BRITAIN:British playwright Simon Gray has died at the age of 71, it was announced yesterday.
Gray, a prolific writer for the stage, attracted a new fan base in recent years with his highly candid memoirs, which included The Smoking Diariesand, most recently, The Last Cigarette.
His stage plays include Melon(1987), Butley(1971), and Otherwise Engaged(1975).
Gray adapted Butley for a film starring Alan Bates in the title role. The movie, like many of his plays, was directed by Harold Pinter.
His plays for TV included After Pilkington(1987), They Never Slept(1991) and Running Late(1992).
He also wrote the film adaptation of A Month In The Country(1987), from the novel by JL Carr.
Gray studied at Westminster School in London, where he was a keen cricketer and sportsman, and then attended Cambridge.
The writer, who had suffered from aneurysms and prostate cancer and who began smoking at the age of seven, once said: "I'm 71 and I have cancer, and I don't really want to spend the time I have left wrestling with smoking."
Gray, who lived in London and was born in Hayling Island, gave up alcohol after once drinking four bottles of champagne a day. His spokesman said: "Simon Gray died today. He was 71."
- (Reuters)