Neil Gaiman Height, Weight, Age, Body Statistics

Neil Gaiman is an award-winning English author whose writing credits include novels like American Gods, Good Omens, The Graveyard Book, Stardust and the popular comic book series The Sandman. Known as the world’s best fantasy writer, Neil has won almost every literary award including the Bram Stoker, Hugo, Nebula, and Carnegie Medals. He has more than 600k followers on Instagram, more than 12k subscribers on YouTube, more than 3 million followers on Twitter, and more than 1 million followers on Facebook.

Born Name

Neil Richard Gaiman

Nick Name

Nails Ghoulman, Gerry Musgrave (pseudonym), Richard Grey (pseudonym)

Sun Sign

Scorpio

Born Place

Portchester, Hampshire, England, United Kingdom

Residence

• Menomonie, Wisconsin, United States
• Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

Nationality

Education

Neil attended a Church of England school called Fonthill School in East Grinstead, which he had to leave at the age of 7 on account of his father’s involvement with the Church of Scientology. He went on to study at Ardingly College in West Sussex from 1970 to 1974 and Whitgift School in London from 1974 to 1977.

After graduating in 1977, Neil decided not to pursue higher formal education.

Occupation

Author

Family

• Father – David Bernard Gaiman (Head of the UK branch of the Church of Scientology) (Died from a heart attack in 2009)
• Mother – Sheila Gaiman (née Goldman) (Pharmacist)
• Siblings – Claire Edwards (Younger Sister) (Head of Scientology Missions International), Lizzy Calcioli (Younger Sister)
• Others – Moishe/Morris Gaiman (Paternal Grandfather), Mary Parson (Paternal Grandmother), Hertzel/Harry Goldman (Maternal Grandfather), Pearl/Polly/Perel Krafchig (Maternal Grandmother), Mauro Calcioli (Brother-in-law)

Manager

Neil is represented by Casarotto Ramsay & Associates in London.

Build

Slim

Height

5 ft 10 in or 178 cm

Weight

72 kg or 158.5 lbs

Girlfriend / Spouse

Neil Gaiman has dated –

1. Mary McGrath (1983-2008) – In 1983, Neil began dating an American woman named Mary McGrath, who was studying Scientology under his father’s supervision. After a courtship of 2 years, they tied the knot in 1985. The couple welcomed 3 kids together – Michael Gaiman (b. 1983), Holly Gaiman (b. June 26, 1985), and Madeleine Gaiman. After living in England for many years, the family moved to a house in Minneapolis (in the United States) in 1992, which was within driving distance from Mary’s family. The couple became estranged with time and got divorced in 2008 after having separated a few years before. Nevertheless, Gaiman is on friendly terms with his ex-wife and both stay nearby each other for the sake of their children.
2. Amanda Palmer (2008-2020) – Amanda Palmer, famous as one-half of the punk cabaret duo The Dresden Dolls, met Gaiman through mutual friends in 2008. After dating for a few months, Palmer and The Sandman writer made their relationship public in June 2009. Neil proposed to his girlfriend, 18 years his junior, on New Year’s Day in 2010. The couple exchanged wedding vows on January 2, 2011, at the house of their close friends (and novelists) Ayelet Waldman and Michael Chabon in Berkeley, California. A few months before that, on November 16, 2010, Palmer hosted a flash mob wedding (not legally binding) to Gaiman in New Orleans. After getting married, both changed their last names to reflect MacKinnon (Palmer’s middle name) Gaiman, as a sign of solidarity. Amanda gave birth to their son, Anthony ‘Ash’ Gaiman, on September 16, 2015. Their marriage stands out for being an open marriage wherein both of them have mutually decided to entertain other s**ual partners. However, in May 2020, the couple announced their separation.

Race / Ethnicity

White

Neil has mostly Ashkenazi Jewish, some European (unspecified), and East Asian ancestry.

Hair Color

Black

However, his hair has turned salt and pepper due to his advancing age.

Eye Color

Hazel

Sexual Orientation

Straight

Distinctive Features

• Messy hair
• Always dressed in black clothes
• Curved lips

Brand Endorsements

Gaiman has done endorsement work for the following brands –

• His voice was used for Apple’s ‘Test the Impossible’ commercial
• UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) (2016)
• PETA

Religion

Neil’s family has Jewish origins and his parents converted to Scientology when he was very young. However, he has clarified that he is neither a Scientologist nor a follower of Judaism.

He has been tight-lipped about his religious beliefs but has hinted on several occasions that he is an atheist.

