Denis Cannan

Who was Denis Cannan?

Denis Cannan was a British dramatist, playwright and script writer. Born Denis Pullein-Thompson, the son of Captain Harold J. Pullein-Thompson and novelist Joanna Cannan, he changed his name by deed poll in 1964. His younger sisters were Josephine, Diana and Christine Pullein-Thompson.

Born in Oxford, he was educated at Eton College. After attending Eton he worked as an actor, before joining the Queen's Royal Regiment of West Surrey when the Second World War broke out, rising to the rank of captain and being mentioned in dispatches.

He was married to Joan Ross in 1946; the couple had two sons and a daughter. The marriage was dissolved, and he later remarried, to Rose Evansky in 1965

Denis Cannan became a successful playwright and screenwriter. Apart from the plays listed below, he has written several screenplays for TV and radio, also adaptions for TV series. With Christopher Fry he adapted The Beggar's Opera for the 1953 film starring Laurence Olivier.