We're excited to be partnering with Outside Edge Theatre Company – the UK’s leading charity dedicated to addiction recovery through theatre and drama – to present Script Club: a new playreading and events initiative to support the development of writers from underrepresented backgrounds.

Each Script Club event will focus on a specific play, with participants receiving free, digital access to the playtext provided by NHB, followed by an in-person Q&A session with the playwright at the Bush Theatre, London. Participants will be able to explore each play with its writer, learn about how it was conceived, written and developed, and gain valuable inspiration, insight, advice and support in their own journeys as writers.

The first Script Club takes place in December 2024 with Winsome Pinnock, focusing on her seminal play Leave Taking. Script Clubs in early 2025 will be held with Conor McPherson on his contemporary classic The Weir, and Waleed Akhtar on his Olivier Award-winning play The P Word.

It is presented in association with theatre companies Cardboard Citizens, Clean Break and Synergy Theatre Project – who, together with Outside Edge, work with people affected by addiction, homelessness and with experience of the criminal justice system. The events are open only to members of these four organisations, who have been contacted with information on how to sign up. Future Script Clubs and contributing playwrights will be announced at a later date.

Matt Applewhite, Managing Director of Nick Hern Books, said: ‘Outside Edge, Cardboard Citizens, Clean Break and Synergy do incredible, inspirational work, supporting some of London’s most vulnerable individuals. It’s a privilege to partner with them on this new initiative, bringing people together in an inclusive environment to share the power of a great play.’

Matt Steinberg (Artistic Director and CEO) and Naomi Hopkins (Participation and Operations Manager) of Outside Edge Theatre Company, said: ‘We’re excited to partner with Nick Hern Books to offer this extraordinary opportunity for our participants and the members of theatre companies with whom we have long-standing relationships. Script Club will provide the writers from our organisations with a safe and supportive community in which they can develop as playwrights, connect with their peers and learn from the best playwrights working across the nation’s stages. This partnership is a powerful example of how organisations can join together to support people from underrepresented backgrounds to access professional development opportunities with leading industry professionals.’

Waleed Akhtar, Oliver Award-winning playwright, who will participate in Script Club in 2025, said: ‘I jumped at the chance to be a part of this initiative. It’s what theatre should be about: reaching communities and people who have traditionally been ignored by the mainstream. It’s why I wrote The P Word – and continue to make work.’