Jez Butterworth

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Jez Butterworth (born 1969 in St Albans) is a playwright and screen writer who attended Verulam School, St Albans and Cambridge University. He is the brother of Tom, Steve and John Henry, with all of whom he has worked. He has had major success with Mojo on stage (Royal Court, 1995) and film (1997) and Birthday Girl (2001), set in St Albans, which he co-wrote with Tom Butterworth and directed and which was produced by Steve. Also The Night Heron (2002, Royal Court) and The Winterling (2006, Royal Court). The upcoming film Headhunters (2008), directed by John Henry Butterworth and produced by Nicole Kidman, Ronald Bass, and Ric Schwartz, is also based on his screenplay.

His most recent play, Parlour Song, opened to "rave reviews" at the Atlantic Theatre Company, in New York City, in March 2008; his third production there, it follows Mojo in 1997 and The Night Heron in 2003.^[1]

[edit] Acknowledged influence of Harold Pinter

According to Butterworth, a "gi-normous influence" on his work is 2005 Nobel Literature Laureate Harold Pinter: "I know and admire Harold Pinter enormously. He has a gi-normous influence on me. Conversations with him have inspired my work."^[1]