William John Francis Naughton (12 June 1910 – 9 January 1992) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

-born British

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

and

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

, best known for his play '' Alfie''.

Early life

Born into relative poverty in

Ballyhaunis Ballyhaunis () is a town in County Mayo, Ireland. It is at the crossroads of the N60 and N83 National secondary roads and on the railway line linking Dublin to Westport and Ballina. It is thought that the town grew up around St Mary's Augu ...

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the yew trees") is a county in Ireland. In the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Coun ...

, Ireland, he moved to

Bolton Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish weavers settled in the area in the 14th ce ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a Historic counties of England, historic county, Ceremonial County, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significa ...

, England, in 1914 as a child. There he attended Saint Peter and Paul's School, and worked as a weaver, coal-bagger and lorry-driver before he started writing.

Writing career

His stage play, '' Alfie'', adapted for the 1966 film starring

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite; 14 March 1933) is an English actor. Known for his distinctive Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films in a career spanning seven decades, and is considered a British film ico ...

in the eponymous role, originated in a radio play, ''Alfie Elkins and His Little Life'', first broadcast on the

BBC Third Programme The BBC Third Programme was a national radio station produced and broadcast from 1946 until 1967, when it was replaced by Radio 3. It first went on the air on 29 September 1946 and quickly became one of the leading cultural and intellectual f ...

in 1962, which became a production at the

Mermaid Theatre The Mermaid Theatre was a theatre encompassing the site of Puddle Dock and Curriers' Alley at Blackfriars in the City of London, and the first built in the City since the time of Shakespeare. It was, importantly, also one of the first new thea ...

in 1963. It transferred to the

West End West End most commonly refers to: * West End of London, an area of central London, England * West End theatre, a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London, England West End may also refer to: Pl ...

before a very brief run on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. Naughton was a prolific writer of plays, novels, short stories and children's books. His preferred environment was working-class society, which is reflected in much of his written work. In addition to ''Alfie'', two of his other plays have been made into feature films, '' All in Good Time'' (1963), filmed as ''

The Family Way ''The Family Way'' is a 1966 British comedy-drama film about the marital difficulties of a young newlywed couple living in a crowded house with the husband's family. Based on Bill Naughton's play '' All in Good Time'' (1963), the film began lif ...

'' (1966), starring

John Mills Sir John Mills (born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills; 22 February 190823 April 2005) was an English actor who appeared in more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades. He excelled on camera as an appealing British everyman who often portray ...

, and ''

Spring and Port Wine ''Spring and Port Wine'' is a stage play by Bill Naughton and a 1970 British kitchen sink drama film based on it. The drama is set in Bolton and concerns the Crompton family, especially Rafe, the father, and his attempts to assert his authority ...

'' (1970), starring

James Mason James Neville Mason (; 15 May 190927 July 1984) was an English actor. He achieved considerable success in British cinema before becoming a star in Hollywood. He was the top box-office attraction in the UK in 1944 and 1945; his British films inc ...

in the role of Rafe Crompton, an adaptation of a play first performed in 1959. His novel ''Alfie Darling'', the sequel to his earlier novel and play, was also filmed, with

Alan Price Alan Price (born 19 April 1942) is an English musician. He was the original keyboardist for the British band the Animals before he left to form his own band the Alan Price Set. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 as a ...

succeeding Michael Caine in the lead role. Both ''Alfie'' and ''Alfie Darling'' were drawn upon for the 2004 film with Jude Law in the eponymous role. His work also includes the novel ''One Small Boy'' (1957), and the collection of short stories ''The Goalkeeper's Revenge And Other Stories'' (1961). His 1977 children's novel ''My Pal Spadger'' is an account of his childhood in 1920s Bolton. Many of his plays were performed at the

Octagon Theatre, Bolton The Octagon Theatre is a producing theatre located in Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. Programme The Octagon produces eight or nine professional theatre productions each year in its Main Auditorium. Productions come from a wide range of t ...

. An 85-seat adaptable studio theatre within the Octagon is named after him.

Awards

During his lifetime, he received the following awards: *Screenwriters Guide Award (1967 and 1968) *Italia Prize for Radio Play (1974) *Children's Rights Workshop Other Award (1978) *Portico Literary Prize (1987) *The Hon. Fellowship,

Bolton Institute of Higher Education , established = 2004 – gained University Status 1982 – Bolton Institute of Higher Education , type = Public , endowment = £160,000 (2009) , administrative_staff = 700+ , chancellor ...

(1988).

Death

Naughton died in 1992, aged 81, in

Ballasalla Ballasalla () is a village in the parish of Malew in the south-east of the Isle of Man. The village is situated close to the Isle of Man Airport and north-east of the town of Castletown. History Ballasalla grew up around nearby Rushen Abb ...

on the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = " O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europ ...

. A "Bill Naughton Short Story Competition", administered by The Kenny/Naughton Autumn School, was named in his honour.

Bibliography

Plays

* ''My Flesh, My Blood'' (1957) (revised as ''

'') * '' Alfie'' (1963) (adapted for 1966 film '' Alfie'') * '' All in Good Time'' (1963) (adapted for 1966 film ''

'') * ''He Was Gone When We Got There'' (1966) * ''June Evening'' (1966) * ''

'' (1967) (adapted for 1970 film ''

'') * ''Lighthearted Intercourse'' (1971) * ''Keep It in the Family'' (1967) (Americanized version of ''

'') * ''Annie And Fanny'' (1967) * ''Derby Day'' (1994)

Novels

* ''A Roof Over Your Head'' (1945) * ‘’Pony Boy’’ (1946) * Rafe Granite * ''One Small Boy'' (1957) * ''Alfie'' (1966) * ''Alfie Darling'' (1970) * ''My Pal Spadger'' (1977)

Collections

* ''The Goalkeeper's Revenge'' (1961) * ''Late Night on Watling Street'' (1970) ew edition 2013* ''The Bees Have Stopped Working: And Other Stories'' (1976) * ''Spit Nolan'' (1988) * ''Ricky, Karim and Spit Nolan: Adventure Short Stories'' (2003) (with Jenny Alexander, Pratima Mitchell)

Short stories

* "Seventeen Oranges" * "A Real Good Smile"

Autobiography

* ''On the Pig’s Back: An Autobiographical Excursion.'' Oxford: Oxford U.P.(1987) * ''Saintly Billy: A Catholic Boyhood.'' Oxford: Oxford U.P.(1988) * ''Neither Use Nor Ornament: A Memoir of Bolton: 1920s.'' Newcastle upon Tyne: Bloodaxe.(1995)

References

External links

Bolton Museum and Archive Service - Bill Naughton
*
Radio plays at ukonline
{{DEFAULTSORT:Naughton, Bill People from Bolton Prix Italia winners 1910 births 1992 deaths 20th-century English dramatists and playwrights English male dramatists and playwrights Proletarian literature 20th-century English male writers