David Wood

David Wood has been called “the national children’s dramatist” (London Times). His plays are performed worldwide, and include The Gingerbread Man, The Plotters of Cabbage Patch Corner, Save the Human, Aladdin, Hijack Over Hygenia, Jack the Lad, Larry the Lamb in Toytown, Old Mother Hubbard and The Ideal Gnome Expedition.

Among his adaptations are eight Roald Dahl stories (The BFG, The Twits, The Witches, Fantastic Mr. Fox, James and the Giant Peach, Danny the Champion of the World, George's Marvellous Medicine and The Magic Finger), Dick King-Smith’s Babe, The Sheep-Pig, Eric Hill’s Spot's Birthday Party, HRH the Prince of Wales’ The Old Man of Lochnagar, Philip Pullman’s Clockwork, Judith Kerr’s The Tiger Who Came to Tea (Olivier Award nomination 2012), Sam McBratney’s Guess How Much I Love You, the award-winning Tom's Midnight Garden (from Philippa Pearce’s novel) and Michelle Magorian’s Goodnight Mister Tom, which won the Olivier Award for Best Entertainment and Family 2013.

His book Theatre for Children (Faber) is a set text on both sides of the Atlantic. Film screenplays include Swallows and Amazons and the award-winning Back Home (from Michelle Magorian’s novel). For the Queen’s 80th birthday, he wrote The Queen's Handbag, broadcast live from Buckingham Palace Gardens to 8,000,000 BBC 1 viewers. With Richard Taylor he adapted L P Hartley’s The Go-Between, which won Best Musical Production, Theatre UK Awards 2012.

His children’s books include Mole's Bedtime Story, Funny Bunny's Magic Show and A Present for Father Christmas, and he regularly visits schools with the message “BOOKS ARE FUN!” He also performs The David Wood Magic and Music Show in theatres all over the UK.

As an actor, David played on stage opposite Sir Michael Redgrave in A Voyage Round My Father, on the big screen with Malcolm McDowell in IF... and on the small screen, starring opposite Shelley Winters, in The Vamp. He is President of Action for Children’s Arts. In 2004 he was awarded the OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours.

David’s memoirs, published by The Book Guild, are Filming If… and Elizabeth Taylor’s Kiss and Other Brushes with Hollywood. His latest book, Frank Exchanges, is available from The Book Guild or Amazon. The See-Saw Tree, a storybook version of David’s play, is available to order from Amazon. The audiobook is available from Google Play and other retailers.

Visit his website at davidwood.org.uk or watch Amateur Stage's recent interview with David.