Books published by Samuel French Ltd

Boston July 1970. Robert, a visiting English actor appearing in a local theatre invites Alan, a somewhat naive usher back to his hotel room after the performance. They talk. They laugh. They learn from one another and not surprisingly, they have sex. By the end of the evening they’ve learned more about each other and themselves than they bargained for. 46 Beacon is about two gay lives which intersect at a crossroads where one savors his differences and the other wishes only to be a part of the mainstream.

It's hard keeping it together when your whole life is falling apart. But the pressures of teaching, Tinder and outrageous Irish best mates are a lot to juggle, especially when you're stumbling through the maze of trying to be a grown-up.It explores the grey areas surrounding guilt, grief and shame and how we react to them in modern culture.Stranger danger, heartbreak and piña coladas are on the syllabus in the hilarious debut play by Maddie Rice.This show was developed with the help of Katie Pesskin and Soho Theatre Writers' Lab.

Written in spoken word poetry and underscored entirely by original music created live, Electrolyte is an explosive piece of gig-theatre exploring grief, depression and psychosis.

"A sparkling, frothy farce, hugely enjoyable as laugh-out-loud entertainment. Unsworth's pacey script is packed full of cracking jokes and wordplay. Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em can be enjoyed across the generations - this is a farce with a heart, and Unsworth's revival is a welcome comeback for Frank Spencer" WHATSONSTAGE"This adaptation of the 1970s sitcom, Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em, achieves something remarkable. It stays true to the original while delivering a fresh farce that's entirely of its own. Guy Unsworth nods to the 'plots' of Raymond Allen's sitcom but mixes these up for the play's own, well constructed, ends, in this hilarious ensemble farce" THE STAGE"Silly, endearing and you will laugh out loud" THE EXPRESS"As for real, sustained belly laughs, this sweet show most definitely does 'ave 'em" MAIL ON SUNDAY

Ciara's younger sister, Sinead, arrives at her door on Friday evening all set for what Ciara thinks will be a weekend of respite from caring for their mother, Eileen.However, unbeknownst to Ciara, Sinead has alternative ideas about how the weekend will pan out. And it is not what Ciara expected...Over the long weekend, the sisters are forced to make a choice that will affect their lives forever. Ciara seeks guidance from a variety of other characters often gaining hilarious insight, but does it help them reach their final decision?Oh, and there's also the small matter of the family cat...The Cat's Mother is a laugh-out-loud dark Irish comedy asking how far are you willing to go for your own family? And what happens when you have to care for the person who should be caring for you?

Set in London just after the Second World War, Robin Maugham's slim, haunting novella is a confessional tale told in a simple, urgent voice by one Richard Merton. He tells the story of Tony, a close friend from the war, who - breaking links with old friends and habits - steadily comes under the influence of his sinister new butler, Barrett. Concerned for his friend, Richard slowly uncovers a strange affair in which both class and sexual barriers have disintegrated into a dark flux. | 3 women, 3 men

Joan Littlewood was the anarchic revolutionary of 20th century theatre. Her unique Theatre Workshop was responsible for a raft of successes including Oh, What A Lovely War!, and breathed new life into the Theatre Royal Stratford East.Anti-establishment, visionary, rude and glorious, Joan Littlewood red the imagination of a generation. Based on her life story, this musical charts the emotional highs and lows of Joan's journey from the East End to the West End.Told with her own uncompromising honesty, this new musical reveals a mighty love story at its heart.

This ingenious play opens on two once successful crime-writing playwrights endeavouring to complete a block-buster to pay off their mounting debts - or are they? As the plot develops they realise their full potential - who better to accomplish the perfect murder than themselves? Forbes' nagging wife, Ann, is the perfect victim, especially as she is insured for £200,000. It all seems plausible enough until Forbes' partner mistakenly kills their secretary and a stage-struck detective appears on the scene. From here the play twists and turns so much that it is difficult to know who has been murdered and by whom. Eventually we learn the truth, but can Goodman convince the buffoon Inspector?

Seaside Postcard is a comedy for four men and four women, originally presented by the Young Vic Company, London. The group assembled on the beach could almost be regarded as characters from typical seaside postcards brought to life. During their brief sojourn much happens. Terry, heir to three fish and chip shops, becomes engaged to Sharon but anticipates marriage with her; the meek worm Martin suddenly turns; an unfortunate explosion shatters the sunbathing calm, a wife-swapping seems imminent and a rising tide threatens the lot of them.

For his ninth labor, Heracles is required to wrest from the queen of the Amazons her belt. Zeus and Hera comment wittily on the events."The characters are witty and ... the story is frothy and politely risque" New York Journal American

Plays for five ladies. Including: Mothers Know Best: A Miniature Domestic Comedy, Four Characters And A Corpse: A Miniature Murder Mystery, Mixing with the Right People: A Miniature Farce, The Tinder Girl: A Miniature Ghost Story, The Sitter-In: A Miniature Crime Comedy and Jeannie: A Miniature Drama.

Six fifteen-minute comedies, including: The Clean Up, Trying to Take Things Quietly, Scherzo in Two Flats, Father's Economy Drive, Art for Art's Sake and The Man who Understood Women.

Based on characters created by Guy de Maupassant, this play gives a vibrant glimpse of life in a French "establishment" of 1888 which is both sad and humorous. Candice comes to rescue her friend Yvette from what she believes to be Mme. Tellier's den of iniquity only to have her prim sensibilities revolted by Madame's practical defence of her brothel and Yvette's refusal to leave her life of comfort. As Madame and her girls celebrate Yvette's birthday with much wine and a spirited version of the can can, Van Gogh sends Yvette a present of his ear. This bizarre gesture has a compelling attraction for Candice who determines to stay-- but only as a wine waitress!

