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BBC Writersroom's Voices 2022 - Welsh Voices

2022-07-08T10:52:25+00:00

Welsh Voices 2022

All this week we've been announcing the names of the 69 writers who have been part of our Voices development groups for 2022. The final group (for purely alphabetical reasons) are the 13 Welsh Voices. Meet them all below and find out more.

"It’s a real treat to be able to announce our Welsh Voices 2022. I hope these writers go on to do amazing things, because not only are they extremely talented, they’re a lovely bunch of human beings. Seeing their TV skills and ideas develop over the last few months has been a pleasure and a privilege. I’m excited to see what the future holds for these Welsh screenwriters of tomorrow."

Helen Perry (Assistant Commissioner for Wales, BBC Writersroom and BBC Drama)

See details of all the Voices writers 2022

Find out more about the Voices programme

Azuka

Azuka is a playwright and screenwriter, born and raised in London, she has lived in Cardiff since 2012.

She has been a participant in the Royal Court Writers programme and is currently a part of the Sherman Theatre's inaugural Unheard Voices Writers development programme.

Her first full length play ‘The Last Bastion’ has been commissioned by the Other Room Theatre and was shortlisted for BBC Writersroom Drama Room 2021, making it to the top 1% of the 5167 scripts submitted. She has also had a screenplay longlisted for the BBC Studios/Thousand Films Thousand Stories competition.

Azuka is passionate about telling stories that centre complex women and shine alight on underrepresented, marginalised communities in both contemporary and historical settings.

Sam Burns

Sam Burns a playwright, was born in Cardiff. She worked for several years as an editor for a small publishing company, and more recently as an assistant to a gardener and a freelance transcriber. Her produced work includes a piece in Paines Plough’s Come to Where I’m From, ‘Two Bears’ for Sixty-Six Books at the Bush Theatre, ‘Amnesty’ in Agent 160 Presents Agent 160 and The Ostrich, a 15-minute play for BBC Radio Wales’ Dylan Thomas season in late 2014.

Her first full-length play, Not the Worst Place, was produced by Paines Plough, Theatr Clwyd and Sherman Cymru in April-May 2014, and was shortlisted for the Susan Smith Blackburn Award in 2011. Her radio play Floor 13 aired on BBC Radio 4’s Afternoon Drama slot in late May 2017. She lives in the Shetland Islands.

Ross Simon Eccleston

Ross Simon Eccleston is a Cardiff based screenwriter from North Wales. Ross studied theatre and film at Bangor University before being accepted onto the MA Screenwriting course at the Screen Academy Scotland where his short comedy film ‘A Trifling Matter’ was produced by the BFI Academy.

His drama script ‘The Hidden’ was shortlisted for the BBC Drama Room and he is currently writing his first play. Ross draws inspiration from his own experiences and hopes to bring a unique perspective to themes of grief, community, home and family dynamics.

Katie Elin-Salt

Katie Elin-Salt is a writer from Bridgend, South Wales, living and working in Cardiff. After a decade as an actor working across mediums, Katie developed an interest in writing whilst working with Paines Plough and subsequently gained a successful mentorship as a new writer under the Royal Courts’ playwriting programme.

Her latest play CELEBRATED VIRGINS will premiere at Theatr Clwyd in May 2022. Katie’s one-woman show SPRINKLES was developed with Dirty Protest and ran for a Christmas 2021 production. As a playwright, she has been commissioned by Sherman Theatre, Chippy Lane, RWCMD, Iris Theatre, Out of Joint and Far Away Plays. Katie is a current member of Soho Theatre Writers’ lab. She was a Theatr Clwyd Writer in Residence 2020/21, and is a proud member of the Chippy Lane Welsh Female Writers’ group.

Katie was shortlisted for BBC Wales Writer in Residence 2020 and BBC Comedy/Drama Room 2021. She is now carving out her voice as a Welsh, queer, working-class, female TV writer in Wales. Katie is passionate about female-led

Zia Holloway

Zia Holloway is a 23-year-old emerging television screenwriter who specialises in writing drama, magical-realism and sci-fi to create rich, characterful worlds, and authentic stories. She is a Script Angel scholar and the winner of the World Productions Welsh Writers award and has original series in development with The Forge, The Ink Factory, Studio 21 and World Productions. She has gained experience across a range of mediums including television, animation, and theatre.

Samantha O'Rourke

Samantha O’Rourke is a northern writer/director based in North Wales. Recent screen projects include short film Jelly (Ffilm Cymru/BBC Wales/Mad as Birds), winner of the Chapter Queer Film Prize and original comedy drama Mincemeat for Channel 4’s On the Edge series. Sam was Writer on Attachment for Liverpool’s Everyman Playhouse and part of artist led project Future Forms at the Donmar Warehouse. Other theatre credits include Theatr Clwyd, Volcano Theatre, Boundless Theatre and Dirty Protest.

