Ben Richards is an English writer, born in 1964. Before writing novels and TV dramas, he worked for three years as a housing officer in Newham and Islington, London. As a research student at UCL's Department of Geography he spent a year investigating public housing in Chile and on his return to Britain began his first novel "to alleviate the boredom of analysing questionnaires" for his PhD thesis. Richards was a lecturer at the University of Birmingham and at University College London, where he taught development studies, specialising in South America. He is now a full-time writer.
His novels are Throwing the House out of the Window (1996), Don't Step on the Lines (1997), The Silver River (1999), A Sweetheart Deal (2001), The Mermaid and the Drunks (2004) and Confidence (2006). He also contributed to the New Puritans anthology of 2000.
As a screenwriter, Richards has written for the BBC (Spooks and Party Animals), ITV (The Fixer) and Channel 4 (No Angels). He is the creator and writer of Outcasts.
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—Ellen Henrietta Swallow Richards (1842–1911)