Inua Ellams was born in 1984 in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria, to a Muslim father and a Christian mother.[5] When he was 12 years old, he moved with his family to England, and three years later to Ireland, where he attended Firhouse Community College.[6]
A one-man show staged at the Soho Theatre in 2010,[11] telling the story of twins born on Nigeria's independence day.[12]
Barber Shop Chronicles
Barber Shop Chronicles is a play set in black barber shops in six cities on one day, against the backdrop of a football match between Chelsea and Barcelona. The play explores the African diaspora in the UK,[13] masculinity, homosexuality and religion. The play was produced by the National Theatre, Fuel Theatre and Leeds Playhouse and was shortlisted for the Alfred Fagon Award in 2017.[14] Following a period of touring, the play was also performed at the Roundhouse in 2019,[15] and a recording of the National Theatre production was streamed in May 2020 as part of the National Theatre at Home season.[16] For the production, Ellams recorded 60 hours of "male banter"[17] in barbershops all over Africa and in London at his barber Peter's shop Emmanuel's in Clapham Junction.[17] This project originally did not secure funding.[18]
An Evening with an Immigrant
At the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, in 2017, Ellams performed a live stage programme titled An Evening with an Immigrant, with anecdotes of his childhood and his experiences as a refugee.[19] An excerpt was shown at the Hay Festival on 24 May 2020.[10][20]
The Half God of Rainfall
In April 2019, his new play, The Half God of Rainfall, was presented at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre,[21] in advance of its run at London's Kiln Theatre, as well as its publication as a book.[22]
Three Sisters
In December 2019–February 2020, a reworking by Ellams of Anton Chekhov's play Three Sisters was performed at the Royal National Theatre, London.[23] The play restaged the story in the 1960s in the midst of the Biafran war in Nigeria.[24]
Television
Doctor Who
In January 2025, it was announced that Ellams had joined the writing team of the fifteenth series of Doctor Who.[25][26] Ellams is the first black man to have written for the television series, and the fourth black writer overall (after Malorie Blackman, Charlene James and Sharma Angel Walfall).
Ellams wrote the episode The Story & the Engine, set in contemporary Lagos, Nigeria, which was broadcast on 10 May 2025.[27]