Sam is currently developing her debut feature supported by Ffilm Cymru and a comedy drama series for Channel 4 Drama. Her play Our Town Needs a Nandos will premiere summer 2022 at Liverpool’s Everyman Playhouse. She was also recently selected as a BFI Flare x BAFTA mentee.

Joe and Ruth Ollman

Ruth and Joe Ollman are siblings from Powys, before moving to Cardiff at a young age. Joseph is a multi-award winning Writer/Director, having gained early acclaim for his films, including Meat on Bones, which earned a BAFTA Cymru nomination and Bitter Sky, which was broadcast on BBC Two Wales. Ruth studied acting at the Guildhall School for Music and Drama before moving into writing. Her previous work includes the play The Blue Hour, which she performed at the GSMD and later TV series The Panic, which was developed with Hillbilly Productions.

They’ve recently started writing in partnership, with their first script All Poor Creatures selected for the Celtic Screen Talent Showcase at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. The script later gained interest from World Productions, before they were selected for the BBC Voices programme. They’ve found they make a well balanced writing duo, with Joseph’s understanding of story structure and Ruth’s comprehension of the psychology of characters.

Richard Pask

Richard Pask was selected from nearly 4,000 writers for the BBC WRITERSROOM COMEDY ROOM 2020/2021. As part of the scheme, he developed Griff Duff, a poignant but heart-warming comedy-drama based on his own real-life experiences.

Richard is a former BAFTA INTERNATIONAL NEW TALENT and BRITISH COUNCIL WALES INTERNATIONAL YOUNG ARTIST AWARD shortlistee. His short films have been screened on BBC Wales and the iPlayer, S4C, Sky, and at numerous film festivals around the world.

He has worked extensively in film and television production – firstly as a child actor, but primarily as a script supervisor. Recently, he directed the second unit of the BBC Wales sitcom The Tuckers.

Richard is originally from Caerphilly, but now lives in Cardiff. In his writing, he tries to find a bittersweet vein of humour in painful situations. He is also a passionate advocate of authentic working-class voices; particularly his own.

Martha Reed

Martha Reed is a young Welsh female writer for TV and theatre. She is currently developing original comedy drama for TV with Objective Fiction and Tall Story Pictures, and she recently worked in the writers room as a shadow writer for an upcoming BBC drama. She was one of 12 writers on the Channel 4 Screenwriting Course 2021, selected from a record 3880 applicants.

Martha is one of five writers-in-residence at Theatre503. She recently wrote and directed season two BAFTA-nominated crime drama game DEAD MAN’S PHONE. Her debut play EXISTENTIAL FISH AND DREAD toured from The Cockpit (London) to Chapter Arts Centre (Cardiff) and the Exeter Phoenix in 2021-2022. Her second play, THE GHOST OF YOU, placed in the top 10% of a record 5167 submissions to BBC Script Room 2021, and was longlisted for development at the Traverse. She was Chippy Lane Productions’ Writing Apprentice to BAFTA-winning writer Alan Harris, a position funded by Arts Council Wales. Her previous credits include short plays VERA JONES at The Old Red Lion and HOW LOAN CAN YOU GO? at The Pleasance, Islington. Martha’s work champions underrepresented voices, putting women centre stage and sharing working-class stories.

Owen Lloyd Richards

Owen Lloyd Richards is a screenwriter and playwright, born in Cardiff and now living in north Wales.

In 2021, Owen was selected for Channel 4’s 4Screenwriting scheme from over 3,880 applicants, where he developed a drama pilot titled ANTISOCIAL. His short film OVERS was broadcast on BBC Two Wales in 2019, produced via It’s My Shout.

Owen most recently worked on the UK-wide immersive storytelling experience StoryTrails with BBC, BFI and StoryFutures Academy. He’s currently working with Next Door But One theatre company to develop a theatre piece about foetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

Previously, Owen spent 10 years as a digital storyteller in the social care sector. This experience has inspired the stories he tells: social realism that finds light in the dark, and truth in the complex.

Carol Vine

Carol Vine is a screenwriter and playwright, based in Powys. Her screenplays have been shortlisted for the BBC Talent Sitcom Writing Initiative and the BBC Story2K2 Competition. Her recent screenplay, Immaculate, was one of the runners up in the Thousand Films Screenwriting Competition and her latest screenplay, Moose Moose Alpaca Unicorn, was selected as a quarter finalist in the international Screen and Story Film Festival, as well as reaching the top 2% in the BBC Writersroom for drama comedy submissions. It was also shortlisted for the BBC Wales World Productions Award.

As a playwright, Carol’s successes have included Rigor Mortis (performed at the Finborough Theatre as one of the runners up for the Papatango Prize) and The Spring Tide, produced at the Old Red Lion Theatre. Her play Borderland was selected for Write Now 3 at the Jack Studio Theatre and the BBC Writersroom 10. Carol’s latest play, Sugar and Spice, earned its way to the longlist for the Welsh Writer in Residence.

