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Martin Phipps
Martin Phipps
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Martin Phipps (born 1 August 1968) is a British composer who has worked on numerous film and television projects.

Key Information

Early life and education

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He is the son of Sue Pears and Jack Phipps, an arts administrator who had previously founded a management agency, which acted for many leading musical figures (including Benjamin Britten, Phipps's godfather).

Phipps read drama at the University of Manchester.[citation needed]

Career

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Phipps enjoyed early critical success with Eureka Street, and went on to score the BBC period dramas North & South and The Virgin Queen, for which he was recognised with the Ivor Novello Award for Best Original Score.

Phipps scored Low Winter Sun for Channel 4, starring Mark Strong and Brian McCardie and Persuasion, the most recent ITV adaptation of Jane Austen's novel, as well as Grow Your Own, a feature for Warp Films. He also scored the BBC adaptation of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, adapted by Andrew Davies. Phipps was then commissioned to score the BBC's Oliver Twist adaptation, for which he was recognised with the Ivor Novello Award 2008 for Best Television Soundtrack.

Phipps went on to score the Rowan Joffé-helmed drama, Hurndall for Talkback Thames followed by Wallander for Yellow Bird/Left Bank Pictures, starring Kenneth Branagh, for which he was recognised with the BAFTA Craft Award 2009 for Best Original TV Score. He then went on to write the music for the feature film Endgame, starring William Hurt, Derek Jacobi, Mark Strong, Jonny Lee Miller and Chiwetel Ejiofor, chronicling the breakdown of S. African apartheid, directed by Pete Travis. It was entered into competition at the Sundance Film Festival. He also scored Small Island for Ruby Films/BBC, winning the BAFTA Craft Award 2010 for Best Original Television Music. More recently, he completed the score for his first feature film, Brighton Rock and composed the music for the newest BBC adaptation of Great Expectations.

In 2005, Phipps wrote the score to the film Pierrepoint. Other credits include The Wife of Bath from the BBC's contemporary adaptation of the Canterbury Tales, and the contemporary drama Dirty Filthy Love. He also scored the British feature film, The Flying Scotsman, and The Line of Beauty.

Phipps scored the UK thriller feature Harry Brown for Cutting Edge/Marv Films, starring Michael Caine, as well as Rowan Joffé's feature adaptation of Graham Greene's Brighton Rock. Mike Diver described Phipps' score as "rich and sumptuous of tone and depth".[1] He co-wrote the score with Emily Barker for the BBC drama The Shadow Line. Authored by Hugo Blick for the BBC, it was described by one critic as "a maddening, stylish experiment in doing something completely, admirably different with television".[2] More recent credits include the first series of Peaky Blinders on BBC Two for which he was nominated for a BAFTA Craft Award and The Honourable Woman. His documentary work includes scoring the documentary Britain in a Day. More recently he composed the score of the film Woman in Gold in collaboration with Hans Zimmer.

Phipps composed the soundtrack for the 2016 miniseries War & Peace. Phipps said he "ended up coming onto the project early on", and that he was given room to "run with it... from the very beginning."[3] The soundtrack was released on 13 May 2016.[4] He also composed the theme to the same year's Victoria, as well as incidental music of the early episodes. The theme was sung by the Mediæval Bæbes.[5]

Phipps also composed the soundtrack for season 3, season 4, season 5 and season 6 of The Crown.

Filmography

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Films

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Year Title Director Notes
2005 Pierrepoint Adrian Shergold
2006 The Flying Scotsman Douglas Mackinnon
2007 Grow Your Own Richard Laxton
2009 Endgame Pete Travis
Harry Brown Daniel Barber Co-composed with Ruth Barrett, Pete Tong, Theo Green and Paul Rogers
2010 Brighton Rock Rowan Joffé
2014 X+Y Morgan Matthews
The Keeping Room Daniel Barber
2015 Woman in Gold Simon Curtis Co-composed with Hans Zimmer
2019 The Aftermath James Kent
2022 The Princess Ed Perkins Documentary film
The Railway Children Return Morgan Matthews Co-composed with Edward Farmer
2023 Napoleon Ridley Scott

