Dennis Kelly facts for kids

Dennis Kelly is a talented British writer and producer. He creates exciting stories for plays, TV shows, and movies.

One of his most famous plays is DNA, which first came out in 2008. It's now a very important play for students studying drama in high school, with hundreds of thousands of students learning about it every year. Dennis Kelly also wrote the story for Matilda the Musical, a super popular show with music by Tim Minchin. This musical has won many awards, and Kelly himself won a special award called a Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical. A movie version of Matilda the Musical, also written by Kelly, was released in 2022.

For television, he helped create and write the comedy show Pulling for BBC Three. He also wrote the thrilling TV series Utopia for Channel 4. Another exciting show he worked on is The Third Day. Kelly also wrote the movie script for the film Black Sea in 2014.

Dennis Kelly's Early Life and Education

Dennis Kelly grew up in North London, in an area called Barnet. He was one of five children in his family. He went to Finchley Catholic High School. After leaving school at 16, Kelly worked in a market and then at a supermarket.

While working, he found out how much he loved theatre. He joined a local drama group called the Barnet Drama Centre. When he was 30, he graduated from Goldsmiths College, University of London. He studied Drama and Theatre Arts and did very well.

In May 2022, he married producer Katie Swinden. They have one daughter together.

Dennis Kelly's Writing Journey

Dennis Kelly has shared that Sharon Horgan inspired him to become a writer. They met at a youth theatre when they were younger. Years later, they met again, and Kelly told Horgan he had written a play. Horgan encouraged him to put the play on stage. Kelly believes he might not have become a writer without her support. His first play was called Brendan's Visit.

Kelly's first play to be professionally produced was Debris. He wrote it when he was 30 years old. It was first shown in London in 2003 and was very popular. After this, he wrote Osama the Hero, which began a long partnership with Hampstead Theatre.

In 2005, he wrote After the End. This play was shown outside London for the first time. It later toured the UK and other countries.

His play Love and Money was performed in 2006. In the same year, his TV comedy Pulling started on BBC Three. Kelly co-wrote and also acted in it with Sharon Horgan. The show was well-liked and was nominated for a BAFTA TV Award.

Kelly wrote another successful play in 2007 called Taking Care of Baby. For a festival in 2007, he wrote DeoxyriboNucleic Acid, which is now known as DNA. This play is now widely used in schools. It is part of the GCSE drama lessons.

The second series of Pulling won a British Comedy Award in 2008. Even though the show was popular, it didn't get a third series. A special episode was made in 2009 to finish the story. In 2009, he also wrote an episode for the TV series Spooks.

His play Orphans was performed in 2009.

Dennis Kelly's Work in the 2010s

In 2010, Dennis Kelly was one of ten writers who created short plays. These plays were based on children's stories. They were performed in London to help a charity called Dramatic Need. His three short plays were performed by famous actors.

Kelly's play The Gods Weep was shown in 2010. It was his response to Shakespeare's famous play King Lear. His script for Matilda, based on Roald Dahl's book, was a huge success. The musical has won many awards and is still performed in London today.

He also wrote a new version of Pinocchio for the Royal National Theatre. This version used songs from the 1940 Walt Disney film. It opened in December 2017.

Kelly's play Girls & Boys started in London in 2018. It starred Carey Mulligan. This play was also very successful in New York. In 2022, it was performed in Australia and received great reviews.

Dennis Kelly's Global Reach and Other Projects

Dennis Kelly's plays have been performed in many countries. These include Germany, Australia, Japan, the United States, France, and Canada.

He has also translated plays by other writers. One of his radio plays, The Colony, won an award for Best European Radio Drama in 2004.

Dennis Kelly's Works

Movies

• Matilda the Musical (2022) - Writer (based on the 2010 stage musical)
• Black Sea (2014) - Writer

Theatre

Radio Plays

• 12 Shares (2005)
• The Colony (2004)

Television Shows

• Spooks BBC Series 8
• Pulling for BBC Three (co-written with Sharon Horgan)
• Utopia for Channel 4
• The Circuit for Channel 4 (co-written with Sharon Horgan)
• The Third Day for HBO and Sky One
• Together for BBC Two

Projects Not Produced or Completed

Sometimes, even great writers have projects that don't get made. Here are a few of Dennis Kelly's:

Plays Not Produced

• White Pig: a play written around 2002. It has been performed by students but not professionally.
• Fifty-Three Million Miles: an early play by Kelly that has not been produced.

Television Shows Not Continued

• Pulling, series 3: The comedy Pulling was very popular. However, BBC Three decided not to make a third series. Instead, they made a one-hour special to finish the story.
• Utopia, series 3 and 4: In 2014, Channel 4 cancelled Kelly's thriller Utopia after its second series. Kelly wanted to finish the story, but the channel did not agree. Many people felt Utopia was cancelled too soon.

Awards and Recognitions

Awards

Honours

In 2015, Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts gave Dennis Kelly and Tim Minchin special honorary doctorates. This was to celebrate their amazing work on Matilda the Musical.

In 2017, Kelly received an 'Honorary Fellowship' from Goldsmiths, University of London.