Playwright Liz Tait: “It’s Never Too Late to Take Centre Stage”

If you ask playwright Liz Tait, the biggest turning point in her life didn’t come with age, it came with a decision and a realisation that it is never too late to take centre stage in your life. Based in Worthing (UK), Liz has been writing plays since her daughter (now 25) was a baby.

For years, those stories stayed tucked away on her laptop, full of wit, warmth and truth, but largely unseen. Like so many women, she found herself waiting. Waiting for the right opportunity, the right timing, the right person to give her work the green light. Until one day, she thought: why wait?

“I remember thinking, why am I waiting for someone else to produce my plays? I’m going to do it myself,” she says. And just like that, everything shifted.

In 2024, she launched Liz Tait Productions and threw herself into producing and directing her own work, something she’d never done before. Her first play, A Different Song, premiered at the Worthing Festival and Chichester Fringe.

“It was hugely scary,” she admits. “I’d never directed before, let alone produced a play on my own. But I did it anyway.”

That “do it anyway” attitude has become something of a theme in her journey of midlife reinvention. Now Liz is back with Who Do They Think They Are?, a joyful, energetic celebration of friendship, dance and the lives of women who are so often overlooked. Featuring a cast of four brilliant women, many in midlife themselves, the play feels real, relatable and refreshingly honest. It’s currently touring the South East, opening in Brighton and finishing at London’s Greenwich Theatre, drawing packed audiences and glowing reviews along the way.

Liz is the definition of never too late and she means it. “I truly believe if you want to do something enough, you should go for it – she says-. Even if it feels hard or completely out of reach. Today, I feel alive, rejuvenated and fulfilled. I took my fear and turned it into something real and trusted myself to do it.”

Midlife Reinvention and Finding Joy in Getting Older

One of the biggest surprises of getting older? Freedom. “I definitely care less about what other people think,” Liz says. “And that’s incredibly freeing.”

She recalls a recent moment, sitting in her car before an event, feeling underdressed and unsure about attending. “My younger self would have just driven home, convincing myself that it was best that I didn’t go as I didn’t quite fit the bill.” she admits. “But instead, I gave myself a bit of a talking-to, got out of the car and strolled into the event, head held high!”

A small act but a powerful shift. If she could give her younger self a bit of advice? “Don’t take everything to heart. Don’t overthink. And don’t be afraid to say no.” Simple, hard-earned, and spot on.

When she’s not busy bringing stories to life, Liz is all about family, her daughter Lucy, granddaughter Georgie, and her husband Dan as well as reading books. Her favourite one? “Woman of a Certain Rage by Georgie Hall, hilarious, extremely relatable and poignant, I’ve read it three times!”

And her flair for performance? That’s been there all along. Before playwriting, she worked as a cruise ship host, even stepping into the role of playing Cilla Black, a beloved National treasure, English singer, actress and television presenter, for onboard entertainment. “It got a lorra-lorra laughs,” she says.

And the Best Bit? She’s Just Getting Started

Now in her 60s, Liz’s work speaks directly to women navigating this stage of life. Her journey is a powerful female empowerment story rooted in creativity, courage, and visibility. And if there’s one thing Liz proves, it’s this: it is never too late to take centre stage.

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