Henry Waddon

Henry Waddon is a 22-year-old writer, actor and medical student from Cardiff. He is currently partaking in Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru’s Young Playwrights Programme, as well as Pentabus Theatre’s Young Writers National Programme. In 2021, Henry co-created and performed in an original piece of verbatim theatre, ‘HOME’, for the National Student Drama Festival, as part of the 2020-21 NDSF Writers’ Lab.

Henry’s writing has led him to be shortlisted for schemes such as BBC Writersroom Drama Room and The Oxford Playhouse Playmaker Residency, in addition to being longlisted for the Royal Court’s Playwrights Group. His debut play, ‘PLAGUED’ was a recipient of the Best New Play award at the 2019 Oxford University New Writing Festival. As an actor, Henry has performed at venues such as the Arcola Theatre, The New Theatre, Cardiff and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, in addition to featuring in TV commercials. Henry wants to create accessible TV that champions Welsh artists and the Welsh language, and that shines a light on issues surrounding our health and its fragility.

BBC Writersroom's Voices 2022 - Scottish Voices

2022-07-07T11:14:47+00:00

Scottish Voices 2022

Today we're announcing the names of the 12 writers who were part of our Scottish Voices development group for 2022. In total 69 writers were part of our Voices groups this year and we're delighted to be announcing them all this week.

"BBC Writersroom Scotland are incredibly excited to announce the 12 Scottish Voices we’ve been working with over the past few months. It’s been a real pleasure getting to know this lovely bunch, and we have loved helping each one hone their craft and work towards an authored TV idea that showcases their unique voice. Watch this space, Scotland!"

Stephanie Fyfe (Assistant Commissioner for Scotland, BBC Writersroom and BBC Drama)

See details of all the Voices writers 2022

Find out more about the Voices programme

Tiarna Armstrong

Tiarna Armstrong is a 25-year old queer, black screenwriter from Northern Ireland. Having experimented with fiction as well as writing music articles for local websites and blogs, Armstrong studied French with Creative Writing at Bangor University, where she discovered her love of screenwriting. Having completed her undergraduate degree, Armstrong went onto study MA Screenwriting at the prestigious Screen Academy Scotland in Edinburgh and quickly signed with an agent soon after.

Armstrong is currently in the process of adapting one of her screenplays into a novel and is one of the participants for BBC Writersroom - Scottish Voices for this year. With such a varied background, Tiarna is a proud and passionate activist in every aspect of her life, but especially in her screenwriting where she creates stories predominantly centred around marginalised people and underrepresented groups.

Alice Clark

Alice Clark writes drama for stage and screen. Most recently she worked in a writers' room for STV Drama and her first short film ‘My Name Is Beth’ was selected for Glasgow Short Film Festival 2023 (winner, Best Young Filmmaker). In 2022 she was commissioned to write ‘Made In China’ by Play Pie Pint, which enjoyed a sell-out run at The Traverse (**** Scotsman). Alice was selected for The Writers Lab UK&I 2021, with Screen Scotland and Cate Blanchett’s Dirty Films supporting her place on the six-month script development scheme. She recently completed an MA in Screenwriting and graduated with distinction.

Originally from Bristol, Alice worked in story and drama facilitation in Newcastle and then China where she lived for twelve years before moving to Scotland with her family. She is currently developing new film, tv, and theatre projects and works as a script reader. Alice writes stories that focus on marginalised voices and social issues that resonate, provoke, and give hope.

Craig Stewart Ferguson

Craig Stewart Ferguson is a screenwriter & playwright from Glasgow who writes across drama & comedy. Often character-driven, darkly sardonic & emotionally thrilling stories, his work is centred around relatable misfits, grappling with the challenges of the modern world.

His first comedy pilot ‘Bawbag’ reached the top 2% of submissions to the BBC Comedy Writersroom 2018, showcasing a “bold voice” and “raucously, rudely funny writer”. His follow up ‘The Right Honourable Member’, a political, trans-rights drama, made the top 15% in BBC Drama Writersroom 2019 & top 20% of 2020’s Red Planet Prize respectively. Craig’s latest drama comedy spec ‘The Politician’s Keelie’ placed in the top 10% of BBC Writersroom 2021. His futuristic, sci-fi animation sitcom treatment ‘Clan Robotica’ was longlisted for BBC Ignite opportunity, also in 2021, and ‘Sleaze’, his latest drama spec, a ‘state of the nation’ piece, made the top 12% of BBC Writersroom’s Open Call 2022.

Craig has written educational stage plays for young people with additional learning needs, alongside jokes & material for TV, Radio & Digital. His recent BDSM play proposal ‘Kinkhole’ was shortlisted for Tron Theatre & Playwright Studio Scotland’s ‘Writer Lab’ 2022.

One of the twelve BBC Writersroom Scottish Voices 2022 cohort, Craig is currently developing a high-end drama treatment for a comedic, romantic crime-thriller, based in Glasgow, entitled: ‘Love Heist’.

