Caryl Lesley Churchill (born 3 September 1938) is a British playwright known for dramatising the abuses of power, for her use of non- naturalistic techniques, and for her exploration of sexual politics and

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

themes.Caryl Churchill profile
''Encyclopædia Britannica''; accessed 26 January 2018. Celebrated for works such as '' Cloud 9'' (1979), ''

Top Girls ''Top Girls'' is a 1982 play by Caryl Churchill. It centres around Marlene, a career-driven woman who is heavily invested in women's success in business. The play examines the roles available to women in old society, and what it means or takes fo ...

'' (1982), ''

Serious Money ''Serious Money'' is a satirical play written by Caryl Churchill first staged in London in 1987. Its subject is the British stock market, specifically the London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE). Often considered ...

'' (1987), '' Blue Heart'' (1997), '' Far Away'' (2000), and '' A Number'' (2002), she has been described as "one of Britain's greatest poets and innovators for the contemporary stage". In a 2011 dramatists' poll by ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...

'', five out of the 20 polled writers listed Churchill as the greatest living playwright.

Early life and education

Churchill was born on 3 September 1938 in

Finsbury Finsbury is a district of Central London, forming the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Islington. It borders the City of London. The Manor of Finsbury is first recorded as ''Vinisbir'' (1231) and means "manor of a man called Finn ...

London 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 majo ...

, the daughter of Jan Brown, a fashion model and actress, and Robert Churchill, a political cartoonist. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

her family emigrated to

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, Canada; Churchill was ten years old. In Montreal, she attended

Trafalgar School for Girls Trafalgar School for Girls (abbreviated as Traf) is an all-girls independent school located in Downtown Montreal, Quebec. The school serves students at Secondary I – V levels, i.e. ages 11–12 to 16–17. The total enrollment is 200, the studen ...

. She returned to England to attend university in 1956, and in 1960 graduated from

Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford Lady Margaret Hall (LMH) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, located on the banks of the River Cherwell at Norham Gardens in north Oxford and adjacent to the University Parks. The college is more formall ...

, with a BA degree in

English Literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...

. She received the Richard Hillary Memorial Prize at Oxford and also began her writing career there. Her four earliest plays, ''Downstairs'' (produced 1958),''You've No Need to be Frightened'', ''Having a Wonderful Time'' (1960), and ''Easy Death'' (produced 1962) were performed at Oxford by student theatre ensembles. One of her plays, ''Downstairs'' was performed at the

National Student Drama Festival The UK based National Student Drama Festival (NSDF) was founded in 1956 with the purpose of creating new art, new artists and new communities. It also runs a charity aimed at empowering young artists. The NSDF is targeted towards people age ...

in 1958 and won the first prize.

Work

While raising a family in the 1960s and 1970s, Churchill began to write short radio dramas for

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering th ...

. These included ''The Ants'' (1962), ''Not, Not, Not, Not Enough Oxygen'' (1971), and ''Schreber's Nervous Illness'' (1972). She also wrote television plays for the BBC, including ''

The After-Dinner Joke ''The After-Dinner Joke'' is a television play in the epic form written by the English playwright Caryl Churchill for the BBC1 '' Play for Today'' series which was broadcast on 14 February 1978. Unfolding through a sequence of 66 short, episodi ...

'' (1978) and ''Crimes'' (1982). These, as well as some of her

radio plays Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine ...

, have been adapted for the stage. In her early work Churchill explored

gender Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures u ...

and

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

through modernist theatre techniques of

Epic theatre Epic theatre (german: episches Theater) is a theatrical movement arising in the early to mid-20th century from the theories and practice of a number of theatre practitioners who responded to the political climate of the time through the creati ...

. In the mid-1980s she started to incorporate

dance-theatre The German Tanztheater ("dance theatre") grew out of German Expressionist dance in Weimar Germany and 1920s Vienna. The term first appears around 1927 to identify a particular style of dance emerging from within the new forms of 'expressionist da ...

in her writing. ''

A Mouthful of Birds ''A Mouthful of Birds'' is a 1986 play with dance, written by Caryl Churchill and David Lan, with choreography by Ian Spink. Drawing its themes from '' The Bacchae'' of Euripides, it is a meditation on possession, madness and female violence. ...

