Michael Frederick Bartlett (born 7 October 1980) is an English

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...

and screenwriter for film and TV series. His 2015 psychological thriller TV series, '' Doctor Foster,'' starring Suranne Jones, won the New Drama award from

National Television Awards The National Television Awards (often shortened to NTAs) is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and begun in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted o ...

. Bartlett also won Best Writer from the Broadcast Press Guild Awards. A BBC TV Film of Bartlett's play ''

King Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

'' was broadcast in May 2017 and while critically acclaimed, generated some controversy.

Early life

Bartlett was born on 7 October 1980 in

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, England. He attended

Abingdon School Abingdon School is an independent day and boarding school in Abingdon-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England. It is the List of the oldest schools in the United Kingdom, twentieth oldest Independent School (UK), independent British school. In May 202 ...

, then studied English and Theatre Studies at the

University of Leeds The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed Y ...

Career

Early work

In July 2005, Bartlett took part in the

Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

's New Voices 24 Hour Plays, in which plays had to be written and performed in 24 hours. This culminated in the performance of his play ''Comfort''. His radio play ''Not Talking'' was broadcast by the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

on Saturday, 29 March 2007. The play explored the issues surrounding conscientious objection in the UK during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and also the problems of

bullying Bullying is the use of force, coercion, Suffering, hurtful teasing, comments, or threats, in order to abuse, aggression, aggressively wikt:domination, dominate, or intimidate one or more others. The behavior is often repeated and habitual. On ...

within the armed forces. The play featured Richard Briers and

June Whitfield Dame June Rosemary Whitfield (11 November 1925 – 29 December 2018) was an English radio, television and film actress. Whitfield's big break was a lead in the radio comedy '' Take It from Here'', which aired on the BBC Light Programme ...

. Bartlett won the 2006 Tinniswood Award for ''Not Talking'' and the 2006 Imison Award for a drama by a writer new to radio on 18 October 2007. In May 2007, while he held the position of "writer in residence" 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 West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

, his play ''My Child'' premiered there. His play, ''Artefacts'', was performed at The Bush Theatre in London in 2008 before a national tour, produced by new writing specialists Nabokov. Also in 2008 he adapted his radio play ''Love Contract'' for the Royal Court Theatre. In 2009 Bartlett's play '' Cock'' premiered at the

Royal Court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word ''court'' may also be app ...

directed by James Macdonald. It won the 2010

Laurence Olivier Award The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply The Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognize excellence in West End theatre, professional theatre in London. The awards were originally known as the Society of We ...

for Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre.

The National Theatre

In the summer of 2010 Bartlett's work was staged for the first time at the National Theatre. '' Earthquakes in London'', directed by Rupert Goold, was described by Michael Billington in the ''Guardian'' as an "epic, expansive play about climate change, corporate corruption, fathers and children". Charles Spencer of the ''Daily Telegraph'' called it "the theatrical equivalent of a thrilling roller coaster ride", delivering "a rush of invention, humour and raw emotion". In December 2010, Abingdon School and St Helen and St Katharine School performed the first ever amateur production of Bartlett's play ''Earthquakes in London'', less than three months after it finished its run at the National Theatre. The schools were given special permission to put the play on, as Bartlett is a former pupil of Abingdon. He attended the last night as guest of honour. Also in 2010, Bartlett's play ''Love, Love, Love'' was premiered in a touring production. In 2012 it has its London premiere at the

. Michael Coveney, writing for ''Whatsonstage.com'', called it "one of the most ambitious, and most accomplished, domestic dramas in a long while". In 2011 Bartlett returned to the National Theatre, this time on its largest stage (the Olivier), with '' 13'', another contemporary epic. In a favourable review in the ''Guardian'', Michael Billington explained, "Bartlett is saying that we live in a Britain where the old tribal loyalties are increasingly irrelevant. The real divide is between a popular protest movement, fed on Facebook and Twitter, that hungers for a change of direction, and an entrenched governmental system that clings precariously to the status quo." Ian Shuttleworth of the ''Financial Times'' noted that this was a play in which "sprawl wins out": "Both here and in ''Earthquakes'' Bartlett is groping towards some sense of a need to reconcile the worldly and the numinous. In this society, in the 21st century, that may be an admirable impulse for an individual, but in this case it is not proving a useful approach for a playwright." In 2012 Bartlett adapted ''

Chariots of Fire ''Chariots of Fire'' is a 1981 historical drama, historical Sports film, sports drama film directed by Hugh Hudson, written by Colin Welland and produced by David Puttnam. It is based on the true story of two British athletes in the 1924 Summer ...

