a Feather8 episodes (2014–2020): "Gimme Shelter" (co-written with Maurice Gran, 2014) "Hot Stuff" (co-written with Maurice Gran, 2014) "Tattoo You" (co-written with Maurice Gran, 2014) "Back to Zero" (co-written with Maurice Gran, 2014) "Text Santa Special" (co-written with Maurice Gran, 2014) "Birds on a Plane" (co-written with Maurice Gran, 2014) "Guess Who's Coming to Essex?" (co-written with Maurice Gran, 2015) "The Chief, The Cook, His Mum and Her Lodger" (co-written with Maurice Gran, 2015)ITV
Awards and nominations Year Award Work Category Result Reference1990British Academy Television AwardsThe New StatesmanBest Comedy Series (with Tony Charles, Geoffrey Sax and Maurice Gran)1991British Academy Television AwardsBest Comedy Series (with Tony Charles, Geoffrey Sax and Maurice Gran)
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