Television

[edit]
Year Title Studio Notes
1996 The Adam and Joe Show Channel 4 Title music composer
1999 Eureka Street BBC Two TV miniseries
2000 Shades ITV
2001 Bob & Rose
Nice Guy Eddie BBC One
2003 The Canterbury Tales
2004 New Tricks Composed for 6 episodes
North & South
2006 The Virgin Queen PBS
The Line of Beauty BBC HD
2007 Masterpiece PBS Episode: "The Ruby in the Smoke"
Oliver Twist BBC One TV miniseries
2007 Persuasion TV film
2008 Sense and Sensibility
2008–2012 Wallander BBC One Co-composed with Vince Pope
2009 Whitechapel ITV
2011 The Shadow Line BBC Title music composed by Ruth Barrett
Great Expectations BBC One Co-composed with Natalie Holt
2011–2016 Black Mirror Channel 4
Netflix
Episodes:
"The National Anthem"
"Hated in the Nation"
2013 Peaky Blinders BBC Two Composed Series 1
2014 The Honourable Woman
2016 War & Peace BBC One
Victoria ITV Title music composer
Main score by Ruth Barrett
2019–2023 The Crown Netflix Seasons 3-6; theme music composed by Hans Zimmer
(succeeding Rupert Gregson-Williams and Lorne Balfe)
2021 Solos Prime video Composed for 7 episodes

References

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[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia
from Grokipedia
Martin Phipps (born 1 August 1968) is a British specializing in scores for film and television, particularly period dramas and historical epics. As the godson of renowned , he initially studied drama at the before pivoting to music composition, inspired early on by Michael Nyman's score for The Draftsman's Contract. Phipps began his professional career scoring his first television drama, Eureka Street, in 2002, marking the start of a prolific output in British broadcasting. His breakthrough came with period pieces like North & South (2004) and The Virgin Queen (2005), the latter earning him his first Award. Over the subsequent decades, he has become a leading figure in soundtrack composition, blending orchestral elements with innovative instrumentation to evoke emotional depth and historical authenticity. Among his most acclaimed works are the scores for seasons 3 through 6 of the series , where he succeeded and introduced a sparser, more introspective sound that amplified the emotional weight of royal narratives, earning multiple Emmy nominations in 2020 and 2024. Other television highlights include (season 1), , , and : Hated in the Nation. In film, Phipps collaborated with Zimmer on Woman in Gold (2015) and composed the score for Ridley Scott's (2023), notably incorporating a rare period once owned by himself for authenticity. His additional credits encompass The Aftermath (2019) and (2024), for which he won an Award in 2025. Phipps's achievements include two BAFTA Television Craft Awards—for Wallander (2009) and Small Island (2010)—and five Ivor Novello Awards, including for Oliver Twist (2008) and The Honourable Woman (2015). He has also received an International Film Music Critics Association nomination for Napoleon and founded the production company Mearl to facilitate collaborative projects, such as the Peaky Blinders soundtrack with musicians from Radiohead's studio. Based in London, Phipps continues to shape contemporary screen music through his precise, character-driven approach.

Early life and education

Family background and influences

Martin Phipps was born on 1 August 1968 in , , to Sue Pears and Jack Phipps. His father, Jack Phipps, was a prominent arts administrator who founded a management agency representing leading musical figures, including the composer and tenor , while his mother, Sue Pears—a niece of —had previously worked as Britten's housekeeper before co-founding the agency with Jack in 1964. Phipps' godfather was the renowned composer , a close family friend whose relationship with the Phipps family provided young Martin with profound early exposure to and composition. Growing up in , , in a household deeply connected to the arts, Phipps was immersed in a culturally rich environment shaped by his parents' professional activities. This included regular attendance at cultural events, concerts, and performances, as well as informal through proximity to Britten's works and the vibrant musical scene his parents facilitated. From an early age, Phipps showed initial sparks of interest in music, expressing a desire to play in bands and experiment informally with instruments, though without any formal training at the time. This childhood fascination, nurtured by his surroundings and Britten's influence, laid the groundwork for his later pursuits, eventually leading him to formal academic training at the .

Academic training and early interests

Phipps studied drama at the University of Manchester, initially choosing the program as an accessible entry into higher education amid limited music courses available at the time. During his time there, he discovered his lack of aptitude for acting and instead began composing music for university theatre productions to contribute without performing on stage. This marked the start of his exploration into narrative-driven composition, blending theatrical elements with musical storytelling, and he developed an interest in film scoring techniques inspired by scores like Michael Nyman's for The Draftsman's Contract, which he encountered as a teenager. Lacking formal training during his undergraduate years, Phipps was largely self-taught in composition, honing his skills through these student projects where he experimented with short pieces tailored to dramatic scenes. After graduating, he furthered his academic pursuits by enrolling in the music composition course at the (NFTS), which provided structured exposure to screen scoring methods and collaborative filmmaking processes. In the immediate post-university period, he refined his abilities through freelance opportunities on minor projects, such as small documentaries and news inserts, allowing him to build technical proficiency and a portfolio of narrative-focused work without venturing into larger productions.