'' for the stage. It premiered at

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. History The original ''Hampstead Theatre Clu ...

before transferring to the West End. He also adapted the

Euripides Euripides () was a Greek tragedy, tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians for whom any plays have survived in full. Some ancient scholars attributed ninety-five plays to ...

play ''

Medea In Greek mythology, Medea (; ; ) is the daughter of Aeëtes, King Aeëtes of Colchis. Medea is known in most stories as a sorceress, an accomplished "wiktionary:φαρμακεία, pharmakeía" (medicinal magic), and is often depicted as a high- ...

'', in a touring production he directed himself; it starred Rachael Stirling in the title role.

Television and further plays

Later in 2012, ITV1 premiered the crime drama ''The Town'' starring Andrew Scott and Martin Clunes. Bartlett was subsequently nominated for a

BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...

award for best "Breakthrough Talent" in the TV Craft category in the 2013 awards in relation to ''The Town''. In October 2013 Bartlett won Best New Play at The National Theatre Awards for his play ''Bull'', beating plays from both Alan Ayckbourn and Tom Wells. In 2014 his play ''King Charles III'' premiered at the Almeida. It subsequently transferred to Wyndham's Theatre and in January 2015 won the Critics' Circle Award for Best Play of 2014. It premiered in Australia at the

Sydney Theatre Company Sydney Theatre Company (STC) is an Australian theatre company based in Sydney, New South Wales. The company performs in the Wharf Theatre at Dawes Point in The Rocks area of Sydney as well as the Roslyn Packer Theatre (formerly Sydney Theatre ...

in April 2016. In March 2015 his play ''

Game A game is a structured type of play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or video games) or art ...

'' premiered at the

Almeida Theatre The Almeida Theatre is a 325-seat producing house located on Almeida Street off Upper Street in the London Borough of Islington. The theatre opened in 1980, and produces a diverse range of drama. Successful plays are often transferred to West E ...

in London, England. In April 2015 Bartlett's plays were awarded two additional Olivier Awards, his play ''King Charles III'' won Best New Play, and his play ''Bull'', directed by Clare Lizzimore and produced by Supporting Wall at the Young Vic Theatre, won Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre. Barlett's five-part television drama series '' Doctor Foster'' was broadcast in September and October 2015. The series achieved an average of 9.51 million viewers, and was one of the most viewed television drama series of the year. In addition to being a critical success, the drama won two awards at the 2016 National Television Awards in the categories of ''Best New Drama'' and ''Drama Performance'' for Suranne Jones. A second series commenced showing in September 2017. In December 2015, Polly Hill, the Controller of

Drama Commissioning, announced a six 60-minute episode television series entitled ''Press'' that had been written by Bartlett. Commenting about the series, Bartlett said "From exposing political corruption to splashing on celebrity scandal, editors and journalists have enormous influence over us, yet recent events have shown there’s high-stakes and life-changing drama going on in the news organisations themselves. I’m hugely excited to be working with the BBC to make ''Press'', a behind-the-scenes story about a group of diverse and troubled people who shape the stories and headlines we read every day". In October 2016, Hill, now the Head of Drama at ITV, announced that Bartlett would be returning to the channel for a new project, ''Trauma''. Bartlett described the three-part series to be "about two fathers with very different lives, locked in conflict." The series will begin filming in early summer 2017. In 2016 Bartlett was hired to write an episode of ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

''s tenth series. The episode, titled " Knock Knock", aired on 6 May 2017 and received generally positive reviews from critics. On 10 May 2017, the BBC broadcast a TV adaptation of Bartlett's play, ''

'', which generated controversy. The reviewer in ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'' gave it five stars, calling it "pure televisual gelignite". In 2023, he released a podcast in conjunction with a playwriting course he was offering at the Old Fire Station, Oxford. In it, he speaks about his process for writing and the role of theatre as art in modern times.

Personal life

Bartlett lives in

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

and is married to theatre director Clare Lizzimore. He is an atheist.

Writing

Plays

*''The Love at Last'' – 2002 (Gilded Balloon – Edinburgh Fringe) *''Swimming for Beginners'' – 2002 (The Workshop Theatre, Leeds) *''Why People Really Burn'' – 2003 (The Underbelly – Edinburgh Fringe) *''Silent Charities'' – July 2005 (Finborough Theatre) *''Comfort'' – 24-hour play – July 2005 (Old Vic Theatre) *''Stuff I Buried in a Small Town'' – March 2006 (Hampstead Theatre) *''My Child'' – May 2007 (Royal Court Theatre) *''Artefacts'' – commissioned and produced by Nabokov and first performed at The Bush Theatre, London – February / March 2008. *''Contractions'' – an adaptation of his radio play ''Love Contract'' at the Royal Court, 2008 *'' Cock'' – Royal Court – November 2009 *'' Earthquakes in London'' – National Theatre, 2010 *'' Love, Love, Love'' – Paines Plough, 2010 *'' 13'' – National Theatre, 2011–2012/ Theatre Royal, Newcastle, 2016 *''

'' –

, London 9 May to 16 June 2012;

Gielgud Theatre The Gielgud Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Shaftesbury Avenue, at the corner of Rupert Street, in the City of Westminster, London. The house currently has 994 seats on three levels. The theatre was designed by W. G. R. Sprague and ...

