About

Brian is a playwright and scriptwriter originally from Scotland and now based in Bristol. His first job was as a toolmaker (yes, one of those), then he moved into IT for many years. He started writing in his forties.

He's had two productions staged recently, THE BOX was performed by Mixed Up Theatre at the Whitebear Theatre in London in Jul 2024, and TIMELESS also by Mixed Up Theatre was performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in August 2024 (Timeless has been staged several times over the last six years). Both shows received five-star reviews. You can find out more about his plays here.

He also writes radio dramas. He had an Afternoon Drama, THE LOVE TEST, on BBC Radio 4 in 2019 (repeated in 2021). It was a Radio 4 Pick of the Week.

Awards and nominations include:

WELCOME TO PARADISE ROAD won Best Script in Festival at the Page to Stage Theatre Festival in Liverpool.
THE SPARE ROOM was shortlisted for the Bread and Roses Playwriting Award.
KING OF THE WORLD was nominated for Best New Writing at the Liverpool Fringe.
WELCOME TO PARADISE ROAD was shortlisted for the Bread and Roses Playwriting Award.
THE PROPOSITION was a winner of the British Theatre Challenge, an international one-act play competition.

Here's a few extracts from reviews of his work:

In a ★★★★★ review London Theatre 1 described TIMELESS as "An absolute treat, tender and strong all in one, and you leave feeling profoundly affected".

In a ★★★★ review The Reviews Hub described THE BOX as a “strikingly original piece of new writing”.

In a ★★★★ review Everything Theatre described his writing in TIMELESS as "a masterwork of understated wit and humanity"

In a ★★★★★ review London Theatre 1 described THE BOX as a “beautifully layered play”.

In a ★★★★ review of TIMELESS in The Upcoming they described his writing as "intelligent, thought-provoking and human".

In a ★★★★ review Love London Love Culture described his script for THE BOX as “tight and concise with not a word wasted”.

A reviewer from Liverpool Sound and Vision described WELCOME TO PARADISE ROAD as follows: “the play not only captures the spirit of Pinter, the command of language, the idea of minimalist information and of brutal overtones hiding away in plain sight, it positively revels in them".

"TIMELESS is beautifully written by a talented playwright and very well performed and staged. Definitely not one to forget." Bristol24/7

"Brian Coyle’s script [for TIMELESS] is a masterclass in exploring complex, demanding issues in a vivid and concise manner. The author blends the personal with the philosophical." British Theatre Guide

A reviewer from A Views From the Gods described his play WHISPER as "brilliant... brave..." and said that it "fondly stays with you afterwards".

WE WILL NOT BE SILENCED was a pick of the theatre year 2020 by Shane Morgan of Notes from The Field and described as "wonderfully insightful and engaging".