All about...

Alan was born in South Bank, Middlesbrough an area full of industry with shipyards,  chemical and steelworks. This was the age of 'Children should be seen and not heard', which probably explains the haircut. 

        

Alan failed his 11+, unlike brother Peter and sister Janice, and Alan had to take on a range of industrial disguises; a shipyard welder, a maintenance man at South Bank Coke Ovens, a student nurse at St James Hospital in Leeds and tele-sales advertising for Thompson Magazines. He even worked in a men’s clothes shop for a whole morning.

But Alan had already fallen in love with music and film by singing in his local church choir. A local boys club then got him to play football, the drums and go on stage fostering his new-found passion for Drama and Theatre. 

It wasn't till 1980 that Alan was able to put his dreams into reality, with redundancy from British Steel and going college to study Drama and History and become a teacher.  Despite failing the 11+, Alan was the first and only member of his family to go to university and then went on to gain a Master's Degree in Film and Television Studies at the Institute of Education, London University.

  

In 1991 Alan became a Head of Drama in North London and spent nine happy years teaching, doing school productions and bringing many theatre practitioners to the school. He was also a GCSE and A Level examiner for Drama and Media Studies and still found time to raise money for charity and sit on the board of Face Front Inclusive Theatre company based in Edmonton, North London. 

In 2009, Alan achieved a long-held ambition by starting his own theatre company Theatre is real life and did regular productions in his native North East, before his final production in 2016 at the Dugdale Centre, Enfield, North London.  And even appeared on London Live talking about the My Name is Tom project. 

  

Alan being interviewed on London TV

The cast of My Name is Tom show their appreciation. 

                           

With less and less monies available for developing companies, Alan took the decision to close in 2018 and focus on my writing. He continued to develop his practice and attended writing courses at every opportunity, meeting some great people like the class of 18/19.

Alan joined the Writers Guild of Great Britain and have served on the Theatre Committee since 2018, here celebrating the winners of the Olwen Whymark Awards 2019 for their support of new and developing writers. 

In 2021 Alan moved from North London to Eastbourne and he feels so blessed. He has started teaching again and found an artistic community to continue with his passions of theatre, music and much more at the Printers Playhouse. 

Alan has even found time to publish three books... 

  

Alan is currently working on a fourth book, a one-person play to be published in Summer 2026, A Decent Human Being. Fit for Military Service. About the Black Watch Officer and playwright and poet who died five days after his 21st birthday.

Alan has also rejoined the National Association of Writers in Education and National Drama and has also recently joined the Society of Authors, where is a member of the Education Writers Group and Scriptwriters Group.   

Last June, Alan made his debut solo with the Printers Playhouse Community choir with their version of the 50's gospel song No One Stands Alone.