23 June 2012 to 2 February 2013 *''Bull'' – premiered at Crucible Studio Theatre, Sheffield 6 February 2013; transferred to 59E59 (New York City), 25 April 2013; transferred to Young Vic produced by Supporting Wall, 15 January 2014 *''Medea'' – an adaptation of

' ''

'' – touring production for Headlong, 27 September to 1 December *'' An Intervention'', 2014 *''

'', 2014, premiered at the

, London, then transferred to the West End ( Wyndham's Theatre), Broadway (

Music Box Theatre The Music Box Theatre is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater at 239 West 45th Street (George Abbott Way) in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1921, the Music Box ...

) and Sydney Theatre Company in Australia ( Roslyn Packer Theatre) *''

'', 2015 (Almeida Theatre, London) *''Wild'', played at

, London 10 June to 16 July 2016 *''Albion'' – 2017 (Almeida Theatre, London) *''Snowflake'' – 2018 ( Old Fire Station, Oxford); 2019 ( Kiln Theatre, London) *''Vassa'' – an adaptation of

Maxim Gorky Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (; – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (; ), was a Russian and Soviet writer and proponent of socialism. He was nominated five times for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Before his success as an aut ...

's ''Vassa Zheleznova''– 2019 (Almeida Theatre, London) *''Mrs Delgado'' – 2021 (Old Fire Station, Oxford) *'' The 47th'' – 2022 ( The Old Vic, London) *''Scandaltown'' – 2022 (

Lyric Hammersmith The Lyric Theatre, also known as the Lyric Hammersmith, is a nonprofit theatre on Lyric Square, off King Street, Hammersmith, London."About the Lyric" > "History" ''Lyric'' official website. Retrieved January 2024. Background The Lyric Theatre ...

, London) *''Barn Dance'' - 2024 ( The Theatre Chipping Norton) *''Unicorn'' – 2025 (The Garrick Theatre, London)

Television

*'' The Town'' – ITV1, 5 December 2012 (UK) *'' Doctor Foster'' – BBC One, 2015-2017 *''

'', " Knock Knock" – BBC One, 6 May 2017 *''

'' – BBC Two, 10 May 2017 (film adaptation of his play of the same name) *'' Trauma'' – ITV, 2018 *'' Press'' – BBC One, 2018 *'' Sticks and Stones'' – ITV, 2019 *''

Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...

'' – 2020 BBC drama series

Radio

*''Not Talking'' – commissioned by

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...

show The Wire, 2 March 2006 *''The Family Man'' – 2007 5 part Radio Drama produced for '' Woman's Hour'' on BBC Radio 4 *''Love Contract'' –

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

, 14 November 2007 *''Liam'' – Woman's Hour Drama for BBC Radio 4, 14–18 September 2009. *''Heart'' – Afternoon Play for BBC Radio 4, 18 May 2011. *''The Core'' – Woman's Hour Drama for BBC Radio 4, 5–9 September 2011. *''The Right Honourable'' – a radio play, broadcast 2 November 2013

Directing work

*'' Lark Rise to Candleford'' – July–October 2005 (Shapeshifter/Finborough Theatre) *''Soldiers'' – July–August 2004 (Shapeshifter) *''Medea'' - an adaptation of Euripides' ''

'' – touring production for Headlong, 27 September to 1 December 2012

Awards

*2010

– Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre *2015 Laurence Olivier Awards – Best New Play and Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre *2006 Tinniswood Award *2006

Richard Imison Award The Richard Imison Award is an award which recognises the best radio drama, generally by a writer new to the industry, and is now awarded as part of the BBC Audio Drama Awards. It was established in 1994 and commemorates the life and work of Richa ...

*2013

award nomination – Breakthrough Talent (Television Craft category)

References

External links

Represented by The Agency
*
Theatre Voice: Audio InterviewEntry in the London Theatre Data Base
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bartlett, Mike 1980 births Living people English dramatists and playwrights People educated at Abingdon School writers from Oxford English theatre directors English male dramatists and playwrights Alumni of the University of Leeds