Biography

Farrar was born in London 1960. The grandson of playwright

Kenneth Horne Charles Kenneth Horne, generally known as Kenneth Horne, (27 February 1907 – 14 February 1969) was an English comedian and businessman. He is perhaps best remembered for his work on three BBC Radio series: ''Much-Binding-in-the-Marsh ...

through his mother, Judith, Farrar read the older man's oeuvre while still a teenager. This inspired him to write his first stage play, entitled ''Drawing-Room Tragedy'', which Farrar and some friends performed at school in 1975 (shortly after Horne's death). Another stage play was performed the following year, on the

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 series ''It's Child's Play''. In the early 1980s, he spent time living in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

, and in 1981 he directed the musical ''Comfort and Hygiene'' with Adrian Hope. In 1983, Farrar established a band called 'The Mystery Girls'. Wearing women's make-up with men's clothing that was "glammed up to the point of surreality", the band performed live in various venues and released a single, "Ash in Drag", with

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

; they also performed on ''

The Old Grey Whistle Test ''The Old Grey Whistle Test'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''Whistle Test'' or ''OGWT'') is a British television music show. The show was devised by BBC producer Rowan Ayers, commissioned by David Attenborough and aired on BBC2 from 1971 to 1988. ...

''. However, the single did not satisfy the commercial expectations, so A&M ended its relationship with the band. In 1986, "traumatised" by A&M's management, Farrar returned his attentions to his writing career. 'The Mystery Girls' did not formally disband until 1991. Farrar wrote his first full-length novel, ''State of Independence'', while the Mystery Girls were still a group; he had previously written several novellas. Published in 1993 by Gay Men's Press, ''State of Independence'' was Farrar's successful attempt to force himself to come out of the closet and followed a young man in his attempts to come out. A novella, ''Watch That Man'', was written in 1989 and published in German as ''Der Coolste Killer'' in 1997. In 1997 the novella was adapted by Farrar and

Howard Franklin Howard Franklin is an American screenwriter and film director, known for such films as ''The Name of the Rose'' and his three collaborations with Bill Murray: '' Quick Change'', '' Larger than Life'', and ''The Man Who Knew Too Little''. His other ...

into a Warner Bros. film directed by

Jon Amiel Jon Amiel (born 20 May 1948) is an English director who has worked in film and television in both the UK and the US. After receiving a BAFTA Award nomination for the BBC series ''The Singing Detective'' (1986), he went on to direct films, inclu ...

entitled ''

The Man Who Knew Too Little ''The Man Who Knew Too Little'' is a 1997 spy comedy film starring Bill Murray, directed by Jon Amiel, and written by Robert Farrar and Howard Franklin. The film is based on Farrar's 1997 novel ''Watch That Man'', and the title is a parody of A ...

'', in which an American tourist in London is inadvertently dragged into an attempt to reignite the Cold War. Farrar has described it as his greatest commercial success to date. One of Farrar's screenplays was filmed by

Rose Troche Rose Troche (born 1964) is an American film and television director, television producer, and screenwriter. Early life and education Troche was born to Puerto Rican parents and grew up on the north side of Chicago. In an interview she stated, "M ...

in 1998. Entitled ''

Bedrooms and Hallways ''Bedrooms and Hallways'' is a 1998 comedy-drama film about homosexuality. It was written by Robert Farrar and directed by Rose Troche, starring Kevin McKidd, James Purefoy, Tom Hollander, Julie Graham, Simon Callow and Hugo Weaving. Plot Leo, ...

'' and starring

Kevin McKidd Kevin McKidd (born 9 August 1973) is a Scottish actor and television director. Before playing the role of Dr. Owen Hunt in '' Grey's Anatomy'', for which he is widely known, McKidd appeared as Tommy Mackenzie in Danny Boyle's '' Trainspotting' ...

as an openly gay man who is an unexpected source of conflict and confusion in a group of nominally heterosexual men, the film also featured Farrar in a cameo as a man at a bus stop. The film received mixed reviews. Nigel Andrews of ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Ni ...

'' summarised the film as "A loves B loves C loves D until the audience, slipping towards coma, goes zzz" owing to the script being unable to "convert flippancy to wit". Stephen Holden of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' wrote that the film kept its plot lines "in the air" well and praised its exploration of sexuality, but claimed that it "lost its nerve" towards the end, "mechanically" matchmaking the characters at the climax. Hannah Patterson in ''Contemporary North American Film Directors'' reviewed it more positively, describing ''Bedrooms and Hallways'' as "a pacey, quirky film that explores the shifting boundaries of sexuality in an attempt to shatter any preconceived notions or prejudices". The film won awards at Toronto (1998), Rotterdam (1999), Buenos Aires (2000) and London (1998), where it won the Audience Award. Farrar wrote and directed a short film, ''Sunday Morning'', in 2001. In ''Dictionnaire des codes homosexuels'', Philippe Arino describes the film's gay couple as "a parody of a heterosexual couple pushed to the extreme" in the top's

machismo Machismo (; ; ; ) is the sense of being " manly" and self-reliant, a concept associated with "a strong sense of masculine pride: an exaggerated masculinity". Machismo is a term originating in the early 1930s and 1940s best defined as hav ...

and the bottom's submissiveness. Farrar writes that the film allowed him to "reconnect with my underground roots and to let go of good taste". In 2005, Farrar directed his second film, ''Donut'', based on an anecdote from Phil Setren and starring

Annabelle Apsion Jane Annabelle Apsion (born 17 September 1960 in Hammersmith, London) is an English actress best known for playing Monica Gallagher in the hit television comedy-drama '' Shameless'' (2004-2013), Joy Wilton in '' Soldier Soldier'' (1991-1995), a ...

and Vincenzo Nicoli. The film was later adapted for the stage as part of ''Lovers From Hell'', which also included ''Complex'' and ''Get The Guest''. The story involves a sexual encounter (heterosexual in the film, homosexual in the play) in which one partner attempts to convince the other to eat a donut during sex. Between 2004 and 2005, Farrar wrote two full-length plays exploring aspects of gay sexuality. In 2010, Farrar's play ''Relax'' was performed at the

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 ...

. ''Relax'' centred upon a "repressed"

bed and breakfast Bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. Bed and breakfasts are often private family homes and typically have between four and eleven rooms, wit ...

proprietor who seduces a guest before claiming a disturbed twin brother was to blame. Matt Boothman, writing for The British Theatre Guide, alleged that the play lacked the "sensitivity" necessary to address themes of sexual predation and mental illness. Afterwards, Farrar redirected his efforts toward his musical career, working on a

mini-LP A mini-LP or mini-album is a short vinyl record album or LP, usually retailing at a lower price than an album that would be considered full-length. It is distinct from an EP due to containing more tracks and a slightly longer running length. A ...

with Dominik Strutzenberger in late 2010 before moving to Germany and debuting a new artistic persona, Merlin Dietrich. In 2015 Farrar won the Berlin Song Contest Jury Prize as Merlin Dietrich with his song Flying out to Berlin.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Farrar, Robert Living people Year of birth missing (living people) British bloggers 1960s births