Twentieth-century English literature Terence Rattigan and Noël Coward were challenged in the 1950s by these Angry Young Men, in plays like John Osborne's "Look Back in Anger" (1956). Arnold Wesker and Nell Dunn also brought social concerns to the stage. Again in the 1950s, the absurdist play "Waiting for Godot" (1955) (originally "En attendant Godot", 1952), by Irish writer Samuel Beckett profoundly affected British drama. The Theatre of the Absurd influenced Harold Pinter (born 1930), author of (The Birthday Party, 1958), whose works are often characterised by menace or claustrophobia. Beckett also influenced Tom Stoppard (born 1937) ("Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead", 1966).
Waiting for Godot debate. "When Colin Duckworth asked Beckett point-blank whether Pozzo was Godot, the author replied: 'No. It is just implied in the text, but it's not true.' " Deirdre Bair says that though "Beckett will never discuss the implications of the title", she suggests two stories that both may have at least partially inspired it. The first is that because feet are a recurring theme in the play, Beckett has said the title was suggested to him by the slang French term for boot: ""godillot", "godasse"". The second story, according to Bair, is that Beckett once encountered a group of spectators