'' (1986) is the first example of this, and references the surrealist theatre tradition of

Antonin Artaud Antoine Marie Joseph Paul Artaud, better known as Antonin Artaud (; 4 September 1896 – 4 March 1948), was a French writer, poet, dramatist, visual artist, essayist, actor and theatre director. He is widely recognized as a major figure of the E ...

and the

Theatre of Cruelty The Theatre of Cruelty (french: Théâtre de la Cruauté, also french: Théâtre cruel) is a form of theatre generally associated with Antonin Artaud. Artaud, who was briefly a member of the surrealist movement, outlined his theories in ''The Theat ...

. The fragmented and

surrealistic Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to ...

narratives in Churchill's work characterises her work as

postmodernist Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by skepticism toward the " grand narratives" of modern ...

Themes and plays

In 1972, she wrote ''

Owners Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different ...

'', a two-act, 14-scene play about obsession with power. It was her first professionally produced stage play and "her first major theatrical endeavour"; it was produced in London the same year. She served as resident dramatist 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, Englan ...

from 1974 to 1975, and was the Royal Court's first female playwright in residence. She began collaboration with theatre companies such as the

Joint Stock Theatre Company The Joint Stock Theatre Company was founded in London 1974 by David Hare, Max Stafford-Clark Paul Kember and David Aukin. The director William Gaskill was also part of the company. It was primarily a company which presented new plays. Joint Stock ...

and the

Monstrous Regiment Theatre Company Monstrous Regiment Theatre Company is a British feminist theatre company established in 1975. Monstrous Regiment went on to produce and perform 30 major shows, in which the main focus was on women's lives and experiences. Performer-led and collectiv ...

feminist theatre Feminist theater grew out of the wider Political theater of the 1970s, and continues to the present. It can take on a variety of meanings, but the constant thread is the lived experience of women. History Various women's theaters started up in the ...

collective). Both used an extended workshop period in their development of new plays. Churchill continues to use an

improvisation Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

al workshop period in developing a number of her plays. During this period, she also wrote ''Objections to Sex and Violence'' (1974). Her first play to receive wide notice was '' Cloud Nine'' (1979), "a farce about sexual politics", set partly in a British overseas colony during the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

. It explores the effects of the

colonialist Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose their relig ...

imperialist Imperialism is the state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas, often through employing hard power (economic and ...

mindset on intimate personal relationships, and uses cross-gender casting for comic and instructive effect. The play became successful in Britain and in the United States, winning an

Obie Award The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards originally given by ''The Village Voice'' newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City. In September 2014, the awards were jointly presented and administered with the A ...

in 1982 for best play of the year in New York. Churchill gradually abandoned more conventions of

realism Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to: In the arts *Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts Arts movements related to realism include: *Classical Realism *Literary realism, a move ...

, with her loyalty to feminist themes and ideas becoming a guiding principle in her work. She won an

for best play in 1983 with ''

'', "which deals with women's losing their humanity in order to attain power in a male-dominated environment." It features an all-female cast, and focuses on Marlene, who has relinquished a home and family to achieve success in the world of business. Half the action takes place at a celebratory dinner where Marlene mixes with historical, iconic and fictional women who have achieved great stature in a "man's world", but always at great cost. The other half of the play, set a year in the past, focuses on Marlene's family, where the true cost of her "successful" life becomes poignantly and frighteningly apparent. In ''Top Girls'', Churchill devised a system to indicate how the dialogue should be performed. She used the forward dash signal (/) to demonstrate a person interrupting the person speaking. She also used the asterisk symbol (*) to indicate a speech following on from a speech earlier than the one immediately before it. ''Softcops'' (first produced by 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 produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...

in 1984), is a "surreal play set in 19th-century France about government attempts to depoliticize illegal acts". Justin Hayford of the ''

Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by a ...

'' wrote that the play had little to offer to those who had already read

Michel Foucault Paul-Michel Foucault (, ; ; 15 October 192625 June 1984) was a French philosopher, historian of ideas, writer, political activist, and literary critic. Foucault's theories primarily address the relationship between power and knowledge, and how ...

's ''

Discipline and Punish ''Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison'' (french: Surveiller et punir : Naissance de la prison) is a 1975 book by French philosopher Michel Foucault. It is an analysis of the social and theoretical mechanisms behind the changes tha ...

'' (on which ''Softcops'' is based), and that the play "glosses Foucault's monumental work in Cliffs Notes fashion". In 2018, Michael Billington stated that ''Softcops'' "felt like a meditation on crime and punishment lacking Churchill's usual gift of narrative drive." The play ''

'' (1986) was co-written with

David Lan David Lan is a South African-born British playwright, theatre producer and director and a social anthropologist. Career Born in Cape Town, he trained as an actor and gained a BA at the University of Cape Town. He has lived in London since 197 ...

