Anthony Neilson (born 1967 in Edinburgh) is a Scottish playwright and director commonly associated with "in-yer-face theatre" and is known for his collaborative way of writing and workshopping his plays. His work is characterised by the exploration of sex and violence.
Though often considered a pioneer of In-yer-face theatre he has stated that he has "never liked the term because it implies an attempt to repel the audience, which was never my aim" and instead prefers his work to be categorised as "'experimental' theatre".
He began his career at the Finborough Theatre, London.
Neilson studied at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama but was thrown out for "insubordination", now unoccupied he entered a BBC young writers' competition and won which started him on the path of becoming a writer.
He also participated in the Bush Theatre's 2011 project Sixty Six Books, writing a piece based upon a book of the King James Bible.
In 2009, his play Stitching was banned by the Maltese State for Obscenity and Blasphemy. A Court Case on the issue is still pending. However, the outcry following the case led to the dismantling of Censorship Laws in Malta and to the new Labour Government proposing to remove Obscenity and Blasphemy laws for works of Art.