Phil Rickman

Phil Rickman (also known under the pen names of Thom Madley and Will Kingdom) is a British author of supernatural and mystery novels.^[1]

Biography

Rickman was born in Lancashire in the north of England and worked as a journalist for BBC World Service TV and BBC Radio 4. He published his first book, Candlenight, in 1991, and began his Merrily Watkins series in 1998.^[2] In 2010, he began the John Dee Papers series, which focuses on the Welsh mathematician and astrologer, John Dee.^[3]

Rickman has also worked on several music albums based upon his books and has helped write many of the albums' songs.^[4] He has lived in Wales most of his life and now resides (as of 2020) with his wife in Hay-on-Wye.^[5]

Rickman researches the folklore, religion, and supernatural themes of his books, saying "If I can't believe it, it doesn't go in".^[2] He has also voiced his unhappiness over his earlier critics which labeled him a horror writer. He says that he felt that the books did not fit neatly within that genre.^[2]

Bibliography

Standalone novels

• Candlenight (1991)
• Crybbe (Curfew in the United States) (1993)^[6]
• The Man in the Moss (1994)
• December (1994)
• The Chalice (1997)
• The Cold Calling (1998, as Will Kingdom)
• Mean Spirit (2001, as Will Kingdom)
• Night After Night (2014)

John Dee Papers

1. The Bones of Avalon (2010)^[7][8]
2. The Heresy of Dr Dee (2012)

Marco series

1. Marco's Pendulum (2006, as Thom Madley)
2. Marco and the Blade of Night (2007, as Thom Madley)

Merrily Watkins series

1. The Wine of Angels (1998)
2. Midwinter of the Spirit (1999)
3. A Crown of Lights (2001)
4. The Cure of Souls (2001)
5. The Lamp of the Wicked (2002)
6. The Prayer of the Night Shepherd (2004)
7. The Smile of a Ghost (2005)
8. The Remains of an Altar (2006)^[9]
9. The Fabric of Sin (2007)
10. To Dream of the Dead (2008)
11. The Secrets of Pain (2011)
12. The Magus of Hay (2013)
13. Friends of the Dusk (2015)
14. All of a Winter's Night (2017)^[10]
15. The Fever of the World (2022)^{[11][full citation needed]}

Short stories

1. The House of Susan Lulham - was first published in the Oxfam "Oxcrimes" anthology (May 2014).^[12][13] In December 2014, an extended version which is "five times as long" was published for Kindle.^[14]

Non-fiction

• Merrily's Border: The Places in Herefordshire & the Marches Behind the Merrily Watkins Novels (with photographer John Mason) (2009)

Discography

• Songs from Lucy's Cottage (2009, by Lol Robinson and Hazey Jane II)^[15]
• A Message from the Morning (2010, by Lol Robinson and Hazey Jane II)
• Abbey Tapes: the Exorcism (2011, by Philosopher's Stone, based upon the novel December)

Television

Main article: Midwinter of the Spirit

The second Merrily book Midwinter of the Spirit (which is the first "Exorcism" story)^[16] has been made into a three-part TV drama by ITV. The Cast includes Anna Maxwell-Martin as Merrily, Sally Messham as Jane, and David Threlfall as Huw Owen.^[17][18] It was released in late 2015.

References

1. "Veterans of genre thrill and chill". Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
2. "Exorcising crime with Merrily Watkins". CounterCulture. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
3. Kerridge, Jake. "A page in the life: Phil Rickman". Telegraph. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
4. "Rickman creation comes to life on CD". Hereford Times. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
5. "personal". Retrieved 24 November 2020.
6. "Review: Curfew". Publishers Weekly. July 1993. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
7. Lytle, Betty. "Book review: Phil Rickman's "The Bones of Avalon"". News OK. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
8. May, Philippa. "Philippa May reviews 'The Bones of Avalon' by Phil Rickman". Hereford Times. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
9. Yager, Susanna. "Firmly grounded in reality". Telegraph. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
10. "Home1 | PHIL RICKMAN".
11. "Phil Rickman".
12. "Other stuff | PHIL RICKMAN".
13. . www.oxfam.org.uk. Archived from the original on 16 February 2015.
14. https://www.amazon.co.uk/House-Susan-Lulham-Kindle-Single-ebook/dp/B00R34ZFAG/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1418848546&sr=1-1&keywords=The+House+of+Susan+Lulham^{[dead link]}
15. "Crime novels inspire album". Kirkintilloch Herald. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
16. "A letter from Ledwardine | PHIL RICKMAN".
17. "Press Releases".
18. "Midwinter of the Spirit (TV Mini Series 2015) - IMDb". IMDb.

External links

• Official website
• Phil the Shelf official website