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Lyn Gardner

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lyn Gardner
NationalityBritish
Alma materUniversity of Kent
Occupation(s)Theatre critic and children's writer

Lyn Gardner is a British theatre critic, children's writer, and journalist who contributes reviews and articles to The Stage and Stagedoor and has written for The Guardian.

Theatre critic and educator

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A graduate in drama and English from the University of Kent, Gardner was a founding member of the City Limits magazine, a cooperative for which she edited the theatre section.[1] Later, she was a contributor to The Independent.

Gardner joined The Guardian as theatre critic in 1995, and remained on the paper for twenty-three years, taking a particular interest in fringe and more alternative theatre, while Michael Billington covered the most mainstream productions. Latterly, she was writing 130 reviews and 28,000 words of features annually, as well as 150 posts a year for an online blog for the paper, begun in 2008. The paper discontinued her blog in 2017, citing cost pressures,[2] and the following year let her go.[3][4]

Since June 2017 Gardner had been an Associate Editor of The Stage newspaper, where she continues to write her theatre blog.[5] Gardner was also taken on to teach an MA in Dramatic Writing at Drama Centre London at Central Saint Martins.[6]

Children's writer

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Gardner is a writer of children's novels, the earliest being Into the Woods (2006) and Out of the Woods (2010), both illustrated by Mini Grey and published by David Fickling Books. ISFDB catalogues it as the "Storm Eden" series.

She has written six further children's novels for Nosy Crow, known as the "Stage School Series", based on a young girl named Olivia attending Stage School. They have been well received,[7][8] and a final seventh book was published in July 2013. The first in the series was Olivia's First Term.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Lyn Gardner Profile". The Guardian. London. 3 October 2007. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  2. ^ Masso, Giverny (13 March 2017). "Guardian ends blog deal with Lyn Gardner". The Stage. Retrieved 15 July 2025.
  3. ^ Forsdick, Sam (11 May 2018). "Guardian theatre critic of 23 years Lyn Gardner to stop writing for newspaper". Press Gazette.
  4. ^ Wood, Alex (15 May 2018). "Key industry figures sign open letter to the Guardian in support of Lyn Gardner]". Whatsonstage.
  5. ^ Snow, Georgia (1 June 2017). "Lyn Gardner joins The Stage as associate editor". The Stage. Retrieved 15 July 2025.
  6. ^ Giorgetti, Sandra (3 June 2017). "New roles for Lyn Gardner". British Theatre Guide.
  7. ^ Norfolk, Pam (23 October 2012). "Olivia's Enchanted Summer by Lyn Gardner". IOM Today. Archived from the original on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
  8. ^ "Reading is a hassle, mom! Oliveia's Curtain Call". Child Magazine (books blog). Cape Town. 18 September 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
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