Jack Gemmell

Jack Gemmell is a Glaswegian writer and producer, for both stage and screen.

His sophomore short film '12th Man' premiered at Glasgow Short Film Festival in 2021 and was screened in Berlin, Norwich, and across the UK. At present, he is producing 'Black Wool' through Sharp Shorts with director Eubha Akilade.

For the stage, he was chosen to be part of the Traverse Young Writers cohort in 2021 and has since been in artistic development with Traverse Theatre with his full-length play ‘Tobojo’ (Boris Johnson is Toast)'. This was staged as part of First Stages Festival in March 2022.

Georgina Love

Georgina Love is an Australian screenwriter based in Glasgow since 2020. In recognition of her writing, Love has been awarded a partial scholarship by Final Draft, was the first international recipient of the Screencraft Fellowship, awarded the John Hinde prize by the Australian Writers Guild and selected for the Blacklist “Aussie List”. She was also one of the recipients of the Smart For A Girl initiative run by Endemol Shine in conjunction with Screen Australia.

Georgina has worked as a Writer, Script Editor, Script Executive and Development Executive in scripted television and as a casting producer in unscripted TV. She writes offbeat character-driven genre, usually sci-fi, and is developing several projects for film and TV. Georgina is currently in development with her original TV series ‘Pig’ with Longboat Pictures and working on the second season of the animated children’s show ‘Space Nova’.

In 2020, Georgina signed with Christine Glover at Casarotto Ramsay & Associates. In the short term, she is looking forward to continuing to work in writers rooms and develop her own shows. In the future, Love hopes to couple her writing chops with her development experience and work in a development role on a returning series.

Felix O'Brien

Felix O’Brien is a screenwriter and theatre practitioner based in Inverclyde, Scotland. He has an MA with Distinction in Writing for Television from Glasgow Caledonian, which he attained after securing a scholarship from BBC Scotland.

He has attended invitational writers' groups at the Royal Court, Theatre503 and Soho Theatre. To date, his work has been presented at The Beacon, Southwark Playhouse, The Finborough, The Bunker, Theatre503, The Old Red Lion, The Cockpit, The Charing Cross Theatre, The Union, Latitude Festival and Paines Ploughs Roundabout at the Edinburgh Fringe, among others.

In 2017 and 2019 he was shortlisted for Channel 4’s 4Screenwriting attachment, making the top 40 from over 1,500 submissions. He also has extensive experience as a performer, director, reader, deviser and workshop facilitator.

David O. Gray

David O. Gray is an award winning screenwriter and director, born in Bonnybridge. He specialises in genre filmmaking with a specific interest in horror, comedy and thriller-y things with a working class spin. He began making sketch comedy five years ago as part of the comedy duo - Kris and Dave - and has accrued over 25 million views, working with online platforms such as BBC The Social and BBC Scotland’s Short Stuff. Many shorts were collated for broadcast on television, including a sketch made for 'Socially Distanced with Susan Calman'.

Subsequently, he developed two short form series for BBC iPlayer. Firstly, he developed and co-directed three episodes of ‘Hings’, which was nominated for a RTS Scotland - Short Form Award.

The second short form series was 'Tales from the Pub’, a pitch-black horror comedy which went on to win GMAC’s Big Flick of the Year Award. He has been shortlisted in the top 1% of the BBC Writersroom Drama Room and has been shortlisted for the 4Stories writers scheme.

David recently wrote and presented ‘Close Encounters of the Bonnybridge Kind’, a radio documentary about the history of UFOs in Bonnybridge. He currently has several projects in development with production companies.

Michael John O'Neill

Michael John O’Neill is a Northern Irish playwright, dramaturg and theatre producer based in Scotland. In 2019 Michael won the Bruntwood Prize’s Original New Voice Award for his play ‘Akedah’. In 2020 his short monologue ‘Sore Afraid’ was produced as a digital project by the National Theatre of Scotland, the Citizens Theatre, and BBC Scotland. In 2021 his play ‘This is Paradise’ was produced by the Traverse Theatre for the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where it won the Popcorn Writing Award.

Michael is currently on writing attachments with National Theatre of Scotland and Hampstead Theatre and is under commission with the Almeida Theatre as one of the Genesis Almeida New Playwrights, Big Plays writers for 2021/22.

His work as a theatre producer includes Artistic Producer of the Tron Theatre (2014-2020), where he founded the Tron Theatre’s new work department, and commissioned and produced new writing including Isobel McArthur’s ‘Pride and Prejudice’* (*Sort of).

Rachel O'Regan

Rachel O’Regan is an award-winning playwright based in Edinburgh, Scotland. She began playwriting at Australian Theatre for Young Peoples National Studio, and was selected for their 2016 production ‘The Voices Project: All Good Things’. She soon moved to the UK and was accepted to Edinburgh Napier Universitys’ MFA Playwriting programme, where she graduated with Distinction. Rachels first full-length play ‘Hungerland’ won the Bread and Roses Playwriting Award in 2019.

