James Bridie (3 January 1888 in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popu ...

– 29 January 1951 in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

) was the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individu ...

of a Scottish playwright, screenwriter and physician whose real name was Osborne Henry Mavor.Daniel Leary (1982) ''Dictionary of Literary Biography: Modern British Dramatists 1900-1945'', Stanley Weintraub Ed., Gale, Detroit Ronald Mavor (1988) ''Dr. Mavor and Mr. Bridie: Memories of James Bridie'', Canongate and The National Library of Scotland He took his pen-name from his paternal grandfather's first name and his grandmother's maiden name.

Life

He was the son of Henry Alexander Mavor (1858–1915), an electrical engineer and industrialist, and his wife Janet Osborne. He went to school at

Glasgow Academy The Glasgow Academy is a coeducational independent day school for pupils aged 3–18 in Glasgow, Scotland. In 2016, it had the third-best Higher level exam results in Scotland. Founded in 1845, it is the oldest continuously fully independent ...

and then studied medicine at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

graduating in 1913, later becoming a general practitioner, then consultant physician and professor after serving as a military physician during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, seeing service in France and

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

. He came to prominence with his comic play ''The Anatomist'' (1931), about the grave robbers

Burke and Hare The Burke and Hare murders were a series of sixteen killings committed over a period of about ten months in 1828 in Edinburgh, Scotland. They were undertaken by William Burke and William Hare, who sold the corpses to Robert Knox for dissection ...

. This and other comedic plays saw success in London, and he became a full-time writer in 1938. He returned to the army during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, again serving as a physician. In 1923, he married Rona Locke Bremner (1897–1985). Their son was killed in

. His other son Ronald (1925–2007) was also both a physician and playwright. Ronald became drama critic of ''

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its pare ...

'' after retiring from medicine, Director of the Scottish Arts Council and Deputy Chairman of the Edinburgh Festival. He was Professor of Drama and Head of the Drama Department at the

University of Saskatchewan A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United State ...

and was appointed

C.B.E. The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

Bridie died in

of a stroke and is buried in Glasgow

Western Necropolis Western Necropolis is a cemetery complex in Glasgow, Scotland located to the north of the city centre. As well as the actual Western Necropolis cemetery established in 1882, it is bordered by Lambhill Cemetery which opened in 1881, St Kentigern's ...

. The Bridie Library at the

Glasgow University Union Glasgow University Union (GUU) is one of the largest and oldest students' unions in the UK, serving students and alumni of the University of Glasgow since 1885. The GUU organises social affairs for its members, provides catering and entertainm ...

is named after him, as is the annual Bridie Dinner that takes place in the Union each December.

Contribution to drama and the arts

Bridie was the founder of the

Citizens Theatre The Citizens Theatre, in what was the Royal Princess's Theatre, is the creation of James Bridie and is based in Glasgow, Scotland as a principal producing theatre. The theatre includes a 500-seat Main Auditorium, and has also included various s ...

, in association with joint founders art director Dr

Tom Honeyman Thomas John Honeyman (10 June 1891 – 5 July 1971) was an art dealer and gallery director, becoming the most acclaimed director of Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow. Born near Queen's Park, Glasgow, the son of a life insurance m ...

and cinema magnate George Singleton, who also created the Cosmo, predecessor of today's

Glasgow Film Theatre The Glasgow Film Theatre (GFT) is an independent cinema in the city centre of Glasgow. GFT is a registered charity. It occupies a purpose-built cinema building, first opened in 1939, and now protected as a category B listed building. History ...

. Many of his plays were staged at the Citizens Theatre between 1943 and 1960. Tony Paterson has argued that Bridie's output set the tone for Scottish Theatre until the early Nineteen-Sixties and gave encouragement to other Scottish dramatists such as Robert Kemp, Alexander Reid and George Munro.

