Contemporary Dramatists
3 total works
This collection brings together four of Graham's most successful and entertaining plays, each representing a relationship with a theatre with which he has worked and introduced by the author. One of the plays, Sons of York, has never before been published, but earned James Graham a nomination for the Empty Space Mark Marvin Award.
A History of Falling Things is a gentle love story about a young man and woman forced to confront their fears of the outside world and discover what really matters to their lives.
Tory Boyz is a fast-paced, political comedy about prejudice and ambition in Westminster, looking at homosexuality in the British Conservative party, both today and in the past.
As Ben, self-employed, skint and emotionally vulnerable, begins to stitch together the patchwork quilt that was the Tax Year 2009/2010, he relives a year that was both hilarious and tragic, all mixed up in one shoe box of receipts. The Man is an affectionate and funny portrait of an individual's year-long experience, pieced together from receipts, shopping and commercial transactions.
The Whisky Taster is a contemporary, subtle and witty exploration of feeling and perception in the modern world of advertising, and about seeing things too clearly in a city that never stands still.
Sons of York
Described as 'undoubtedly one of the best new plays of the year' (British Theatre Guide), Sons of York depicts three generations of the same family moving in together in Hull as the Winter of Discontent of 1978 builds up.
A History of Falling Things is a gentle love story about a young man and woman forced to confront their fears of the outside world and discover what really matters to their lives.
Tory Boyz is a fast-paced, political comedy about prejudice and ambition in Westminster, looking at homosexuality in the British Conservative party, both today and in the past.
As Ben, self-employed, skint and emotionally vulnerable, begins to stitch together the patchwork quilt that was the Tax Year 2009/2010, he relives a year that was both hilarious and tragic, all mixed up in one shoe box of receipts. The Man is an affectionate and funny portrait of an individual's year-long experience, pieced together from receipts, shopping and commercial transactions.
The Whisky Taster is a contemporary, subtle and witty exploration of feeling and perception in the modern world of advertising, and about seeing things too clearly in a city that never stands still.
Sons of York
Described as 'undoubtedly one of the best new plays of the year' (British Theatre Guide), Sons of York depicts three generations of the same family moving in together in Hull as the Winter of Discontent of 1978 builds up.
The second collection of plays from eminent playwright James Graham, bringing together four of his state-of-the-nation plays.
The volume includes the following plays, alongside an introduction by the author:
This House (2012) explores Westminster and the 1974 hung parliament through a combination of wit and waspish dialogue, comedy and political comment, and historical and contemporary concerns.
The Angry Brigade (2014) takes a look at the story behind the Angry Brigade - a British anarchist group who carried out a series of bomb attacks between 1970 and 1972.
The Vote (2015) looks at what happens in Britain on election night through the eyes of those at the polling station. Set in a fictional London polling station, Graham's play dramatises the final ninety minutes before the polls close in the 2015 general election.
Monster Raving Loony (2016) explores the life and exploits of Screaming Lord Sutch to examine the state of the nation and Britain’s post-war identity crisis. It tells the story of Sutch through a cavalcade of comic characters from music hall to Monty Python, panto to Partridge.
The volume includes the following plays, alongside an introduction by the author:
This House (2012) explores Westminster and the 1974 hung parliament through a combination of wit and waspish dialogue, comedy and political comment, and historical and contemporary concerns.
The Angry Brigade (2014) takes a look at the story behind the Angry Brigade - a British anarchist group who carried out a series of bomb attacks between 1970 and 1972.
The Vote (2015) looks at what happens in Britain on election night through the eyes of those at the polling station. Set in a fictional London polling station, Graham's play dramatises the final ninety minutes before the polls close in the 2015 general election.
Monster Raving Loony (2016) explores the life and exploits of Screaming Lord Sutch to examine the state of the nation and Britain’s post-war identity crisis. It tells the story of Sutch through a cavalcade of comic characters from music hall to Monty Python, panto to Partridge.
"James Graham is a political playwright so on top of his game that you kind of take it on faith that any play he comes up with will be a banger, regardless of how esoteric the subject." (Time Out)
The third collection of James Graham's plays brings together four West End hits and a Tony Award Best Play nominee into one unforgettable anthology of political, national and human stories perceptively told and expertly crafted.
INK: "It's a sharply written, vibrantly theatrical, boisterously performed piece of work. And while it vividly recaptures the now extinct world of Fleet Street — with its adrenalized and testosterone-heavy mix of news hounds and hacks, idealism and cynicism, professional pride and boozy waggishness — the play's depiction of the rise of a certain brand of populism and its immediately detrimental effect on British society makes it profoundly of the moment." - Hollywood Reporter
Labour of Love: "James Graham [...] has a rare capacity to recreate pivotal moments from our past. In his brilliant new play, however, he adds another weapon to his armoury. He not only provides a portrait of the historic ups and downs of the Labour party; he also charts, with surprising tenderness, a turbulent relationship between an MP and his constituency agent". - Guardian
Quiz: "Can we truly believe our eyes and ears, or do we only ever see what we want to see? In James Graham’s glittering play you can take your pick from an array of alternative facts, but you might struggle to find the truth among the razzle-dazzle. One thing’s for sure, though — Quiz is a winner." - Times
Best of Enemies: "History comes hurtling to life in “Best of Enemies,” the latest attempt from the prolific playwright James Graham to put flesh on the bare bones of the past. Chronicling a sequence of televised face-offs that transfixed the United States in 1968, Graham once again shows a gift for mining the annals of politics and journalism for real theatrical gems. The result [...] is the most riveting play in London just now." - New York Times
The third collection of James Graham's plays brings together four West End hits and a Tony Award Best Play nominee into one unforgettable anthology of political, national and human stories perceptively told and expertly crafted.
INK: "It's a sharply written, vibrantly theatrical, boisterously performed piece of work. And while it vividly recaptures the now extinct world of Fleet Street — with its adrenalized and testosterone-heavy mix of news hounds and hacks, idealism and cynicism, professional pride and boozy waggishness — the play's depiction of the rise of a certain brand of populism and its immediately detrimental effect on British society makes it profoundly of the moment." - Hollywood Reporter
Labour of Love: "James Graham [...] has a rare capacity to recreate pivotal moments from our past. In his brilliant new play, however, he adds another weapon to his armoury. He not only provides a portrait of the historic ups and downs of the Labour party; he also charts, with surprising tenderness, a turbulent relationship between an MP and his constituency agent". - Guardian
Quiz: "Can we truly believe our eyes and ears, or do we only ever see what we want to see? In James Graham’s glittering play you can take your pick from an array of alternative facts, but you might struggle to find the truth among the razzle-dazzle. One thing’s for sure, though — Quiz is a winner." - Times
Best of Enemies: "History comes hurtling to life in “Best of Enemies,” the latest attempt from the prolific playwright James Graham to put flesh on the bare bones of the past. Chronicling a sequence of televised face-offs that transfixed the United States in 1968, Graham once again shows a gift for mining the annals of politics and journalism for real theatrical gems. The result [...] is the most riveting play in London just now." - New York Times