Nuttall was educated at Hereford Cathedral School, Watford Grammar School for Boys and Merton College, Oxford, where he studied both Classical Moderations and English Literature. As a postgraduate he wrote a B.Litt thesis on Shakespeare's The Tempest subsequently published as Two Concepts of Allegory (1968), and considered by some to be his most original book. Nuttall first taught at Sussex University where he was successively lecturer, reader and professor of English and where his students included the philosopher A. C. Grayling and the critic and biographer Robert Fraser.
Nuttall received his education from Hereford Cathedral School, Watford Grammar School for Boys, and Merton College, Oxford. He studied Classical Moderations and English Literature there. As a postgraduate, he wrote a B.Litt thesis on Shakespeare's The Tempest titled Two Concepts of Allegory (1968), which some consider his most original work. Nuttall began teaching at Sussex University, where he held roles as lecturer, reader, and professor of English, and mentored influential figures like philosopher A. C. Grayling and critic Robert Fraser.