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David Cregan David Appleton Quartus Cregan, playwright, born 30 September 1931; died 7 September 2015.

David Cregan was a teacher of Drama and English, who left that profession to become a full-time playwright, with notable links with the Royal Court Theatre, The Orange Tree, Theatre Royal Stratford East and Midlands Arts Centre in Birmingham. He also wrote regularly for the radio and television.

Cregan was born in Buxton,Derbyshire, the youngest of four sons of James, a first world war veteran and bank clerk who later bought a small shirt factory in Manchester, and his wife, Gertrude, daughter of a Scottish doctor. He wrote his first play, Jason and the Golden Fleece (three minutes long), at prep school, aged 10, before progressing to the Leys School in Cambridge. After two years of national service in the RAF (1952-54), he attended Clare College, Cambridge, where he read English and was active in the Footlights.

He taught in Florida for two years before spells at Burnage School in Manchester and then in Hatfield, Hertfordshire. He wrote his first play, ‘Miniatures’ while still teaching, before giving up the job to concentrate on theatre, writing ‘Comedy for a Changing World’, ‘The Dancers’ and ‘Transcending’ and ‘House on the Green’ for the Royal Court, ‘Tina’, ‘Nice Dorothy’ and ‘Whispers along the Patio’ for the Orange Tree. He also wrote 6 pantomimes for the Theatre Royal, Stratford East, whose director Phillip Hedley, he had worked with at MAC.

He also wrote 10 TV plays or series, and 15 radio plays for BBC Radio.