Julian Jones

Julian Jones, celebrated co-creator of the BBC's "Merlin," has been a television writer for more than 20 years. He studied acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, and appeared in an episode of the anthology series "Play for Today" in 1982. However it was not the stage that proved to be Jones's calling, but the page. He cut his teeth on "The Bill," a police procedural he penned nearly two dozen episodes of between 1988 and 1992. During that period he also contributed scripts to the con-man sitcom "Perfect Scoundrels" and the crime drama, "Taggart." In 1995, Jones picked up an award for his contribution to another police saga, "Between the Lines," which was named Best Original Drama Series by the Writers' Guild of Great Britain. He donned a director's hat in 2003 for "The Curse of Page 3," a TV documentary about the unglamorous lives of "Page Three Girls" who appear topless on the third page of some tabloid newspapers. Jones returned to scripted television with stints on the supernatural series "Hex" and the love triangle drama "Sinchronicity." In 2008, he spearheaded the fantasy series "Merlin," exploring the early years of the traditionally ancient and bearded magician.