John Donnelly
Writing
Biography
John Donnelly is a playwright. He works in theatre and more recently, television and film. His plays include The Pass and Bone (both Royal Court Theatre), The Knowledge (Bush Theatre), and a version of The Seagull by Anton Chekhov for Headlong Theatre. His writing for television includes Henry (a short film for Channel 4’s Coming Up strand), work on the second series of Dennis Kelly’s Utopia (also Channel 4) and an episode of Glue, an E4 series conceived by Jack Thorne. He is a past winner of the Tom Erhardt award, and his play The Knowledge was Time Out London’s best play of 2011. Other writing includes Burning Bird (Synergy/ Unicorn Theatre), Songs of Grace and Redemption (Theatre 503) and Conversation #1 (V&A Museum/Latitude Festival/The Factory) John has worked extensively in education — primary, secondary and further. He ran workshops and managed projects in London, Kent and Essex for Creative Partnerships for seven years. These included projects aimed at curriculum development and engagement, pupil voice, literacy, and supporting staff professional development. John has also worked with Irish and Romany travellers and led courses on sex education and addictions. From 2007 to 2013, John ran the theatre arm of the MA in writing for the stage and broadcast media at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. His plays are published by Faber and Samuel French.
Known For
The Utopia Experiments is a legendary graphic novel shrouded in mystery. When a group of strangers find themselves in possession of an original manuscript, their lives suddenly and brutally implode.
Utopia
Overton is a small, countryside village where farming is its bread and butter and race horses are its beating heart. When the body of a local resident is found under a tractor, destructive forces are unleashed and the entire community is forced to watch their secrets exposed... chilling secrets that will change their particular way of life forever.
Glue
In a climate change-ravaged world, a utopian society optimizes life, including parenthood assessments. A successful couple faces scrutiny by an evaluator over seven days to determine their fitness for childbearing.
The Assessment
When a crime scene clean up crew discovers a briefcase full of money, they must out smart a criminal kingpin and corrupt FBI agents who want it back.
The Clean Up Crew
The night before their debut game, two professional soccer players share a kiss. In a sporting world where image is everything, this surprising ‘pass’ sets the men up for a contrasting decade of fame and failure, full of secrets and denial.
The Pass
Series written and filmed in lockdown that responds to the radical way we have seen our world change during the coronavirus pandemic, featuring the UK’s most celebrated actors.
Unprecedented
Twelve skits in six minutes: the first one and the final three are about sex, in between are sketches of blood, death, murder, truck crashes, a tough day on the toilet, a slip on a banana peel, and an omnivorous Elvis. In several vignettes, Plympton draws on the essentially comic image of men wearing jackets and ties in a world gone awry. Women, who don't appear all that often, cheerfully participate in the sex and don't hang around for the violence.
More Sex & Violence
Kendal, an American tourist meets Shed, a fellow Morrissey and The Smiths obsessive whilst on a pilgrimage to Manchester. But is Shed really all he appears to be?