Nick Hornby Hornby, the chairman of London and Continental Railways, and Margaret Audrey, Lady Hornby ("née" Withers). He was brought up in Maidenhead, and educated at Maidenhead Grammar School and Jesus College, Cambridge, where he read English. His parents divorced when he was eleven. Hornby published his first book in 1992, a collection of essays about American Writers such as Tobias Wolff and Ann Beattie, titled "Contemporary American Fiction". Hornby's second book, "Fever Pitch", also published in 1992, is an autobiographical story detailing his fanatical support for Arsenal Football Club. As a result, Hornby received the William Hill Sports Book of the
Fever Pitch (1997 film) Fever Pitch (1997 film) Fever Pitch is a 1997 film starring Colin Firth, based loosely on Nick Hornby's best-selling memoir, "Fever Pitch: A Fan's Life" (1992). Hornby also wrote the screenplay. Hornby adapted the book for the screen and fictionalized the story, concentrating on Arsenal's First Division championship-winning season in 1988–89 and its effect on the protagonist's romantic relationship. Firth plays Paul Ashworth, the character based on Hornby, a teacher at a school in North London and his romance with Sarah Hughes (Ruth Gemmell), a new teacher who joins Ashworth's school. The film culminates with the real life events of