Alan Riach Alan Scott Riach (born 1 August 1957)Smith, Anna'Riach, Alan (Scott)' ''Encyclopedia.com''. Retrieved 16 April 2022. is a Scottish poet and academic. He was born in Airdrie, Lanarkshire, and was educated at Gravesend Grammar School for Boys, C ...

described (in 2021) Bridie's plays as both serious and offering 'high spirited fun'; both contemporarily 'commercially successful' and yet 'perennially provocative'; raising open questions that Riach considers as

Brechtian Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...

. He admires the quality of writing in Bridie's 1939 autobiography ''One Way of Living'', calling it a 'modern classic'. Bridie was the first chairman of the Arts Council in Scotland and was also instrumental in the establishment of the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh F ...

. In 1950 he founded the Glasgow College of Dramatic Art, part of the Royal Conservatoire today. Bridie worked with the director

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

in the late 1940s. They worked together on: * ''

The Paradine Case ''The Paradine Case'' is a 1947 American film noir courtroom drama film, set in England, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and produced by David O. Selznick. The screenplay was written by Selznick and an uncredited Ben Hecht, from an adaptation by Al ...

'' (1947). Bridie originally wrote the screenplay, and

Ben Hecht Ben Hecht (; February 28, 1894 – April 18, 1964) was an American screenwriter, director, producer, playwright, journalist, and novelist. A successful journalist in his youth, he went on to write 35 books and some of the most enjoyed screenplay ...

contributed some additional dialogue. But due to casting, the characters had to be changed. So

David O. Selznick David O. Selznick (May 10, 1902June 22, 1965) was an American film producer, screenwriter and film studio executive who produced '' Gone with the Wind'' (1939) and ''Rebecca'' (1940), both of which earned him an Academy Award for Best Picture. ...

had to write another script. * '' Under Capricorn'' (1949) * ''

Stage Fright Stage fright or performance anxiety is the anxiety, fear, or persistent phobia which may be aroused in an individual by the requirement to perform in front of an audience, real or imagined, whether actually or potentially (for example, when perf ...

'' (1950)

Bibliography

*''Some Talk of Alexander'' (1926), book, his experiences as an army doctor *''The Sunlight Sonata'' or ''To Meet the Seven Deadly Sins'' (1928), assisted by John Brandane and published under the pseudonym Mary Henderson, directed by

Tyrone Guthrie Sir William Tyrone Guthrie (2 July 1900 – 15 May 1971) was an English theatrical director instrumental in the founding of the Stratford Festival of Canada, the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the Tyrone Guthrie Centre at ...

*''The Switchback'' (1929), with James Brandane *''What It Is to Be Young'' (1929) *''The Girl Who Did Not Want to Go to Kuala Lumpur'' (1930) *''The Pardoner's Tale'' (1930) *''Tobias and the Angel'' (1930) *''The Amazed Evangelist'' (1931) *''The Anatomist'' (1931) (dramatisation of the historical

murders) *''The Dancing Bear'' (1931) *''Jonah and the Whale'' (1932) *''

A Sleeping Clergyman ''A Sleeping Clergyman'' is a 1933 play in Two Acts by James Bridie. Directed by H. K. Ayliff, it opened at Malvern's Festival Theatre in July 1933, before moving to London's Piccadilly Theatre in September, where it ran for 230 performances. ...

'' (1933) *''Marriage Is No Joke'' (1934) *''Colonel Witherspoon'' or ''The Fourth Way of Greatness'' (1934) *''

Mary Read Mary Read (1685 – 28 April 1721), also known as Mark Read, was an English pirate. She and Anne Bonny were two famous female pirates from the 18th century, and among the few women known to have been convicted of piracy at the height of the " ...

'' (with Claude Gurney) (1934) *''The Tragic Muse'' (1934) *''The Black Eye'' (1935) *''Storm in a Teacup'' (Adaptation) (1936) Based on

Bruno Frank Bruno Frank (June 13, 1887 – June 20, 1945) was a German author, poet, playwright, screenwriter, and humanist. Biography Frank was born in Stuttgart. He studied law and philosophy in Munich, where he later worked as a dramatist and novelist u ...

