Marie Jones – författare

It is the 1970s in Northern Ireland. Pat and Mary Gormley are an ill-matched couple: Pat is a laid-back publican, a storyteller and musician, whereas Mary is determinedly upwardly mobile, nagging at their children to succeed and moving the family away from the pub as soon as she can. Looking back thirty years later, their daughter Kathleen tries to piece together the family's story so that she can understand what drove it apart; in doing so, she uncovers an important family secret..."The Blind Fiddler" is a moving, funny and insightful portrait of a family, with storytelling and traditional Irish music enriching the atmosphere and providing a sense of historical continuity.

The Broadway sensation tells the tragicomedy story of a movie location shoot in Ireland, and the delightful, touching characters caught up in it. “An inventive and riotously funny comedy.” – Mike Kuchwara, Associated Press

A collection of wide-ranging and ambitious short plays reflecting the complexities of women and political power in the United Kingdom.The four plays published here look back to the moments in history when women possessed - or achieved - power, and what they did with it.The Milliner and the Weaver by Marie Jones, about the Suffragette movement in Ireland, as the question of Home Rule divides the nation.The Lioness by Rebecca Lenkiewicz is about Queen Elizabeth I, the myth and the reality.Handbagged by Moira Buffini, about the working relationship between Mrs Thatcher and the Queen.Bloody Wimmin by Lucy Kirkwood, about the protests at Greenham Common, a political landmark in the fight for nuclear disarmament.The plays were first performed at the Tricycle Theatre, London, as part of the Women, Power and Politics season in June 2010.The other plays presented in the season are available in the companion volume, Women, Power and Politics: Now.

Two plays by award-winning playwright Marie Jones: the smash hit Stones in His Pockets, which ran for four years in London's West End; and an earlier monologue, A Night in November, exploring the subjects of football and sectarianism, set during the 1994 World Cup.Stones in His Pockets is a comedy with a poignant undercurrent, about a small rural town in Ireland where a Hollywood epic is being filmed. The story centres on Charlie Conlon and Jake Quinn, who, like much of the town, are employed as extras for the filming. After a tragic incident concerning a local teenager, Charlie and Jake assume responsibility for giving an account of events, taking on all the roles themselves.A two-hander that delights in exploring the limits of comedy and theatricality, and the collision of romanticised notions of 'Irishness' and the harsher reality, Stones in His Pockets has delighted audiences around the world.Marie Jones's play was first staged at the Lyric Theatre in Belfast in June 1999 before opening at the Tricycle Theatre, London, in August 1999. It transferred to the New Ambassadors Theatre, London, in May 2000.Stones in His Pockets won the 2001 Olivier Award for Best New Comedy.A Night in November is a one-man show following Kenneth McCallister, family man and Ulsterman, on the fateful night in November in Belfast when the Republic of Ireland qualifies against Northern Ireland for the World Cup, and Kenneth finds himself watching the sectarian hatred of the crowd rather than the football.A Night in November was first performed at The West Belfast Festival, Whiterock, Belfast, in August 1994, then toured extensively throughout Ireland, and was also seen in New York. It was staged in London at the Tricycle Theatre in March 1995.

Staged in theatres by successive generations and proving relevant to contemporary audiences, the plays demonstrate the wit, theatrical skill and innovation of their creators in exploring timeless topics from marriage, morality and money to class conflict, rage and sexual desire. An essential resource for students, playwrights, colleges, universities and libraries, this collection also provides theatres with the opportunity to programme a range of theatrical classics by women. Plays from: 'Paphnutius' by Hroswitha (extract);'The Tragedy of Mariam' by Elizabeth Cary (extract); 'The Rover' by Aphra Behn; 'A Bold Stroke For A Wife' by Susanna Centlivre; 'De Montfort' by Joanna Baillie; 'Rutherford and Son' by Githa Sowerby; 'The Chalk Garden' by Enid Bagnold; 'Top Girls' by Caryl Churchill (extract); 'Stones in his Pockets' by Marie Jones.