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Alfred Fagon

1937-1986

Born: Jamaica, 1937

Biography

Born in Jamaica, Alfred Fagon moved to England in 1955 where he worked for British Rail in Nottingham. After various jobs as a boxer and Calypso singer, Fagon settled down in Bristol to concentrate on writing and acting. Fagon’s first stage appearance was at the Bristol Arts Centre in Henry Livings’ play The Little Mrs Foster Show and in 1970 he starred in Mustapha Matura’s play Black Pieces at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London. Fagon went on to write and produce plays such as 11 Josephine House, Death of a Blackman, and Four Hundred Pounds. In August 1986 Fagon suffered a fatal heart attack while jogging near his home. The police claimed that they could not find any contacts for him and as a result he was given a pauper’s funeral. When he did not turn up for a meeting at the BBC they contacted his agent Harriet Cruickshank who eventually discovered what had happened to him. Alfred Fagon’s friends and family decided to set up an award in his name, to celebrate and recognise writers of Caribbean and African descent. The Alfred Fagon Award was set up in 1997 and is supported by The Peggy Ramsay Foundation, The Royal Court Theatre and Talawa Theatre Company.

Productions

Lonely Cowboy

Lonely Cowboy

Year: 1985

Staged in: The Tricycle Theatre

Death of a Black Man, The

Death of a Black Man, The

Year: 1975

Staged in: Foco Novo

Four Hundred Pounds

Four Hundred Pounds

Year: 1982

Staged in: Foco Novo

11 Josephine House

11 Josephine House

Year: 1972

Staged in: Inter-Action

Publications

Fagon Plays: 11 Josephine House; Death of a Blackman; Lonely Cowboy

Fagon Plays: 11 Josephine House; Death of a Blackman; Lonely Cowboy

Year: 1999

Publisher: Oberon Modern Playwrights

Alfred Fagon: Selected Plays

Alfred Fagon: Selected Plays

Year: 2022

Publisher: Methuen Drama

Featured Content

That Black Theatre Podcast

Listen to hosts Nadine and Nadia discuss the theatre of the 1970s, including the works of Alfred Fagon.

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