Rita, Sue and Bob Too; A State Affair [Paperback]

Originally commissioned by Max Stafford-Clark for the Royal Court in 1982,Rita, Sue and Bob Toocaused a sensation on its first performance for its frank portrayal of child sexuality in a northern town; the fact that the play was based on the writer's own experience only added to the furore.

Eighteen years later, Stafford-Clarke returned with a group of actors to the Bradford estates that Andrea knew.A State Affairby Robin Soans is a record of what they found.

'A genius straight from the slums' - Shelagh Delaney (on Andrea Dunbar)Mail on Sunday

'This is life, the facts are there... these things do go on - maybe not in every circle, but certainly in mine' - Andrea Dunbar,Yorkshire Post, 1986.

Out of Joint's production ofRita, Sue and Bob TooandA State Affairpremiered at the Liverpool Everyman Theatre in October 2000.

Andrea Dunbar was a British playwright. Her first play wasThe Arbor(1977), a brilliant depiction of an abusive father-daughter relationship. The play premiered at the Royal Court, directed by Max Stafford-Clark, winning the Young Writers' Festival. Her most well-known piece for theatre isRita, Sue and Bob Too(1982), which was set in Bradford, West Yorkshire, and was a study of the sexual adventures of teenage girls. This was adapted for a film in 1986. Her third play,Shirleywas produced in 1986. She died of a brain haemorrhage in 1990, at the age of 29.

Born in 1947, Robin Soans is an English actor and playwright, who specialises in verbatim theatre. His plays include:Across the Divide,A State Affair(published by Methuen Drama, 2000);The Arab-Israeli Cookbook,Talking to Terrorists,Life after Scandal,Bet NoirandWill and Testament.