Patrick Marber

Patrick Marber was born in London in 1964. He is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter and director. His work has won Evening Standard, Olivier, Time Out, New York and London Critics’ Circle and Writers’ Guild Awards and received BAFTA, British Comedy and Royal Television Society Awards. His screenplays have been nominated for Golden Globe, BAFTA and Academy Awards. He received the British Independent Film Award for Notes on a Scandal. His second play, Closer, has been produced in more than 200 cities across the world.

Other plays include: Dealer’s Choice, Howard Katz, The Red Lion, Three Days in the Country, The Musicians, The School Film, After Miss Julie, Don Juan in Soho. Stage adaptations include versions of Hedda Gabler, Exit The King and The Beaux’ Stratagem (NT); and Trelawny of the ‘Wells’ (Donmar).

As a director his productions include Habeas Corpus (Menier Chocolate Factory), Dealer’s Choice (NT/Vaudeville), After Miss Julie (BBC), Closer (NT/Lyric/Music Box NY), ‘1953’ (Almeida), Blue Remembered Hills (NT), The Old Neighborhood (Royal Court), The Caretaker (Comedy), Howard Katz (NT), Three Days in the Country (NT), Travesties (Menier/Apollo/Broadway), Don Juan in Soho (Wyndhams), Venus in Fur (Theatre Royal Haymarket), Exit The King (NT).

Most recently, he directed Tom Stoppard’s Leopoldstadt at the Wyndhams Theatre, which won the Olivier Award for Best New Play in 2020.  Leopoldstadt opened on Broadway in October 2022 and in June 2023 Patrick won the Tony Award for best Director of a Play and the Outer Critics Circle Award for outstanding Director of a Play.

Television and Radio:

Co-creator (with Peter Curran) of Bunk Bed (BBC Radio 4)

AFTER MISS JULIE, which he adapted and directed for the BBC2 ‘Performance’ series in 1995. 

He has co-written and appeared in the award-winning comedy programmes THE DAY TODAY, THE PAUL CALF VIDEO DIARY, KNOWING ME, KNOWING YOU...WITH ALAN PARTRIDGE and THREE FIGHTS, TWO WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL.

His short radio play HOOP LANE was transmitted on BBC Radio 3 in November 2004.

Film:

OLD STREET (Film4/Box Films) short film, released in 2004, directed by Angus Jackson and starring Ray Winstone.

CLOSER (Columbia Pictures) released in the US in December 2004 and in the UK in January 2005. It received two Golden Globes for Best Supporting Actor (Clive Owen) and Best Supporting Actress (Natalie Portman), and was nominated for Golden Globes for Best Picture, Best Screenplay (Patrick Marber), and Best Director (Mike Nichols). Clive Owen and Natalie Portman also received Academy Award nominations.

NOTES ON A SCANDAL (Fox Searchlight Pictures) from the novel by Zoe Heller (dir. Richard Eyre), starring Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett, opened in the UK in February 2007.  It received numerous award nominations; Patrick Marber for Best Adapted screenplay (Golden Globes, Oscars, BAFTAs), Judi Dench for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Golden Globes, Oscars, BAFTAs), Cate Blanchett for Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Golden Globes, Oscars), Outstanding British Film (BAFTAs), Philip Glass for Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Score)

LOVE YOU MORE (Film4) short film, released in 2008, directed by Sam Taylor-Wood was nominated for both BAFTA and Palme D’Or awards. It has won numerous prizes on the international festival circuit where it has been screened in more than fifty festivals worldwide.

THE EGG short film (Dir. Richard Wilson) shown on BBC2 in 2002.