William Alexander Paterson (born 23 February 1948) known professionally as Bill Alexander is a British

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

who is best known for his work with the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...

and as artistic director of

Birmingham Repertory Theatre Birmingham Repertory Theatre, commonly called Birmingham Rep or just The Rep, is a producing theatre based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England. Founded by Barry Jackson, it is the longest-established of Britain's building-based theatre ...

. He currently works as a freelance, internationally as a theatre director and most recently as a director of BBC Radio 4 drama.

Early years

William Alexander Paterson was born in

Hunstanton Hunstanton (sometimes pronounced ) is a seaside resort, seaside town in Norfolk, England, which had a population of 4,229 at the 2011 Census. It faces west across The Wash. Hunstanton lies 102 miles (164 km) north-north-east of London an ...

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, on 23 February 1948 to William and Rosemary Paterson (née McCormack). He was a boarder at St. Lawrence College, Ramsgate, Kent before going on to

Keele University Keele University is a Public university#United Kingdom, public research university in Keele, approximately from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as the University College of North Staffordshire, it was granted uni ...

(1969–1973) where he studied English and founded an experimental theatre group called Guerilla Theatre based on the principles of the Polish theatre director

Jerzy Grotowski Jerzy Marian Grotowski (; 11 August 1933 – 14 January 1999) was a Polish theatre director and theorist whose innovative approaches to acting, training and theatrical production have significantly influenced theatre today. He is considered one ...

Early career

In 1974, Alexander began his career as a Trainee Director at the

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 fin ...

. His productions included ''Butley'' by

Simon Gray Simon James Holliday Gray (21 October 1936 – 7 August 2008) was an English playwright and memoirist who also had a career as a Academia, university lecturer in English literature at Queen Mary, University of London, for 20 years. While teach ...

, '' How the Other Half Loves'' by

Alan Ayckbourn Sir Alan Ayckbourn (born 12 April 1939) is a prolific British playwright and director. As of 2025, he has written and produced 90 full-length plays in Scarborough and London and was, between 1972 and 2009, the artistic director of the Stephen ...

, Shakespeare's ''

Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night, or What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Viola an ...

'', Blythe Spirit by

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

. In 1975 he joined 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 West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

as an assistant director. His production of '' Class Enemy'' by Nigel Williams won the

Binkie Beaumont Hugh "Binkie" Beaumont (27 March 1908 - 22 March 1973) was a British theatre manager and producer, sometimes referred to as the " éminence grise" of the West End theatre. Though he shunned the spotlight so that his name was not known widely am ...

Award for Best New Director.

At the Royal Shakespeare Company

Alexander joined the RSC in 1977 as assistant to

Trevor Nunn Sir Trevor Robert Nunn (born 14 January 1940) is an English theatre director and lyricist. He has been the artistic director for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre, and, currently, the Theatre Royal Haymarket. He has dir ...

and John Barton. Initially, he worked in the RSC's two studio theatres: The Warehouse in London (primarily devoted to new plays) and The Other Place in Stratford (dedicated to a mixture of new plays and the re-discovery of classics by performing them on a small scale). He also worked at The Pit studio space which replaced The Warehouse when the RSC moved to the Barbican. In 14 years at the RSC, Alexander's studio productions included ''Factory Birds'' by James Robson (Warehouse), ''Captain Swing'' by Peter Whelan (TOP), ''

Tartuffe ''Tartuffe, or The Impostor, or The Hypocrite'' (; , ), first performed in 1664, is a theatrical comedy (or more specifically, a farce) by Molière. The characters of Tartuffe, Elmire, and Orgon are considered among the greatest classical theat ...

'' by Molière (PIT), ''

Volpone ''Volpone'' (, Italian for "sly fox") is a comedy play by English playwright Ben Jonson first produced in 1605–1606, drawing on elements of city comedy and beast fable. A merciless satire of greed and lust, it remains Jonson's most-perfo ...

'' by Ben Jonson (TOP and PIT), ''The Accrington Pals'' by Peter Whelan (Warehouse), ''

Cymbeline ''Cymbeline'' (), also known as ''The Tragedie of Cymbeline'' or ''Cymbeline, King of Britain'', is a play by William Shakespeare set in British Iron Age, Ancient Britain () and based on legends that formed part of the Matter of Britain concer ...

'' by William Shakespeare (TOP and PIT) with

Harriet Walter Dame Harriet Mary Walter is an English actress. She has received an Olivier Award and nominations for a Tony Award, five Emmy Awards, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2011, Walter was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British E ...

as Imogen. Alexander's first production on the RSC main stage was ''

Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...

'' (with

Antony Sher Sir Antony Sher (14 June 1949 – 2 December 2021) was a British actor, writer and theatre director of South African origin. A two-time Laurence Olivier Award winner and a five-time nominee, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1982 and ...

as Richard) in 1984. This production, for which

Anthony Sher Sir Antony Sher (14 June 1949 – 2 December 2021) was a British actor, writer and theatre director of South African origin. A two-time Laurence Olivier Award winner and a five-time nominee, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1982 and ...

won the Olivier Award for Best Actor later transferred to the

Barbican A barbican (from ) is a fortified outpost or fortified gateway, such as at an outer defense perimeter of a city or castle, or any tower situated over a gate or bridge which was used for defensive purposes. Europe Medieval Europeans typically b ...

. In 1980 he directed

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A List of Nobel laureates in Literature, Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramat ...

's ''

Betrayal Betrayal is the breaking or violation of a presumptive contract, trust, or confidence that produces moral and psychological conflict within a relationship amongst individuals, between organizations or between individuals and organizations. Of ...