Career

Early professional work

Martin Phipps entered the professional with his debut score for the miniseries Eureka Street, which aired on from September to October 1999 and depicted the social tensions in post-peace accord , marking his breakthrough in British television—though some biographical sources erroneously date it to 2002. This commission came shortly after his university studies in drama at , where he had begun composing for to sidestep acting roles, providing a natural bridge to narrative-driven screen work. Building on this success, Phipps composed scores for subsequent BBC period dramas, including North & South (2004), an adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell's novel set during the , and The Virgin Queen (2005), a portrayal of Elizabeth I's reign that earned him the Award for Best Television Soundtrack. These projects helped solidify his style in historical narratives, characterized by emotive orchestral arrangements that enhanced dramatic tension. The transition from academia to professional composing proved challenging, as Phipps navigated limited budgets typical of early productions and the need to adapt to varied styles across small documentaries, news inserts, and short films to build experience. He started with modest commissions for friends' projects, relying on rudimentary technology like early samplers, while the niche screen composing field demanded versatility without formal training pathways. Phipps formed key early collaborations within the television scene, particularly through his to a drama who facilitated his first major TV opportunity, and by cultivating relationships with directors and s beyond musician circles to secure commissions in the ecosystem. This networking approach, combined with hands-on work on low-stakes projects, enabled him to establish a foothold in British by the mid-2000s.

Television compositions

Martin Phipps began his television scoring career with the drama Eureka Street in 1999, marking his entry into composing for episodic narratives. Throughout the late and early , Phipps established himself as a prominent for period dramas, blending orchestral elements with subtle emotional cues to enhance historical storytelling. His score for the 2007 adaptation of , directed by , earned him an Award for Best Television Score, utilizing brooding strings and choral accents to underscore the 's themes of poverty and resilience.) In 2008, he composed for the British adaptation of Wallander, starring , where his atmospheric motifs captured the series' tone, winning a BAFTA Craft Award.) That same year, Phipps scored ITV's , employing delicate piano and motifs to reflect Jane Austen's exploration of sisterly bonds and social constraints, which also garnered a BAFTA nomination for Best Original Television Music.) His work on the 2009 Small Island, based on Andrea Levy's , integrated rhythms with post-war orchestral swells to evoke themes of migration and identity, winning him a BAFTA Craft Award for Best Original Television Music in 2010.) Phipps continued this trajectory with tense, character-driven scores for contemporary thrillers, including the 2011 BBC series The Shadow Line, where minimalist percussion and dissonant harmonies built suspense in its espionage plot, and the 2014 drama , a collaboration with director that used recurring string motifs to mirror the protagonist's psychological turmoil. For the first series of in 2013, Phipps crafted a gritty, industrial soundscape with brass fanfares and folk influences to complement the post-World War I gangland setting. In 2016, he composed the theme for ITV's Victoria, a majestic orchestral piece featuring choral elements performed by the Mediaeval Baebes, which set the tone for the series' royal intrigue while main scores were handled by Ruth Barrett. Phipps' approach to scoring episodic narratives often integrates historical or cultural themes with emotional depth, particularly in period pieces, where he favors restrained orchestration to allow character arcs to resonate. This is evident in his contributions to the BBC's 2016 adaptation of War & Peace, where sweeping yet intimate cues with piano and strings highlighted the epic's romantic and philosophical layers. His most extensive television project came with The Crown on Netflix, scoring Seasons 3 through 6 from 2019 to 2023; here, Phipps introduced minimalist motifs—such as sparse harp and solo cello lines—to convey the inner conflicts of figures like Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Diana, evolving the series' sound from Hans Zimmer's earlier themes into a more introspective palette that amplified personal vulnerabilities amid public duty. In recent years, Phipps has diversified into modern thrillers, scoring the 2024 Netflix series , a spy starring , with tense atmospherics featuring pulsating electronics and urgent percussion to heighten its tension and moral ambiguities. This score earned a nomination for Television Composer of the Year at the 2025 . Portions of Phipps' television works, including selections from and , were performed live by the Brussels Philharmonic at the ' "Minimalism in Motion" concert on October 16, 2025, showcasing his evolution toward concise, evocative in serialized formats.

