John Coulter (12 February 1888,

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 ...

– 1 December 1980,

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

) was an Irish Canadian

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 ...

and broadcaster.

Life

He graduated from

University of Manchester , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...

. He taught school in

and

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

until 1919. He moved to

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 ...

in 1920, where he wrote for BBC radio. In 1924 he became editor of ''The Ulster Review'', and in 1927, managing editor of ''

The New Adelphi ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in En ...

''. He moved to

in 1936, where he wrote for CBC radio, and he married Olive Clare Primrose, a poet and short story writer. They had two daughters. His papers are held at

McMaster University McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood and Westdale, adjacent to the Royal Botanical Ga ...

Works

Autobiography

* ''In My Day: Memoirs'', Willowdale, ON: Hounslow Press, 1980

Novels

* ''Turf Smoke'', Ryerson Press, 1945

Biography

* ''Churchill'', Ryerson Press, 1944

Plays

* ''Conochar'', Broadcast BBC, 1934 * ''The Folks In Brickfield Street,''

Abbey Theatre The Abbey Theatre ( ga, Amharclann na Mainistreach), also known as the National Theatre of Ireland ( ga, Amharclann Náisiúnta na hÉireann), in Dublin, Ireland, is one of the country's leading cultural institutions. First opening to the pu ...

, Dublin 1937 * ''The House In The Quiet Glen,'' Margaret Eaton Hall, Toronto, 1937 (Awarded Best Canadian Play at the

Dominion Drama Festival The Dominion Drama Festival was an organisation in Canada that sought to promote amateur theatre across the country. It lasted, in one form or another, from 1932 until 1978. Founding The Dominion Drama Festival (DDF) was devised in 1932 as a wa ...

, 1938.) * ''Holy Manhattan'', Arts and Letters Club, Toronto, 1940 * ''Pigs'', Hart House Theatre, 1940 * ''Christmas Comes But Once A Year'', Arts and Letters Club, Toronto 1942 * ''Transit Through Fire'', University of Toronto at Convocation Hall, 1942 * ''Mr Oblomoff'', 1946 * ''The Drums Are Out'', Abbey Theatre, Dublin 1948 * ''Riel'', New Play Society, Toronto, 1950 * ''Sleep My Pretty One'', rehearsed reading St James Theatre, London, 1951 * ''Dierdre'', Macmillan Theatre, Toronto, 1965 * ''The Crime Of Louis Riel,'' Dominion Drama Festival, London, Ontario 1966 * ''The Trial Of Louis Riel,'' Saskatchewan House, Regina, 1967 ** ''Riel: a play: in two parts'', Cromlech Press, 1972 * ''A Capful Of Pennies'', Central Library Theatre, Toronto 1967 * ''The drums are out: a play in three acts'', De Paul University, 1971 * ''While I Live'', 1971 * ''Francois Bigot: A Rediscovery in Dramatic Form of the Fall of Quebec'', Hounslow Press, Toronto, 1978 * ''Living Together'', Theatre Passe Muraille, Toronto 1980 * ''Mr Kean Of Drury Lane'', 1980

Opera librettas

* ''Transit Through Venus'', 1942 * ''Deirdre of the Sorrows'', 1946

References

External links

"John Coulter", ''Literary Encyclopedia''John Coulter entry in The Canadian Encyclopedia
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Coulter, John Writers from Belfast 1888 births 1980 deaths 20th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights Alumni of the University of Manchester Canadian male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Canadian male writers Northern Ireland emigrants to Canada