Let's make this birthday one to remember.

82 years old (Born on December 13, 1942)

Happy birthday to the brilliant Howard John Brenton! Celebrating yet another scene-stealing year, your two Evening Standard awards and a prestigious BAFTA for "Spooks" have solidified you as master of suspense and drama—clearly writing thrillers wasn't enough; you had to script real-life intrigue too!

Whether crafting compelling stage tales or exhilarating TV espionage, you've kept audiences (and award judges) delightfully on-edge. May this birthday be free from dramatic plot twists—unless it's cake-related.

Here's wishing many more years of accolades, theatrical brilliance, and convincing spies lurking behind lampposts. Your scripts age gracefully—but thankfully not as quickly as characters in them!