Player Playwrights
While the coronavirus keeps us in lockdown our hoped for restarting of our meetings have to be postponed.
In the meantime we are running an Open Competition for a radio play with a cash prize
THE KINDNESS OF STRANGERS
WRITE A 30 MINUTE PLAY FOR RADIO AND WIN £500
Player-Playwrights are holding a summer competition, open to writers in Greater London and the Home Counties, for half hour radio plays on the theme THE KINDNESS OF STRANGERS.
For full details click here
If you haven't written a radio play before, here is a layout guide to get you started
We will aim to meet again for the first time on Monday 5th October. Please put this date in your diary and we will confirm the programme nearer to that date. If social distancing is still a requirement by October, we will contact you all again and make alternative arrangements.
Members can still send in scripts to Francis Beckett (see details below) for our team of mentors to read. If you are happy to read/mentor other members’ scripts please let Francis know.
This is also a time to re-energise Player Playwrights and to move into a whole new era.
Please do let us have any thoughts about how you would like to see Player Playwrights go forward. Is the old format the right one? Should we focus more on actors? How can we develop a sense of purpose in our writers, actors and committee members? How can we make PP enjoyable and stimulating so that people like joining in? What old habits should we drop? How can we make all members feel included? You tell us. You can use the email address below.
Please stay safe and take care of yourself. Hopefully you are all able to use this time to write and we look forward to seeing the resulting plays.
When Player Playwrights was founded in 1948 its aim was laid down as follows:
“To encourage the writing of plays by its members, by providing an opportunity for such plays to be presented and criticized by the Society; to widen the knowledge of all aspects of playwriting, by inviting to its meetings Speakers and Lecturers; to explore all avenues whereby members’ work may be presented to the public.”
Player Playwrights, which is still run by its actor and playwright members, continues to bring together professional actors and writers with weekly play readings, actor and writer workshops, plus guest speaker events for its members.
We are always open to new Members. You could be an experienced or an aspiring playwright. You might be an actor excited about working with new writers and on new plays. Or maybe you’re just someone who loves theatre and gets excited being among the first to see new work. You're all very welcome.
The best way to get involved is simply come to one of our Monday evening events in the upstairs room at the North London Tavern. Anyone can come to any of our events. Simply pay £4 on the door.
If you like what you see, you become a Member (it’s £12 a year). You can then attend events, from new play readings and contest nights to seminars with theatre experts, at reduced admission (£2.50).
More importantly you can put your own work forward for one of our play reading evenings; you can become part of the rota of actors we need to stage plays; you can enter our regular short play contest nights.
You can become a Member on the door or by post. For more details contact Tony Diggle on
Co-Presidents
Laurence Marks & Maurice Gran
Bafta-winning writers of numerous ITV and BBC series' including Birds of A Feather, Goodnight Sweetheart and The New Statesman. Theatre Includes Save The Last Dance For Me, Dreamboats and Petticoats and Love Me Do. Marks & Gran were crowned 'Living Legends' by The Comedy Society in September 2015.
"In 1973 we had the good fortune to stumble upon Player Playwrights. Over the subsequent months, in a semi–derelict theatre in Fitzroy Square, we were exposed to short plays, long plays, good plays and bad plays, written and performed by members of the club, professional and amateur.
Although by then Laurence was a journalist, and Maurice was selling the occasional short story to top shelf magazines, neither of us even fantasised about a career as a playwright, although we were both enthusiastic fans of radio and television comedy. But after a few months hearing other members’ scripts, we decided separately to take the plunge, and enter the regular sketch–writing competition."
At its heart Player Playwright is a collective of writers and actors who are supportive of each others work.
We schedule readings of new works, drama and comedy, created by our Members. The work is then critiqued by fellow Members. The aim of our criticism is always to guide and aid the writer to improve their work.
Many plays that get their first outing at Player Playwrights go on to full professional productions on the London stage, often with actors from Player Playwrights appearing in them.
To find out more about how Members can put their work forward for a reading click here
AT A GLANCE diary of play readings and events for the spring season
All events Monday, 7.30pm, North London Tavern, 375 Kilburn High Rd, London, NW6 7QB
Created by Caleb Estes