Andrea Thorne is a playwright and translator. She co-directs fulana, a New York-based, all-Latina satire collective that creates cutting-edge political & cultural parodies.

Jack Thorne is a playwright and BAFTA-winning screenwriter.

His plays for the stage include: When Winston Went to War with the Wireless (Donmar Warehouse, 2023); The Motive and the Cue (National Theatre and West End, 2023; Evening Standard Award for Best Play; Critics' Circle Award for Best New Play); After Life, an adaptation of a film by Hirokazu Kore-eda (National Theatre, 2021); the end of history... (Royal Court, London, 2019); an adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol (Old Vic, London, 2017); an adaptation of Büchner's Woyzeck (Old Vic, London, 2017); Junkyard (Headlong, Bristol Old Vic, Rose Theatre Kingston & Theatr Clwyd, 2017); Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Palace Theatre, London, 2016); The Solid Life of Sugar Water (Graeae and Theatre Royal Plymouth, 2015); Hope (Royal Court, London, 2015); adaptations of Let the Right One In (National Theatre of Scotland at Dundee Rep, the Royal Court and the Apollo Theatre, London, 2013/14) and Stuart: A Life Backwards (Underbelly, Edinburgh and tour, 2013); Mydidae (Soho, 2012; Trafalgar Studios, 2013); an adaptation of Friedrich Dürrenmatt's The Physicists (Donmar Warehouse, 2012); Bunny (Underbelly, Edinburgh, 2010; Soho, 2011); 2nd May 1997 (Bush, 2009); When You Cure Me (Bush, 2005; Radio 3's Drama on Three, 2006); Fanny and Faggot (Pleasance, Edinburgh, 2004 and 2007; Finborough, 2007; English Theatre of Bruges, 2007; Trafalgar Studios, 2007); and Stacy (Tron, 2006; Arcola, 2007; Trafalgar Studios, 2007).

His television work includes His Dark Materials, Then Barbara Met Alan (with Genevieve Barr), The Eddy, Help, The Accident, Kiri, National Treasure and This is England ’86/’88/’90.

His films include The Swimmers (with Sally El Hosaini), Enola Holmes, Radioactive, The Aeronauts and Wonder.

He was the recipient of the Writers' Guild of Great Britain Award for Outstanding Contribution to Writing in 2022.

Chris is a writer and performer from Manchester. He often works collaboratively with other artists and organisations, and his work has toured widely and been produced in many countries.

His plays include: Things Hidden Since the Foundation of the World, with Javaad Alipoor (BAC, HOME and Sydney Festival); Status (China Plate Theatre, 2018); Victory Condition (Royal Court Theatre, 2017); and There Has Possibly Been an Incident (Manchester Royal Exchange/Latitude/Edinburgh, 2013).

Andrew Tidmarsh is a theatre director, film-maker and teacher. He has taught at leading drama schools and currently runs the Foundation course at RADA. He has directed work at Soho Theatre, Wimbledon Studio, Shakespeare's Globe and Jermyn Street Theatre.

Lawrence Till is a BAFTA and RTS nominated Producer & Director with a background in award winning theatre, with over fifteen years’ experience as an Artistic Director directing plays by new and established writers. He won a Writers' Guild Award for his encouragement of writers and has commissioned over forty new plays. He was Artistic Director of the Octagon Theatre, Bolton, from 1991 to 1999, and Watford Palace Theatre from 1999 to 2006.

Born in Copenhagen, Sandi Toksvig is a well known writer, comedian and presenter. She has appeared on a variety of TV programmes including Mock the Week, QI and Have I Got News For You, and is a familiar voice for BBC Radio 4 listeners as the chair of The News Quiz. Sandi's playwriting credits include Bully Boy which focuses on post traumatic stress among British servicemen, a musical Big Night Out and Pocket Dream.

Piers Torday is a British novelist and playwright.

His novels include: The Last Wild (2013), The Dark Wild (2014, winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize), The Wild Beyond (2015), There May Be a Castle (2016), The Lost Magician (2018) and The Frozen Sea (2019).

His works for the stage include: Christmas Carol: A Fairy Tale after Dickens (Wilton's Music Hall, London, 2019) and an adaptation of John Masefield's The Box of Delights (Wilton's Music Hall, 2017, revived 2018).

(Author photo by James Betts)