Nick Hern Books

UPDATE, 1pm Friday 19 March – this 40% Off Sale has now finished. Thank you so much to everyone who took part!

Choose from hundreds of top plays and books, and support freelancers affected by the impact of COVID-19


On 16 March 2020, as the COVID pandemic continued to spread across the UK, hundreds of theatres nationwide were forced to shut their doors. At the time, we all thought it would only be for a few weeks – but incredibly, a full year on, these treasured stages are still dark. That was also the day we temporarily shut down the NHB office, as our team switched to working remotely. Twelve months later, those doors remain closed, too.

So as the theatre community prepares to mark this unexpected anniversary, we've ventured back to NHB HQ to raid our shelves and offer you the chance to save 40% on hundreds of great playscripts and theatre books, and raise money for hard-hit theatre-workers and freelancers, in our special Sale.

Due to incredible demand, we've extended the Sale by an extra 24 hours, so it now finishes at 1pm GMT on Friday 19 March. No voucher code is required – just fill your basket with as many of the brilliant titles below as you like, head to checkout, and your discount will be automatically applied. This offer applies to paperback and hardback editions only (ebooks are not included), and all orders over £40 receive free UK delivery.

Plus, £1 from every book sold in our Sale will go to the Theatre Artists Fund, which continues to provide emergency support for theatre-workers and freelancers across the UK affected by the devastating impact of COVID-19 on the theatre sector.

We've put together an incredible selection of almost SIX HUNDRED titles, all currently available at 40% off – choose from famous, award-winning hits; wonderful, lesser-known plays we just know you'll love; brilliant shows that were sadly forced to close due to COVID; books to develop your skills or learn new ones; fascinating reads by leading names, and much more.

Pick up something you always had your eye on at a special price, or try something you've never heard of before – who knows, you might be about to discover your new favourite writer...

Everything included in the Sale has been handpicked from the shelves at NHB HQ, and stock is strictly limited. So if you see something you want, move fast to avoid missing out – because once it's gone, it's gone!

Head to the bottom of this page the entire range – or check out our curated Sale Selections, bringing together books and playscripts on different subjects and themes – and be sure to grab your bargains before our Sale ends on Friday.

It's been a really rough year for everyone connected to theatre, but we've been constantly inspired by the resilience and creativity shown by so many across the community, and with venues starting to announce re-opening plans, there's genuine hope that the lights might come back on soon. So join us to celebrate the art form we all love, and thank you for helping support freelancers at this really difficult time.

Some key info:

  • This Sale runs from 1pm GMT on Tuesday 16 March to 1pm GMT on Friday 19 March only.
  • Only titles listed on this page are available at a 40% discount. This offer applies to the physical editions (paperback, hardback and CD) only; ebooks are not included.
  • Stock of all titles included in the Sale is strictly limited. If your order contains a title that has already sold out, we will get in touch to ask if you would like to: a) swap for an item of the same value, or b) receive a refund for the value of that item.
  • All Sale orders will be dispatched from Monday 22 March. From this point, our standard delivery times will apply – please click here for more information.
  • £1 from every book sold will be donated to the Theatre Artists Fund, which provides emergency support for theatre workers and freelancers across the UK.

With almost six hundred titles included in our Sale, there's a lot to choose from.

So to help you browse through what's available, we've put together fifteen curated selections of playscripts and books on different subjects and themes, and for different readers – each packed with fantastic titles we just know you'll love. Explore tailored lists for actors, backstage practitioners and drama teachers, plays impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic you can still enjoy on the page, plays in translation, adaptations, tie-in and special editions, and more.

Click here to browse the selections – or see below for the entire range of what's available at the 40% discount.
Showing 331-360 of 568 items.
Tip of the Tongue

Tip of the Tongue

Reflections on Language and Meaning

By Peter Brook

A wise, playful and deeply personal book by master theatre-maker Peter Brook.

Tomcat

Tomcat

By James Rushbrooke

Winner of the 2015 Papatango New Writing Prize, Tomcat is a play set in a future world where diseases and disorders have been wiped out. How far will we go to keep humanity healthy?

Tribes

Tribes

By Nina Raine

A penetrating play about belonging, family and the limitations of communication.

Uncle Vanya

Uncle Vanya

By Anton Chekhov Adapted by Conor McPherson

Conor McPherson's stunning adaptation of the Anton Chekhov masterpiece, a portrayal of life at the turn of the twentieth century, full of tumultuous frustration, dark humour and hidden passions.

Vincent in Brixton

Vincent in Brixton

By Nicholas Wright

A moving portrait of the young Vincent van Gogh - a hit in the West End and on Broadway.

The Visit, or The Old Lady Comes to Call

The Visit, or The Old Lady Comes to Call

By Friedrich Dürrenmatt Adapted by Tony Kushner

Dürrenmatt's visionary revenge play, one of the great achievements of modern German-language theatre, transported to mid-twentieth-century America by the acclaimed playwright Tony Kushner.

