Stephen Mallatratt

Nigel Stephen Mallatratt (15 June 1947 – 22 November 2004) was an English playwright, television screenwriter and actor. He is best known for his television work on the ITV series Coronation Street, The Forsyte Saga and Island at War (2004), and for his stage play The Woman in Black – adapted from the novel of the same name by Susan Hill – which ran in the West End from 1989 to 2023. He was also an actor, appearing in minor roles in Chariots of Fire and Brideshead Revisited.

Early life Born on 15 June 1947 in Mill Hill, London, England, Mallatratt originated from a lower-middle-class background. As a child, he was a pupil at Orange Hill Grammar School in Edgware, where he excelled at drama, English, and swimming. After his studies, he joined the Ipswich theatre, and later the Stephen Joseph Theatre, in Scarborough, at the invitation of actor and playwright Alan Ayckbourn. While in Scarborough, he appeared in several productions, including Absent Friends, Bedroom Farce, The Breadwinners and The Brontes of Haworth, by Christopher Fry, in 1985.

Personal life and death Mallatratt was married three times, to Vanessa Mallatratt, Eileen O'Brien and stage manager Emma London. He had a daughter, Hannah, with O'Brien.

He died of leukaemia in 2004 at the age of 57, in Bristol.

Filmography Year Title Role Notes1981 Chariots of Fire Watson