A meditation on war, memory and the nature of time, Mametz, inspired by the writings of David Jones and Llewelyn Wyn Griffith, tells the story of the 38th Welsh Division’s attack on Mametz Wood during the Somme offensive of 1916. Set within the context of a contemporary battlefield tour and moving between the present day, the 1950s and WWI, the play transports an audience into the frontline trenches and the intimate fears, hopes and loves of the young soldiers risked and gave their lives in their attempt to take the wood.“The finest commemoration of the First World War centenary I’ve seen to-date, this deserves a much longer life.” Dominic Cavendish, DAILY TELEGRAPH“an astounding exploration – melding narrative and poetry – of the Battle of Mametz Wood” Carolyn Hitt, WESTERN MAIL

Elephant and Castle, London. 1956. Saturday night. Teddy and Josie are about to hit the streets of London for a good time.

It’s Virgie’s eighty-fourth birthday and she is bucking convention. But, always more committed as an artist than a mother, Virgie has not reckoned on her family and friends’ determination to thwart her plans. This is a moving black comedy that reimagines the meaning of family.

This play focuses on the zany world of the movie extra. Novice Mary is sent to the film shoot of a dubious sci-fi movie. At the early morning call she is initiated by seasoned pros, morose Malcolm and camp Roddy, but with the arrival of wealthy, eccentric Victoria, matters become decidedly wacky.

Two plays set in the offices of Multiple Holdings. Rex, Harry and Osborne form an uncomfortable alliance against the management, as personified by Fletcher. In "We Don't Want to Lose You", Rex is ordered to sack Osborne, and "Cut and Dried" opens with the news that Rex's job is up for grabs.

In April de Angelis's hilarious makeover of the bedside "classic" prostitute Fanny sacks her (male) biographer and tells it like it REALLY was - with the aid of two foul-mouthed, fellow sex workers, a stuffed sock and a cello.

3Women, the hilariously frank debut play from the award-winning comedian and writer Katy Brand, is a tale of female family bonding and buried resentment, it raises the question – what does it mean to be a woman in the twenty-first century?This story places three generations of women and their own very different identities and opinions into one hotel suite for a single night of redemption. What will be revealed?

A dark sequel to Peter Pan, this new story reunites J. M. Barrie's characters, now in their early twenties, when a young officer falls asleep with a copy of the children’s classic in his pocket and imagines himself as Peter embarking on one final “awfully big adventure" - The First World War.Blending a contemporary music theatre style with music hall influences, Lost Boy premiered at the Finborough Theatre before transferring for an extended run at the Charing Cross Theatre in the West End.Phil Willmott’s past musicals include The Dick Barton Trilogy, Around the World in Eighty Days, Once Upon a Time at the Adelphi and Princess Caraboo (also composed with Mark Collins) all published by Samuel French.

The lives and loves of Christabel, Sylvia and Adela Pankhurst, the three daughters of Emmeline Pankhurst, the figurehead of Britain's radical Suffragette movement. The Pankhursts were a family divided, a family often at war. Christabel dedicated her life to the cause and let nothing, not even the pursuit of love and happiness, stand in the way of women's emancipation. By 1918 when the battle for women's suffrage had finally been won, Sylvia was estranged from the Suffragettes and from her own mother and Christabel, and Adela, the youngest, had been banished by Christabel to Australia. The musical tells the stories of these three remarkable sisters set against the First World War and other great events of the time. The story culminates with the victory of the Suffragettes and the disintegration of the Pankhurst family.

One of America's great dramatists rocked the worlds of Broadway and Hollywood in this moving drama about a desperately self-destructive alcoholic actor and Georgie, his long-suffering wife. A searing, emotional play of love and redemption.

Complications abound when Charles and Margery entertain Robert and his new wife, Jane, whom they have never met. Robert arrives without Jane and Charles con des that he hada brief a air with Jane. He has covered his tracks by not giving her his address. Minutes later Jane arrives on the doorstep! Charles passes her o as Robert's missing wife, while tellingJane that Margery is married to Robert. This wild deception is compounded by the arrival of another attractive girl. As the men struggle to keep the women from revealing their true identities, Margery herself is keeping a secret.

Sharon, in her mid-fifties, is recently divorced and needs a roommate to share her Iowa home. Robyn, also in her mid-fifties, needs a place to hide and a chance to start over. But as Sharon begins to uncover Robyn's secrets, they encourage her own deep-seated desire to transform her life completely. A dark comedy about what it takes to re-route your life - and what happens when the wheels come off.

1924. The Paris Olympic Games.A devout Scottish Christian runs for the glory of God. The son of an immigrant Lithuanian Jew runs to overcome prejudice. Two young track athletes who live for the beautiful purity of running and who prevail in the face of overwhelming odds.Based on the extraordinary true story of Eric Liddell and Harold Abrahams, Chariots of Fire is an Olympic tale of hope, honour and belief.

Two sisters and a dog live out their lives on the bleak English moors, dreaming of love and power. The arrival of a hapless governess and a moor-hen set all three on a strange and dangerous path. The Moors is a dark comedy about love, desperation, and visibility.

The eve-of-performance dress rehearsal of a costume show is in progress and things are running anything but smoothly for thelocal drama group. The whole cast is panicking as Britannia cannot climb on to her rostrum, Queen Victoria is far too tall forher part and Henry VIII wants to swap costumes with William Shakespeare because his is many sizes too big for him. To makethings worse the authoress keeps storming on and o the stage putting everybody in a urry . However, when all seems lost, Mrs Grandway, the producer, pulls the show together and with a tinge of professionalism in her voice reassures the troupe thattomorrow everything will go all right.