Anne Devlin (born 13 September 1951) is a short story writer, playwright and screenwriter born in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. She was a teacher from 1974 to 1978, and started writing fiction in 1976 in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Having lived in London for a decade, she returned to Belfast in 2007. She is the daughter of

Paddy Devlin Patrick Joseph "Paddy" Devlin (8 March 1925 – 15 August 1999) was an Irish socialist, labour and civil rights activist and writer. He was a founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), a former Stormont MP, and a member ...

, a

Northern Ireland Labour Party The Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP) was a political party in Northern Ireland which operated from 1924 until 1987. Origins The roots of the NILP can be traced back to the formation of the Belfast Labour Party in 1892. William Walker stoo ...

(NILP) Member of the

Parliament of Northern Ireland The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended because of its inability to restore ord ...

and later a founding member of the

Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) ( ga, Páirtí Sóisialta Daonlathach an Lucht Oibre) is a social-democratic and Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. The SDLP currently has eight members in the Northern Ireland ...

(SDLP). She was raised in Belfast. In January 1969, while a student at the

New University of Ulster sco, Ulstèr Universitie , image = Ulster University coat of arms.png , caption = , motto_lang = , mottoeng = , latin_name = Universitas Ulidiae , established = 1865 – Magee College 1953 - Magee Un ...

, Devlin joined a civil rights march from Belfast to

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

, organised by the People's Democracy. At Burntollet Bridge, a few miles from Derry, the march was attacked by

loyalists Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

. Devlin was struck on the head, knocked unconscious, fell into the river, and was brought to hospital suffering from concussion. The march was echoed in her 1994 play ''After Easter''. Devlin subsequently left Northern Ireland for England. She was visiting lecturer in playwriting 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 ...

in 1987, and a writer in residence at

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

, in 1990.

Publications

* 1988 - ''The Rainbow'' * 1992 - ''Wuthering Heights'' * 1999 - ''Titanic Town'' (Faber & Faber)

Awards

* 1992 - Hennessy Literary Award for short stories * 1985 -

Samuel Beckett Award The Samuel Beckett Award was a British award set up in 1983 and, over the next decade, awarded to writers, who in the opinion of a committee of critics, producers and publishers, showed innovation and excellence in writing for the performing arts. ...

for TV Drama

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Devlin, Anne Alumni of Ulster University 1951 births 20th-century writers from Northern Ireland 21st-century writers from Northern Ireland Living people Writers from Belfast Screenwriters from Northern Ireland Women short story writers from Northern Ireland Women writers from Northern Ireland British women screenwriters 20th-century Irish dramatists and playwrights Women dramatists and playwrights from Northern Ireland British women short story writers Television writers from Northern Ireland 20th-century British dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Irish women writers 21st-century Irish women writers British women television writers