“The greatest writers have persistence.” Gina Nahai

I write screenplays, plays and sitcoms, and have IMDB credits for writing two episodes of a 12-part TV sitcom called Marshal’s Law created by Jason Attar and Niall Towl.

I was short-listed for a Channel 4 comedy drama award, have been twice long-listed for the Kenneth Branagh New Drama Writing Award and my second feature, All The Bad Ideas  was long-listed for the UK Film Festival Feature Script Competition.

Shock Therapy won Best Comedy Screenplay at the Purple Sky International Film Festival, was short-listed for Best Feature Screenplay in the Barnstorm Screenwriting Festival, and made the quarter finals of the Filmmatic Comedy Screenplay Awards

It was also was long-listed for Best Feature Script in the UK Film Festival London competition, and got an Honorable Mention for Best Feature Screenplay in the Hollywood International Indie Screenplay Awards.

I have twice won the Player Playwrights Best Comedy Award, and my Edinburgh and Camden Fringe debuts received several four and five-star reviews.

My first feature, Blood Match, came second in the Reddit Screenwriting Contest and was long-listed for a BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum. I was a finalist in Cascade Pictures' Writers’ Couch script development initiative.

I wrote a 1-minute film directed by Hantz called Problem Solved for this year’s Raindance Film Festival: First Dates Gone Wrong - watch.

My stage play Happiness is a Journey was part of the Hebden Bridge Little Theatre Play Write Festival, a three-night festival of new drama.

A one-act 30-minute comedy called Flat-Pack Resolution was part of the Drip Action Theatre Trail at the Arundel Festival and ran for eight days. This was my second play to run at this summer festival.

A comedy called Instructions Not Included was one of five short plays performed at Katzcratch, a sold-out evening hosted by the Katzpace Theatre in London.

One of my black comedies - a monolgue titled My Home, My Castle - was in From Script to Stage, a sell-out two-night event at the Theatro Technis, London, organised by Saw It Here First Productions.

Flat-Pack Resolution was part of the Supernova 8 Festival of one-act plays, a four-night event organised by the Bench Theatre Company at The Spring Arts & Heritage Centre, Havant.

Instructions Not Included won Best Comedy at the annual Player Playwrights awards. The second time I've won this award but it was a particular pleasure this time round as the previous two years were won by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran. It was also in a festival of shorts organized by Get Over It Productions at the Tabard Theatre in Chiswick. 

A 10-minute comedy called Barbarians at the Gate  was part of another sell-out evening of new writing at the Sydenam Centre in south London produced by Spontaneous Productions.

I was long-listed for the Kenneth Branagh New Drama Writing Award for a second time, and a comedy called Accidently on Purpose  was part of a three-night run of plays called Shorts @ The Canal.

Love and Sudden Death - a comedy about adultery, revenge and the benefits of fully comprehensive insurance was part of a sold-out evening organized by Get Over It Productions.

A play called A Convenient Affair was selected for an evening of plays about romance and heartbreak called Love Bites Again. The show was created by Spontaneous Productions and performed to a sell-out audience.

Relative Fortunes  was joint winner in the Soundwork UK Monologue Competition and made into an audio play produced by Neal Mason and performed by Nick Martin.

Christmas Break was part of the 600 Seconds evening of new writing organized by Spontaneous Productions at the Sydenam Centre in south London.

One of my comedies - Thanks For Sharing - featured in a scratch evening of new writing organized by the Hidden Theatre Company at the Water Rats in Kings Cross.

My Channel 4 shortlisted comedy drama - How Does That Make You Feel? - made its Camden Fringe debut. The week-long run was generously supported by Player Playwrights and thanks to our amazing cast and director the play received four 4-star reviews.

Going Commando featured in Playground, a three-night new writing showcase at the Horse & Stables, and a one-act comedy called Healing with Words  was part of the four-day Supernova VII play festival in Havant. Going Commando featured in the Leytonstone Itch scratch night at All You Read is Love.

My first feature screenplay - Blood Match - a vampire comedy, came second in the Reddit Screenwriting Contest.

At the Player Playwrights annual awards my black comedy Chasing Beckett  won Best Comedy and How Does That Make You Feel? was runner up. This was an amazing surprise, especially as it's the first time this has happened in the group’s 75-year-plus history.

Going Commando was in the Late Bloom Festival organized by The Space; it was also shortlisted for Little Pieces of Gold.

One of my shorts was the closing play of the Southend International Playwrights Festival, and joint winner in the Best Comedy category.

The East End Literary Salon runs a series on new writing nights and performed one of my comedies, Instructions Not Included; it was also part of West Avenue's Briefs night at the Waterloo East Theatre.

We Need to Talk About Clive was showcased by Fractured Lines Theatre in two of its Blaggards evenings. The company also debuted Instructions Not Included.

I wrote the majority of an Edinburgh Festival Fringe show called Better Together? which TheCultDen rated 10/10.

Jersey Tails  was short-listed for the ArtsEd film project. Two of my comedies were shortlisted for the Congleton one-act play festival and one of them made the finals - How Does That Make You Feel? was a past winner in this festival.

Alternative Therapy was runner up in the Menagerie Theatre Company's one-page play competition at the Hotbed Festival of new writing in Cambridge.

The Lost Theatre Company celebrated 30 years of its one-act play festival this year and We Need to Talk About Clive was part of the seven-night event. Festival adjudicator and theatre critic for The Stage, Paul Vale, said it was:

“…an extremely well written piece of comedy. Hill has crafted a deliciously sharp, comic turn… It is a piece of writing that Victoria Wood might be proud of… This is classic British comedy but with a dark twist.”

A longer version was given rehearsed readings by the N.W London Equity Branch - at the Pentameters Theatre and the Magdala - as part of their series of new play readings.

We Need To Talk About Clive featured in Tiny Dog Productions' ninth Theatre Breaks Festival of new writing at the White Bear, as well as West Avenue Briefs evening at the Rosemary Branch Theatre.

“John Hill’s Payback slams the world of middle-class sofa-sitting with more punchlines than the TV sitcoms it is obviously upstaging.” South London Press.

Contact Email - me*at*johnihill.co.uk

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