R. C. Sherriff

Robert Cedric Sherriff (6 June 1896 – 13 November 1975) was an English writer.

Sherriff was either born in Kingston upon Thames, Hampton Wick, or Esher. He was educated at Kingston Grammar School in Kingston upon Thames, and worked in an insurance office before and after serving as a captain in the 9th East Surrey Regiment in World War I. He was wounded at Passchendaele. He first wrote a play to help Kingston Rowing Club raise money to buy a new boat.

His seventh play, Journey's End, was written in 1928 and published in 1929 and was based on his experiences in the war. It was performed twice in December 1928, by the Incorporated Stage Society at the Apollo Theatre, directed by James Whale and with the 21 year old Laurence Olivier in the lead role. In the audience was Maurice Browne who produced it at the Savoy Theatre where it was performed for two years from 1929.

Sherriff later studied briefly at New College, Oxford.

Sherriff's No leading lady: an autobiography was first published in 1968.

Award nominations

Sherriff's 1933 script for Goodbye, Mr. Chips was nominated along with Eric Maschwitz and Claudine West for an Academy award for writing, adapted screenplay; and his 1955 screenplays, The Dam Busters and The Night My Number Came Up were nominated for best British screenplay BAFTA awards.

See also

• Sources