Play the man, not the cards.Sunday night. Stephen hosts a weekly poker game in the basement of his failing London restaurant. All the usual suspects are there; the chef, the waiters, the errant son . . . but tonight a stranger has come to play.Patrick Marber's acclaimed 1995 debut won the Evening Standard Award (Best Comedy) and the Writers' Guild of Great Britain Award (Best West End Play). Dealer's Choice has since been performed in more than fif...

Drawing together the work of 10 leading playwrights, this National Theatre Connections anthology features work by some of the most exciting and established contemporary playwrights. Gathered together in one volume, the plays collected offer young performers between the ages of 13 and 19 an engaging selection of material to perform, read or study.Each play has been specifically commissioned by the National Theatre's literary department with the young performer in mind. The ...

Drawing together the work of 12 leading playwrights, this National Theatre Connections anthology celebrates highlights from 21 years of the Connections festival with a retrospective selection of plays.Featuring work by some of the most prolific playwrights of the 20th and 21st centuries, and together in one volume, the anthology offers young performers between the ages of 13 and 19 an engaging selection of plays to perform, read or study.Each play has been specific...

In this book Richard Ayoade - actor, writer, director, and amateur dentist - reflects on his cinematic legacy as only he can: in conversation with himself. Over ten brilliantly insightful and often erotic interviews, Ayoade examines himself fully and without mercy, leading a breathless investigation into this once-in-a-generation visionary.Only Ayoade can appreciate Ayoade's unique methodology. Only Ayoade can recognise Ayoade's talent. Only Ayoade can withstand Ayoade's peculiar s...

THE NUMBER ONE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERRobert Webb tried to follow the rules for being a man:Don’t cryDrink beerPlay roughDon’t talk about feelingsLooking back over his life he asks whether these rules are actually any use. To anyone.

Maureen Lipman has the knack of making the everyday supremely entertaining, the ordinary absurd and unexpected. This new collection of pieces sparkles with her inimitable prose and pithy opinions. Encounters in the street, at the hairdresser, in the dressing room, on her travels at home and abroad, indeed wherever she goes, are sharply observed, joyfully and - at times - ruefully recorded. Included too are a selection of brilliant monologues which capture the many voices of Maureen in wond...

Monologues are an essential part of every actor’s toolkit. Actors are required to perform monologues regularly throughout their career: preparing for drama school entry, showcasing skills for agents or auditioning for a role. Following on from the bestselling first volume (2008), this book showcases selected monologues from some of the finest modern plays by some of today’s leading contemporary playwrights. These monologues contain a diverse range of quirky and memorable characters that cr...

Anyone who's never watched someone die is suffering from a pretty bad case of virginity.Look Back in Anger premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in 1956.'John Osborne didn't contribute to British theatre: he set off a landmine called Look Back in Anger and blew most of it up.' Alan Sillitoe'A story of youthful insecurity inflamed by lack of opportunity and the terrifying, destabilizing force of love . . . Jimmy Porter could...

As most successful writers will tell you, one of the hardest things about writing is getting started. In this collection of articles, Writer, Musician, Hermit, Pie-Maker and Time-Traveller Colin Garrow explores ways of generating ideas, creating characters and developing stories. Using examples from his own stories, novels and stage plays, he'll show you what to do, what not to do and how to keep at it. Whether you're struggling to get started or wondering how to write amazing dialogue, th...

With sold-out live events around the country and a bestselling book, Women of Letters have revived the gentle art of letter writing. In this all-new collection of missives, a dazzling array of noteworthy Australians share their wisdom, wit and wildest dreams.Here Marieke Hardy and Michaela McGuire have preserved a year of captivating correspondence. The irresistible line-up features Kate Miller-Heidke writing 'A love letter' to her twelve-year-old self; Di Morrissey recounting a dra...

This volume contains Harold Pinter's first six plays, including The Birthday Party.The Birthday PartyStanley Webber is visited in his boarding house by two strangers, Goldberg and McCann. An innocent-seeming birthday party for Stanley turns into a nightmare.'Mr Pinter's terrifying blend of pathos and hatred fuses unforgettably into the stuff of art.' Sunday TimesThe Room and The Dumb WaiterIn these two early...