Diederick Santer interview

In Media Guardian, Stephen Armstrong talks to EastEnders' executive producer Diederick Santer.

What he is hoping to do is bring a bit of realism to a depiction of the East End that was criticised by the Commission for Racial Equality for being excessively white. "You have to be careful about being too realistic," he cautions. "It could be argued all these characters wouldn't go to the launderette - they might have washing machines. But then you wouldn't have the same show. Having said that, we have to diversify. We're doing that with the background artists, we've opened a sari and fabric shop, and in ambient ways we're making the show feel more 21st century."

Harold Pinter on Sleuth

In The New York Times, Sarah Lyall talks to Harold Pinter about his approach to writing and his screenplay for the remake of Sleuth (opening in the UK on 23 November), based on the play by Anthony Shaffer.

Mr. Pinter acknowledged that his plays — full of infidelity, cruelty, inhumanity, the lot — seem at odds with his domestic contentment.

“How can you write a happy play?” he said. “Drama is about conflict and general degrees of perturbation, disarray. I’ve never been able to write a happy play, but I’ve been able to enjoy a happy life.”

Sleuth trailer

The O-word

In The Guardian, Guild President David Edgar says that while the organising committee for the London Olympics have decided not to take action to prevent novelist Robert Ronson calling his new book Olympic Mind Games, we should be wary of any attempts to copyright language.

Most expression involves reference to something real in the world. Most of our "experience" and indeed our "imagination" are formed from the image-making of others. Writers and other artists are rightly concerned about protecting their own copyright, but they should be equally concerned with the shrinking of the public domain. Ronson's refusal to be cowed into changing the title of his novel is a victory for the idea that there is more to free expression than the right to advertise.

Meet The Agents 2

The Writers’ Guild presents the second in its series of Meet the Agents events which will be held on Monday 29th October at the Writers’ Guild Centre 17 Britannia Street, London WC1 X 9JN - nearest tube: King’s Cross.

The main event will commence at 7:30pm with a discussion and Q & A where the panellists will talk about everything from how to get an agent to what their agencies can offer to clients. The evening will end with a networking session from 8:15 to 9pm.

The panellists will include:

Chris Calitz from Creative Media Management

Creative Media Management was formed in July 1999 by Jacqui Fincham to represent a select group of writers, directors and technicians in Film and Television. They are a boutique agency interested in building a list of new writers.

Lucy Fawcett from Sheil Land Associates Ltd

Sheil Land Associates Ltd welcomes approaches from new clients either to start or to develop their careers. They handle full-length general, commercial and literary fiction and non-fiction as well as theatre, film, radio and TV scripts.

Nick Turner from Linda Seifert Management

Linda Seifert Management is an international management company representing writers, directors and producers for film and television. The creative team work with their clients to secure development and packaging of their projects with access to international finance and co-production. Linda Seifert Management currently has a client base ranging from the highly established to the next generation of emerging talent.

Simon Williamson from the Jill Foster Ltd

Jill Foster Ltd deals with theatre, films, TV and sound broadcasting. They are particularly interested in film and TV comedy and drama but do not deal with novels or short stories. The agency was founded in 1978.

All the agents have kindly agreed to have one on one meetings with participants of this event. There are 20 places available for five minute sessions with an agent from 7:00pm - 7:20pm. The meetings are only open to members of the Writers' Guild and will be allotted on a first come first come basis, early booking is recommended to avoid disappointment. If you are interested in this opportunity then please list the agent that you would like to meet with in order of preference when you book. Please note we cannot guarantee that you will be given your first choice.

To book for this event, please post a cheque to: Meet the Agents 2, Writers’ Guild, 15-17, Britannia Street, London WC1 X 9JN. Please make the cheque payable to: “Writers’ Guild of Great Britain”. Tickets cost £5 for Guild members and £7.50 for non members.

Imaginary Worlds

The Writers’ Guild presents Imaginary Worlds on Thursday 1st November from 7pm – 8:30pm at the Writers Guild Centre, 17 Britannia Street, London WC1X 9JN (Nearest tube: King’s Cross).

Celebrate the recent resurgence in British science fiction and fantasy, by talking to the writers behind the boom.

Britain's other great literary tradition has always been a hit with the public - from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Arthur Conan Doyle's Lost World, 20th. Century classics by John Wyndham, H.G. Wells and Nigel Kneale, to the recent boom in graphic novels and even more recent box office successes such as Dog Soldiers and 28 Days Later.

Critics and cultural commentators have finally realised what writers, readers and audiences have known for years - that fantasy writing can - and does - tackle adult themes in a unique and exciting way, and that imaginary worlds are not just for children.

Confirmed panellists for the discussion include Guild members Ashley Pharaoh, one of the creators of Life on Mars and Adrian Hodges, a co-creator of Primeval. Further speakers will be confirmed closer to the date.