Wallace Shawn Wallace Michael Shawn (born November 12, 1943) is an American actor, playwright, and essayist. His film roles include Wally Shawn (a fictionalized version of himself) in '' My Dinner with Andre'' (1981), Vizzini in ''The Princess Bride'' (1987), ...

has argued that it is among the "rich, inventive" Churchill works that are responsible for theater remaining exciting in modern times. Cameron Woodhead of ''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...

'' billed the play as "a difficult pleasure to watch and a challenge to perform". Billington listed ''A Mouthful of Birds'' as one of Churchill's misfires, however, and dismissed the play as "mystifying in its attempt to create a dance-drama suggesting that the violence and ecstasy of Euripides' ''

The Bacchae ''The Bacchae'' (; grc-gre, Βάκχαι, ''Bakchai''; also known as ''The Bacchantes'' ) is an ancient Greek tragedy, written by the Athenian playwright Euripides during his final years in Macedonia, at the court of Archelaus I of Macedon. ...

'' were alive in modern Britain." ''

'' (1987), "a comedy about excesses in the financial world", is a verse play, chiefly written in rhyming couplets. It takes a

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or e ...

look at the vagaries of the

stock market A stock market, equity market, or share market is the aggregation of buyers and sellers of stocks (also called shares), which represent ownership claims on businesses; these may include ''securities'' listed on a public stock exchange, as ...

and its Thatcherite denizens. The play was highly acclaimed, perhaps in part because it played immediately after the

stock market crash A stock market crash is a sudden dramatic decline of stock In finance, stock (also capital stock) consists of all the shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided.Longman Business English Dictionary: "stock - ''especia ...

of 1987. ''Icecream'' (

1989) explores Anglo-American stereotypes. Richard Christensen of the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'' wrote that ''Icecream'' "doesn't have much depth, but it does have a quirky, creepy kick to it", describing it as "a small but telling piece of theater". Andrew Dickson of ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' dubbed the play "wryly picaresque" in 2015. Churchill's play ''

The Skriker ''The Skriker'' is a 1994 play by Caryl Churchill that tells the story of an ancient fairy who, during the course of the play, transforms into a plethora of objects and people as it pursues Lily and Josie, two teenage mothers whom it befriends, ma ...

'' (1994) includes distorted language, references to English folktales, and evocations of modern urban life. The Skriker is an ancient shape-shifting fairy and death portent in a search for revenge and love. The play initially received lukewarm reviews from critics, but is now considered among Churchill's successes. "The prolific Churchill continued to push boundaries into the late 1990s. In 1997 she collaborated with the composer Orlando Gough to create 'Hotel,' a choreographed opera or sung ballet set in a hotel room. Also that year her surrealistic short play 'This Is a Chair' was produced." Reviews of the London opening of ''Hotel'' were favorable, but with the first piece ("Eight Rooms") generally considered superior to the second ("Two Nights"). In 2015,

Moira Buffini Moira Buffini (born 29 May 1965) is an English dramatist, director, and actor. Early life Buffini was born in Cheshire to Irish parents, and attended St Mary's College at Rhos-on-Sea in Wales as a day girl. She studied English and Drama at Gold ...

of ''The Guardian'' listed ''This Is a Chair'' as one of Churchill's best works, stating that it "shows a real humility about the political inadequacy of playwrights." Her 2002 play, '' A Number'', addresses the subject of

human cloning Human cloning is the creation of a genetically identical copy (or clone) of a human. The term is generally used to refer to artificial human cloning, which is the reproduction of human cells and tissue. It does not refer to the natural concepti ...

and questions of identity. Churchill received an Obie Award in 2005 for this play. Her adapted screenplay of ''A Number'' was shown on BBC TV in September 2008. The play '' Drunk Enough to Say I Love You?'' (2006) takes a critical look at what she sees as Britain's submission to the United States in foreign policy. In 2010, Churchill was commissioned to write the

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

for a new short opera by

Orlando Gough Orlando Gough ( ; born 1953 in Brighton, Sussex) is a British composer, educated at Oxford, and noted for projects written for ballet, contemporary dance and theatre. Collaborators have included Siobhan Davies, Alain Platel, Shobana Jeyasingh ...

, as part of the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...

