In episode 4 we speak to Iman Qureshi, writer for stage, screen, and radio, about her plays The Funeral Director and The Ministry of Lesbian Affairs.

Iman Qureshi is an award-winning writer of stage, screen and radio. Her breakout play The Funeral Director (2018) explores the life of a British Pakistani woman, Ayesha, who runs a Muslim funeral home with her husband Zeyd. Their already tempestuous life takes a turn when they refuse to run the funeral of a young man’s Muslim partner. They subsequently find themself sued for sexual discrimination and Ayesha is forced to confront the secrets she's hidden even from herself. This play won Papatango New Writing Prize in 2018, which later had its debut at the Southwark Playhouse followed by a tour with the English Touring Theatre.

Her next play, The Ministry of Lesbian Affairs, was put on at the Soho Theatre in 2022, and will return to the Kiln in June 2025. It centers around a lesbian choir’s mission to unite and uplift their shrinking community. 

This episode was edited by Lee Roberts.