Author Profiles: Mark Billingham - Crime & Thrillers

Author Name: Mark Billingham

Brief Biography:

Mark Billingham was born and brought up in Birmingham. Having worked for some years as an actor and more recently as a TV writer and stand-up comedian his first crime novel, “Sleepyhead” was published in 2001. This was the start of a series of novels featuring Tom Thorne, a London-based detective, and was an instant bestseller in the UK. Mark is now working on book number 8 alongside his first standalone thriller “In the Dark”, which will be published on August 7th 2008. He has also joined forces with his friend Peter Cocks (pseudonym Will Peterson) in writing a trilogy of thrillers for younger readers, called “Triskellion”. Mark lives in London with his wife and two children.

Interesting snippets:

Mark became a stand-up comedian in 1987, and since that time he’s appeared on over thirty radio and TV shows, played every comedy club in the UK and bought a new hat. He is now a regular performer and MC at London’s world famous Comedy Store.

Bibliography:

The Tom Thorne Novels:

Book 8: ‘Bloodline’
Book 7: ‘Death Message’
Book 6: ‘Buried’
Book 5: ‘Lifeless’
Book 4: ‘The Burning Girl’
Book 3: ‘Lazybones’
Book 2: ‘Scaredy Cat’
Book 1: ‘Sleepyhead’

Other Crime Novels:

In the Dark, 2008

Prizes and Awards:

2002, Sherlock Awards (best detective novel by a UK author), for Scaredy Cat
2004, Theakston’s Old Peculiar Crime Novel of the Year, for Lazybones
2009, Theakston’s Old Peculiar Crime Novel of the Year, for Death Message
2009, CWA Gold Dagger (nominated), for In the Dark