Antony Jay has enjoyed a distinguished career as writer, broadcaster and producer. He was founder and editor of the BBC's legendary Tonight programme and is editor of The Oxford Dictionary of Political Quotations, and author of Elizabeth R and two documentaries on the Royal Family. He is a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn's BAFTA award-winning political comedy Yes Minister first aired on BBC2 in 1980 and ran until 1984. The sequel, Yes Prime Minister, ran from 1986 until 1988. The programmes have been seen in 84 countries, and both series are now available on BBC DVD. They won a Special Award from the Campaign for Freedom of Information, and numerous other awards. They also wrote The Complete Yes Minister and Yes Prime Minster, Volumes 1 and 2 (in paperback combined as The Complete Yes Prime Minister) which cumulatively sold more than a million copies in hardback, were on the British top-ten bestseller list for three years and have been translated into numerous languages. The stage play Yes Prime Minister transferred from Chichester to London's West End in 2010 to great critical acclaim.Jonathan Lynn's London theatre debut was as Motel the Tailor in the original West End cast of Fiddler on the Roof. His London directing credits include The Glass Menagerie, Songbook (Best Musical - Olivier Award and Evening Standard Award), Anna Christie (RSC, Stratford and Donmar), The Unvarnished Truth, Loot, Eric Idle's Pass the Butler, Arms and the Man, Tonight at Eight-Thirty, David Wood's The Plotters of Cabbage Patch Corner and The Gingerbread Man (twice, at the Old Vic). At the NationalTheatre: Feydeau's A Little Hotel on the Side translated by John Mortimer, Jacobowsky and the Colonel and Three Men on a Horse (Olivier Award, Best Comedy).He has directed ten feature films, notably My Cousin Vinny, Clue, Nuns on the Run and The Whole Nine Yards. His many TV performances include the memorable plays Barmitzvah Boy, The Knowledge and Outside Edge. He has written dozens of episodes of TV comedy series and is best known for the multi-award winning Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister, created and written with Antony Jay.He co-wrote and directed the stage play Yes, Prime Minister and wrote the best-selling books The Complete Yes Minister and The Complete Yes, Prime Minister, still in print after more than forty years. He wrote and directed the play The Patriotic Traitor. His books include the novels Mayday and Samaritans, and Comedy Rules, a sort of memoir.
