# Is "The Skriker" by Caryl Churchill a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Skriker by Caryl Churchill (Nick Hern Books, 1994) is identified by: Softcover in wrappers, no hardcover issued; Nick Hern Books, London, first published 1994, ISBN 1-85459-275-0 (9781854592750), issued as an NHB Modern Play to coincide with the National Theatre production. UK Nick Hern Books, 1994, is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Softcover in wrappers, no hardcover issued
- Nick Hern Books, London, first published 1994, ISBN 1-85459-275-0
- , issued as an NHB Modern Play to coincide with the National Theatre production
- Trade paperback of roughly 52 pages; the copyright page reads 'First published in Great Britain in 1994 by Nick Hern Books.'
- Publisher imprint reads Nick Hern Books
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Caryl Churchill |
| Publisher | Nick Hern Books |
| Year | 1994 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Softcover in wrappers, no hardcover issued |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Softcover in wrappers, no hardcover issued; Nick Hern Books, London, first published 1994, ISBN 1-85459-275-0 (9781854592750), issued as an NHB Modern Play to coincide with the National Theatre production. Trade paperback of roughly 52 pages; the copyright page reads 'First published in Great Britain in 1994 by Nick Hern Books.'

## Is this the true first?
UK Nick Hern Books, 1994, is the true first. The US Theatre Communications Group edition (ISBN 1-55936-097-6) is a later, separate issue.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition; NHB play texts are trade softcovers only. Later NHB reprints retain the same ISBN, so identify the first by the unqualified 'First published in Great Britain in 1994' statement with no reprint line added.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Skriker* by Caryl Churchill a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-skriker
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.