---
name: "Eric Ambler"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/eric-ambler"
fi1m_id: "eric-ambler"
imdb_id: "nm0001907"
tmdb_id: 41416
wikidata_id: "Q508452"
roles: ["Writer"]
born: "28 June 1909"
died: "22 October 1998"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
average_as: "writer"
average_over: 1
updated: "2026-09-24T20:21:29.664536+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Eric Ambler

## Identity

Eric Ambler

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/eric-ambler
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** eric-ambler
- **IMDb ID:** nm0001907
- **TMDB ID:** 41416
- **Wikidata ID:** Q508452
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Ambler, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q508452, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001907/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/41416

Writer. Born 28 June 1909 in London, England, UK. Died 22 October 1998.

## Details

- **Work:** Writer
- **Born:** 28 June 1909, London, England, UK
- **Died:** 22 October 1998
- **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar nomination
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Ambler, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q508452, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001907/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/41416

## Streaming the US now

- **The Roku Channel:** [*A Night to Remember*](https://film.one/film/a-night-to-remember.md) (85)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

Eric Ambler was a British writer and screenwriter. Born in London on 28 June 1909, he published his first novel in 1936 and became known for thrillers and spy novels such as *The Mask of Dimitrios* (1939) and *Journey into Fear* (1940).

Ambler wrote screenplays for several films, including *The Way Ahead* (1944), *The Cruel Sea* (1953), *The Purple Plain* (1954), *The Passionate Friends* (1949), *The Wreck of the Mary Deare* (1959) and *A Night to Remember* (1958). He also wrote teleplays for *Alfred Hitchcock Presents* and created the television series *Checkmate* (1960–1962). He received an Academy Award nomination for his screenplay for *The Cruel Sea* and was appointed OBE.

Ambler died in London in October 1998.

*Sources: imdb.com, en.wikipedia.org, britannica.com, en.m.wikipedia.org.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *A Night to Remember* (1958), Fi1m 85, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/a-night-to-remember.md)

## Complete filmography (27)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *A Quiet Conspiracy* (1989), series, Story
- *Eine Art von Zorn* (1984), Novel
- *Journey into Fear* (1975), Novel
- *Love Hate Love* (1971), Story, Screenplay
- *Topkapi* (1964), Novel
- *Checkmate* (1960), series, Creator, Writer
- *The Wreck of the Mary Deare* (1959), Screenplay
- *A Night to Remember* (1958), Screenplay — Fi1m 85, [page](https://film.one/film/a-night-to-remember.md)
- *Yangtse Incident: The Story of H.M.S. Amethyst* (1957), Screenplay
- *Alfred Hitchcock Presents* (1955), series, Teleplay
- *Lease of Life* (1954), Writer
- *The Purple Plain* (1954), Screenplay
- *Rough Shoot* (1953), Screenplay
- *The Cruel Sea* (1953), Screenplay
- *The Card* (1952), Screenplay
- *The Magic Box* (1952), Screenplay
- *Encore* (1951), Screenplay
- *Highly Dangerous* (1950), Writer
- *The Passionate Friends* (1949), Producer, Screenplay
- *The October Man* (1947), Novel, Screenplay
- *United States* (1944), Writer, Director
- *The Mask of Dimitrios* (1944), Novel
- *The Way Ahead* (1944), Story, Screenplay
- *Hotel Reserve* (1944), Novel
- *Background to Danger* (1943), Novel
- *Journey into Fear* (1943), Novel
- *The New Lot* (1943), as Bren Gun Instructor · Writer

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 0 won, 1 nominated

- 1954: Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay (nominated), for *The Cruel Sea*

### BAFTA Film Awards — 0 won, 2 nominated

- 1959: Best British Screenplay (nominated), for *A Night to Remember*
- 1955: Best British Screenplay (nominated), for *The Purple Plain*

### Other awards — 7 won

- Cartier Diamond Dagger 1986: Cartier Diamond Dagger (won)
- Officer of the Order of the British Empire 1981: Officer of the Order of the British Empire (won)
- Grand Prix de Littérature Policière 1976: Grand Prix de Littérature Policière (won), for *Doctor Frigo*
- The Grand Master 1975: The Grand Master (won)
- Gold Dagger 1972: Gold Dagger (won)
- Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel 1964: Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel (won), for *The Light of Day*
- Gold Dagger 1959: Gold Dagger (won), for *Passage of Arms*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/eric-ambler