Southwater's Matt Charman misses out on Oscar glory

Charman was nominated alongside Joel and Ethan Coen for Best Original Screenplay at the 88th Acaemdy Awards but they lost out to Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer for Spotlight.

Playwright Matt, who lives in Southwater, near Horsham, said he had to pinch himself when world-renowned director Steven Spielberg asked him to write the Cold War thriller in 2014.

He said: “I am still pinching myself. It’s a dream.”