David Watson

David Watson is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter. His work has been staged at venues including the Royal Court and the Bush in London, and Manhattan Theatre Club in New York. Having written poems and stories for as long as he can remember, he began writing for the stage as a teenager, as part of Birmingham Rep’s Transmissions scheme for young writers.

His early work focused on the lives and concerns of young people, most significantly in Flight Path (2007), about the relationship between a teenage boy and his learning-disabled brother. By Pieces of Vincent (2010), he had extended his canvas, journeying across the British Isles from County Down to London, in an exploration of how a collage of individuals are united by one act of terrorism.

He has collaborated extensively with community companies, including Only Connect, for whom he has written plays that were developed and performed by both former and serving prisoners. For the Big House company, he worked with young people on the point of leaving the care system on pieces including The Ballad of Corona V (2021), and The Realness (2014), his first foray into musical theatre, to be revived in 2023.

For television, he wrote for three series of L8R (2008–13), an educational drama that was awarded three Children’s BAFTAs. Other screen work includes The Hope Rooms, a short film that premiered in 2016.

Currently he is under commission to the Big House and to Hampstead Theatre. He lives in North-East London with his wife and son.