Michael Abbensetts
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Michael Abbensetts is a writer who was born in British Guiana (now Guyana) on 8 June 1938. He attended Queen's College from 1952 to 1956, then Stanstead College, Quebec, Canada, and Sir George Williams University, in Montreal (1960-1961).
Abbensetts began his writing career with short stories, but decided to turn to playwriting after seeing a performance of John Osborne's Look Back In Anger. He was further inspired when he went to England and visited the Royal Court Theatre, Britain's premier theatre of new writing, where he was soon to become resident dramatist. Sweet Talk, Abbensett's first play, was performed there in 1973.
In the same year, The Museum Attendant, his first television play was broadcast on BBC2. Directed by Stephen Frears, the drama was, Abbensetts says, based on his own early experiences as a security guard at the Tower of London. Black Christmas was broadcast on the BBC in 1977 and featured Carmen Munroe and Norman Beaton.
During the 1970s and 1980s, a number of Abbensetts' plays were produced for the London theatre. Alterations appeared in 1978, followed by Samba (1980), In The Mood (1981), Outlaw (1983) and Eldorado (1983). Inner City Blues, Crime and Passion, Roadrunner and Fallen Angel were produced on television.
Abbensetts' success led to his participation in British television's first Black soap opera Empire Road (1978-79) for which he wrote two series. Abbensetts' television productions continued - Easy Money (1981) and Big George Is Dead and Little Napoleons (1994/Channel 4). Little Napoleons is a four-part comic-drama depicting the rivalry between two solicitors, played by Saeed Jaffrey and Norman Beaton, who become Labour councillors.
[edit] References
- Leavy, Suzan. Abbensetts an Example. Television Today (London, England), 19 May 1994.
- Walters, Margaret. Taking Race for Granted. New Society (London, England), 16 November 1978.
