Brian Mitchell & Joseph Nixon
Brian and Joseph met at primary school in Derbyshire in 1980. In 1992 they founded the award-winning sketch group The Ornate Johnsons, and went on to be head sketch writers on Radio 4’s Jo Caulfield Won't Shut Up and BBC1's Live and Kicking. Their television comedy shows include The Ornate Johnsons' Edwardian Spectacular for BBC 4 and Slightly Filthy for LWT as well as material for Jerry Sadowitz and Basil Brush.
Mitchell & Nixon share a string of theatre writing credits which include the Edinburgh Festival Fringe hits Big Daddy Vs. Giant Haystacks (The Foundry Group) and Those Magnificent Men (New Perspectives), and Gilbert (No Sullivan) which went on to play the Harrogate International Gilbert & Sullivan Festival in 2017.
With the Carnegie-Medal-winning author Philip Reeve, Brian Mitchell wrote the acclaimed musical comedies The Ministry of Biscuits (revived for a sell-out 35 date tour in 2018) and Lord God (currently touring), and, with musician Jerry Rulf, the Swing-Era 'Screwball' Whaddya Know – We're in Love. A classically-trained composer, his songs for the Perrier-Nominated show, Joanna Neary Is Not Feeling Herself have been broadcast on BBC Radio 1, 2 and 4.
Joseph Nixon is co-writer with actor Ian Shaw of the Olivier-nominated West End hit The Shark is Broken. He also co-wrote the Cosmic Shambles podcast Wife on Earth with Joanna Neary and regularly contributes material to Brighton's acclaimed Radio City group.
In 2010 Mitchell & Nixon set up The Foundry Group www.thefoundrygroup.co.uk a band of writers and performers committed to producing affordable, popular, intelligent touring shows with a broad appeal. The Foundry Group has developed shows by such artists as Joanna Neary, Ross Gurney-Randall, Stephen Wrigley and Eliza Skelton.
Current projects include: Underdogs which won the 2022 Brighton Fringe OffFEST Award for Theatre and transfers to London’s Courtyard Theatre in late 2022; Who is No. 1? a play about Lew Grade and Patrick McGoohan which premieres at Brighton’s Rialto Theatre in October 2022; and Pugs of the Frozen North, co-written with Joanna Neary, which will play in Brighton in December 2022.
For screen writing, Brian and Joe are represented by Roz Kidd at The Ki Agency.