Her most recent play, ‘Afterparty’, was produced by womens theatre company F-Bomb Theatre and sold out its entire run at Edinburgh Fringe 2021. F-Bomb will return this year’s Fringe with Rachel’s upcoming play “The Beatles Were A Boyband”, which explores the impacts of misogyny and violence on women. The project was one of 20 to receive support from Creative Scotland Crowdmatch.

Rachel is interested in writing stories about women, social inequality and urgent issues all with an accessible sprinkle of comedy and pop culture.

Megan Shandley

Megan Shandley is a writer and performer from Edinburgh and a graduate of LAMDA. She gained a certificate in screenwriting from NFTS Scotland last year and was selected as a participant on Short Circuit's 2022 Convergence programme. She is currently writing ‘Paddington Marmalade Messiness’ an immersive theatre show running at Dalkeith Palace this summer. Having spent five years gigging on the UK comedy circuit, Megan has brought several stand-up shows to major UK festivals, has performed several times on the BBC, and was a 2017 Scottish Variety Award Nominee and a 2018 Funny Women Grand Finalist.

Megan is keen to bring both her classical drama and comedy experience into her work, and likes to deal with themes of identity, self acceptance and belonging. She is drawn to vulnerable yet resilient characters who are trying to make sense of the world around them.

Martin Smith

Martin Smith is a BAFTA winning filmmaker whose short ‘Tracks’ won the BAFTA Scotland Award for Best Short Film. He relishes drama rich in moral complexity, and is currently directing 2nd unit on Jack Thorne's latest drama ‘Best Interests’ with Chapter One Pictures and Endeavor Content for BBC One. He is developing original feature ‘Tarantula’ with First Features and 104 Films, plus several original drama series.

‘Armchair Detectives’, the crime drama hybrid Martin directed for Tiger Aspect and BBC One, won the BAFTA Scotland Award for Best Entertainment. Martin directed two episodes of ‘Holby City’ for BBC One, which was Nominated for Best Continuing Drama at the 2022 BAFTA TV Awards.

Martin is a member of the Directors UK Disability Working Group, and 2021 saw him selected for BBC Elevate. He is represented by Jennifer Thomas at United Agents.

JD Stewart

JD Stewart is a gay playwright, TV writer, screenwriter, performer, and digital content creator from the Scottish Borders. He holds an MFA in Dramatic Writing from New York University and an MSc in Playwriting from The University of Edinburgh.

His work includes: ‘Gay Boy’ (Frigid Festival, New York, 2018), ‘Compression’ (Theatre Uncut Finalist, 2019), ‘One Twenty-One’ (Verity Bargate Top 100, 2020), ‘The Birthday, Engagement, Funeral Party’ (Hope Mill Theatre Prize Shortlist, 2021), ‘Elastic’ (Platform Presents Play Prize Finalist, 2021), ‘Pinkface’ with Olivia Fischer (Vanishing Point: Everyone is Creative Award, 2021) and ‘Daniel Getting Married’ (dir. Kenny Miller, Play, Pie & a Pint 2022). In 2021 he was commissioned by the National Library of Scotland and 1623 Theatre.

Alongside Frazer Flintham, JD is co-host and co-creator of the UK LGBTQ+ History Podcast, The One Fifty Marchers, which charts the first LGBTQ march on November 27th, 1970.

BBC Writersroom's Voices 2022 - Northern Voices

2022-07-06T10:46:19+00:00

Northern Voices 2022

All this week we're announcing the 69 talented emerging writers from across the UK who have taken part in our Voices development programme for 2022. Today it's the turn of the 14 Northern Voices.

"We’re delighted to announce the 14 writers we’ve been working with from across the North of England, over the past few months. We’ve really enjoyed getting to know this talented group of writers and helping them to develop TV Treatments that showcase their authentic and original voice. The Voices Programmes has enabled the writers to develop their craft and allowed them the time, support and creative space to work on ideas they’re burning to write about. It’s been so great to see their creative growth and we’re excited to see what they do next!"

Usman Mullan (Development Producer, BBC Writersroom North)

See details of all the Voices writers 2022

Find out more about the Voices programme

Sian Armstrong

Sian Armstrong is a performer, theatre-maker, writer and creative practitioner. Sian created her one woman show STUPID (2017), which toured regionally to sell-out shows & received excellent reviews describing the show as, “[the] best piece of theatre seen this season.” In 2018 Sian was awarded Young Writers Talent Fund (New Writing North).

In 2019 Sian was part of 'Intro to Playwriting' at Live Theatre which led her to developing her newest show MAGIC BUS, which won Live Theatre's Artist Bursary 2019/20, and was shortlisted for Traverse Open Submissions 2020.

Sian was part of Scratch Me 2020-21 (BFI & Film Hub North), where she received mentorship from Baby Cow Productions & adapted STUPID into a short film. Sian recently performed in Zoe Murtagh's film 'After The Break' (BBC4: Female Filmmakers Too), has been commissioned as part of The Dukes’ 50th Anniversary 2022, and is co-writing a comedy about the women of 1700's Newcastle supported by Live Theatre & Arts Council England.

