The Angry Brigade (play)

The Angry Brigade is a 2014 play by James Graham, co-written with members of the Cardboard Citizens theatre company. It explores the activities of the Angry Brigade, a British urban guerrilla group responsible for a series of bombings targeting property, not people, in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

The play utilizes a verbatim theatre style, drawing heavily from primary source materials such as police reports, manifestos released by the Angry Brigade (communiqués), and transcripts from the trial of the Stoke Newington Eight, individuals accused of being members of the group. Through this documentary approach, Graham aimed to present a nuanced perspective on the group's motivations and the social and political climate that fostered their actions.

The play often features a fragmented narrative structure, reflecting the decentralized nature of the Angry Brigade and the complexities of piecing together their story from available evidence. It explores themes of social unrest, political radicalism, class inequality, and the relationship between the state and its citizens. The play also examines the media's portrayal of the group and its impact on public perception.

Productions of The Angry Brigade have typically been staged in non-traditional theatre spaces, such as warehouses or industrial buildings, to create a more immersive and visceral experience for the audience, reflecting the underground and rebellious nature of the subject matter.