A deft writer with a masterful execution of one-liners, Patrick Marber quickly established himself as one of Britains most talented and successful contemporary playwrights. Earning critical success with his 1997 play, Closer, and its subsequent film adaptation, Marber managed to parlay his playwriting talents effectively to the big screen. A former stand-up comedian who got his start in radio and television, Marber went on to direct a number of his own plays at the Royal National Theatre in London as well as productions of Dennis Potters Blue Remembered Hills and David Mamets The Old Neighborhood at the Royal Court Theater. An award-winning playwright, Marbers screenwriting skills also garnered him attention. In 2007, he landed a Golden Globe nomination for the Cate Blanchett-Judi Dench drama, Notes on a Scandal (2006), making him one of Hollywoods most sought-after screenwriters.
Born Sept. 19, 1964 in London, England, Marber grew up in that citys suburb of Wimbledon. As a teenager, he attended the Cranleigh School in Surrey and went on to study English at Oxford Universitys Wadham College. After working as a stand-up comedian for a number of years after college, Marber went on to find work as a writer and performer for the radio programs On The Hour (Radio 4, 1991-92) and Knowing Me, Knowing You (Radio 4, 1992-93), as well as their later television spin-offs, The Day Today (BBC2, 1994) and Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge (BBC2, 1994-1995), which won the British Comedy Award for Best Radio Series and Best New Television Series.
More comfortable leading the life of a solitary writer, Marber began to focus his talents on playwriting. His first stage play, Dealers Choice (which Marber also directed), opened at Londons Royal National Theatre in February 1995, and transferred to the West End by the end of that year. Set in an Italian restaurant in London, the play focused on the relationships between the all-male cast of characters and their bonding over a late-night game of poker. A one-time addictive gambler himself, Marber found drama to be a therapeutic outlet and a critically acclaimed outlet at that with Choice going on to win the Evening Standard Award for Best Comedy of the Year in 1995 and the Writers Guild Award for Best West End Play. Next, Marber adapted August Strinbergs Miss Julie to a post WWII British setting in the play, After Miss Julie. A production of the play, directed by Marber, was broadcast on BBC2 in November of 1995 as part of the networks Performance series.
His next original play, Closer, which Marber considered to be less commercial than his previous work, premiered at the Royal National Theatre in May, 1997, starring Clive Owen (who would later star in the film version) and Ciaran Hinds. The play later moved to the West End in March, 1998 and quickly became an international hit; it went on to be produced in over a hundred cities, including a six-month run on Broadway. A critical success, Closer won the Critics Circle Award and Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play, as well as the Evening Standard Award for Best Comedy of the Year and the Time Out Award for Best West End Play. The Broadway production of Closer landed Marber the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Broadway Play, the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Foreign Play and the Tony Award nomination for Best Play in 1999.
Marber went on to write and direct his third original work, Howard Katz, which opened at the Royal National Theatre in 2001. Centered on a down-and-out show business agent struggling to reconcile his work and family life, Katz proved to be Marbers least successful play. Finding a new venue for his writing a few years later, Marber adapted his work for the screen by writing the feature film version of Closer in 2004. Helmed by Tony and Emmy Award-winning director Mike Nichols, Closer landed an all-star cast led by Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Natalie Portman, as well as Owens. Well-received by critics, the film earned Marber a Golden Globe nomination for Best Screenplay.
The in-demand writer quickly began finding more work in Hollywood. In 2005, he penned the award-winning film Asylum (adapted from the Patrick McGrath novel), and went on to adapt Zoe Hellers Notes on a Scandal (2006), which landed Marber a Golden Globe nomination for Best Screenplay in 2007.
Copyright © Baseline 2009.