Biography and past works
Songwriting
Nick Bicat’s work with recording artists started in 1986 when he wrote the title song No More Lies for the American TV series Lace, which was performed by Deniece Williams. He wrote string orchestrations and played keyboards for Beverley Craven and Beth Neislen Chapman, and later wrote two songs for PJ Harvey: Who Will Love me Now? (lyric by Philip Ridley – selected as Favourite Film Song by Radio 1 in 1998) and This Is Mine (lyric by PJ Harvey). Who Will Love me Now?, originally used as a principle theme and closing titles of Philip Ridley’s seminal movie The Passion of Darkly Noon, was subsequently covered by UK technno/trance band Sunscreem, and entered the top 40 UK chart. He and Polly subsequently co-wrote the songs Holding On (for the TV series of the same name) and This Is Mine for Coky Giedroyc’s film Stella Does Tricks.
Film
Nick Bicat’s music has ranged from mass-audience TV productions in the USA (Lace, A Christmas Carol, The Scarlet Pimpernel), to art-house cinema (Wetherby, The Reflecting Skin, Stella does Tricks), and many TV films and series in the UK (The Irish RM, Holding On, Births Marriages & Deaths). Nick Bicat’s score for the feature film The Passion Of Darkly Noon (written and directed by Philip Ridley) won the award for Best Music Score at the 1995 Film Festival in Sitges, Barcelona, and he has twice been nominated for the BAFTA music award (Cruel Train & Holding On).
Film – Heartless (2010)
Album of 11 songs for Heartless film starring Jim Sturgess, and directed by Phillip Ridley.
CLICK HERE to find the soundtrack on iTunes
Theatre and Opera
Beginning with Nick Bicat’s first commission (at age 19) for the Castle Theatre in Farnham, Surrey, word-of-mouth led to further work in theatres all round the UK, including Nottingham Playhouse (for Richard Eyre – The Cherry Orchard), the National Theatre (for David Hare – Plenty, Pravda, King Lear) and the Royal Shakespeare Theatre (for John Barton – The Greeks). Nick Bicat’s opera The Knife (book & lyrics by David Hare and Tim Rose-Price) was premiered at Joseph Papp’s Theatre in New York in 1987 (nominated for Best Musical Score in the New York Drama Desk Awards). A stage musical Peer Gynt (version & lyrics by Adrian Mitchell) was commissioned and produced by the Oxford Playhouse, as was All’s Well (book and lyrics by Tony Bicat); this was nominated for the Ivor Novello Award. Elvira Madigan, originally commissioned by the Malmö Stadtsteater, Sweden in 1991 has since been remounted with new productions in Norway, Hungary, Germany, Italy and most recently at the Riksteater Theatre Stockholm in September 1995. An English version is in preparation, as is Talk to Me (an improvisatory comic opera, book & lyrics by John Gardyne).