Simon Curtis

Simon Curtis (born 11 March 1960) is an English director and producer. He has directed theatre productions and the television dramas David Copperfield (1999) and Cranford (2007, 2009). His feature films include the biographical dramas My Week with Marilyn (2011), Woman in Gold (2015), and Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022). Career Curtis began his career working at the Royal Court Theatre. His first job was assistant director for Caryl Churchill's Top Girls. He later became assistant director to both Danny Boyle and Max Stafford-Clark. Theatre productions Curtis has worked on include the world premiere of Road, A Lie of the Mind, Roots, Dinner with Friends and The Rise and Fall of Little Voice. In 2010, Curtis directed Serenading Louie at the Donmar Warehouse. In 1996, Curtis directed episodes of the television comedy series Tracey Takes On... for HBO. He also directed the three-part television drama Twenty Thousand Streets Under the Sky for BBC Four in 2005. The serial is an adaptation of Patrick Hamilton's 20,000 Streets Under the Sky novels. He directed the BBC's adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell's Cranford in 2007. In June 2009, Curtis directed two new episodes of Cranford for the Christmas period. Titled Return to Cranford, the episodes were aired from 20 December 2009.