Ted Lewis (writer)


Ted Lewis was a British writer known for his crime fiction.

Early life

He was born in Manchester, Lancashire, an only child. After the Second World War the family moved to Barton-upon-Humber in Lincolnshire. He had a strict upbringing and his parents did not want their son to go to art school, but his English teacher Henry Treece, recognising his creative talents in writing and art, persuaded them not to stand in his way. Lewis attended Hull Art School for four years.

Career

Lewis's first work was in London, in advertising, and then as an animation specialist in television and films. His first novel, All the Way Home and All the Night Through, was published in 1965, followed by Jack's Return Home, subsequently retitled Get Carter after the success of the film of the same name starring Michael Caine, which created the noir school of British crime writing and pushed Lewis into the best-seller list. After the collapse of his marriage Lewis returned to his home town.
Lewis wrote several episodes for the television series Z-Cars. Producer Graham Williams of Doctor Who, who had worked with Lewis on Z-Cars, commissioned a script entitled The Doppelgangers in 1978 from Lewis. However, the script was rejected early the next year, and was never put into production.
Lewis's final book, assessed as his best by some critics, was GBH, published in 1980, the title referring to grievous bodily harm in British law. Lewis died in 1982 aged 42 of alcohol related causes.
In October 2017 Nick Triplow published a detailed biography Getting Carter: Ted Lewis and the Birth of Brit Noir.

Books