Richard Fotheringham was born in Roma, Queensland, on 18 February 1947. He received his tertiary education at the University of Queensland, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts with Honours (1971), a Master of Arts (1975) and a PhD (1987). He is an adaptor, author, director, editor, playwright and academic. Fotheringham founded the Popular Theatre Troupe in 1974, wrote and acted for the Queensland Theatre Company and has served as Head of the School of English, Art History and Media Studies at the University of Queensland and was Executive Dean of Arts prior to his retirement in 2011. On 20 November 2004 he was elected to Fellow of the Australia Academy of the Humanities. In 2019 he was a recipient of the Order of Australia. He is Emeritus Professor at the School of Communication and Arts, University of Queensland.