Terry Johnson (born 20 December 1955) is a British dramatist and director working for stage, television and film. Graduating from the Department of Drama and Theatre Arts at the

University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

, he worked as an actor from 1971 to 1975, and has been active as a playwright since the early 1980s. Johnson's stage work has been produced around the world. He has won nine British Theatre awards including the

Olivier Award The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply the Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognise excellence in professional theatre in London at an annual ceremony in the capital. The awards were originally known a ...

for Best Comedy 1994 and 1999, Playwright of the Year 1995,

Critics' Circle Theatre Awards The Critics' Circle Theatre Awards, originally called ''Drama'' Theatre Awards up to 1990, are British theatrical awards presented annually for the closing year's theatrical achievements. The winners, from theatre throughout the United Kingdom, ar ...

for Best New Play 1995, two

Evening Standard Theatre Awards The ''Evening Standard'' Theatre Awards, established in 1955, are the oldest theatrical awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. They are presented annually for outstanding achievements in London Theatre, and are organised by the ''Evening Standar ...

, the Writers Guild Award for Best Play 1995 and 1996, the Meyer-Whitworth Award 1993 and the

John Whiting Award Between 1965 and 2010, the John Whiting Award (from 2007 renamed the Peter Wolff Trust Supports the John Whiting Award) was awarded annually to a British or Commonwealth playwright who, in the opinion of a consortium of UK theatres, showed a new ...

1991. He has had many West End productions as director and/or writer including: ''

One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest may refer to: * ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (novel), a 1962 novel by Ken Kesey * ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (play), a 1963 stage adaptation of the novel starring Kirk Douglas * ''One Flew Over the ...

'', ''

Hitchcock Blonde ''Hitchcock Blonde'' is a play by British playwright Terry Johnson which debuted in April 2003 in London and later moved to London's West End. It was also staged in the United States. Plot The play takes place in three time periods: 1919, when ...

'', ''

Entertaining Mr Sloane ''Entertaining Mr Sloane'' is a three-act play written in 1963 by the English playwright Joe Orton. It was first produced in London at the New Arts Theatre on 6 May 1964 and transferred to the West End's Wyndham's Theatre on 29 June 1964. Plo ...

'', ''The Graduate'', ''Dead Funny'', ''

Hysteria Hysteria is a term used colloquially to mean ungovernable emotional excess and can refer to a temporary state of mind or emotion. In the nineteenth century, hysteria was considered a diagnosable physical illness in women. It is assumed that ...

'', ''Elton John's Glasses'' and ''

The Memory of Water ''The Memory of Water'' is a comedy written by English playwright Shelagh Stephenson, first staged at Hampstead Theatre in 1996. It won the 2000 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy. Characters Vi Vi is the mother of the three sisters a ...

''. At the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a non-commercial West End theatre in Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England ...

he directed ''Dumb Show'' by

Joe Penhall Joe Scott Penhall (born 1967) is an English-Australian playwright and screenwriter, best known for his award-winning stage play '' Blue/Orange'', the award-winning West End musical ''Sunny Afternoon'' and creating the Netflix original series ' ...

and opened his play ''Piano/Forte''. Johnson won the 2010

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

for Best Director of a Musical for '' La Cage aux Folles''. He has worked with

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

's Steppenwolf Theatre, directing

John Malkovich John Malkovich (born December 9, 1953) is an American actor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Screen Actors Guild Aw ...

in ''The Libertine'' (nominated for five

Joseph Jefferson Awards The Joseph Jefferson Award, more commonly known informally as the Jeff Award, is given for theatre arts produced in the Chicago area. Founded in 1968, the awards are named in tribute to actor Joseph Jefferson, a 19th-century American theater st ...

including Best Production) and ''Lost Land'', both plays by Stephen Jeffreys. He has written and directed television drama that has been broadcast worldwide, most recently ''

Not Only But Always ''Not Only But Always'' is a British TV movie, originally screened on the Channel 4 network in the UK on 30 December 2004. Description Written and directed by playwright Terry Johnson, the film tells the story of the working and personal relati ...

'' for

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

, which won five International Award nominations, Best Film at Banff, and a BAFTA for

Rhys Ifans Rhys Ifans (; born Rhys Owain Evans; 22 July 1967) is a Welsh actor and musician. He was the frontman of Welsh rock music bands the Peth and Super Furry Animals. As an actor, he is best known for his roles in ''Notting Hill'' (1999), ''Kevin & ...

. The film version of his play ''

Insignificance People may face feelings of insignificance due to a number of causes, including having low self-esteem, being depressed, living in a huge, impersonal city, comparing themselves to wealthy celebrity success stories,Celeb craze fuels fear of insi ...

