Matilda Curtis is a British-American screenwriter, television creator and producer based in London. She is best known for co-creating the BBC and Hulu comedy-drama Dinosaur with Ashley Storrie. Her work blends humour, emotion and strong female characters, helping her build a respected place in British television.
Her full name is Matilda Lee Curtis, and she comes from a highly creative family. Her mother is Downton Abbey actress Elizabeth McGovern, while her father is British director Simon Curtis. Despite her famous parents, Matilda has created an independent career through writing, theatre, television and production.
Matilda Curtis Age and Birthday
Matilda Curtis was born in July 1993 and is 33 years old in 2026. Her birth month and year are confirmed through UK company records connected with her earlier work as a director of Power Play Productions CIC. She holds both British and American citizenship and is professionally based in London. Her dual nationality reflects the backgrounds of her British father and American mother.
Matilda Curtis Parents
Her mother, Elizabeth McGovern, is an acclaimed American actress with a career spanning film, television, theatre and music. She gained international recognition as Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham, in the hugely successful television drama Downton Abbey.
Matilda’s father, Simon Curtis, is a British film and television director. His major films include My Week with Marilyn, Woman in Gold and Goodbye Christopher Robin. Elizabeth McGovern and Simon Curtis married in 1992 and raised their daughters in London.
Matilda Curtis Sister Grace Curtis
Matilda has one younger sister, Grace Curtis. Grace was born several years after Matilda and has kept a much quieter personal life than her older sister. The two women grew up in a household closely connected with acting, filmmaking and storytelling.
Both sisters also received small acting credits in their father’s 2017 film Goodbye Christopher Robin. They were credited as “McGovern Sister”. Matilda did not pursue acting as her main profession and instead developed her talent for creating stories behind the camera.
Matilda Curtis Education
Matilda studied English at the University of Oxford. Material from her university years connects her with St Hugh’s College, where she became involved in writing and creative projects. Her studies strengthened her knowledge of literature, language and storytelling.
Her creative interests were already developing during her Oxford years. She contributed written pieces to student media and became involved with theatre. One of her early plays, Bad Faith, formed part of Oxford’s New Writing Festival.
Professional Writing Training
After university, Matilda continued to improve her skills through professional training. She graduated from the Soho Theatre Writer’s Lab and completed a Dramatic Writing short course at RADA. These experiences helped her move from university writing into professional theatre and television. She also gained experience in writers’ rooms for Channel 4 and Netflix, giving her further insight into collaborative television development.
Early Theatre Career
One important early project was Matilda’s one-woman play Somebody. She took the production to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where it explored relationships, friendship, personal identity and emotional challenges.
The project reflected a theme that later became important in her television work: women dealing with complex emotional situations while retaining humour and individuality. Her writing style became focused on character, warmth and unusual human experiences.
Power Play Productions CIC
Matilda also became a director of Power Play Productions CIC on 15 May 2018. She remained in the role for one year and resigned on 15 May 2019. Her involvement with the organisation formed part of her early theatre career. During this period, she was developing original work and gaining practical experience within the creative industries before moving further into television.
Matilda Curtis and Dinosaur
The defining project in her career is Dinosaur. Matilda wrote the original pilot, which was filmed and transmitted for BBC Three in 2021. Ashley Storrie initially became involved through the acting process before joining Matilda as a creative partner. Together, Curtis and Storrie developed the concept into the full BBC and Hulu comedy-drama that reached audiences in 2024.
What Is Dinosaur About?
The series follows Nina, an autistic palaeontologist whose comfortable routine changes when her sister and closest friend, Evie, suddenly announces that she is getting married. The story combines comedy with themes of autism, romance, friendship, sisterhood and independence. Nina is presented as a complete person with work, ambitions, relationships and emotions rather than being defined by a single part of her identity.
BBC and Hulu Success
The full first season arrived in 2024 through the BBC and Hulu. It was produced by Two Brothers Pictures, the production company associated with acclaimed programmes including Fleabag. Matilda served as a writer and co-creator, while her role later expanded into production. Her development from original pilot writer to senior creative figure shows the trust placed in her vision for the programme.
Matilda Curtis BAFTA Win
A major career milestone came in November 2024, when Matilda and Ashley Storrie won the BAFTA Scotland award for Writer – Film/Television for Dinosaur. The victory was especially significant because the category included major television writers. It gave Matilda one of Britain’s respected industry honours and confirmed her growing reputation as a talented comedy-drama writer.
Other Awards for Dinosaur
The programme received further recognition across the television industry. It won the RTS Scotland award for Best Comedy, while Matilda and Storrie also earned recognition for their writing. The series gained further nominations connected with major television awards, including the Broadcast Awards, Edinburgh TV Awards and BANFF Rockie Awards. Its success helped Dinosaur develop from a BBC Three pilot into an internationally distributed production.
Dinosaur Season 2
Season 2 filmed during summer 2025 and arrived in 2026. Matilda continued to play a central role in the creative direction of the programme. Her responsibilities also expanded into executive production. By the second series, she had moved beyond writing alone and was working at a higher creative level as a co-executive producer.
Other Matilda Curtis Projects
Matilda’s career extends beyond Dinosaur. She has worked on development projects across drama, comedy and film and has experience with major organisations including Channel 4 and Netflix. She was attached to write a television adaptation of Lizzy Barber’s psychological thriller Out of Her Depth. She has also developed work connected with StudioCanal, Carnival and Hartswood Films.
Other projects associated with her creative development include ICEBERG, Sunshine Girl and the short film concept The Breakup Party. Her professional interests cover television, cinema, theatre and children’s writing.
Matilda Curtis Writing Style
Matilda is especially interested in unusual stories that combine humour, empathy and heart. Her strongest work often centres on female characters, complicated relationships and emotional change. Rather than using comedy only for jokes, she uses humour to make difficult subjects feel natural and human. This approach is one of the main strengths of Dinosaur and also connects with themes found in her earlier theatre work.
Teaching and Charity Work
Away from television, Matilda has a strong interest in education. She works with young people on creative writing, literature and written English, helping them develop confidence in language and self-expression. Her work has included refugees and asylum seekers learning English as a foreign language. She also volunteers with West London Welcome, where she has supported English teaching and communication work.
Who Is Matilda Curtis Husband Nick Kemp?
Matilda Curtis is married to Nick Kemp. The couple married in February 2023 at Chelsea Old Town Hall in West London, when Matilda was 29. Nick Kemp was described in contemporary wedding coverage as the son of a lawyer. Elizabeth McGovern celebrated her daughter’s marriage on her verified social media account with the joyful message, “Matilda’s Married!”
Does Matilda Curtis Have Children?
There is no confirmed evidence that Matilda and Nick Kemp have children. She keeps much of her married life away from her professional career. Her work, awards and creative projects receive far more attention than her private relationships. This clear separation has allowed her to maintain a relatively private family life despite coming from a well-known entertainment family.
Matilda Curtis Today
Matilda Curtis has developed from an Oxford English student and theatre writer into a BAFTA-winning screenwriter, television creator and producer. Her career shows steady growth built on original ideas and strong character writing. At 33, she has already created a successful BBC and Hulu programme, earned major industry recognition and moved into senior production. With further projects in development, she remains one of the distinctive emerging voices in contemporary British comedy-drama.
Also Read