Best Known For

His legacy of literary work that includes award-winning novels like American Gods, Stardust, The Graveyard Book, Good Omens, Coraline; the comic book series The Sandman and many others

First Film

Neil made his theatrical film debut as ‘Himself’ in the 2008 comedy film Thaco.

First TV Show

Gaiman made his first TV show appearance as ‘Himself’ in the Attack of the Killer Comics episode of the documentary series South of Watford in 1987.

Personal Trainer

Gaiman lost around 30 lbs in 2011 by working out every day for 40 mins while listening to an audiobook of Bleak House by Charles Dickens on his Audible app.

Neil Gaiman Favorite Things

• Work Collaborator – David McKean
• Films – If…. (1968), All That Jazz (1979), Drowning by Numbers (1988), His Girl Friday (1940), Beauty and the Beast (1946)
• Science Fiction Writer – R. A. Lafferty
• Books On Fiction – Shadow & Claw by Gene Wolfe, Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirrlees, Archer’s Goon by Diana Wynne Jones, London Labour and the London Poor by Henry Mayhew, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke, Horns by Joe Hill, Alec by Eddie Campbell, Bleak House by Charles Dickens, Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny, The Man Who Was Thursday by G. K. Chesterton
• Books As A Kid – Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien, The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
• Filipino Mythological Character – Manananggal
• Cheese – Wensleydale
• Writer Of Children’s Fiction – Diana Wynne Jones
• Albums – Loaded (1970) by The Velvet Underground, Past, Present and Future (1973) by Al Stewart, Little Earthquakes (1992) by Tori Amos, 69 Love Songs (1999) by The Magnetic Fields, Tongue (1998) by Penelope Houston, Cast of Thousands (1979) by The Adverts, Avalanche (2003) by Thea Gilmore, Diamond Dogs (1974) by David Bowie, Nouvelle Vague (2004) by Nouvelle Vague, Lou Reed (1972) by Lou Reed, Imperial Bedroom (1982) by Elvis Costello and the Attractions, Soundtrack of Drowning by Numbers (1988) by Michael Nyman, The Cost of Living (2007) by Jason Webley
• Science Fiction Novels – Neuromancer by William Gibson, The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin, The Shadow of the Torturer by Gene Wolfe
• Chapter In The Graveyard Book – Chapter 5 titled ‘Danse Macabre’
• Comfort Food – Sushi
• Dish To Cook – Omelet
• Hotel In Dublin – The Clarence Hotel
• Song By Amanda Palmer – A Mother’s Confession from the 2019 album There Will Be No Intermission
• Smell – Evenings in November smelling of frost, leaf mold, and woodsmoke
• Word – Claptrap
• Fancy Dress Costume – Pirate
• Characters From His Own Works – Merv Pumpkinhead and Wilkinson the Rat in The Sandman; Miss Spink and Miss Forcible in Coraline; Czernobog in American Gods

Source – Wikipedia, Radical Reads, Rotten Tomatoes, KickassFacts.com, The Guardian, TheQuietus.com, BuzzFeed, BBC, PubishersWeekly.com, The Guardian, Politics-Prose.com

Neil Gaiman Facts

1. Owing to the popularity of his Twitter account @neilhimself, he was named as one of ‘The Best Tweeters in Comics’ by IGN in 2013.
2. Neil was credited as a writer on the ‘The Doctor’s Wife’ (2011) episode of the BBC science fiction series Doctor Who. The acclaimed episode, which featured Matt Smith as the Doctor, was awarded the Hugo Award for ‘Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form)’ in 2012.
3. He writes the first draft of all his works with a fountain pen; a practice he began while writing his novel, Stardust (1997).
4. Producer J. Michael Straczynski named an alien race in his Babylon 5 series after Neil as he was very impressed with the writer’s work. The alien race named Gaim drew visual inspiration from his Sandman character.
5. Neil is a beekeeper.
6. The Sandman #19 titled A Midsummer Night’s Dream won the World Fantasy Award for ‘Best Short Story’ in 1991. It became the first-ever comic series to receive a literary award.
7. Neil has been longtime friends with American musician Tori Amos and is the godfather of her daughter Tash. Amos has referenced her good friend in several of her songs like Carbon, Not Dying Today, Space Dog, etc. Neil, in turn, has alluded to her in different capacities in his literary works.
8. He became an honorary member of the Phi Alpha Tau fraternity at Emerson College.
9. Visit his official website @ neilgaiman.com.
10. Follow Neil Gaiman on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.

Featured Image by Kyle Cassidy / Wikimedia / CC BY-SA 3.0