So, Kate Rowland is a hard act to follow, but someone has to do it! And I have just taken over from Kate as Head of BBC Writersroom.
Some years ago, I was an actor, and a director in Community Theatre in East London. When the BBC was advertising for directors who had worked with young people and new writers, I sent off for the application form – that was life before email! But by the closing date I hadn't posted it because “I didn't go to Oxbridge and wasn't related to anyone famous”. My partner laughed when I said this. And not in a good way. I was so annoyed that I sent the form across London by courier to prove a – very expensive - point.
Which is how I became a BBC Radio Drama Producer/Director….
My first job was in Youth Drama and Features. Since that time, I have moved back and forwards several times over the years between Radio and Television Drama, making singles, series and serials, including comedy, poetry and factually-based. I have made programmes for Radios 1,3,4,5 and World Service, also for BBC One and BBC Two. I have left the BBC twice and come back twice. I have worked in the UK and abroad. But throughout, my focus has been on new writing, and writers, and I have been driven by a desire to see the whole of society represented in the media.
I wanted to come to BBC Writersroom because it is a special place that brings together some of the most creative people in the country, both established writers and new writers taking their early steps. It is a place for writers to get noticed, to develop ideas, to learn, to experiment. It is where many BBC dramas and comedies have been born, and where writers’ careers have been launched.
There are many changes coming for the BBC, and BBC Writersroom will have to change and adapt, too. But the one thing that will never change is the need for new voices, telling new stories, reflecting the whole of the audience.
Joining the BBC was a life-changing opportunity for me, and I have never forgotten that I would not be here, except for a smart-arsed partner. (And he never let me forget!) I know the feeling that “the BBC is not for me” is still common amongst writers, particularly if you don’t see yourself represented on screen, but don’t self-sabotage. BBC Writersroom is here to welcome you and support you. Use our on-line resources, come to our public events and workshops, submit your scripts when the Script Rooms are open. Not everyone will find success, but if you don't go for it, you will never know.
Be bold, write, dream.
