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David Bradby (27 February 1942 – 17 January 2011) was a British drama and theatre academic with particular research interests in French theatre, Modernist / Postmodernist theatre, the role of the director and the Theatre of the Absurd. He wrote extensively on the theatre of Samuel Beckett, Roger Planchon, Jacques Lecoq, Arthur Adamov among many others. He also translated several works, principally by Michel Vinaver, Jacques Lecoq and Bernard-Marie Koltès.
Bradby's subsequent education saw him taking a postgraduate teaching course at the University of Bristol, and then a PhD on the playwright Arthur Adamov at the University of Glasgow.
His academic career included the founding of the Department of Drama at the University of Kent in 1970, as well as work with the British Council in Nigeria. He developed the first colloquium on popular film and theatre, featuring contributions from the British theatre director Max Stafford-Clark. Bradby was appointed head of the Department of Drama at the University of Caen, Normandy, before moving to Royal Holloway, University of London, in 1988, where he also took the position of department head. He retired in Summer 2007.
Bradby edited the Cambridge University Press "Studies in Modern Drama" series, as well as the journal Contemporary Theatre Review. His 1988 book Directors’ Theatre, co-written with David Williams, had "a defining influence on younger British innovators such as Katie Mitchell and Simon McBurney." "Professor David Bradby", The Times, 28 February 2011.
He was Professor Emeritus of Drama and Theatre at Royal Holloway. He gave many public lectures and broadcasts and was also a consultant and advisor to many productions of works by Jean Genet, Molière, Michel Vinaver and Bernard-Marie Koltès.
In 1997, Bradby was made a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French government in recognition of his contribution to the study of French culture.Sarah Cunnane, "David Bradby, 1942–2011", Times Higher Education, 27 January 2011. Bradby had been married to the author Rachel Anderson since 1965. He died aged 68 on 17 January 2011. A celebration of his life and work was held in and around the Department of Drama & Theatre at Royal Holloway on Sunday, 5 June 2011. "David Bradby (1942–2011): A Celebration of His Life and Work", Royal Holloway, University of London. "David Bradby celebration event, Royal Holloway, Sunday 5th June". JiscMail, SCUDD Archives.
Awards named after Bradby are given out annually by the Theatre and Performance Research Association and the Standing Conference of University Drama Departments. "The David Bradby TaPRA Award", TaPRa.
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