Alistair Beaton

Alistair Beaton is a political satirist whose work spans theatre, television, radio and publishing. In 2010 his historical play Caledonia premiered at the Edinburgh International Festival. His satirical comedy King of Hearts was seen at London’s Hampstead Theatre in 2007. He is the author of the hit West End play Feelgood, directed by Max Stafford-Clark, which was nominated for an Olivier Award as Best Play and won the Evening Standard Best Comedy Award. In 2004 he wrote the anti-war satire Follow My Leader (Birmingham Rep & Hampstead Theatre).

He is fluent in German, Russian and French and in 2005 he translated and adapted The Government Inspector (Chichester Festival Theatre) from the Russian. He has also written new English versions of Die Fledermaus and La Vie Parisienne. In 2007 he translated The Arsonists by Max Frisch, which premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, and has since had productions in Canada and the USA. For Shared Experience he translated Brecht’s Caucasian Chalk Circle, directed by Nancy Meckler. In Spring 2008 his version of The Government Inspector was staged at the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco and was later broadcast on BBC Radio 3.

He wrote the television film A Very Social Secretary about the David Blunkett affair, launching More4 in 2005 and winning Broadcasting Press Guild Award for Best Drama. This was followed in 2007 by the Channel 4 film The Trial of Tony Blair, nominated for a BAFTA as best single drama. His radio work includes the comedy series Electric Ink for Radio 4, starring Robert Lindsay and Alex Jennings.

He is author of the satirical novel A Planet for the President (Orion Books 2005) and a number of best-selling humour books. He is co-author of Drop the Dead Donkey 2000.

He has recently been commissioned to translate and adapt for the stage an internationally best-selling novel, and is currently writing a screenplay for Daybreak Pictures / BBC.

www.alistairbeaton.com