's ROH2 OperaShots initiative. The resulting work, ''A ring a lamp a thing'', played for five performances in the Linbury Studio Theatre at the Royal Opera House. Her play ''

Love and Information ''Love and Information'' is a play written by the British playwright Caryl Churchill. It first opened at the Royal Court Theatre in September 2012. It received many positive reviews from critics. Synopsis The play is a compilation of seven sec ...

'' opened at the Royal Court Theatre in September 2012, directed by James Macdonald. It was well-received by critics. The play, featuring 100 characters and performed by a cast of 15, is structured as a series of more than 50 fragmented scenes, some no longer than 25 seconds, all of which are apparently unrelated but which accumulate into a startling mosaic, a portrayal of modern consciousness and the need for human intimacy, love and connection. The play will have its regional premiere at Sheffield Theatres in June 2018, directed by Caroline Steinbeis. ''Ding Dong the Wicked'' (2013) has been described as a companion piece to ''Love and Information''. Charles Spencer said in ''The Telegraph'' that the work is "little more than a clever dramatic exercise" but "nags away in the memory long after you have left the theatre". Matthew Tucker gave the

performance three out of five stars, dubbed the play "snappy", and wrote, "Some may find this latest offering terse and obscure, however, in the spirit of explorative theatre, ''Ding Dong The Wicked'' is an intriguing and satisfying production." A reviewer for the ''

Evening Standard The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format. In October 2009, after be ...

'' argued, "What it all means is food for later reflection, but as always Churchill seems inventive, coolly socialist, bleak yet dazzling, a bit of a shaman. Although her technique sounds gimmicky, it works." Conversely, ''The Guardian'''s Michael Billington wrote that the work "feels as if it's cramming a trunkload of ideas into a tiny vanity case ..the tightness of the format means there is no room to explore the source of so much private and public fury, or to differentiate between one society and another. In short, the play is too generalised to make any strong emotional impact." The Royal Court Theatre premiere of ''Pigs and Dogs'' received a positive review in ''

The Stage ''The Stage'' is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. It was founded in 1880. It contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at those wh ...

'' and moderately positive reviews in ''The Guardian'', ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

'', and ''

'', with the last newspaper's Henry Hitchings stating, "While the incantatory style isn't consistently engaging, this is a striking parade of views on a subject that merits more sustained treatment." Andrzej Lukowski of ''Time Out'' said in a three-star review that the play "makes its point effectively if tersely". Mark Lawson of ''The Guardian'' praised ''Beautiful Eyes'' as a "sharp" comedy.

Translations

Churchill has published translations of

Seneca Seneca may refer to: People and language * Seneca (name), a list of people with either the given name or surname * Seneca people, one of the six Iroquois tribes of North America ** Seneca language, the language of the Seneca people Places Extrat ...

's ''

Thyestes In Greek mythology, Thyestes (pronounced , gr, Θυέστης, ) was a king of Olympia. Thyestes and his brother, Atreus, were exiled by their father for having murdered their half-brother, Chrysippus, in their desire for the throne of Olym ...

'',

Olivier Choinière Olivier Choinière (born July 10, 1973) is a Canadian playwright from Granby, Quebec.Gaëtan Charlebois"Choinière, Olivier" ''Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia'', April 24, 2020. He is most noted as a three-time nominee for the Governor General's Aw ...

's ''Bliss (Félicité)'', and

August Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

's ''

A Dream Play ''A Dream Play'' ( sv, Ett drömspel) is a fantasy play in 14 scenes written in 1901 by the Swedish playwright August Strindberg. It was published in Swedish in 1902 and first performed in Stockholm on 17 April 1907. It remains one of Strindberg ...

''. Her version of ''A Dream Play'' was premiered at the National Theatre in 2005.

Retrospective

The

held a 70th-birthday retrospective of her work by presenting readings of many of her most famous plays directed by notable playwrights, including

Martin Crimp Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Aust ...

and

Mark Ravenhill Mark Ravenhill (born 7 June 1966) is an English playwright, actor and journalist. Ravenhill is one of the most widely performed playwrights in British theatre of the late-twentieth and twenty-first centuries. His major plays include ''Shoppin ...

Interest in Palestine

Churchill is a patron of the

Palestine Solidarity Campaign The Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) is an activist organisation in England and Wales. It was incorporated in the UK in 2004 as Palestine Solidarity Campaign Ltd. They officially support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement ...

. In January 2009, she wrote a ten-minute play that explores a history of Israel, ending with the 2008 Israeli attack on Gaza. It was performed for free at the

, with a collection taken to donate to

Medical Aid for Palestinians Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) is a British charity that offers medical services in the West Bank, Gaza and Lebanon, and advocates for Palestinians' rights to health and dignity. It is in special consultative status with ECOSOC since 2002. A ...

. ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

'' condemned its "ludicrous and utterly predictable lack of even-handedness"; for ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', "there are no heroes or villains, for all that Churchill decries what is happening in Gaza". Writers such as Jeffrey Goldberg of ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

'' and Melanie Phillips in her ''

Spectator ''Spectator'' or ''The Spectator'' may refer to: *Spectator sport, a sport that is characterized by the presence of spectators, or watchers, at its matches *Audience Publications Canada * ''The Hamilton Spectator'', a Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, ...

'' blog criticised the play as anti-Semitic, as did John Nathan. He noted that Churchill has said that ''

Seven Jewish Children ''Seven Jewish Children: A Play for Gaza'' is a six-page, 10-minute play by British playwright Caryl Churchill, written in response to the 2008-2009 Israel military strike on Gaza, and first performed at London's Royal Court Theatre on 6 Februar ...

'' is "not just a theatre event but a political event." He suggested that a play representing views of one community and critical of that community needed to be written by a member of that community. The Royal Court denied the accusation. Churchill published the play, ''Seven Jewish Children – a play about Gaza'', online, for free download and use. Churchill said: "Anyone can perform it without acquiring the rights, as long as they do a collection for people in Gaza at the end of it".Royal Court acts fast with Gaza crisis play
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 24 January 2009. In April 2022, Churchill was named the recipient of the 2022 European Drama award in recognition of her life's work. The prize worth £65,000, given by German theatre Schauspiel Stuttgart and sponsored by the

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

ministry of science, research and arts, was cancelled after her support of

Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) is a Palestinian-led movement promoting boycotts, divestments, and economic sanctions against Israel. Its objective is to pressure Israel to meet what the BDS movement describes as Israel's obligations ...

had been criticised.

Politics

In November 2019, along with other public figures, Churchill signed a letter supporting Labour Party leader

Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020. On the political left of the Labour Party, Corbyn describes himself as a socialist ...

, describing him as "a beacon of hope in the struggle against emergent far-right nationalism, xenophobia and racism in much of the democratic world" and endorsed him in the 2019 UK general election.

Personal life

She married barrister David Harter in 1961. They have three sons and live in Hackney, east London.

List of works

Theatre

* ''Downstairs'' (1958) – produced but script unpublished * ''Having a Wonderful Time'' (1960) – produced but script unpublished * ''Easy Death'' (1960) – produced but script unpublished * ''Schreber's Nervous Illness'' (1972) – Performed earlier the same year on radio. Based on ''Memoirs of My Nervous Illness'' by

Daniel Paul Schreber Daniel Paul Schreber (; 25 July 1842 – 14 April 1911) was a German judge who was famous for his personal account of his own experience with schizophrenia. Schreber experienced three distinct periods of acute mental illness. The first of th ...

. * ''The Hospital at the Time of the Revolution'' (written 1972) * ''

'' (1972) * ''Moving Clocks Go Slow'' (1973) – produced but script unpublished * ''Objections to Sex and Violence'' (1975) * ''Traps'' (1976) * ''

Vinegar Tom ''Vinegar Tom'' is a 1976 play by the British playwright Caryl Churchill. The play examines gender and power relationships through the lens of 17th-century witchcraft trials in England. The script employs features of the epic theater associa ...

'' (1976) * '' Light Shining in Buckinghamshire'' (1976) * ''Floorshow'' (1977) – a cabaret, served as a contributor * ''Seagulls'' (written 1978) * '' Cloud Nine'' (1979) * ''Three More Sleepless Nights'' (1980) * ''

'' (1982) * ''

Fen A fen is a type of peat-accumulating wetland fed by mineral-rich ground or surface water. It is one of the main types of wetlands along with marshes, swamps, and bogs. Bogs and fens, both peat-forming ecosystems, are also known as mires. T ...

'' (1983) * ''Softcops'' (1983) * ''Midday Sun'' (1984) – created with Geraldine Pilgrim and Pete Brooks * ''

'' (1986) – created with David Lan and Ian Spink * ''A Heart's Desire'' (1987) * ''

'' (1987) * ''Icecream'' (1989) * ''Hot Fudge'' (1989) * ''

Mad Forest ''Mad Forest: A Play from Romania'' is a play by English playwright Caryl Churchill. The three acts occur, respectively, shortly before, during, and shortly after the Romanian Revolution of 1989. The play is mostly written in English, but has se ...

