Tim Marks
Playwright

synopses

"Raises important, powerful issues, and holds them up to scrutiny."

—Martin Denton (nytheatre.com)

"I was never to initiate a conversation, I was never to talk about my religion, I was never to look up when they entered a room, I was to make neither demands or requests. I was to know that my future lay in the hands of Allah and I was to be grateful for that."

—from The Cleric

More excerpts...

Refuge of Scoundrels

Plot Summary:

Stan Hurst, a poster boy for left wing causes, has two sons: Skillet and Stan. Stan the younger was seriously wounded in Northern Ireland as a result of a heroic act. He is in a vegetative state. Skillet, on the other hand, has become a player in the Albion movement, which advocates the repatriation of all non-whites from the UK. His father has to deal with looking after Stan, laying off all the workers at his factory, and trying to understand three day cricket. It's little wonder he fails to notice Skillet becoming all he detests.

A Comment by the Author:

The evolution of the skinhead movement has always fascinated me. The idea for the play came after I found an old Trojan ska album and it occurred to me that my foray into skinhead life was entirely to do with style. I didn't take part in the aggro - I never had the bottle. All the music we listened to was ska, reggae, and bluebeat. I missed the racist component. I'd love to say it was intelligent choice on my part, but it was merely youthful ignorance that saved me.
I acknowledge my debt to the Scots play. And to Mrs. Thanner's little girl.