Alan Ayckbourn Biography

Alan Ayckbourn: A Concise Chronology
This is an year-by-year look at significant events in Alan Ayckbourn's life. For a chronology of significant plays & productions, click here
Year	Key Events	Plays
1939	Born 12 April in Hampstead to Irene Maud Worley (‘Lolly’) and Horace Ayckbourn
1946	Attended Wisborough Lodge as a boarder
46-51	Lolly remarries, variously lives at Billingshurst, Wisborough Green, Horsham, Uckfield, Hayward's Heath and Lewes
1951	Received a Barclays Bank scholarship to attend Haileybury
1955	Toured Netherlands in a school production of Romeo and Juliet (would also tour eastern USA and Canada in Macbeth in 1956)
1956	Left Haileybury; first professional job as acting stage manager with Sir Donald Wolfitt's company in The Strong Are Lonely at the Edinburgh Festival
1957	Joined Studio Theatre Ltd at the Library Theatre, Scarborough, as acting stage manager (preceded by seasons the Connaught Theatre (Worthing), Thorndike Theatre (Leatherhead) and followed by a winter season at Oxford Theatre)
1958	Returned to Scarborough as actor; Stephen Joseph issues challenge to write first play (December)
1959	Premiere of Alan's first play The Square Cat on 30 July at the Library Theatre (written as Roland Allen); played Stanley in Harold Pinter's self-directed second production of The Birthday Party; marries Christine Roland	The Square Cat (World Premiere); Love After All (WP)
1960	National Service at RAF Cardington, Bedfordshire (two days!)	Dad's Tale (WP)
1961	Directorial debut with Gaslight at the Library Theatre	Standing Room Only (WP)
1962	Founder member and associate director of Victoria Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent	Christmas V Mastermind (WP)
1963		Mr Whatnot (WP)
1964	Leaves Victoria Theatre; final professional acting job in Two For The Seesaw at Rotherham; joins the BBC in Leeds as a radio drama producer	Mr Whatnot (London Premiere)
1965		Meet My Father (WP)
1966
1967	First directing credit for one of his own plays with The Sparrow; death of Stephen Joseph	The Sparrow (WP); Relatively Speaking (LP)
1968
1969		How The Other Half Loves (WP)
1970	Resigns from the BBC to concentrate on playwriting (23 June)	The Story So Far... (WP); How The Other Half Loves (LP)
1971		Time And Time Again (WP)
1972	Becomes Artistic Director of the Library Theatre, Scarborough (for details of the often misreported date of Alan assuming this role, click here)	Absurd Person Singular (WP); Time And Time Again (LP)
1973		The Norman Conquests (WP); Absurd Person Singular (LP)
1974	Variety Club of Great Britain Playwright of the Year; television play Service Not Included	Absent Friends (WP); Confusions (WP); The Norman Conquests (LP)
1975	Breaks record for most productions running simultaneously both in the West End and on Broadway; first entries in Who's Who & Encyclopaedia Britannica	Jeeves (WP); Bedroom Farce (WP); Absent Friends (LP)
1976	Scarborough company moved from Library Theatre to Stephen Joseph Theatre In The Round, Westwood, Scarborough	Just Between Ourselves (WP); Confusions (LP)
1977	First premiere at the National Theatre with Bedroom Farce, his first play specifically written for the end-stage; first London directing credit with Bedroom Farce; became Chair of the Drama Panel of Yorkshire Arts Association	Ten Times Table (WP); Bedroom Farce (LP); Just Between Ourselves (LP)
1978		Joking Apart (WP); Ten Times Table (LP)
1979	Stepped down from Yorkshire Arts Association citing work commitments	Sisterly Feelings (WP); Taking Steps (WP); Joking Apart (LP)
1980		Suburban Strains (WP); Season's Greetings (WP); Sisterly Feelings (LP); Taking Steps (LP)
1981		Way Upstream (WP); Making Tracks (WP); Suburban Strains (LP)
1982		Intimate Exchanges (WP); Way Upstream (LP); Making Tracks (LP); Intimate Exchanges (LP)
1983	Arts Council Cultural Trends reports "Ayckbourn more popular than Shakespeare" (statistically the most watched and performed playwright in the UK from '81-'83)	It Could Be Any One Of Us (WP)
1984	Television play A Cut In The Rates	A Chorus Of Disapproval (WP)
1985	Olivier Award for Best Comedy with A Chorus Of Disapproval	Woman In Mind (WP); A Chorus Of Disapproval (WP)
