Ridley, Philip

Philip Ridley is an English storyteller working in a wide range of genres and artistic media. As a visual artist he has been cited as a contemporary of the Young British Artists, and had his artwork exhibited internationally. He has written novels for both adults and children. In film, he is perhaps best known for his award-winning screenplay for the film, The Krays (1990), a biopic about the Kray twins which was directed by Peter Medak. As a filmmaker in his own right, he created a loose trilogy of horror films: The Reflecting Skin (1990), The Passion of Darkly Noon (1995) and Heartless (2009) for which he has acquired a cult following. As a playwright he has been described as "a pioneer of In-yer-face theatre", which is a style and sensibility of drama that characterised many new plays that were performed in Britain during the 1990s. Ridley's debut play, The Pitchfork Disney (1991), is considered by many to be a seminal work that influenced the development of this form of theatre. One critic dubbed it "the key play" of the 1990s. A great number of his plays for adults have been perceived as controversial, and provoked both condemnation and high acclaim upon their initial reception. As a writer for the stage he is also recognised for creating an ongoing series of plays for young people (The Storyteller Sequence). He has written theatrical works for children and family audiences. As a songwriter Ridley has created songs for his films and plays, frequently collaborating with composer Nick Bicât. He and Bicât have also formed a music group, called Dreamskin Cradle, with singer Mary Leay. Ridley has also written songs for composer Anna Meredith, particularly operatic work. Ridley is also a poet, photographer, and performance artist, and has written drama for radio. Ridley dislikes his work being categorised by the medium in which it is told, often referring to the different genre pieces belonging to each other as "different peaks of the same mountain."