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Whose Life Is It Anyway? is a play by Brian Clark adapted from his 1972 television play of the same title, which starred Ian McShane. The stage version premiered at the Greenwich Theatre in SE London before moving in 1978 to the Mermaid Theatre in London, and subsequently opened on Broadway in 1979. The play involves a sculptor who is paralysed.
Set in a hospital room, the action revolves around Ken Harrison (Claire Harrison in some later productions), a sculptor by profession, who was paralysed from the neck down (quadriplegia) in a car accident and is determined to be allowed to die. Clark presents arguments both in favour of and opposing euthanasia and to what extent government should be allowed to interfere in the life of a private citizen. In portraying Ken as an intelligent man with a useless body, he leaves the audience with conflicting feelings about his desire to end his life.
From the program
Although tackling a serious subject, Whose Life is it Anyway? is a warm and witty play which concerns a sculptor, Ken Harrison, who is left almost completely paralysed as the result of a car accident. After six months in intensive care he is physically stabilised, but still totally dependent on medical science to keep him alive. The dilemma posed of a medical profession committed to save life on the one hand, and an individual claiming to make his own decisions about his life on the other, is one that has struck a chord deep in public debate. The London "Guardian" newspaper described the play as " ... a starting point for discussion rather than a termination of it
2 - 10 July, 1993
Venue: The Courthouse Theatre
Genre: Drama
Playwright: Brian Clark
Director: Barry Tudor
From the Obituary for Brian Clark in The Guardian 2021
The writer Brian Clark, who has died aged 89 of an aortic aneurysm, was ahead of his time in tackling the subject of people trying to exercise choice over dying when they have no quality of life left. In his 1972 television play Whose Life Is It Anyway?, Ken Harrison, a sculptor who is left paralysed from the neck down after a car crash, decides against being kept alive by the miracles of modern technology but has to battle medical bureaucracy. “It’s not about death – it’s about dignity and the freedom to choose,” Clark said at the time.
Cast
Norman Harman
Ken Harrison
Sallie Burke
Kay Sadler
Pam Maiden
Sister Anderson
Vicki Rowe
Patricia Elridge
Dean Rogers
John
Julie Saunders
Dr. Scott
Geoff Nott
Dr. Emerson
Marie Lyons
Mrs. Boyle
Peter Jacobs
Philip Hill
John Watson
Dr. Paul Travers
Peter Zala
Peter Kershaw
Neil Blick
Dr. Barr
Leigh Snibson
Andrew Eden
Fay Scetrine
Ms. Justice Millhouse
Daryl Grant
Dr. Brian Greene
Crew
Director
Barry Tudor
Stage Manager
Wendy Hall
Convener
Wendy Oliver
Set Designer
Jason Muller
Poster Design
Anne Griffin
Publicity & Programme
Jenny Tudor
Lighting Design & Operation
Frank Hanrahan
Sound Operator
Wendy Oliver
Slide Photography
Barry Tudor
Sculpture
Adrian Morrix
Costumes
Lesley Caelli & cast
Props
Anne-Marie Caligari, Nadja Jeffrey, Tim Gay
Set Conveners
Brian Coffey, Stuart Evans
Set Builders
Brian Coffey, Stuart Evans, Peter Zala, Daryl Grant, Wendy Hall, Barry Breen, Leigh Snibson, John Watson
Set Painters
Barry Tudor, Jeanette Brown, Wendy Hall, Pam Maiden, Peter Zala, Sue Martell, Dean Rogers, Geoff Nott