Amy Arnold

Amy Arnold is an emerging writer living in Macclesfield. She spent several years wandering all over the UK and beyond, working a variety of weird and wonderful jobs (including a brief stint milking cows), before settling by the Peak District to pursue her love of stories and scriptwriting.

Amy likes to explore power imbalances, family relationships, and the effect of grief and trauma on memory in her work. In 2021 she made the final shortlist from over 5000 entries for BBC Writersroom Drama Script Room with her TV drama pilot VOID. Her most recent drama script, BONE AND FEATHERS, has just been shortlisted for BBC Drama Room 2023.

Amy has spent the past two years working in the script team at Coronation Street, as well as reading scripts for Channel 4, and is very excited to be working on a brand-new drama as part of BBC Northern Voices 2022.

Alex Clarke

Alex Clarke’s work explores everyday people overcoming extraordinary circumstances. She uses her 20 years’ experience as a support worker to create TV about the human capacity for healing and change. Her original TV drama REFUGE is in development with the BBC and Dancing Ledge Productions. She is a writer in residence at DYSPLA working on her comedy VENUS IN 13. She adapted the memoir HOW TO BE AUTISTIC for TV with Adapted Pictures. She is also developing her original TV drama, LITTLE DEMONS, as part of The ITV/Dancing Ledge Productions New Talent Scheme – her mentor is Paula Milne (THE POLITICIAN'S WIFE / THE VIRGIN QUEEN). She is currently developing a new TV comedy as part of her BAFTA Writing Mentorship – her mentor is Lisa McGee (SKINT/DERRY GIRLS) and as part of The BBC Northern Voice’s Scheme worked on her new dramady series THE CON MOTHER.

Alex won the BBC’s Alfred Bradley Award with her drama WAKING BEAUTY and a New Writing North/Channel 4 TV Drama Writing Award with her drama BELOW which later went into development with Channel Four and Bonafide Films. She is represented by Mark Brennan at United Agents.

Billie Collins

Billie Collins is a writer from the Wirral, based in Manchester. Her debut play ‘Too Much World at Once’ is being developed by Box of Tricks Theatre for production in a future season, following rehearsed readings at the Stephen Joseph Theatre and HOME Manchester. She is also working on a new stage project with ThickSkin Theatre, as well as ‘Rathbone’s Antiques’ – an original children’s animated series in development with Toastie Animation (with development funding from the BFI's Young Audience's Content Fund.) Billie is an Associate Artist at the Oldham Coliseum Theatre, has previously written audio drama for BBC Sounds, been shortlisted for the 2021 Papatango Prize and selected for Film Hub North’s 2020 Script Lab. She loves playing with genre, as well as stories about nature, folklore, queerness and growing up. Billie is represented by Maeve Bolger at the Agency.

Daneka Etchells

Daneka Etchells is a disabled writer and performer from Carlisle. They were writer-on-attachment with Box of Tricks’ PlayBox 2021/22 scheme, developing their play Rogue Comet(s) with a rehearsed reading at HOME. They’re currently developing Sappho with Emmerson and Ward for UK tour Spring 2023 and have written for theatres such as Paines Plough, Theatre by the Lake and DaDa Fest.

After partaking in BBC North East Voices in Summer 2021, Daneka is receiving further support in developing their spec REEL. She’s completed development schemes with Sky Studios, New Writing North, Royal Exchange and Live Theatre.

Daneka writes about sore-thumb otherness - through disability, queerness, gender, class, rurality and technology - centring underrepresented protagonists in big cosmic stories in forgotten spaces, set on the precipice of (un)reality.

Later this year, they are commencing a MA in Disability Studies - investigating the portrayal of disability in TV and film.

Jasmin Mandi-Ghomi

Jasmin Mandi-Ghomi is a British-Iranian writer born and raised in Yorkshire. Her work has been staged at the Southwark Playhouse, the Arcola Theatre, and the North Wall, with her debut full-length show MADDY premiering at the VAULT Festival in 2020. Between 2019/20, Jasmin was on attachment with Tamasha Theatre Company as one of their developing playwrights which culminated in a virtual showcase of her play Your Vote Will Not Count. Her most recent play was The Magic of Wild Heather which was written for the National Theatre’s Public Acts and performed at Cast Theatre in August 2021. Over summer 2021, Jasmin was part of the Sky Writes programme managed by New Writing North. She is currently one of the artists that make up The Bank Cohort at Sheffield Theatres.

Olive Nwosu

Olive Nwosu was born in Lagos, Nigeria, and is a BAFTA-Pigott Scholar, Alex Sichel Fellow at Columbia University School of the Arts, and an ‘African Promises’ director selected by the Institut Français.

