Research in progress, December 26, 2022
Anthony Minghella Career Summation
Occupational Inheritance: No
Nationality: UK
Social Class: family ran a cafe; sold ice-cream
Race/Ethnicity:
Family:
Formal Education: University of Hull, drama. began Ph.D, but left
Training:
First Film: Truly, Madly, Deeply, 1990, aged 36
Breakthrough: The English Patient
First Oscar Nomination: The English Patient, 1996; aged 42
Gap between First Film and First Nom: 6 years
Other Oscars:
Other Oscar Nominations: Talented Mr. Ripley; The Reader (producer)
Oscar Awards: Yes
Nominations Span:
Genre (specialties): literary drama
Collaborators:
Last Film: Cold Mountain, 2003
Contract:
Career Length:
Career Output: small (less than 10); died young
Marriage: 2; second wife Asian dancer and choreographer
Politics:
Death: 2008; aged 54
Anthony Minghella, CBE (January 6, 1954–March 18, 2008) was a British film director, playwright and screenwriter.
He was chair of the board of Governors of the British Film Institute (BFI), 2003-2007.
He won Best Director Oscar for The English Patient (1996).
In addition, he received 3 more Academy nominations: Best Adapted Screenplay for both The English Patient (1996) and The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999). He was posthumously nominated for Best Picture for The Reader (2008), as co-producer.
Minghella was born in Ryde, on the Isle of Wight, an island off the south coast of England, a popular holiday resort. His family ran a café in Ryde until the 1980s and have run eponymous business making and selling Italian-style ice cream since the 1950s.
His parents were Edoardo Minghella (an Italian immigrant) and Leeds-born Gloria Alberta (née Arcari). His mother’s ancestors originally came from Valvori, a small village in southern Lazio, Italy. He was one of five children, a sister Loretta Minghella, and brother Dominic Minghella who would become screenwriter and producer.
Minghella attended St. Mary’s Catholic Primary School, Ryde, Sandown Grammar School, and St John’s College, Portsmouth.
Early interests suggested a possible career as a musician, with Minghella playing keyboards with local bands Earthlight and Dancer. The latter recorded album titled Tales of the Riverbank in 1972, though it was not released until 2001.
He attended the University of Hull, studying drama. As undergraduate he had arrived at university with EMI contract for the band in which he sang and played keyboard; while there writing words and music for musical entitled Mobius the Stripper.
Minghella graduated after 3 years, and continued on to pursue PhD. He taught at the university as well for several years, on Samuel Beckett and on the medieval theatre. Ultimately, he abandoned his pursuit of a PhD to work for the BBC.
His debut work was stage adaptation of Gabriel Josipovici’s Mobius the Stripper (1975) and it was his Whale Music (1985) that brought him notice.
His double bill of Samuel Beckett’s Play and Happy Days was his directorial debut and debut feature film as a director was A Little Like Drowning (1978).
During the 1980s, he worked in TV, starting as runner on Magpie before moving into script editing the children’s drama series Grange Hill for the BBC and later writing The Storyteller series for Jim Henson. He wrote several episodes of the ITV detective drama Inspector Morse and episode of long-running ITV drama Boon. Made in Bangkok (1986) found mainstream success in the West End.
Radio success followed with a Giles Cooper Award for the radio drama Cigarettes and Chocolate first broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1988. It was revived on May 3, 2008 as a tribute to its author director following his death. His production starred Juliet Stevenson, Bill Nighy and Jenny Howe. His first radio play Hang Up, starring Anton Lesser and Juliet Stevenson, was revived on May 10, 2008 as part of the BBC Radio 4 Minghella season.
Truly, Madly, Deeply (1990), drama written and directed for the BBC’s Screen Two anthology strand, bypassed TV broadcast and instead had theatrical release.
He bypassed an offer of another Inspector Morse directorial. The English Patient (1996) brought him 2 Oscar nominations, Best Director (which he won) and Adapted Screenplay. He also received Adapted Screenplay nomination for The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999).
The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, a pilot episode TV adaptation which he co-wrote and directed, was broadcast posthumously on BBC One (March 23, 2008); watched by 6.3 million viewers.
He vocally supported I Know I’m Not Alone, a film of musician Michael Franti’s peacemaking excursions into Iraq, Palestine and Israel.
He directed a party election broadcast for the Labor Party in 2005. The short film depicted Tony Blair and Gordon Brown working together and was criticized for being insincere: “The broadcast last year was full of body language fibs”, said Peter Collett, a psychologist at the University of Oxford. “When you are talking to me, I’ll give you my full attention only if I think you are very high status or if I love you. On that party political broadcast, they are staring at each other like lovers. It is completely false.”
For the Samuel Beckett’s 100th birthday celebrations, he returned to radio on BBC Radio 3 with Eyes Down Looking (2006), starring Jude Law, Juliet Stevenson and David Threlfall.
Operatic directorial debut came with Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. Premiered at the English National Opera (London, 2005), then at the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre (Vilnius, March 2006) and at the Metropolitan Opera (New York, September 2006). The latter was transmitted live into cinemas worldwide (March 7, 2009) as part of the Met’s HD series and is now available on DVD. The ENO work was to have led to other operatic projects, directing again at English National Opera and collaborating with Osvaldo Golijov on new opera for the Met and ENO, writing the libretto and directing.
