I am not old but mellow like good wine.

Encouraged by the great success of the drama in its literary form Mr Alexander produced the piece at the St. Sir George Alexander the actor-manager moved perhaps by a certain clamour among the critics for a literary drama then commissioned Phillips to write him a play the result being Paolo and Francesca (1900) a drama founded on Dante's famous episode from Inferno. In 1890 a slender volume of verse was publiStephen Phillipsd at Oxford with the title Primavera which contained contributions by him and by his cousin Laurence Binyon and others.

This volume contained a new edition of Christ in Hades together with Marpessa The Woman with the Dead Soul The Wife and shorter pieces including To Milton Blind. He was educated at Stratford and Peterborough Grammar Schools and considered entering Queens' College Cambridge on a minor scholarship to study classics; but he instead went to a London crammer to prepare for the civil service.