Olive has written and directed two award-winning short films, Troublemaker, now streaming on the Criterion Channel, and BIFA-nominated Egúngún (Masquerade), which screened at TIFF 2021 and Sundance 2022.

Olive is a 2022 Sundance Screenwriting Fellow and is currently developing her first feature film with Film4.

Her work is informed by the intersectional nature of her life across multiple continents and identities. Her mission is to tell urgent, cinematic, African-centred stories.

Liv Parkinson

Liv Parkinson is a writer from Merseyside. As a teenager, Liv won a National Theatre playwriting prize and was a runner up in a short story competition sponsored by Penguin. She then went on to specialise in Screenwriting at Westminster Film School. Whilst there, Liv wrote prolifically, writing and producing short films which featured at festivals such as Underwire and Encounters, won Best Drama at the Learning on Screen Awards, and won a Royal Television Society Award. Liv has just graduated from the National Film and Television School’s Screenwriting Course, where she developed several TV pilots as well as a radio play, two theatre pieces and several short films. Liv’s ultimate ambition is to pursue a career in TV Drama. Liv is represented by Amy Sparks at United Agents.

Rory Platt

Rory Platt is a writer who grew up just outside (and now lives in) Manchester. He writes offbeat, darkly comic, genre-bending tales about weirdos, loners, and misfits. Undead detectives. Survivalists living on roundabouts. Homicidal aristocrats. Mancunian vampires.

His work for theatre has been performed at the Southwark Playhouse, Theatre503, the Hope Mill Theatre, the Pleasance, and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. His play Without That Certain Thing, a "smart, fast-talking comedy thriller" with "a razor sharp and witty script" (The Upcoming, Reviews Hub), premiered at the VAULT Festival in 2019. He has an MFA in script writing from the Central School of Speech and Drama (supported by a Sky Arts disabled student bursary) and was a member of the Soho Theatre Writers' Lab.

He is the author of several books for children, including a volume of poetry, published by The School of Life. In addition to writing for TV and theatre, he is currently working on a collection of short stories.

Sufiyaan Salam

Sufiyaan Salam is a writer and ex-animator living in Manchester, UK. He wrote his first film at the age of 7 – it was shot entirely on a 2-megapixel cameraphone, years before Sean Baker shot Tangerine on an iPhone! Unfortunately, this early masterpiece has since been lost.

In 2019, after winning an award for a short film he wrote during his English Literature BA, Sufiyaan enrolled on to do an MA in Screenwriting at the University of Manchester. He then wrote his first play, White Girl, which was performed at the Bunker Theatre in 2020… the weekend before lockdown began.

In 2020, Sufiyaan started working in TV, as a junior storyliner at Hollyoaks. He now works as a Script Editor for JoJo & Gran Gran.

He currently has several projects in development, including a short film with Madre Films and an animated children’s series with the BBC.

Sangeeta Shakos

London-born Sangeeta Shakos is a half Indian, half French teacher who has lived in Greater Manchester for 30 years. She works part time in a specialist unit for vulnerable young people, where having a somewhat unconventional view of the world is an asset. She often draws inspiration from seemingly mundane people or situations and has a passion for writing character-based, uncompromising drama.

In 2017, Sangeeta’s drama ‘Absconder’ reached the final of the Channel 4 course 4Screenwriting. In 2018 she wrote theatre piece ‘Real Voices’ to raise awareness of issues such as criminal and sexual exploitation, which young people are facing today. The piece has now been seen by more than 25,000 people. In 2020, ‘Real Voices’ was commissioned and made into a short film (Isaac Who UK). In 2021, Sangeeta’s comedy drama ‘Changes’ was long listed for the Netflix Screenwriters’ Fellowship. She is currently working on a new drama as part of Northern Voices.

Matthew Smith

Matthew Smith, originally from Wakefield, is now based in Manchester and writes plays that are performed in a mixture of diverse venues; from damp pub attics to acclaimed theatres. As an alumnus of the Liverpool Everyman Young Writers programme, Matthew works with professional theatre groups, independent artists and people completely new to live performance.

Recently Matthew has written scripts for the Oldham Coliseum's online programming, secondary school students in Tameside, and an illustrated bedtime story for the Sandbach Transport Festival.

Chris Sutherland

Chris Sutherland is originally from Huddersfield but is now based in Sheffield and works full-time in Mental Health services. When not working he spends most of his time writing and learning about the craft of screenwriting.

He sees himself as an emerging writer and has been shortlisted for a Northern Writers Award, Writing for TV with Channel 4 and Bonafide Film 2021. He has been shortlisted for 'Writerslam' UK TV and Triforce Creative Network, writing for TV Award 2021. He was selected for Sky TV and New Writing North, 'Sky Writes' writing for TV talent development programme 2021. He was previously selected for Freedom Studios 'Street Voices 5' playwriting programme in 2015.

Kerry Wright

Kerry Wright is a writer and theatre-maker based in Keighley. Originally from Kent, she studied MA Writing for Performance at the University of Leeds before settling in Bradford a few years ago.