He was honored with the naming of The Anthony Minghella Theatre at the Quay Arts Centre (Isle of Wight). He made an appearance in the 2007 film Atonement, as TV host interviewing the novelist central to the story.
His last work was the screenplay of the Tony Award-winning musical Nine; Arthur Kopit (book) and Maury Yeston (score). It is based on the film 8½. He shared credit with Michael Tolkin on the screenplay.
The Film, Theatre & Television department at the University of Reading, opened in 2012, was named in his honor.
Minghella met his first wife, Yvonne Miller, when they were students. Minghella and Miller divorced and in 1985 Minghella married Hong Kong–born choreographer and dancer Carolyn Jane Choa. They had one daughter, Hannah, who is currently the Head of Motion Pictures at J. J. Abrams’ Bad Robot. They also had a son, Max, an actor, screenwriter and director. Max is best known for his role as Nick Blaine in the Hulu drama series The Handmaid’s Tale.
Minghella’s younger brother, Dominic Minghella, is the creator of the popular British TV series Robin Hood and Doc Martin, and a scriptwriter. His sister, Loretta Minghella, is First Church Estates Commissioner at the Church Commissioners, having previously been Director of Christian Aid. His sister Edana participated in a jazz event on the Isle of Wight, and his nephew Dante is one of the participants in Channel 4’s Child Genius series.
Minghella was a fan of Portsmouth F.C., and appeared in the Channel 4 documentary, Hallowed Be Thy Game. His home had bedrooms with display of Portsmouth memorabilia dating back to the club’s founding in 1898.
Minghella died of a hemorrhage March 18, 2008 in Charing Cross Hospital, Hammersmith, after operation the previous week to remove cancer of the tonsils and neck.
He is commemorated with a green plaque on The Avenues, Kingston upon Hull. The 2009 film Nine is dedicated in his memory.
A memorial plaque to Anthony Minghella was unveiled on March 2, 2016 by Jude Law, at Western Gardens, Ryde, Isle of Wight.
Filmography
1978 A Little Like Drowning Yes Yes
1990 Truly, Madly, Deeply, BAFTA Award, Best Original Script 1993 Mr. Wonderful
1996 The English Patient Yes Yes Academy Award for Best Director
BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominated—Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Direction
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Director
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay
1999 The Talented Mr. Ripley, Nominated—Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Direction
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Director
2000 Play Yes Short film
2003 Cold Mountain, Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Direction
Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Director
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay
2006 Breaking and Entering
2008 The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, executive TV pilot
New York, I Love You Yes executive Segment “Shekhar Kapur”
2009 Nine Posthumous release
Producer only
2001 Iris Executive producer
2002 Heaven
The Quiet American Executive producer
2005 The Interpreter
2006 Catch a Fire
2007 Michael Clayton Executive producer
2008 Love You More
The Reader Nominated—Academy Award for Best Picture (posthumously)
Acting roles
Year Title Role
1978 A Little Like Drowning Eduardo
2007 Atonement Interviewer
Selected plays
Whale Music (New End Theatre, Hampstead, June 1981); revived for radio, BBC Radio 4, 10 May 2008
Two Planks and a Passion[26] (Greenwich Theatre, November 1984)
A Little Like Drowning (Hampstead Theatre, July 1984)
Made in Bangkok (West End debut as a playwright, Aldwych Theatre. 18 March 1986, director Michael Blakemore)
Hang Up (radio play for BBC Radio 4,1987)
Cigarettes and Chocolate (60-minute radio play for BBC Radio 4, 1988)
Eyes Down Looking (Beckett 100th Birthday tribute, radio play for BBC Radio 3, 1 April 2006)
Awards
Year Work Academy Awards BAFTA Awards Golden Globe Awards
Nominations Wins Nominations Wins Nominations Wins
1990 Truly, Madly, Deeply 3 1
1996 The English Patient 12 9 13 6 7 2
1999 The Talented Mr. Ripley 5 7 1 5
2003 Cold Mountain 7 1 13 2 8 1
2008 The Reader 5 1 5 1 4 1
2009 Nine 4 1 5
Total 33 11 42 11 29 4
1984 Plays and Players: Critics Award – Most Promising Playwright for A Little Like Drowning
1986 Plays and Players: Critics Award – Best New Play for Made in Bangkok
1988 Giles Cooper Award for the radio play Cigarettes and Chocolate
1997 Broadcast Film Critics Association Award – Best Director and Best Screenplay for The English Patient (1996)
1997 Directors Guild of America Award – Outstanding Achievement in Motion Pictures for The English Patient (1996)
1997 Satellite Award – Best Adapted Screenplay for The English Patient (1996)
1999 National Board of Review Award – Best Director for The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)
2003 National Board of Review Award – Best Adapted Screenplay for Cold Mountain (2003)
2006 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Opera Production for the English National Opera production of Madama Butterfly
Directed Academy Award performances
Minghella was directed multiple Oscar winning and nominated performances.
Year Performer Film Result
Academy Award for Best Actor
1997 Ralph Fiennes The English Patient Nominated
2004 Jude Law Cold Mountain Nominated
Academy Award for Best Actress
1997 Kristin Scott Thomas The English Patient Nominated
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
2000 Jude Law The Talented Mr. Ripley Nominated
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
1997 Juliette Binoche The English Patient Won
2004 Renée Zellweger Cold Mountain Won
