Biography of Mark Niel

Mark Niel is a poet, actor and playwright who began writing so the cash-strapped theatre company he worked with wouldn't have to pay performance fees. The company and audience loved his work and this fuelled his desire to continue as a writer. His work ranges from a series of six fully scripted comedy murder mysteries through to Christmas shows, sketches and one act plays. The key elements of his work are humour and character. Mark was a winner in the Marie Curie One Page Play Competition in 2008 and the judges described his work as " incredibly well written, directed and performed" (Erica Martin, Barefeat Theatre). He has some plays available through Lazy Bee Scripts (www.lazybeescripts.co.uk) Recently Mark has come to prominence as a Performance Poet, reaching National Slam Finals and performing at the Cheltenham Literature Festival All Star Slam in October 2009. As an actor, Mark has appeared in everything from Panto to Musicals and he won Best Actor at the Leicestershire Full Length Play Festival for his role as Frank in John Godber's "Up 'n' Under.