Simon Cornwell

Simon Cornwell is the co-chief executive of The Ink Factory and a son of the British spy David Cornwell, who wrote under the pen name of John le Carré.^[1][2][3] The company oversees dramatic adaptations of le Carré’s novels for the screen and stage.^[4][5]

Cornwell was born in the United Kingdom to Ann Martin and David Cornwell, who had met as teenagers and had three sons. The couple later divorced. David Cornwell re-married and had a fourth son.^[2]

Growing up, Cornwell traveled around Europe before settling in Crete, a Greek island, where his father pursued a career as a writer. He attended a rural private school before going on to Westminster School in London.^[1]

Cornwell attended the University of Oxford, where he studied modern languages.

He later worked on the Thai-Laos-Cambodia border for the International Rescue Committee. He helped build Khao-i-dang, a temporary refugee camp.

He also studied management at the University of Yale in the United States.^[1]

Among the le Carré works that Cornwell has shepherded to the screen is the novel The Night Manager, as both English^[6] and Hindi-language television series.^[5]

The Ink's works include a production of The Little Drummer Girl starring Florence Pugh and Alexander Skarsgård, and directed by Park Chan-wook. It has also produced The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, based on le Carré’s first novel. ^[1]

Prior to serving as Co-CEO of The Ink Factory, Cornwell worked at Boston Consulting Group, developed a company that combined live games with television, and worked as a venture capitalist at Amadeus Capital. ^[1]