Film compositions

Martin Phipps transitioned to film scoring in the mid-2000s, building on his television experience to craft scores that emphasized emotional depth and atmospheric tension in self-contained cinematic narratives. His early film work often featured intimate, character-driven compositions that synchronized closely with visual storytelling, marking a shift toward feature-length projects. Phipps' debut in film came with the 2005 historical drama Pierrepoint, directed by Adrian Shergold, where he composed a haunting orchestral score that underscored the moral complexities of its subject, , Britain's last executioner. This was followed by the gritty urban thriller Harry Brown (2009), directed by Daniel Barber, featuring a tense, percussion-heavy that amplified the film's themes of vigilante and societal decay in modern . In 2010, Phipps scored Rowan Joffé's adaptation of Graham Greene's Brighton Rock, delivering a noir-infused orchestral palette blended with 1960s elements to evoke the seedy underbelly of post-war Britain, creating an enveloping sense of menace and moral ambiguity. By the mid-2010s, Phipps expanded his film portfolio with more diverse genres, including the American Civil War drama The Keeping Room (2014), directed by Daniel Barber, where his score—produced through his collective MEARL—employed sparse, folk-tinged strings to heighten the film's isolated tension and female resilience. That same year, he composed for X+Y (also known as A Brilliant Young Mind), directed by Morgan Matthews, using subtle piano and electronic motifs to mirror the protagonist's autistic perspective and mathematical obsessions during the International Mathematical Olympiad. Phipps co-scored the 2015 Holocaust restitution drama Woman in Gold with Hans Zimmer, contributing chamber-like themes that evoked Vienna's cultural heritage and personal loss, performed by a reduced orchestra to maintain emotional intimacy. His work culminated in the 2019 post-World War II romance The Aftermath, directed by James Kent, with a melancholic score featuring swelling strings and piano to capture the ruins of Hamburg and themes of grief and forbidden love. Phipps' most ambitious film project to date is the 2023 historical epic Napoleon, directed by Ridley Scott, where he adapted his television-honed subtlety to grand cinematic scales, employing a large orchestra and choir for expansive battle sequences. The score incorporates Corsican folk elements like mandolin and accordion to portray Napoleon as an outsider, evolving into thematic developments with brass fanfares and electronic textures for climactic confrontations such as Austerlitz and Waterloo; notably, Phipps recorded piano cues on an 1808 Érard instrument once owned by Napoleon to add authentic intimacy to reflective moments. This evolution marked a significant escalation in orchestral scope, transforming understated motifs into epic requiems while retaining emotional nuance.

Awards and recognition

Major television awards

Martin Phipps has received significant recognition for his television compositions through prestigious awards, particularly from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) and the , underscoring his contributions to atmospheric and emotionally resonant scoring in British drama. His work has earned him two BAFTA Craft Awards for Best Original Television Music, highlighting his ability to enhance narrative depth in period and contemporary series. In 2009, Phipps won the BAFTA Craft Award for Best Original Television Music for his score to the BBC adaptation of Wallander, starring Kenneth Branagh, where his minimalist and brooding arrangements captured the series' Scandinavian noir tone. The following year, in 2010, he secured another BAFTA in the same category for Small Island, a Ruby Films/BBC production exploring post-World War II immigration, with his music praised for its poignant integration of orchestral and ethnic elements to evoke themes of displacement and resilience. Additionally, Phipps received a BAFTA nomination in 2014 for Best Original Television Music for the first season of Peaky Blinders, recognizing his tense, jazz-infused score that defined the show's gritty 1920s Birmingham underworld. He was also nominated in 2017 for War & Peace. Phipps' television scores have also garnered five Ivor Novello Awards overall, with several specifically honoring his broadcast work. He won the Best Television Soundtrack in 2006 for The Virgin Queen, a , where his score blended motifs with modern orchestration to immerse viewers in Elizabethan intrigue. In 2008, he received the same award for Oliver Twist, the 's adaptation, lauding his dark, symphonic underscore that amplified the story's social commentary and gothic atmosphere. Other Ivor Novello wins include recognitions for The Shadow Line (2012), The Honorable Woman (2015, shared with ), and War & Peace (2017), further cementing his status in television composition. More recently, Phipps earned a Primetime Emmy nomination in 2024 for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Original Dramatic Score) for the The Crown episode "Sleep, Dearie Sleep," part of his contributions to , where he continued Hans Zimmer's legacy with subtle, regal themes; this marks one of several Emmy nods he has received for , including nominations in 2020 for "" and 2021 for "Fairytale." In 2025, he was nominated for a World Soundtrack Award in the Television Composer of the Year category for , a spy thriller, acknowledging his innovative blend of electronic and orchestral elements in the series' high-stakes narrative. That same year, Phipps received an Ivor Novello nomination for Best Television Soundtrack for , reflecting ongoing acclaim for his evolving style in prestige television. These honors have elevated Phipps' profile, influencing subsequent collaborations and affirming his role in shaping iconic TV soundscapes.

