Simon John Blackwell (born 27 May 1966) is an English comedy writer and producer. He is best known for his work on The Thick of It, In The Loop and Veep, and for his collaborations with Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain on Peep Show, Four Lions and The Old Guys. Blackwell is the creator of the comedy series Back, starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb, as well as Breeders, starring Martin Freeman and Daisy Haggard. Description above from the Wikipedia article Simon Blackwell, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- Writer and producer
- 9 on MovieCove · 19 credits in all
What are Simon Blackwell's films like?
Across their 5 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
A split, not a type: Ironic 2 · Wry 0 · Earnest 1
Light 3 · Serious 0 · Dark 0
A split, not a type: Grounded 2 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 1
Gentle 1 · Charged 1 · Intense 1
A split, not a type: Steady 0 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 1
Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 2
Slow burn 1 · Even-paced 2 · Relentless 0
Casual 1 · Engaged 1 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 1 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 0
Resolved 2 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Happy1
- Bittersweet3
- Tragic1
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Simon Blackwell's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 7 of their 9 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on HBO Max (3).
- BritBox
Subscription and free streaming for Simon Blackwell's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
19 credits, 9 with a MovieCove page.
Breeders(2020)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all shows
Avenue 5(2020)
Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all shows
Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films
Succession(2018)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all shows
Back(2017)
Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all shows
Trying Again (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)
Veep(2012)
Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all shows
Four Lions(2010)
Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films
The Old Guys (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)
In the Loop(2009)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films
Spinners and Losers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)
The Rise of the Nutters (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)
The Thick of It(2005)
Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all shows
Kelsey Grammer Presents: The Sketch Show (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)
2004: The Stupid Version (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)
The Impressionable Jon Culshaw (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)
Bounty Hamster (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)
Aaagh! It's the Mr. Hell Show! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)
Paddington 4 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 19 titles, 18 of them dated from 2001 to 2020.
Biggest box office
The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019)
Highest rated
The Thick of It (2005)
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Simon Blackwell's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 90th percentile, the median of all 3; across a limited sample of 3 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 89th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up5
- 50th to 74th3
- 25th to 49th1
Shape of the crowd
None of their 9 titles divides audiences: 4 are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved3
- Crowd Pleaser4
- Mixed2
Reviewers score the dialogue 78/100 and the plot and story 50/100 in their films, across 3 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Simon Blackwell's work okay for kids?
Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.
Who does Simon Blackwell work with?
People who share at least 2 of Simon Blackwell's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Armando Iannucci shares the most, 3.
Directors
- Armando IannucciShared titles: The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019), In the Loop (2009), The Thick of It (2005)See all 3 shared titles with Armando Iannucci
Writers
- Ian MartinShared titles: Back (2017), In the Loop (2009), The Thick of It (2005)See all 3 shared titles with Ian Martin
- Jesse ArmstrongShared titles: Back (2017), Four Lions (2010), In the Loop (2009)See all 3 shared titles with Jesse Armstrong
- Tony RocheShared titles: Back (2017), In the Loop (2009), The Thick of It (2005)See all 3 shared titles with Tony Roche
Actors
- Peter CapaldiShared titles: The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019), In the Loop (2009), The Thick of It (2005)See all 3 shared titles with Peter Capaldi
- Olivia PouletShared titles: Back (2017), In the Loop (2009), The Thick of It (2005)See all 3 shared titles with Olivia Poulet
- Chris AddisonShared titles: In the Loop (2009), The Thick of It (2005)See all 2 shared titles with Chris Addison
Editors
- Billy SneddonShared titles: Four Lions (2010), In the Loop (2009), The Thick of It (2005)See all 3 shared titles with Billy Sneddon
Producers
- Kevin LoaderShared titles: The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019), In the Loop (2009)See all 2 shared titles with Kevin Loader
Mixed roles
- Will SmithShared titles: Back (2017), The Thick of It (2005)See all 2 shared titles with Will Smith