'' at the Cameri Theatre, Tel Aviv. In 1986, Alexander's production of ''

The Merry Wives of Windsor ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' or ''Sir John Falstaff and the Merry Wives of Windsor'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare first published in 1602, though believed to have been written in or before 1597. The Windsor of the play's title is a ref ...

'' won him the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Director. In 2014, Michael Billington, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

s theatre critic, chose this production as one of his 'Best'. Alexander's other productions for the RSC included ''A Midsummer Nights Dream'' (1986) with

Sean Bean Sean Bean (born Shaun Mark Bean; 17 April 1959) is an English actor. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he made his professional debut in a production of ''Romeo and Juliet'' in 1983 at The Watermill Theatre. Retaining his ...

as Robin Starveling, ''Twelfth Night'' with

as Viola, and Deborah Findlay as Olivia 1987/88,''The Merchant of Venice'' with Antony Sher as Shylock in 1987, ''Cymbeline'' with David Bradley and

in 1998, ''Much Ado About Nothing'' in 1991, ''The Taming of the Shrew'' in 1992, and ''Titus Andronicus'' in 2003. About the latter Alexander said,"I've also discovered what I like about Titus: it's the best play about revenge that I can think of. Revenge is such a difficult idea to deal with. Everyone knows it's "a bad thing", yet everyone understands the phrase "revenge is sweet". Titus shows revenge's seductiveness, the impulse in us all that the law is there to control. It is a work of lurid genius because it reminds us of the fundamental truths about the role of law in a just society."

Birmingham Repertory Theatre

Alexander left the RSC to become artistic director and Chief Executive of the Birmingham Repertory Theatre in 1992. His productions there included: * 1993 ''Othello'' *1993 '' The Snowman'' adapted from the book by Raymond Briggs * 1993 ''The Merchant of Venice'' * 1993 ''Old Times'' by Harold Pinter * 1994 ''The Tempest'' * 1995 ''Macbeth'' with

James Purefoy James Brian Mark Purefoy (born 3 June 1964) is an English actor. He played Marcus Antonius in the HBO series ''Rome'', Nick Jenkins in '' A Dance to the Music of Time'', college professor turned serial killer Joe Carroll in the series '' The Fo ...

* 1995 ''The Servant'' by Robin Maugham * 1995 ''The Way of the World'' by William Congreve * 1996 ''The Alchemist'' (later transferred to the National Theatre) * 1996''Divine Right'' by Peter Whelan * 1998 ''Hamlet'' * 1998 ''Frozen'' by Bryony Lavery (later transferred to the National Theatre) * 1999 ''Nativity'' by Peter Whelan * 2000 ''Twelfth Night'' * 2000 ''Absurd Person Singular'' by Alan Ayckbourn

Later work

Alexander's work since 2000 has included: * 2001 - Theatre Clwyd - ''An Enemy of the People'' * 2001 - Northampton Rep - ''The Importance of Being Earnest'' * 2002 - National Theatre - ''Frozen'' (Bryony Lavery), revival of Alexander's award-winning production starring Josie Lawrence, Anita Dobson and Tom Georgeson * 2003 - National Theatre - ''Mappa Mundi'' (Shelagh Stephenson), world premiere starring Lia Williams and Alun Armstrong * 2004 - RSC - ''Titus Andronicus'' starring David Bradley * 2005 - RSC - ''King Lear'' starring Corin Redgrave * 2007 - Zurich Ballet -''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' * 2008 - Mark Taper Forum Los Angeles - ''The School of the Night'' (Peter Whelan), revival of Alexander's award-winning production for the RSC * 2009 - Nottingham Playhouse - ''Glamour'' (Stephen Lowe) * 2011 - The Arts Theatre London - ''Bette and Joan'' (Anton Burge) * 2011 – 2015 Productions at LAMDA: Twelfth Night, Summerfolk, Measure for Measure, The Merchant of Venice. * 2012 - NWCTC Portland USA - ''Othello'' * 2012 - UK tour - ''Bette and Joan'' (Anton Burge) * 2014 – 2015 Summer school for Shakespeare in Italy at University of Urbino. * 2015 BBC Radio4 Classic Serial - ''The Sea, The Sea'' (starring Jeremy Irons) * 2015 Production at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School of The Merchant of Venice. * 2017 Bristol Old Vic Theatre School - The Two Gentlemen of Verona * 2017 LAMDA - As You Like It * 2017 voice-over for 50 Years of Fish & Chips * 2018 Bristol Old Vic Theatre School - The Taming of the Shrew * 2020 Shakespeare in Italy - a specialist blog, Shakespeare in the rehearsal room https://www.shakespeareinitaly.org.uk/News-Blog/Blog * 2021 A Merchant of Venice - Playground Theatre, with the Chronicle Theatre Company, formerly Shakespeare in Italy, London * 2022 Exploring Shakespeare: Director's Notes from the Rehearsal Roo
Nick Hern Books

Awards

In 1978, Alexander received the Binkie Beaumont Award for Best New Director and in 1986, the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Director for ''

'' at the RSC.

Personal life

In 1977, Alexander married actor and painter Juliet Harmer. They have two daughters.

References

External links

Bill Alexander
at the Internet off-Broadway Database *
DeBrett's

The Royal Shakespeare Company

Northwest Classical Theatre Company
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander, Bill 1948 births Living people Laurence Olivier Award winners British theatre directors People from Hunstanton Shakespearean directors