Alan Plater CBE FRSL - Playwright

Alan Plater CBE FRSL was born on 15 April 1935 in Jarrow in County Durham, the family moving to Hull in 1938. He attended Kingston High School in the late 1940s and early 1950s, eventually becoming a School Prefect. He trained in Newcastle as an architect but only practised in the profession briefly, leaving to become a full time writer. Alan stayed in the north of England for many years after he became famous as a writer, and lived in Hull. He was a Hull City supporter.

Alan wrote scripts for many television series, including Z-Cars (1962–65), Softly, Softly (1966–69) and Softly, Softly: Task Force (1969–76). His many other credits include The Stars Look Down (1975), Oh No, It's Selwyn Froggitt!, the musical Close the Coalhouse Door, The Beiderbecke Trilogy (1985–1988), and an adaptation of J.B. Priestley's The Good Companions (1980) for Yorkshire Television. He also contributed to the BBC series Dalziel and Pascoe, and adapted Chris Mullin's novel A Very British Coup (1988) for television.