1986	Two year sabbatical from Scarborough as visiting director at the National Theatre; made Freeman of the Borough of Scarborough	Woman In Mind (LP)
1987	Awarded CBE; directs A View From The Bridge at the National Theatre to universal acclaim	A Small Family Business (WP); Henceforward... (WP)
1988	Returned to Scarborough	Man Of The Moment (WP); Mr A's Amazing Maze Plays (WP); Henceforward... (LP)
1989	A Chorus Of Disapproval film released	The Revengers' Comedies (WP); Invisible Friends (WP)
1990	Directs his first Shakespeare play, Othello, starring Michael Gambon	Body Language (WP); This Is Where We Came In (WP); Callisto 5 (WP); Man Of The Moment (LP)
1991	Margaret Ramsay (Alan's agent) dies (4 September)	Wildest Dreams (WP); My Very Own Story (WP); The Revengers' Comedies (LP); Invisible Friends (LP)
1992	Appointed Cameron Macintosh Visiting Professor of Contemporary Theatre, at the University of Oxford.	Time Of My Life (WP); Dreams From A Summer House (WP)
1993	Writers’ Guild of Great Britain Lifetime Achievement Award	Mr A's Amazing Maze Plays (LP); Wildest Dreams (LP); Time Of My Life (LP)
1994	Montblanc de la Culture Award for Europe; Smoking / No Smoking (Intimate Exchanges) film released	Communicating Doors (WP); Haunting Julia: one act (WP)
1995		A Word From Our Sponsor (WP); Communicating Doors (LP)
1996	Scarborough company moves to the Stephen Joseph Theatre; Writers’ Guild of Great Britain Best West End Play for Communicating Doors	By Jeeves (WP & LP); The Champion Of Paribanou (WP); It Could Be Any One Of Us: revised (WP)
1997	Knighted 'for service to theatre'; married Heather Stoney; Lloyds Private Banking Playwright of the Year; funding crisis at the Stephen Joseph Theatre	Things We Do For Love (WP)
1998	Leads resignation of entire Drama Advisory Panel of the Arts Council in protest at new policies being instigated by Gerry Robinson	Comic Potential (WP); The Boy Who Fell Into A Book (WP); Body Language: revised (WP); Things We Do For Love (LP)
1999	Adapts Ostrovsky's The Forest for the National Theatre; announces he will no longer direct plays by other writers; National Theatre survey of 800 theatre professionals places him as the 14th most influential playwright of the century and The Norman Conquests as one of the hundred greatest plays of the century	House & Garden (WP); Haunting Julia: two act (WP); Comic Potential (LP)
2000		Virtual Reality (WP); Whenever (WP); House & Garden (LP)
2001	Sunday Times Award for Literary Excellence; directs on Broadway for the first time with By Jeeves; First Ayckbourn And The Round event at Scarborough; official biography written by Paul Allen	GamePlan (WP); FlatSpin (WP); RolePlay (WP)
2002	Directs world premiere of Tim Firth's The Safari Party, his final non-Ayckbourn directed play; Releases his first book The Crafty Art Of Playmaking	Snake In The Grass (WP); The Jollies (WP); GamePlan (LP); FlatSpin (LP); RolePlay (LP)
2003	Moliere Award for Best Comedy for Things We Do For Love; Alan announces he is quitting the West End	Sugar Daddies (WP); Orvin - Champion Of Champions (WP); My Sister Sadie (WP)
2004	Variety Club Of Great Britain Lifetime Achievement Award	Drowning On Dry Land (WP); Private Fears In Public Places (WP); Miss Yesterday (WP)
2005	American premiere of Private In Public Places at Brits Off Broadway Festival with SJT company directed by Alan	Improbable Fiction (WP); Private Fears In Public Places (LP)
2006	Suffered a stroke (February); returned to direct If I Were You (September); Private Fears In Public Places film released	If I Were You (WP)
2007	Announced decision to step down as Artistic Director of the Stephen Joseph Theatre (1 June); American premiere of Intimate Exchanges in Brits Off Broadway festival with SJT company directed by Alan	A Trip To Scarborough - revised (WP)
2008	Begins process of stepping down as Artistic Director of the Stephen Joseph Theatre	Life And Beth (WP); Awaking Beauty (WP)
2009	Steps down as Artistic Director of the Stephen Joseph Theatre


	Note: This chronology is an edited highlights. For full details of awards, plays, directing, acting roles and a complete play-list click on the blue links at the top of the page.