'If you can cook, if you know flavour and taste and texture, people will pay you to do it. People always need to eat. Always.'

They don't seem an obvious match. Joanne is spiky, defensive, a survivor; Paul is quiet, considered – and hiding profound grief for his father. But the pleasure he takes in cooking – and the astonishing food he prepares – creates a bond between them.

When the hotel where they both work closes and they start to spiral into poverty, it throws everything up in the air – first their plans for a cookbook and a restaurant, and, eventually, even their dreams of a future together...

Gareth Farr's play Biscuits for Breakfast is a tender, heartfelt drama about families – the ones we inherit and the ones we create – and the struggle to survive when times get tough. It opened at Hampstead Theatre, London, in 2023, directed by Tessa Walker.

'Sparks fly in a foodie love story... Gareth Farr's two-hander has energy and passion and fire' — The Times

'Powerful... a stirring two-hander about love of food and lack of food' — The Stage

'Compassionate and heartbreaking' — WhatsOnStage

'A deeply touching, yet defiantly unromantic relationship drama... paints a picture of a society in which ambitions are thwarted and ordinary working people are driven into poverty... Everything about Farr's play rings true and it should serve as a wake up call to anyone who is prone to taking comfortable lifestyles for granted' — Reviews Hub

'Stunning... an indelible experience that drips with raw emotion' — The Upcoming

'Very powerful... a vibrant, caustic explosive two-hander that takes no prisoners... a thoroughly entertaining and deeply moving show' — LondonTheatre1