Woman In Mind: Frequently Asked Questions

Alan Ayckbourn's Archivist Simon Murgatroyd's answers some of the most frequently asked questions about Alan Ayckbourn's Woman In Mind. If you have a question about this or any other of Alan Ayckbourn's plays, you can contact the website via the Contact Us page.

Some commentators have suggested that Woman In Mind is autobiographical and the role of Susan is inspired by Alan Ayckbourn's mother. Is this true?
Alan Ayckbourn has always denied this to be the case and has gone on the record as saying Woman In Mind is no more or less autobiographical than any other play he has written. When questioned directly in 2016 as to whether his mother had inspired any of the characters in his plays, he responded that she'd probably most inspired the unseen mother in The Norman Conquests; no mention of Woman In Mind was made at all.

Has the playwright any advice on casting / playing the pivotal role of Susan?
Yes - and he considers it vital to the success of the play: "Susan must always appear quite ordinary. It's a difficult quality sometimes for an actress to catch. Most people who want to act are quite extraordinary! We should never get the feeling - what's this remarkable woman doing putting up with all this? She is also no saint. Everything we see is her version. We get her version of events from square one. Being the only version we're offered we should tend to trust her. After all, she is the central character. She should know what she's doing. Shouldn't she?"

Can I update Woman in Mind to a contemporary setting?
No, as the play doesn't really work or make a lot of sense if moved much away from its 1980s setting. As with most of Alan's plays, it reflects the time it was written of the mid 1980s. Woman in Mind set today would seem odd, as Alan himself has noted: "I think updating the play is dangerous. Gerald's book would be on his computer or a copy would be [at a key point, the only copy of his life's work is burnt in the play]. Bill would have a mobile [phone], Gerald almost certainly, and Rick definitely. All of which leaves gaps in the plot unexplained. The world with all these things moves at a considerably faster pace than it does in this play. My plays are of their time and belong in it."
Alan Ayckbourn firmly believes the majority of his plays are period pieces and are best performed to reflect the time they were written; his own revival of Woman in Mind in 2008 was set contemporary to 1985.

Can I obtain the BBC Radio adaptations of Woman In Mind?
Unfortunately, no. The BBC adapted Woman In Mind for the radio in both 2000 and 2014, but neither has been released commercially and Alan Ayckbourn is unaware of any plans for either production to be released in the foreseeable future.

What does the convoluted language Susan hears Bill Windsor speak at the start of the play and Susan start to speak at the climax of the play mean?
You can find Alan Ayckbourn's translation of these lines from Woman In Mind on the Dialogue page.

Copyright: Haydonning Ltd. Please do not reproduce without permission of the copyright holder.

The Woman in Mind section of the website is supported by and dedicated to Maria Sykes.