John Mackendrick, the playwright, was born in Heckmondwike in 1946, brought up in the West Riding of Yorkshire, and educated at Worksop College. He studied English at Nottingham University before taking a variety of jobs in England, India, the Far East, and Australia. He studied drama at Leeds University in 1975, and in 1976 became Yorkshire Arts Fellow in Creative Writing attached to Bretton Hall College of Education and Sheffield University. In 1977 he was appointed a Resident Dramatist at the National Theatre. He wrote five major plays: 'Ludd!', 'Doctor Struensee', 'Lavender Blue', 'Canticle', and 'Rules'; also some shorter plays, collections of poetry, short stories, and criticism. He committed suicide at his home in Bristol on 16 January 1979.
From the guide to the Literary papers and correspondence of John Mackendrick, with related material, 1970-1994, (Leeds University Library)
