Born in 1942 in Portsmouth, Howard Brenton originally wanted to become an archaeologist but went on to read English at St. Catharine’s college, Cambridge. He has written or co-written over forty plays as well as numerous episodes of the award-winning BBC television series, Spooks.
Howard Brenton’s work gained much publicity when the director of the first run of his play Romans in Britain was threatened with prosecution for simulating gross indecency on stage. He went on to win the 1985 Evening Standard Best Play Award, a collaboration with David Hare. Always directed at a range of topical issues, his latest work In Extremis: The Story of Abelard and Heloise premiered at the Globe Theatre in August 2006.