To book for this event, please post a cheque to: Imaginary Worlds, Writers’ Guild, 15-17, Britannia Street, London WC1 X 9JN. Please make the cheque payable to: “Writers’ Guild of Great Britain”. Tickets cost £5 for Guild members and £7.50 for non members.

Possessed: the blog

Guild member Teresa Howard has launched a blog to trace the development of her musical, Possessed (music by Steven Edis). Possessed tells the story of Jane Burden, the real woman behind the painting and poetry of the Pre-Raphaelites.

Today I have to atttack the last scene of POSSESSED and am procrastinating, because it is the most difficult part of the musical. My youngest daughter is upstairs in bed with flu. Having someone in the house while I am working has always been inhibiting. It feels so much more difficult wandering around, singing (very badly) and emoting lines from the script when there is someone around to hear.

Audio drama goes straight to CD

A new adaptation of Robert Rankin's novel The Brightonomicon, written by Neil Gardner and Elliott Stein, will go straight to CD and be distributed by BBC WorldWide, reports John Plunkett for Media Guardian.

The Brightonomicon is a fantasy comedy drama in the style of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy and The Mighty Boosh. It is being co-produced with BBC Audiobooks and Hokus Bloke Productions, which was set up by Gardner and [actor, David] Warner for this project.

"The market in comedy sci-fi and fantasy is huge, and radio is the only current medium that doesn't embrace it," said Gardner.

Row over Holby drinking scene

From BBC News:

BBC One drama Holby City is to be investigated by media regulator Ofcom, which has received eight complaints about a scene showing heavy drinking.

In last month's episode, a medic asked bar staff to "line up" tequila for her, before telling a male colleague: "Neck these and back to mine."

Drinks industry body The Portman Group said the "graphic portrayal of harmful drinking behaviour was gratuitous".

Michael Henshaw 1930-2007

Michael Henshaw, accountant to many writers, actors and directors, has died at the age of 76. There's an obituary by Barry Miles in The Guardian.

Michael waged a one-man crusade against what he saw as the unfair treatment of artists and writers by tax inspectors. He insisted that the arts made a substantial contribution to the economy and, as far he was concerned, for a poet to go on a walking tour of the Lake District was just as valid a business expense as a visit to a factory by a businessman - a concept the Inland Revenue had trouble understanding. But many artists and writers were delighted to discover someone who appreciated what they were doing and was prepared to take on their financial problems, and his reputation quickly spread.

Ofcom's review of children's TV

Communications industry regulator Ofcom has published a review of children's television in the UK, and expressed concern about the decline in the volume of home-grown programming:

...the future provision of new UK-originated programming for children, particularly drama and factual, looks increasingly uncertain other than the BBC’s output. Investment in first-run original programming by the commercial Public Service Broadcasters (PSBs) – ITV1, GMTV, Channel 4 and Five – has halved in real terms since 1998.

However, when homegrown programming is available, children tend to prefer it:

Children still strongly prefer programming made in the UK, the majority of which is commissioned by the Public Service Broadcasters. While UK children’s programmes accounted for 17% of total children’s hours, they delivered a 38% share of viewing.

Concluding that "the public purposes for children’s programming are not fully being met in some areas", Ofcom has invited responses to the review. Comments must be submitted by 20 December 2007.

Moffat gets Tintin job

British scriptwriter Steven Moffat, best known for creating the comedy series Coupling, has got the job adapating Herge's Tintin for the big screen, says the Hollywood Reporter.

The intention is to make a trilogy of films, with the first two directed by Peter Jackson and Steve Spielberg.

O'Brien wins third Forward prize

From Richard Lea in The Guardian:

Sean O'Brien has pulled off an unprecedented third victory in the Forward prize, cementing his place as a Forward favourite by winning the £10,000 prize for best collection with The Drowned Book. Daljit Nagra, who won the prize for best single poem in 2004, has gone on to win the £5,000 prize for best first collection. This year's £1,000 prize for best single poem goes to Alice Oswald.

Patrick Marber interview

In The Daily Telegraph, Dominic Cavendish talks to Patrick Marber about the revival of his play Dealer's Choice and his success as a Hollywood screenwriter.

Having his moment in the spotlight in LA is all very well, all good fun, he says, "but the real business of my life is getting another play out. That's what concerns me and that's what I mustn't concern myself with. I can't put it another way. Another couple of years and I'm officially blocked."

Is it that bad? "Every play is back to square one. It's a waiting game. They come slowly or not at all. I have to be patient. You're either a conscious or an unconscious writer, and I'm an unconscious writer. I'm a loafer. I dawdle and go for long walks, then I write with feverish intensity, late at night, in sustained four- or five-hour bursts. Once they appear, they appear very quickly."