'' (1990) * ''Lives of the Great Poisoners'' (1991) – created with Orlando Gough and Ian Spink * ''

'' (1994) * ''Thyestes'' (1994) – translation of

's tragedy * '' Blue Heart'' (1997) * ''Hotel'' (1997) * ''This Is a Chair'' (1999) * '' Far Away'' (2000) * '' A Number'' (2002) * ''

'' (2005) – translation of

's play of the same name * '' Drunk Enough to Say I Love You?'' (2006) * ''Bliss'' (2008) – translation of the play ''Félicité'' by

* '' Seven Jewish Children – a Play for Gaza'' (2009) * ''

'' (2012) * ''Ding Dong the Wicked'' (2013) * ''War and Peace Gaza Piece'' (2014) * '' Here We Go'' (2015) * ''Tickets Are Now on Sale'' (2015) * '' Escaped Alone'' (2016) * ''Pigs and Dogs'' (2016) * ''Beautiful Eyes'' (2017) * ''

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'' (2019) * ''

Kill Kill often refers to: *Homicide, one human killing another *cause death, to kill a living organism, to cause its death Kill may also refer to: Media *'' Kill!'', a 1968 film directed by Kihachi Okamoto * ''Kill'' (Cannibal Corpse album), 2006 * ...

'' (2019) * ''Glass. Kill. Bluebeard. Imp., Bluebeard's Friends'' (2019) * ''Glass. Kill. Bluebeard. Imp., Imp'' (2019) * ''What If If Only'' (2021)

Radio dramas

* ''You've No Need to be Frightened'' (1959) * ''The Ants'' (1962) * ''Lovesick'' (1966) * ''Identical Twins'' (1968) * ''Abortive'' (1971) * ''Not Not Not Not Not Enough Oxygen'' (1971) * ''Schreber's Nervous Illness'' (1972) – based on ''Memoirs of My Nervous Illness'' by

. * ''Henry's Past'' (1972) * ''The Judge's Wife'' (1972) * ''Top Girls'' (1992) - radio version of Churchill's 1982 play of the same name. * ''Serious Money'' (2011) - radio version of Churchill's 1987 play of the same name. * ''The Skriker'' (2016) - radio version of Churchill's 1994 play of the same name. * ''Escaped Alone'' (2018) - radio version of Churchill's 2016 play of the same name.

Television

* ''Save It for the Minister'' (1975) – written with Mary O'Malley and Cherry Potter * ''

'' (1978) * ''The Legion Hall Bombing'' (1979) * ''Crimes'' (1982) * ''Fugue'' (1987) – created with Ian Spink * ''Top Girls'' (1991) – television adaptation of Churchill's 1982 stage play of the same name * ''A Number'' (2008) – television adaptation of Churchill's 2002 stage play of the same name

Unproduced and unpublished works

* ''The Finnsburg Fragment'' (1961) – stage play * ''Marriage Of Toby's Idea Of Angela And Toby's Idea Of Angela's Idea Of Tony'' (1968) – stage play * ''The Swimming Club'' * ''The Loonies'' * ''Comic Strips from the Chinese'' * ''Angel''

Awards and honours

Churchill has received the following awards: *1958 ''Sunday Times''/National Union of Students (United Kingdom), National Union of Students Drama Festival Award Downstairs *1961 Richard Hillary Memorial Prize *1981

for Playwriting, ''Cloud Nine'' *1982 Obie Award for Playwriting, ''Top Girls'' *1983 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize (runner-up), ''Top Girls'' *1984 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, ''Fen'' *1987 Evening Standard Award for Best Comedy of the Year, ''Serious Money'' *1987 Obie Award for Best New Play, ''Serious Money'' *1987 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, ''Serious Money'' *1988 Laurence Olivier/BBC Award for Best New Play, ''Serious Money'' *2001 Obie Sustained Achievement Award *2010 Inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame

References

External links

*
BBC Radio Plays at ukonlineBBC World Service radio documentary about Caryl Churchill from 1997
{{DEFAULTSORT:Churchill, Caryl 1938 births Alumni of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford English emigrants to Canada Living people Writers from London Postmodern theatre British women dramatists and playwrights Feminist theatre 20th-century English dramatists and playwrights 20th-century British women writers

Early life and education

Work

Themes and plays

Translations

Retrospective

Interest in Palestine

Politics

Personal life

List of works

Theatre

Radio dramas

Television

Unproduced and unpublished works

Awards and honours

See also

References

Further reading

External links