Jesus College alumnus Dr Matthew (Matt) Parvin (2009, English Language and Literature), an award-winning playwright and screenwriter, has been appointed Tutor in Creative Writing in the University’s Department of Continuing Education.

Matt, who has lectured on playwriting, taught seminars on contemporary theatre and film, and tutored undergraduate dissertations, took up his new role at the start of Michaelmas term. He says, “It is lovely to be back at Oxford – it still feels like home. Jesus College was key to me becoming a playwright in so many different ways – my earliest plays were written for the Turl Street Arts Festival – so I am thrilled to be back to teach playwriting.

As a Tutor in Creative Writing, I will be teaching screenwriting too, covering the craft of writing drama, and how to analyse theatre, film and television. It is always great fun to see what stories the students tell.’

As a playwright and screenwriter for over ten years, Matt’s theatre and film work has included The Noble Nine (Vault Festival); Jam (Finborough Theatre); Two Roads (Vault Festival), and Cousins (Soho Theatre). Most recently, he wrote Gentlemen – a powerful new play on the limits of retribution, and power of social status at university. The play had a month-long run at the Arcola Theatre in October 2023.

While at Jesus, he was President of the Oxford University Screenwriting Society, and wrote The Players (performed at the Turl Street Arts Festival 2012) and A Row of Parked Cars, which was performed at the Burton Taylor Studio. Matt was also Broadcasting Reporter for The Cherwell Newspaper, and received a Gibbs Prize in English Language and Literature in 2010.