's ''Sturm im Wasserglas'' *''Susannah and the Elders'' (1937) *''The King of Nowhere'' (1938) *''Babes in the Wood'' (1938) *''The Last Trump'' (1938) *''The Kitchen Comedy'' Radio play, (1938) *''The Letter Box Rattles'' (1938) *''One Way of Living'' (1939) – Autobiography *''What Say They?'' (1939) *''The Sign of the Prophet Jonah'' Radio play (1942) Adaption of Jonah and the Whale *''The Dragon and the Dove'' or ''How the Hermit Abraham Fought the Devil for His Niece'' (1943) *''Jonah 3'' (1942) Revised version of ''Jonah and the Whale'' *''Holy Isle'' (1942) *''A Change for the Worse'' 1943 *''Mr. Bolfry'' 1943 *''Tedious and Brief'' (1944) *''Lancelot'' 1945 *''Paradise Enow'' 1945 *''The Pyrate's Den'' (1946) unpublished, written under the pseudonym Archibald P. Kellock *''Gog and Magog'' 1948 *''It Depends What You Mean'' 1949 *''The Forrigan Reel'' Ballad opera 1949 *''Dr. Angelus'' 1949 *''John Knox'' 1949 *'' Daphne Laureola'' 1949 *''The Golden Legend of Shults'' 1949 - (adapted to

There Was a Crooked Man (film) ''There Was a Crooked Man'' is a 1960 British comedy film directed by Stuart Burge and starring Norman Wisdom, Alfred Marks, Andrew Cruickshank, Reginald Beckwith, and Susannah York. It is based on the James Bridie play ''The Golden Legend of ...

Norman Wisdom Sir Norman Joseph Wisdom, (4 February 1915 – 4 October 2010) was an English actor, comedian, musician and singer best known for a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring a hapless onscreen character often called Norman ...

*''Mr. Gillie'' 1950 *''The Queen's Comedy'' 1950 *''Folly to be Wise'' 1952 *''The Baikie Charivari or The Seven Prophets'' 1953 *''Meeting at Night (With Archibald Batty)'' 1954 *(Adaptation) '' The Wild Duck''. Based on Vildanden by

Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential pla ...

*(Adaptation) ''

Liliom ''Liliom'' is a 1909 play by the Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár. It was well known in its own right during the early to mid-20th century, but is best known today as the basis for the Rodgers and Hammerstein 1945 musical ''Carousel''. P ...

'' Based on

Ferenc Molnár Ferenc Molnár ( , ; born Ferenc Neumann; 12 January 18781 April 1952), often anglicized as Franz Molnar, was a Hungarian-born author, stage-director, dramatist, and poet, widely regarded as Hungary’s most celebrated and controversial play ...

's play of the same name *(Adaptation) ''

Hedda Gabler ''Hedda Gabler'' () is a play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. The world premiere was staged on 31 January 1891 at the Residenztheater in Munich. Ibsen himself was in attendance, although he remained back-stage. The play has been ca ...

'' by Henrik Ibsen *(Adaptation) ''

The Misanthrope ''The Misanthrope, or the Cantankerous Lover'' (french: Le Misanthrope ou l'Atrabilaire amoureux; ) is a 17th-century comedy of manners in verse written by Molière. It was first performed on 4 June 1666 at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal, Paris ...

'' Based on ''Le Misanthrope'' by

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and world ...

References

External links

*
Play performances listed in Theatre Archive university of Bristol
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bridie, James 1888 births 1951 deaths Writers from Glasgow Scottish dramatists and playwrights Scottish Renaissance Scottish opera librettists 20th-century British dramatists and playwrights Scottish screenwriters Scottish surgeons Alumni of the University of Glasgow British Army personnel of World War I British Army personnel of World War II Festival founders 20th-century British screenwriters 20th-century surgeons 20th-century pseudonymous writers Medical doctors from Glasgow