Constance Cox (25 October 1912 – 8 July 1998) was a British script writer and playwright, born in
Sutton, Surrey.
Life and career
Cox was born Constance Shaw in Sutton, Surrey, in 1912. She married Norman Cox, a fighter pilot, who was killed in 1942. She had been a postmistress in Shoreham-by-sea, and moved to Brighton where she took up writing full-time after the end of the war.
Cox specialised in adaptations of books by
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
and other classic literature. Her
1962 adaptation of
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
' ''
Oliver Twist
''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', Charles Dickens's second novel, was published as a serial from 1837 to 1839, and as a three-volume book in 1838. Born in a workhouse, the orphan Oliver Twist is bound into apprenticeship with ...
'' led to viewer complaints over the murder of
Nancy by
Bill Sikes
William "Bill" Sikes is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the 1838 novel '' Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens. Sikes is a malicious criminal in Fagin's gang, and a vicious robber and murderer. Throughout much of the novel Sikes i ...
and questions asked in
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
about the suitability of such content for family audiences.
In 1957 she adapted the
J.B. Priestley
John Boynton Priestley (; 13 September 1894 – 14 August 1984) was an English novelist, playwright, screenwriter, broadcaster and social commentator.
His Yorkshire background is reflected in much of his fiction, notably in ''The Good Compa ...
novel ''
Angel Pavement
''Angel Pavement'' is a novel by J. B. Priestley, published in 1930 after the enormous success of ''The Good Companions'' (1929).
It is a social panorama of the city of London, seen largely through the eyes of the employees of the firm Twigg & ...
'' into a BBC
series of the same title.
She also was a prolific playwright. She was a member of the Brighton Little Theatre from the early 1950s and directed her own and others' work there for many years.
Selected works and adaptations
* ''
The Romance of David Garrick
''The Romance of David Garrick'' is a 1942 historical play by the British writer Constance Cox.
It ran for 35 performances at St James's Theatre in London's West End. Donald Wolfit
Sir Donald Wolfit, KBE (born Donald Woolfitt; Harwood, Rona ...
'' (1942)
* ''
Vanity Fair'' (1946)
* ''The Picture of Dorian Gray'': A Play in Two Acts Adapted from Oscar Wilde's Novel 1948 (The Fortune Press)
* ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' 1950 (The Fortune Press)
* ''Northanger Abbey'' : a comedy in three acts, based upon Jane Austen's novel 1950 (The Fortune Press)
* ''Spring at Marino'': A comedy in three acts; suggested by Turgenev's ''Fathers and son'' 1951 (
Samuel French Ltd
Samuel French, Inc. is an American company, founded by Samuel French and Thomas Hailes Lacy, who formed a partnership to combine their existing interests in London and New York City. It publishes plays, represents authors, and sells scripts fr ...
)
* ''
Lord Arthur Savile's Crime'' (1952)
* ''Three Knaves of Normandy'': Play 1958 (Evans Bros.)
* ''Jane Eyre'': Play 1959 based on the novel by Charlotte Brontë (J Garnet Miller Ltd)
* ''
Bleak House
''Bleak House'' is a novel by Charles Dickens, first published as a 20-episode serial between March 1852 and September 1853. The novel has many characters and several sub-plots, and is told partly by the novel's heroine, Esther Summerson, and ...
'':
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
television adaptation (1959)
* ''Caliph's Minstrel'': Play 1961 (Evans Bros.)
* ''
...