Patrick Marber interview

In The Daily Telegraph, Dominic Cavendish talks to Patrick Marber about the revival of his play Dealer's Choice and his success as a Hollywood screenwriter.

Having his moment in the spotlight in LA is all very well, all good fun, he says, "but the real business of my life is getting another play out. That's what concerns me and that's what I mustn't concern myself with. I can't put it another way. Another couple of years and I'm officially blocked."

Is it that bad? "Every play is back to square one. It's a waiting game. They come slowly or not at all. I have to be patient. You're either a conscious or an unconscious writer, and I'm an unconscious writer. I'm a loafer. I dawdle and go for long walks, then I write with feverish intensity, late at night, in sustained four- or five-hour bursts. Once they appear, they appear very quickly."