Television work Farnaby was a long-time member of
The Mighty Boosh supporting cast, tracing the
discovery and identification of the remains of the last
Plantagenet king, the 2014 Channel 4 documentary series entitled
Man Vs Weird, in which he travelled the world investigating people who claim superhuman abilities, and as narrator of the
Channel 5 docu-series called
On the Yorkshire Buses, following
East Yorkshire Motor Services. Farnaby accepted a
TV BAFTA in 2023 for
memorable TV moment, for a short film broadcast as part of the
Platinum Party at the Palace for the
Platinum Jubilee of
Queen Elizabeth II in June 2022, in which Farnaby played a butler. which was broadcast on
Sky One for three series. Farnaby had his first major involvement with the creation of a film with the troupe, on the 2015 historical comedy film
Bill, based loosely around the early life of
William Shakespeare. The same collective then went on to create the
BBC show
Ghosts, which ran for five seasons before the team decided to retire it. Farnaby played the fictitious
Conservative politician ghost, Julian Fawcett, who always appeared without trousers.
Books Along with journalist Scott Murray, in 2011 Farnaby co-wrote
The Phantom of the Open, a biography of
Maurice Flitcroft, a would-be professional golfer whose unsuccessful attempts to qualify for the
Open Championship led to his being described as "the world's worst golfer". His first children's novel,
The Wizard In My Shed, was published in 2020, and this was followed by a sequel titled
Warrior in my Wardrobe: More Misadventures with Merdyn the Wild, which was released in 2021. Farnaby was also a co-author of
Ghosts: The Button House Archives, a companion book to the
Them There television series for the BBC,
Ghosts which he co-wrote and starred in.
Films Having previously appeared in
The Mighty Boosh, Farnaby was in a starring role for the related film
Bunny and the Bull in 2009, where he played the eponymous Bunny. In 2016, Farnaby co-wrote and had a small acting part in
Mindhorn with
Julian Barratt, a comedy about Richard Thorncroft (Barratt), a faded television actor drawn into negotiations with a criminal who believes his character Detective Mindhorn is real. He co-wrote the book
The Phantom of the Open about golfer
Maurice Flitcroft in 2011, and then started work on a film script of the story in 2017, which led to the release of
The Phantom of the Open in 2021, starring
Mark Rylance. Also in 2016, Farnaby had a small on-screen role in
Rogue One, as an X-Wing pilot. The biggest film success of Farnaby's career came with the
Paddington film franchise. Following on from appearing as an actor in
the first film, he went on to co-write
Paddington 2 with
Paul King, for which he was nominated for two
film BAFTAs for
best adapted screenplay and
Outstanding British Film. He was also the winner of the International Online Cinema Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, and the
Hollywood Critics Association award for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2018. Farnaby subsequently appeared alongside
Paddington Bear and
Queen Elizabeth II in a short film broadcast as a part of the
Platinum Party at the Palace for the
Platinum Jubilee of
Queen Elizabeth II in June 2022, which won the 2023
BAFTA for
memorable TV moment, which Farnaby accepted. Alongside
Ghosts co-star
Charlotte Ritchie, Farnaby also has a small on-screen role, with his
Them There collaborator
Mathew Baynton in one of the leading roles, and starring
Timothée Chalamet. Farnaby wrote the screenplay for
The Magic Faraway Tree. An adaptation of
Enid Blyton's book series of the
same name. The film released theatrically in the UK on 27 March 2026. ==Personal life==