In his play Paul, first staged at the National Theatre in 2005, Howard Brenton attempted a dramatic portrayal of one of the most influential and controversial figures in human history, the man many regard as the ‘founder’ of Christianity. In this article John Baker explores the complex relationship between Brenton's Paul and his Biblical counterpart, and asks what drew an avowed atheist and socialist to a dramatic consideration of a religious leader often condemned as authoritarian, anti-Semitic and misogynistic. John Baker was awarded his PhD by the University of Manchester in 1999. He currently teaches English Literature at the University of Westminster.