Nick Hern Books

Plays for One Performer

Discover fringe-theatre shows turned award-winning TV series, memoir-monologues, writer-actor collaborations and so many more excellent examples of solo shows in our collection below.

If you're a theatre-maker interested in creating your own solo show, there's no better place to start than with Making Your Solo Show: The Compact Guide, by Lisa Carroll and Milly Thomas – both experienced solo-show writers, who teach popular workshops on getting to grips with the form.

Discover 10 top tips to make your solo show memorable, an extract from Lisa and Milly's book over on our blog.

Showing 97-120 of 147 items.
Out of Your Knowledge

Out of Your Knowledge

By Steve Waters

A short play that explores our changing attitudes towards the landscape.

Paper Knickers

Paper Knickers

By Jackie Hagan

A bold, witty monologue play exploring what it is to be an amputee, commissioned by the BBC as part of CripTales, a television series marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of the UK's Disability Discrimination Act.

Published in volume CripTales: Six Monologues
    Patricia Gets Ready (for a date with the man that used to hit her)

    Patricia Gets Ready (for a date with the man that used to hit her)

    By Martha Watson Allpress

    A powerful play for one actor about a woman recovering from an abusive relationship.

    Peak Stuff

    Peak Stuff

    By Billie Collins

    A fast-paced, funny play offering a deep-dive into consumer culture: in an age of retail therapy, climate crisis and click and collect - how does our 'stuff' define us?

    Phoenix

    Phoenix

    By Mike Bartlett

    A powerful story of fire and destruction, self-deceit and the corrosion of trust.

    Published in volume Mrs Delgado
      The Price of a Fish Supper

      The Price of a Fish Supper

      By Catherine Czerkawska

      A short play about a man whose fortunes have declined along with the Scottish fishing industry in which he has worked all his life.

      Prima Facie

      Prima Facie

      By Suzie Miller

      A brilliant, powerful play for a solo actor, about a young, successful barrister forced to confront the patriarchal power of the law. Winner of Best New Play at the Olivier Awards and WhatsOnStage Awards in 2023.

      Prima Facie: Special Edition

      Prima Facie: Special Edition

      By Suzie Miller

      A special edition of the international hit play, featuring the definitive version of the award-winning script, together with colour photos and exclusive additional content.

      Primadonna

      Primadonna

      By Rosie Kellett

      A one-woman play that lays bare the world of the celebrity PA as a young first-timer navigates impossible tasks, difficult conversations and fearsome passive aggression.

      Pussycat in Memory of Darkness

      Pussycat in Memory of Darkness

      By Neda Nezhdana Translated by John Farndon

      A powerful play about the shattering impact of war, and the astonishing resilience of those living through it, written by one of Ukraine's leading playwrights.

      Published in volume Voices from Ukraine: Two Plays
        Queers: Eight Monologues

        Queers: Eight Monologues

        By Various Created by Mark Gatiss

        Queers celebrates a century of evolving social attitudes and political milestones in British gay history, as seen through the eyes of eight individuals.

        random

        random

        By debbie tucker green

        An urgent play about the senseless killing of a black schoolboy, from one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary British playwriting.

        The Real Deal

        The Real Deal

        By Tom Wentworth

        A short monologue play exploring the issue of benefits fraud, commissioned by the BBC as part of CripTales, a television series marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of the UK's Disability Discrimination Act.

        Published in volume CripTales: Six Monologues
          Resident Alien: Quentin Crisp explains it all

          Resident Alien: Quentin Crisp explains it all

          By Tim Fountain

          The acclaimed one-man show based on the life and writings of Quentin Crisp.

          • Paperback£8.99 £7.19
            There is limited availability of this title. Please enquire before placing your order.
          The Road to Huntsville

          The Road to Huntsville

          By Stephanie Ridings

          A short play about a writer researching women who fall in love with men on death row, who then finds herself crossing the line.

          Room 303

          Room 303

          By Enda Walsh

          A short monologue inspired by the Third Epistle of John and first produced by the Bush Theatre, London, as part of the Sixty-Six Books season in 2011.

          Published in volume Enda Walsh Plays: Two
            Ross & Rachel

            Ross & Rachel

            By James Fritz

            A dark and uncompromising play about romance, expectation and mortality, James Fritz's Ross & Rachel takes an unflinching look at the myths of modern love.

            Rum and Vodka

            Rum and Vodka

            By Conor McPherson

            A short monologue play from the multi-award-winning author of The Weir.

            Run

            Run

            By Stephen Laughton

            Stephen Laughton's one-man play about a gay Jewish seventeen-year-old explores what it means to love, to lose, and how to grow from a boy into a man.

            Run (VAULT edition)

            Run (VAULT edition)

            By Stephen Laughton

            Stephen Laughton's one-man play, in the VAULT Festival version.

            Saturday at the Commodore

            Saturday at the Commodore

            By Rona Munro

            A short solo play from the award-winning Scottish playwright, in which an Aberdonian woman remembers a painful teenage betrayal.

            Published in volume Scot-Free
              Scorch

              Scorch

              By Stacey Gregg

              A touching and provocative story of first love though the eyes of a gender-curious teen, inspired by recent UK cases of 'gender fraud'.

              Sessions

              Sessions

              By Ifeyinwa Frederick

              A raw, funny, bittersweet play about the complexities of masculinity, depression and therapy.

              Shakespeare's Will

              Shakespeare's Will

              By Vern Thiessen

              Vern Thiessen, winner of the Governor General's Award for his play Einstein's Gift, gives a voice to one of the most silent characters in history: Anne Hathaway, the wife of William Shakespeare.

              • Paperback£21.99
                There is limited availability of this title. Please enquire before placing your order.