Neil Jordan Biography

Irish short-story writer, novelist, and film director, born in Sligo, educated at University College, Dublin. He worked as a labourer and a teacher until he founded the Irish Writers' Co-operative in Dublin in 1974. Although more widely known for his films, Jordan has made significant contributions to contemporary Irish writing. His first collection of short stories, Night in Tunisia and Other Stories (1976), plays with literary genre and history in a way which is characteristic of post-modern fiction. His novels include The Past (1980), The Dream of a Beast (1983), and, most notably, Sunrise with Sea Monster (1995), an exuberant narrative set in Ireland in the 1930s, and Spain, where the chief protagonist is a prisoner in the Spanish Civil War. Jordan has written and directed several feature films, including Angel (1982), A Company of Wolves (1984), adapted from the story by Angela Carter, Mona Lisa (1986), High Spirits (1990), and The Crying Game (1992), most of which have been critically acclaimed.