Alan Ayckbourn: One Act / Short Plays

This page includes all of Alan Ayckbourn's one act plays and other short works. To find out more details about each play, click on the play title.

Please note, Alan Ayckbourn's most famous one act plays are inarguably the 10 plays contained within Confusions and Roundelay. However, as these works are considered part of the full-length canon plays, the individual plays are not listed on this page.

All Alan Ayckbourn's one act / short plays have been published - with the exception of The Westwoods - and are available to produce.

The One Act / Short Plays

○ Countdown (1962): A short play for two actors best known as one of the 'Mixed Doubles' collection of plays.
○ A Cut In The Rates (1984): A short play for three actors written for the BBC educational series English Files.
○ The Westwoods (1984): Two one-act plays - His Side and Her Side - which can be performed separately or together.
○ Chloë With Love (2013): One of the two Farcicals plays for four actors, which can be performed either separately or together.
○ The Kidderminster Affair (2013): One of the two Farcicals plays for four actors, which can be performed either separately or together.
○ No Knowing (2016): A work consisting of two one act plays, Knowing Him and Knowing Her, intended to be performed together by four actors.

For completist's sake the one act plays contained with Confusions are: Mother Figure, Drinking Companion, Between Mouthfuls, Gosforth's Fête and A Talk in the Park. The one act plays contained within Roundelay are: The Judge, The Star, The Agent, The Politician and The Novelist.

All research for this section is by Simon Murgatroyd. Please do not reproduce without crediting the author and Alan Ayckbourn's Official Website. All written material © Haydonning Ltd.