Tom Hadaway was born in North Shields

North Shields

North Shields is a town on the north bank of the River Tyne, in the metropolitan borough of North Tyneside, in North East England...

 in North East England

North East England

North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...

. It was in the north-east that he began writing plays based on his experiences and observations of the region. Later in his career he worked on television scripts, most notably God Bless Thee Jackie Maddison (1974) as well as episodes of the drama When the Boat Comes In

When the Boat Comes In

When the Boat Comes In is a British television period-drama produced by the BBC between 1976 and 1981.The series stars James Bolam as Jack Ford, a First World War veteran who returns to his poverty-stricken town of Gallowshield in the North East of England in the 1920s.The memorable traditional...

(1976).

In 2002 he received an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Sunderland

University of Sunderland

The University of Sunderland is located in Sunderland, north east England. The university has more than 17,500 students, including 7,000-plus international students from some 70 countries....

.

His Prison Plays were published in 2004, edited by Val McLane

Val McLane

Val McLane is an English actress, scriptwriter, director and teacher.She founded the Live Theatre Company in Newcastle in 1973 with director Geoff Gillham...

.