Major film awards and nominations

Martin Phipps has received recognition for his film scores primarily through industry-specific awards highlighting performance and critical acclaim. In 2016, he won the ASCAP Top Film Award for his contributions to the score of Woman in Gold (2015), a biographical drama directed by Simon Curtis, where he collaborated closely with to blend orchestral and chamber elements that underscored the film's themes of heritage and justice. This collaboration with Zimmer, a prominent figure in film scoring, marked an early milestone in Phipps' transition to feature films, earning shared credit on the soundtrack and elevating his visibility in cinematic projects beyond television. More recently, Phipps garnered a from the International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) for Best Original Score for a Drama Film for his work on Ridley Scott's historical epic (2023), praised for its minimalist motifs and folk-inspired melodies that captured the titular character's complex psyche. These honors, though selective, reflect Phipps' growing impact in film composition, particularly in hybrid orchestral styles suited to prestige dramas, and have positioned him for further opportunities in large-scale productions.

Musical style and legacy

Compositional approach

Martin Phipps' compositional approach is characterized by a minimalist style that emphasizes emotional restraint and thematic economy, drawing from his early exposure to through family connections, including his godfather . This influence is evident in his preference for sparse, precise arrangements that prioritize intimacy and subtlety over overt grandeur, often incorporating simple, tuneful melodies to convey character emotions. Phipps also draws inspiration from modern composers such as , whose minimalist works inform his focus on repetitive motifs and emotional depth, as well as for tuneful orchestral elements. A hallmark of Phipps' style is the blending of traditional orchestral palettes with electronic elements, creating tension in thriller-like narratives or warmth in dramatic contexts. He employs pounding synths and electronic textures alongside large ensembles, such as male choirs, to achieve an epic yet intimate scope, ensuring the music supports rather than overwhelms the storytelling. This hybrid approach allows for versatile emotional layering, where acoustic strings provide elegiac undertones and synthetic sounds add modern edge. Phipps' creative process is deeply collaborative and narrative-driven, involving close partnerships with directors to align scores with the project's emotional vision. He typically begins with sketches to capture initial ideas, often developed in early morning sessions, before expanding them into full orchestral or ensemble arrangements with orchestrators like Andrew Skeet. This method ensures the music emerges organically from the story's needs, with Phipps writing extensively upfront—sometimes an album's worth of material—to allow flexibility during editing. He values input from editors and sound designers to refine cues, always starting from scratch for each endeavor to maintain freshness. In adapting his techniques across media, Phipps tailors scores to the format's demands, crafting concise cues for television that fit tight pacing while developing expansive themes for films that build sustained atmosphere. Recurring motifs, such as string-led elegies, appear as a signature device to evoke melancholy and reflection, underscoring emotional arcs with economical repetition. This adaptability highlights his commitment to serving the narrative, whether through restrained piano-vocal intimacy or broader symphonic swells.

Notable collaborations and influence

Martin Phipps has forged significant partnerships with prominent directors and fellow composers throughout his career. He collaborated with director on the historical epic (2023), where Phipps composed the original score, incorporating historical instruments like a piano once owned by to enhance authenticity. His long-standing relationship with writer and director produced the distinctive theme and incidental music for the first season of the series (2013), contributing to the show's atmospheric tension. Additionally, Phipps worked alongside composer on the score for Woman in Gold (2015), providing additional music that blended orchestral elements with emotional depth to underscore the film's themes of justice and heritage. To foster opportunities for collaboration, Phipps established the Mearl project, a platform designed to connect artists and composers while serving as a creative space for developing new material that bridges with applications. Through Mearl, he has facilitated joint ventures that introduce fresh perspectives into film and television scoring, emphasizing innovative electro-acoustic explorations. Phipps has extended his influence to emerging composers via high-profile events at the . In 2025, his works were featured in the "Minimalism in Motion: Glass, Nyman and Beyond" concert, held on October 16 as part of the awards ceremony in , , where live performances highlighted his minimalist influences alongside those of and , inspiring a new generation through shared stage presence with contemporaries like . Phipps' broader legacy includes eight award wins and 25 nominations as of 2025, marking the impact of his collaborative successes across television and film. His contributions to UK-based scoring for global platforms, such as series including (seasons 3–6) and (2024), have elevated British compositional standards, while his two BAFTA wins and five have helped shape industry benchmarks for excellence in original scores.

References

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