About Us / History | People

Operating Theatre has been in existence since 2001.

The original idea came from Dominic Slowie, a GP and,  at the time,  a senior medical tutor at the Newcastle University Medical School. A play Eating the Elephant about cancer by playwright Julia Darling - herself suffering from cancer at the time - convinced him that theatre could have a serious part to play as a tool in medical education, in particular in the field of patient communication, which he taught along with medical sociology at the Medical School.  

By chance Julia Darling had a writing residency at Newcastle University. He approached her with the idea, along with novelist Carol Clewlow who was a writer in residence at the Medical School at the time. 

A series of exploratory workshops were held with health professionals, a commission for a play followed and Operating Theatre was born.

In 2008 it migrated from its  Newcastle University Medical School home, and is now proud to be  based at Northern Stage in Newcastle, the largest producing theatre company in the North East of England and regarded as one of the UK's top ten producing theatres.

Dominic Slowie, as well as continuing to work as a GP, is now Operating Theatre's executive director, Carol Clewlow its principal playwright and administrator.

Sadly Julia Darling died of cancer in 2005.  Her play, Letters Home, about anorexia, first broadcast on Radio 4, and which she adapted for Operating Theatre is still performed regularly by the company.