Debbie Isitt | Cast & Creative

Debbie Isitt

Writer, Director and Composer

Debbie originally trained as an actor in the 1980s but was heralded as ‘The future of British Theatre' (The Guardian) when she wrote and directed a series of award-winning black comedies that took the Edinburgh Festival by storm. 

 

She spent her youth touring the world with her internationally renowned theatre company, Snarling Beasties and Debbie’s play The Woman Who Cooked Her Husband is still performed all over the world. Her work won numerous awards including The Perrier Pick of the Fringe, the Independent Theatre Award and The Time Out Theatre Award. 

 

After several successful London Seasons (Royal Court Theatre, Donmar Warehouse etc.), Debbie toured the world with her productions performing at several major international theatre festivals including Australia, New Zealand, US, South America, Hong Kong and beyond.

 

In 2001 Debbie adapted a large-scale stage production of Dodi Smith’s One Hundred And One Dalmatians for the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry, before moving into filmmaking.  

 

In 2005 Debbie won a BAFTA and an international EMMY for her adaptation of the Jacqueline Wilson novel The Illustrated Mum for Channel 4 and more recently she directed a TV series Love and Marriage for ITV starring Alison Steadman.

 

Debbie’s first cinema film Nasty Neighbours starring Ricky Tomlinson was invited to premiere at the prestigious Venice film festival in 2001 – the film was adapted from her own play Nasty Neighbours which holds a place in the Guiness Book of Records for having the most premieres ever given on the same night.

 

Debbie’s hit feature film Confetti featuring a host of British comedy talent was distributed for the world by Fox Searchlight and was nominated for a British Comedy Award in 2006.  

 

In recent years Debbie has written and directed a series of blockbuster Christmas feature films; Nativity!  Starring Martin Freeman, Nativity 2 “Danger in the Manger” starring David Tennant and Nativity 3 “Dude Where’s My Donkey?” starring Martin Clunes and Catherine Tate, which have all been major box office hits in the UK.  Most recently Debbie’s 4th hit film in the franchise Nativity Rocks! starring Simon Lipkin, Celia Imrie and Craig Revel Horwood had it’s cinema release last year and is out on DVD this Christmas.

  

Debbie co-wrote all of the original songs in the Nativity movies with Nicky Ager and her new musical teen movie, developed with Film Four, is set to shoot next spring….