'' (directed by

Nicolas Roeg Nicolas Jack Roeg (; 15 August 1928 – 23 November 2018) was an English film director and cinematographer, best known for directing ''Performance'' (1970), '' Walkabout'' (1971), ''Don't Look Now'' (1973), '' The Man Who Fell to Earth'' (1976 ...

) was the official British entry at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...

in 1985. In November 2022, Johnson's new play ''The Sex Party'' was scheduled to reopen the Menier Chocolate Factory theatre in the London Borough of Southwark.

Stage work

as playwright

*'' Days Here So Dark'' (1981,

Paines Plough Paines Plough is a touring theatre company founded in 1974 by writer David Pownall and director John Adams. The company specialises exclusively in commissioning and producing new plays and helping playwrights develop their craft. Over the past f ...

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 ...

) *''

'' (1982,

) ( Plays & Players Award Best Play, Evening Standard Award Most Promising Playwright) *''

Cries From The Mammal House Crying is the dropping of tears (or welling of tears in the eyes) in response to an emotional state, or pain. Emotions that can lead to crying include sadness, anger, and even happiness. The act of crying has been defined as "a complex secr ...

'' (1984,

Leicester Haymarket The Leicester Haymarket Theatre is a theatre in Leicester, England, next to the Haymarket Shopping Centre on Belgrave Gate in Leicester City centre. History The Haymarket Theatre was opened by Sir Ralph Richardson and the opening season started ...

/Royal Court) *'' Unsuitable For Adults'' (1984,

Bush Theatre The Bush Theatre is located in the Passmore Edwards Public Library, Shepherd's Bush, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. It was established in 1972 as a showcase for the work of new writers. The Bush Theatre strives to create a s ...

) *''

Imagine Drowning Imagine may refer to: * Imagination Music Albums * ''Imagine'' (Armin van Buuren album), 2008 * ''Imagine'' (Eva Cassidy album), 2002 * ''Imagine'' (Janice Vidal album), 2012 * ''Imagine'' (John Lennon album), 1971 ** ''Imagine: John Lennon ...

'' (1991,

Hampstead Theatre Hampstead Theatre is a theatre in South Hampstead in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. Roxana Silbert has been the artistic director since ...

) *''

'' (1993, Royal Court, Mark Taper Forum, Duke of Yorks) (

Best Comedy 1993) *''

Dead Funny ''Dead Funny'' is a 1994 independent drama film directed by John Feldman. It stars Elizabeth Peña as Vivian Saunders, a woman who comes home from work and finds her boyfriend Reggie Barker (Andrew McCarthy) pinned to her kitchen table with a long ...

'' (1994, Hampstead, Vaudeville, Savoy) (

Writers Guild Award The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility T ...

Best West End Play 1994, Drama Critics Circle Best Play 1994,

Lloyds Private Banking Playwright of the Year Lloyd, Lloyd's, or Lloyds may refer to: People * Lloyd (name), a variation of the Welsh word ' or ', which means "grey" or "brown" ** List of people with given name Lloyd ** List of people with surname Lloyd * Lloyd (singer) (born 1986), Americ ...

1994 and

Time Out Drama Award Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, t ...

1994) *''

London Cuckolds London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a maj ...

'' (adaptation from

Edward Ravenscroft Edward Ravenscroft (c. 1654–1707) was an English dramatist who belonged to an ancient Flintshire family. He was entered at the Middle Temple, but devoted his attention mainly to literature. Ravenscroft was the first critic to posit that Sh ...

)(1998,

Royal National Theatre The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...

, Lyttelton) *'' Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle and Dick'' (1998, National Theatre) (Olivier Award: Best Comedy 1998) *''

The Graduate ''The Graduate'' is a 1967 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols and written by Buck Henry and Calder Willingham, based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Charles Webb, who wrote it shortly after graduating from W ...

'' (adaptation from novel by Charles Webb and screenplay by Calder Willingham and Buck Henry)(2000, London, Australia, New York, UK & US tours) (Touring Broadway Award Best Play) *''

'' (2003, Royal Court/The Lyric, West End,

South Coast Repertory South Coast Repertory (SCR) is a professional theatre company located in Costa Mesa, California. Tony Award-winning South Coast Repertory, founded in 1964 by David Emmes and Martin Benson, is led by Artistic Director David Ivers and Managing Direc ...

, Costa Mesa, California) *'' Piano/Forte'' (2006, Royal Court) *''

Prism Prism usually refers to: * Prism (optics), a transparent optical component with flat surfaces that refract light * Prism (geometry), a kind of polyhedron Prism may also refer to: Science and mathematics * Prism (geology), a type of sedimentary ...

'' (2017, Hampstead Theatre) *''

Uncle Vanya ''Uncle Vanya'' ( rus, Дя́дя Ва́ня, r=Dyádya Ványa, p=ˈdʲædʲə ˈvanʲə) is a play by the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. It was first published in 1898, and was first produced in 1899 by the Moscow Art Theatre under the di ...

