James Martin Charlton (born 29 July 1966) is an English

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 ...

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

and filmmaker. He was born in

Romford Romford is a large town in east London and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Historically, Romford ...

Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness, the state of being great *Greater than, in inequality (mathematics), inequality *Greater (film), ''Greater'' (film), a 2016 American film *Greater (flamingo), the oldest flamingo on record *Greater (song), "Greate ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

in 1966.

Career

His play ''Fat Souls'' won the 1992 International Playwriting Festival at

Warehouse Theatre The Warehouse Theatre was a professional producing theatre in the centre of Croydon, England. Based in an oak-beamed Victorian former cement warehouse, it had 100 seats. The theatre closed in 2012 following withdrawal of funding and the disco ...

Croydon Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Greater London. It is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensi ...

, where it premièred in 1993. ''Fat Souls'' and the plays which followed it - ''Groping in the Dark'' and ''Coming Up'' - use verse dialogue, soliloquies and emblematic characterisation all strapped to contemporary stories. The spiritual/anarchist strain in his writing continued in ''Divine Vision'', a biographical play about the relationship between

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual art of the Romantic Age. ...

and his patron,

William Hayley William Hayley (9 November 174512 November 1820) was an English writer, best known as the biographer of his friend William Cowper. Biography Born at Chichester, he was sent to Eton College, Eton in 1757, and to Trinity Hall, Cambridge, in 176 ...

, and a stage adaptation of

John Bunyan John Bunyan (; baptised 30 November 162831 August 1688) was an English writer and Puritan preacher best remembered as the author of the Christian allegory ''The Pilgrim's Progress,'' which also became an influential literary model. In addition ...

's ''

The Pilgrim's Progress ''The Pilgrim's Progress from This World, to That Which Is to Come'' is a 1678 Christian allegory written by John Bunyan. It is regarded as one of the most significant works of theological fiction in English literature and a progenitor of ...

''. In 2001, his play ''ecstasy + GRACE'' attracted media attention due to its portrait of

paedophilia Pedophilia ( alternatively spelt paedophilia) is a psychiatric disorder in which an adult or older adolescent experiences a primary or exclusive sexual attraction to prepubescent children. Although girls typically begin the process of puberty ...

and moral degeneracy. The play went on to receive a mauling by leading critics, although other reviewers were more enthusiastic. Charlton's subsequent plays include ''I Really Must be Getting Off'', a contemporary gay version of the country house play, ''Fellow Creature'', a short play produced by The Miniaturists and ''Coward'', a speculative play about

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

, first performed in 2012. Since 1996, Charlton has been artistic director of Friendly Fire Productions. Friendly Fire's productions include ''Gob'' by

Jim Kenworth Jim Kenworth is an English playwright. Career Kenworth made his debut as a playwright with the premiere of ''Johnny Song'' at the Warehouse Theatre, Croydon in 1998. His second play, ''Gob'', was presented at The King's Head Theatre, Isling ...

starring ex-

Take That Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singe ...

star

Jason Orange Jason Thomas Orange (born 10 July 1970) is an English former singer and dancer, known for being a member of Take That. He departed from the group in September 2014. Early life Jason Thomas Orange was born on 10 July 1970 in Manchester, Lancashi ...

The King's Head Theatre The King's Head Theatre, founded in 1970 by Dan Crawford, is an off-West End venue in London. It is the second oldest operating pub theatre in the UK. In 2021, Mark Ravenhill became Artistic Director and the theatre focusses on producing LGBTQ ...

in 1999, which Charlton directed. He has also directed shows with casts of prisoners at HMP

Maidstone Maidstone is the largest Town status in the United Kingdom, town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies 32 miles (51 km) east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the c ...

, including

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

Tommy Tommy may refer to: People * Tommy (given name) * Tommy Atkins, or just Tommy, a slang term for a common soldier in the British Army Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Tommy'' (1931 film), a Soviet drama film * ''Tommy'' (1975 fil ...

. His short film ''Apeth'' was shown at a number of international film festivals. imdb ''Apeth'' (2007) - Release dates
/ref> He currently lectures in scriptwriting and is Head of Media Department at

Middlesex University Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated MDX) is a public research university in Hendon, northwest London, England. The name of the university is taken from its location within the historic county boundaries ...

Plays

*''What Are Neighbours For?'' (Fallen Angel, 1985) *''Straight to the Top'' (Etcetera Theatre, 1988) *''More About the Language of Love'' (New Copenhagen, 1991) *''Fat Souls'' (Warehouse Theatre, 1993) *''The World & his Wife'' (White Bear Theatre, 1995) *''Groping in the Dark'' (Warehouse Theatre/

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 ...

, 1996) *''Coming Up'' (Warehouse Theatre, 1997) *''Divine Vision'' (

Swedenborg Emanuel Swedenborg (, ; born Emanuel Swedberg; 29 March 1772) was a Swedish pluralistic-Christian theologian, scientist, philosopher and mystic. He became best known for his book on the afterlife, ''Heaven and Hell'' (1758). Swedenborg had a ...

Hall, 2000) *''The Pilgrim's Progress'' (after Bunyan) (

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 ...

commission, 2000) *''ecstacy + GRACE'' (

Finborough Theatre The Finborough Theatre is a fifty-seat theatre in the West Brompton area of London (part of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea) under artistic director Neil McPherson. The theatre presents new British writing, as well as UK and world p ...

, 2001) *''Desires of Frankenstein'' (

Open Air Theatre Regent's Park Open Air Theatre is an open-air theatre in Regent's Park in central London. The theatre Established in 1932, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre is one of the largest theatres in London (1,256 seats) and is situated in Queen Mary� ...

, 2001/Pleasance Theatre Edinburgh, 2002) *''I Really Must Be Getting Off'' (White Bear Theatre, 2005) *''Whatever'' (Soho Theatre workshop, 2005) *''Fellow Creature'' (Miniaturists at Arcola Theatre, 2009) *''Coward'' (Just Some Theatre, 2012) *''Been on the Job Too Long'' (TheatreN16, 2015)

Films

*''Best Shot'' (short, co-writer, 2006) *''Apeth'' (short, director/writer, 2007) *''Academic'' (short, director/writer/actor, 2011)

References

External links

* * James Martin Charlton at Doollie.co

*Official Websit

*Middlesex University Academic Profil

{{DEFAULTSORT:Charlton, James 1966 births English theatre directors English dramatists and playwrights Academics of Middlesex University Living people People from Romford English male dramatists and playwrights Screenwriting instructors