The Wardrobe

The Wardrobe

By Sam Holcroft

A gripping journey through British history that shows how our country was shaped and how connected we are with our past. Part of the 2014 National Theatre Connections Festival.

The Weir

The Weir

By Conor McPherson

The spellbinding, beautifully observed hit from the master of suspenseful realism.

The Welkin

The Welkin

By Lucy Kirkwood

Lucy Kirkwood's play about a woman sentenced to hang for murder in 18th-century rural Suffolk.

Wendy & Peter Pan

Wendy & Peter Pan

By Ella Hickson Original author J.M. Barrie

A refreshingly modern version of J.M. Barrie's much-loved story that puts the character of Wendy firmly centre stage.

  • Paperback£10.99 £8.79
    There is limited availability of this title. Please enquire before placing your order.
  • A4 Spiral-bound£16.99 £13.59
    Add to basket
  • Ebook£10.99 £8.79
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When They Go Low

When They Go Low

By Natalie Mitchell

A play about everyday feminism, consent and the changing face of teenage sexuality in an online world. Written for the National Theatre Connections Festival.

WINK

WINK

By Phoebe Eclair-Powell

An electrifying drama about what happens to personal identity in an age of ubiquitous technology and social media.

Wit

Wit

By Margaret Edson

A striking and sharply funny reflection on the frailty of existence and the complex relationship between knowledge and love.

  • Paperback£10.99 £8.79
    There is limited availability of this title. Please enquire before placing your order.
  • Ebook£10.99 £8.79
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Wolf Hall & Bring Up the Bodies (stage version)

Wolf Hall & Bring Up the Bodies (stage version)

By Hilary Mantel Adapted by Mike Poulton

Mike Poulton's two-part adaptation of Hilary Mantel's acclaimed novels Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies. A thrilling and utterly convincing portrait of a brilliant man embroiled in the lethal, high-stakes politics of the Court of Henry VIII.

The Writer

The Writer

By Ella Hickson

A young writer challenges the status quo but discovers that creative gain comes at a personal cost.

Three Sisters

Three Sisters

By Anton Chekhov Adapted by Cordelia Lynn

Cordelia Lynn's version of Chekhov's play, about three sisters trapped in a provincial town, waiting for their lives to begin.

The Voice Exercise Book: The Warm-Ups

The Voice Exercise Book: The Warm-Ups

By Jeannette Nelson

Essential warm-up exercises for anyone who wants to use their voice more effectively.

All the Little Lights

All the Little Lights

By Jane Upton

A poignant, moving and darkly funny play about young girls slipping through the cracks in society. Joint winner of the 2016 George Devine Award for Most Promising Playwright.

Anne Boleyn

Anne Boleyn

By Howard Brenton

A celebration of a great English heroine, Anne Boleyn dramatises the life and legacy of Henry VIII's notorious second wife, who helped change the course of the nation's history.

Arabian Nights

Arabian Nights (RSC stage version)

By Dominic Cooke

A simple and delightfully inventive re-telling of the stories from the Arabian Nights.

Asking for It

Asking for It (stage version)

By Louise O'Neill Adapted by Meadhbh McHugh With Annabelle Comyn

A powerful adaptation of Louise O'Neill's devastating novel about the experience of a young woman whose life is changed forever by a horrific act of violence.

Bad Roads

Bad Roads

By Natal'ya Vorozhbit Translated by Sasha Dugdale

A heartbreaking, powerful and bitterly comic account of what it is to be a woman in wartime.

Ballyturk

Ballyturk

By Enda Walsh

A gut-wrenchingly funny, achingly sad play featuring jaw-dropping moments of physical comedy.

Beauty and the Beast

Beauty and the Beast (National Theatre stage version)

By Lucy Kirkwood and Katie Mitchell

Lucy Kirkwood's delightful version of the classic fairytale, first seen in a production devised and directed by Katie Mitchell at the National Theatre for Christmas 2010.

Big White Fog

Big White Fog

By Theodore Ward

A poignant family drama set in Chicago against a backdrop of the Great Depression and the inescapable racism of the times.

  • Paperback£11.99 £9.59
    There is limited availability of this title. Please enquire before placing your order.
Boys Will Be Boys

Boys Will Be Boys

By Melissa Bubnic

An exhilarating play about a ruthless female City trader who takes on a young and ambitious protegee.

Broken Biscuits

Broken Biscuits

By Tom Wells

A beautiful, heart-warming, laugh-out-loud coming-of-age story for our times.

The Browning Version

The Browning Version

By Terence Rattigan

Rattigan's well-loved play about an unpopular schoolmaster who snatches a last shred of dignity from the collapse of his career and his marriage.

buckets

buckets

By Adam Barnard

Wry, emotive, funny and heartfelt, buckets is a play with a unique perspective on a universal dilemma: how do you deal with the fact that time always runs out?

Burying Your Brother in the Pavement

Burying Your Brother in the Pavement

By Jack Thorne

A play about grief and looking at someone that little bit more closely. Written specifically for young people, Burying Your Brother in the Pavement was part of the 2008 National Theatre Connections Festival and was premiered by youth theatres across the UK.