Dario Fo (1926–2016) was an Italian playwright, actor, theatre director, stage designer, songwriter, political campaigner for the Italian left wing and the recipient of the 1997 Nobel Prize in Literature.
His plays include Mistero Buffo, Accidental Death of an Anarchist (co-written with his wife, Franca Rame) and Can't Pay? Won't Pay!
Franca Rame (1929–2013) was an Italian theatre actress, playwright and political activist. She was married to Nobel laureate playwright Dario Fo.
Tom Basden's plays include: an adaptation of Dario Fo and Franca Rame's Accidental Death of an Anarchist (Sheffield Theatres, 2022; Lyric Hammersmith and West End, 2023); The Crocodile, an adaptation of a short story by Dostoyevksy (Manchester International Festival, 2015); Holes (Edinburgh Festival Fringe, 2013; Arcola Theatre, London, 2014); There is a War (as part of the Double Feature season in the Paintframe at the National Theatre); Joseph K, an adaptation of Kafka's The Trial (Gate Theatre, London) and Party (Fringe First Winner; Edinburgh Festival Fringe/Sydney International Festival/Arts Theatre, London).
He has written for some of Britain's best TV comedies, including Peep Show, Fresh Meat, The Wrong Mans and Plebs, which won Best New Comedy at the British Comedy Awards 2013 and Best Scripted Comedy at the RTS Awards 2014. He is also a member of sketch group Cowards, who wrote and performed their own TV series on BBC4.
For Radio 4 he has made two series of Cowards and three series of his sitcom Party, based on his 2009 play.
He has been nominated for a BAFTA three times, and has won a Fringe First and an Edinburgh Comedy Award.
