Kenny Emson Will Serve As Mercury Theatre's First Literary Associate

The Mercury Theatre in Colchester has announced that Kenny Emson will be the theatre's first Literary Associate, continuing Emson's 16-year association with the theatre. Since 2019, Emson has run the Mercury Theatre Writers programme which looks to nurture young writers from the East of England.

Emson, as Literary Associate, will assist in expanding the Mercury's programme of developing the work of new writers. He will deliver a script reading and reporting service for the Mercury's Producing Team and providing dramaturgical support as required during the development of scripts as part of the Mercury Original's – the theatre's new writing programme.

The role will work closely with the Senior Producers and Artistic Director and be the central point of contact between playwrights submitting scripts and the producing team.

Kenny Emson is a multi-award-winning writer for stage and screen. He co-created, co-wrote and was associate producer on the BBC's groundbreaking multi-platform murder mystery The Last Hours of Laura K which earned him a BAFTA nomination in Digital Creativity and a number of other prestigious television and VFX awards nominations. He adapted Agatha Christies The Coming of Mr Quin for digital media which was BAFTA CYMRU nominated for Best Game.

He was selected for the BBC Writers Academy in 2011 and has gone on to write episodes of Doctors and EastEnders. Since then he has developed original projects with a variety of indies and has been shortlisted for the Red Planet prize. His theatre projects include Rust (Bush Theatre) Plastic (Old Red Lion / Mercury Theatre) and Terrorism (Bush Theatre). He is a past winner of the Mercury Theatre playwriting prize, the Adopt a Playwright Award, the Adrienne Benham Award and has been shortlisted for both the Bruntwood and Papatango prizes.

Emson said of today's announcement, “I'm incredibly excited to be announced as the first ever Literary Associate of The Mercury Theatre. In the last five years the Mercury has played an incredible role in finding, nurturing and producing new writers from the East of England. I hope to help continue this trajectory, whilst also lobbying to get these writers' plays onto the main stage of the theatre as well.”

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