Double Feature brings together – in two volumes of paired short plays – four of the most exciting new voices in UK theatre, in their first commissions for the National Theatre.This volume, Double Feature: One, contains:***Edgar & Annabel***by Sam HolcroftAn Orwellian dystopian fable about a group of freedom fighters attempting to stand up to a repressive regime, while being continuously subjected to surveillance.A young couple prepare dinne...

An examination of the ties that hold us together in a fractured society.In a decaying pub in South London, preparations are being made for a wake. With only an hour before their guests arrive, a family begin to settle their accounts. The ghosts of lives lived and opportunities missed are laid to rest as new and ancient betrayals are confronted and forgiven.D.C. Moore's short play The Swan was first performed in a double bill with Edgar & Annabel by Sam Hol...

Produced as a programme text for the world premiere of the work at the Royal Court Theatre's Theatre Upstairs, Alaska explores the life and lies of Frank.Frank is an ordinary bloke who likes smoking, history and playing House of the Dead 3. He can put up with his job on a cinema kiosk until a new supervisor arrives who is younger than him. And Asian. The conflict that arises provokes a spiral of lies and eventual violence that uncovers Frank's façade and raises questions a...

Edited and introduced by leading cultural and theatre critic Aleks Sierz, this bold and urgent collection of contemporary plays by England's newest and most relevant young writers explores the various cultures and identities of a nation that is at once traditional, nationalistic and multicultural.Eden's Empire, by James Graham is an uncompromising political thriller exploring the events of the Suez Crisis, and the tragic story of its flawed hero – Churchill's golde...

It's forty million miles. Two and a half years, yeah? It takes a radiowave - right? Travelling at the speed of fucking light, 13 minutes, to get back from Mars. So . . . if anything goes wrong - anything at all - out there . . . they're really . . . they're on their own, you know?When Earth is the loneliest planet, where else is there to go?Paul is a specialist in cognitive behaviour, tasked with designing a twenty-year mission to Mars. Daniel is a husband and new ...

Common is a dark and disturbing journey into the carnivalesque world of early-Industrial Britain, exploring the personal and public traumas in the period of the enclosure.Written with verve and wit by Olivier Award-nominated and Writers' Guild Award-winning playwright DC Moore, it tells the story of Mary, a woman who has returned to the village of her birth after years of grifting a living on the edge of respectable London society. She is there to confront old enemies and ...

Based on the motion picture Humpday (written & directed in 2009 by Lynn Shelton), Straight is a razor-sharp new comedy from acclaimed writer D. C. Moore about male friendship, sexuality and how the two things can be blurred more easily than one might think . . .Lewis and Waldorf were inseparable at university. Ten years on and a lot has changed. In the middle of a drunken night out, they make a bet that will take their friendship to whole new level. You'll never l...

"So here I am, homeless at home and half-gratified to feel that I can be happy anywhere" John ClareInspired by the four-day journey made on foot by the legendary mad poet, John Clare, Town creates a new story set in contemporary Northampton. On John's return to Northampton from the bright lights of London, he finds his hometown is exactly the same as when he left it - from the rooms at his parent's house, to the Saturday nights on Abington Street. In fact, the onl...

With no mother to guide them, can Livvie and Amy find happiness?Two motherless girls, a young stepmother and a domineering father are woven into an unputdownable Merseyside saga set before the First World War. The perfect read for fans of Anne Baker, Catherine Cookson and Kitty Neale.'Gutsy... a vivid picture of a hard-up, hard-working community... will keep the pages turning' - Daily ExpressLiverpool, 1907. Thanks to their...

The worst break-up ever . . . Could be the best thing that has ever happened to herLizzy Spellman has been dumped. At a party.While wearing a Henry VIII costume. By the man she thought was The One. Someone even filmed it, so now she’s a massive YouTube hit sensation too.Just when she thinks things can't get any worse, she meets the rudest, most cynical man in the world, and gets a new mission in life. To prove him wrong.Love does ex...

As an experienced medium, Valeria Cosoi is no stranger to ghosts and is accustomed to helping them cross over to the other side.So when one shows up while Valeria is having breakfast with a friend she thinks this one will be no different than the rest.She could not have been more wrong.It doesn't take long for Valeria to realize she's in the middle of a murder mystery.As she works to find out what happened to the ghost she gets a strong feel...

'A funny, dark read' Closer'Smart, witty writing' ElleA heartbreaking and poignant novel of love and loss, from the no 1 bestselling author of WHILE MY EYES WERE CLOSED.Sarah Roberts used to be good. Then she did something bad.Now, years later, she's living a good life. She works as a local newspaper reporter and lives with her saintly boyfriend Jonathan. She has no reason to think her guilt...