'' (2018, Hampstead Theatre, a new version written and directed by Terry Johnson) *''Ken'' (2018, Pleasance Dome) *''The Sex Party'' (2022, Menier Chocolate Factory)

as director

*''Rag Doll'' (

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a f ...

) *''

Death of a Salesman ''Death of a Salesman'' is a 1949 stage play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. The play premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742 performances. It is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn told through a montage ...

'' (

York Theatre Royal York Theatre Royal is a theatre in St Leonard's Place, in York, England, which dates back to 1744. The theatre currently seats 750 people. Whilst the theatre is traditionally a proscenium theatre, it was reconfigured for a season in 2011 to offe ...

) *''Dead Funny'' (Hampstead, Vaudeville, National Tour, Savoy) *''Insignificance'' (

Donmar Warehouse The Donmar Warehouse is a 251-seat, not-for-profit theatre in Covent Garden, London, England. It first opened on 18 July 1977. Sam Mendes, Michael Grandage and Josie Rourke have all served as artistic director, a post held since 2019 by Mi ...

) *''The Libertine'' (Steppenwolf, Chicago) *''Cracked'' (Hampstead Theatre) *''London Cuckolds'' (National Theatre, Lyttelton) *''Elton John's Glasses'' (Watford and West End) *''

'' (Hampstead Theatre / Vaudeville Theatre) *''Cleo, Camping Emmanuelle and Dick'' (National Theatre) *''Sparkleshark'' (National Theatre) *''The Graduate'' (London, Australia, New York) *''Hitchcock Blonde'' (Royal Court, Lyric West End,

) *''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (co-director with Tamara Harvey, Edinburgh & West End) *''Dumb Show'' (Royal Court) *''Rain Man'' (Apollo) *''

The Duck House ''The Duck House'' is a 2013 comedy farce play written by Dan Patterson and Colin Swash. It is based around the events of the 2009 UK parliamentary expenses scandal, and made its world premiere at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in October 2013, at th ...

'' ( UK tour and West End) *'' Oh What A Lovely War'' (Theatre Royal, Stratford East) *''Prism'' (Hampstead Theatre) *''

'' (Hampstead Theatre) *'' La Cage aux Folles'' (

Longacre Theatre The Longacre Theatre is a Broadway theater at 220 West 48th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States. Opened in 1913, it was designed by Henry B. Herts and was named for Longacre Square, now known ...

, New York) *''

End of the Rainbow ''End of the Rainbow'' is a musical drama by Peter Quilter, which focuses on Judy Garland in the months leading up to her death in 1969. After a premiere in Sydney, Australia in 2005, the show has played on the West End in London and a Broadwa ...

'' (

Belasco Theatre The Belasco Theatre is a Broadway theater at 111 West 44th Street, between Seventh Avenue and Sixth Avenue, in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Originally known as the Stuyvesant Theatre, it was built in 1907 a ...

, New York)

Television

Films

*''Tuesday's Child'' (co-written with Kate Lock; BBC, 1985) *''Way Up Stream'' (adapted for BBC, 1987) *''Ball on the Slates'' (Channel 4, 1991) *''Neville's Island'' (written by Tim Firth; ITV, 1998) *''

Cor, Blimey! ''Cor, Blimey!'' is a 2000 TV film that follows the relationship between ''Carry On'' film actors Sid James (played by Geoffrey Hutchings) and Barbara Windsor (played by Samantha Spiro). The film, first broadcast on ITV in April 2000, was adap ...

'' (Company Pictures/ITV, 2000) *''

'' (Company/Channel 4, 2004)(Nominated British Comedy Awards Best Television Comedy; Nominated BAFTA Best Single Drama; Winner BAFTA Best Actor for

, Winner Banff Best Made-for-TV Movie) *''

The Man Who Lost His Head ''The Man Who Lost His Head'' is a 2-hour comedy drama written by Mark Wallington and starring Martin Clunes about the theme of cultural repatriation. It was a joint production of TVNZ in New Zealand and ITV in the United Kingdom. Broadcas ...

'' (written by Mark Wallington; ITV/TVNZ, 2007)

Series/Serials

*''Ghosts'' – "Blood And Water" and "The Chemistry Lesson" (BBC TV) *''99-1'' (Zenith/Carlton) co-creator with Barbara Cox *''The Bite'' (Warner Sisters/ABC AUS)

Film

*''

'' (directed by

)

References

External links

IMDB biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Terry 1955 births English dramatists and playwrights English theatre directors Living people Laurence Olivier Award winners Tony Award winners Alumni of the University of Birmingham English male dramatists and playwrights