BBC Films restructured

From the BBC Press Office:

Jane Tranter, Controller BBC Fiction, today announced the new structure for BBC Films, and reaffirmed the BBC's commitment to the development and production of feature films.

The day-to-day management of BBC Films and decision-making will now be the responsibility of a newly-established BBC Films Board, comprising:

• Christine Langan (Commissioning Editor, BBC Films)
• Jamie Laurenson (Executive Producer, BBC Films)
• Joe Oppenheimer (Executive Producer, BBC Films)
  
• Jane Wright (Commercial Affairs and General Manager, BBC Films).

Keep your contracts

A guest post from Gail Renard, Chair of the Guild's TV Committee:

Whenever you sell any work, always ask your agent for a photocopy of your contract, then file it or keep it safely under your pillow. It might come in handy one day, especially if you change/ get dumped by/ mislay your agent.

Firstly, (and here's a novel thought) one should always read all one's contracts, no matter how splendid your agent. The more a writer knows about his or her own business, the more confident and empowered he or she will be - and less likely to be cheated by anyone.

Secondly, in this multi-media world, old shows are being re-released willy-nilly through new technologies; often without clearing the rights first - a cute trick which the TV Committee is now investigating.

So when a Portuguese blogger wrote to tell me how much he's enjoying the DVD of my first comedy series, when I didn't even know it had been released on DVD, it gave me a great sense of satisfaction to hand the 25+ year-old contract to my present agent. And would you believe there was no mention of DVD rights? It's all the ammo we needed.

So save your contracts. It not only helps your agent. It's yet another way to protect your work and your rights.

Adrian Pagan

A memorial service was held last month in honour of Adrian Pagan, who died in August at the age of 39.

Pagan's play The Backroom won the Verity Bargate Award in 1996 and was staged at The Bush in 1999. He went on to write for several TV series including Family Affairs, The Bill and Holby City.

Alex Gammie, a former colleague from the Bush and friend of Pagan’s for many years, commented: "Adrian was hugely talented in so many areas, but most of all great company and a wonderful friend. He is going to be missed by an extraordinary number of people."

Film Council Development Fund changes

Tanya Seghatchian, Head of the Development Fund at UK Film Council, has announced changes to the way the Fund will work. Writers will now be entitled to apply as individuals, without needing to have a producer or director attached to a project.

There are two programmes through which money will be awarded:

• The First Feature Film Development Programme – which aims to identify and support emerging filmmakers (including screenwriters)
  
• The Feature Film Development Programme – a dedicated industry funding programme for producers, production companies and filmmakers, with a demonstrable track record.

One-off "Signature Awards" will also be made to "world-class writers and directors".

Full details are available on the Film Council website.

BBC winners at Prix Italia

Two radio dramas and a TV film won prizes for the BBC at the Prix Italia international radio, television and web competition.

The award for Best Radio Drama went to The Incomplete Recorded Works Of A Dead Body (Radio 3), written by Ed Hime (who, apparently, had never heard a radio drama when he wrote it). You can download the script (pdf file) from the BBC Writersroom.

Peter Straughan's adaptation of Metropolis (Radio 4, based on the film directed by Fritz Lang from a screenplay by Lang and Thea von Harbou) won the Best Adapted Radio drama prize.

Shoot the Messenger (BBC Two), written by Sharon Foster, won the award for Best Single TV Play.

Neil Gaiman: "Writers are otters"

In The Guardian, Michelle Pauli talks to genre-hopping writer Neil Gaiman.

"Writers are otters," states Neil Gaiman, firmly. And indeed, there is undoubtedly something otterish about this author, with his trademark dark jeans and black leather jacket, and just a hint of whiskerishness - though his shaggy moptop makes him perhaps a little less sleek than your average otter. No matter, Gaiman warms to his theme.

"Otters are not trainable," he explains. "Dogs are trainable - if you want them to sit you train them and give them rewards and they sit each time. But otters... if they do something cool and you give them a fish, the next time they'll do something even cooler. Or they'll try to do something completely different. I think that most writers - or at least a lot of us - are otters."

Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award

Online retailer Amazon has teamed up with Penguin to launch a new writing award:

Amazon editors and top Amazon customer reviewers will read submissions and select authors for the semi-final round, beginning January 15, 2008. Each semi-finalist will receive a full review of their manuscript by Publishers Weekly and a book page on Amazon.com featuring a short excerpt from their novel that customers can download, read, and review. Penguin will select manuscripts to read from the semi-final round based on customer feedback and Publishers Weekly reviews and announce the Top Ten finalists on March 3, 2008. Amazon.com customers will then select the winner of the Amazon Breakthrough Award, to be announced on April 7, 2008.

Register now and break through! Only the first 5,000 submissions will be accepted. The registration deadline is November 5, 2007.