Kerry is currently developing KAILEY, a comedy drama play that is based on her teenage experiences of having parents in prison. She has previously secured funding from Leeds Council, Bradford Producing Hub and Arts Council England. Furthermore, Kerry was the recipient of the Live Theatre bursary which led to a rehearsed reading of KAILEY at Live Theatre’s Elevator Festival ’22.

Her short radio play SUCH IS LIFE was developed as part of the Dream Reality Radio Scheme and was performed at Leeds Playhouse's Furnace Festival 2021. In 2020, Kerry was awarded an Arts Council DYCP grant to explore working-class female voices within her writing. She was a writer on Freedom Studios' Street Voices 8 where her short play POUND TWENTY was part of a live streamed sharing.

Outside of writing and the arts, Kerry is a lover of grime, rap, politics and hot sauce on everything.

BBC Writersroom's Voices 2022 - London Voices

2022-07-05T09:30:49+00:00

London Voices 2022

All this week we're announcing the 69 talented emerging writers from across the UK who have taken part in our Voices development programme for 2022. Today it's the turn of the 13 London Voices.

"We’re so pleased to introduce these super talented, passionate writers from London, who we’ve had the pleasure of working with over the last few months. They all delivered brilliant treatments with a diversity of fresh ideas and subject matter across the board. We’re excited to see all the great things they’ll do next!"

Zahra Al-Sultani (Development Producer, BBC Writersroom London)

Meet them and find out more about them below.

See details of all the Voices writers 2022

Find out more about the Voices programme

Florence Bell

Florence Bell

Alongside acting (‘Wolf Hall’, ‘The End of the F***king World’) Florence Bell writes offbeat comedy drama exploring sexuality, consciousness, addiction, family, late-capitalism and magic.

In 2015 she co-founded Brave New Word, a new writing showcase through which she produced and directed 70+ pieces of original theatre and built a community of creatives over its four year life.

She is now writing for TV; her screenplay ‘Super Spiritual’, a darkly comic recovery drama about being saved by a two-thousand-year-old genie landed her on the C4 mentorship scheme in 2021 and London Voices 2022.

She looks forward to creating more work as an antidote to bewilderment in a chaotic and absurd age.

Florence is represented by Steven Russell at Collective Talent.

Safaa Benson-Effiom

Safaa Benson-Effiom is a playwright and screenwriter from London.

An alumna of the Soho Theatre Writers’ Lab, her play ‘Til Death Do Us Part’ was shortlisted for the 2019 Tony Craze Award and was one of the finalists for the 2020 Theatre503 International Playwriting Award. The play premiered at Theatre503 in May 2022 and earned Safaa an Offies nomination for Most Promising Playwright.

Her Play ‘For The Culture’ was longlisted for both the 2021 Women’s Prize for Playwriting and the Theatre Uncut Political Playwriting Award.

Safaa’s aim with her writing is to gain an understanding of the varied complexities of life from all perspective, no matter how unpopular or unconventional.

Jason Bradbury

Jason Bradbury is a London-based writer/director. In 2019 he wrote and directed the short film ‘My Sweet Prince’, commissioned by the BBC and BFI which premiered at BFI Flare and was shortlisted for Best of British short at the Iris Prize Festival. His work often explores the themes of home, memory and the search for belonging for LGBTIQ+ people.

As a director, his films include ‘Isaac and the Ram’ (2020, The Uncertain Kingdom), web series pilot ‘Dirty Laundry’ (2015, Winner of Best UK Pilot at Pilot Light TV Festival) and ‘We Once Were Tide’ (2011, BFI Flare) which has been viewed by over 17.5 million people on YouTube.

In 2020, he was one of six emerging filmmakers to be selected for the BAFTA x BFI Flare Mentoring Programme and has attended the Berlinale Talent Campus and Zurich Film Festival Academy. He recently finished the first draft of his debut feature and is developing a scripted drama series.

Eva Edo

Eva Edo is a screen and stage writer who tells stories which celebrate women and young people. Her work's coloured by her child protection lawyer and mother experience.

For TV, Eva’s developing a project with Renegade Productions and working on ‘Denial’ an original TV drama. For Film, Eva’s commissioned by Artemisia productions. Her short film ‘Maternal’ reached the finals of the 2022 Pitch Fund and picked up The Lucy Scher Prize.

For stage, Eva’s writing ‘Cake and Condoms’ for Open Clasp theatre which is co-created with women who support sex workers. In 2020 Eva wrote and performed ‘Tiger Mum’ at VAULT Festival. Also, she won the Royal Society of Literature Matters Award to develop ‘A Mother’s Courage’ where mothers explore youth violent crime. Eva’s debut play ‘Looked After Children’ was shortlisted for the Alfred Fagon Award.

Outside of writing, Eva's a facilitator at the National Youth Theatre. She’s also an alumna of Writers’ Lab at Soho theatre and the Criterion theatre. Eva is represented by Emily Hickman at The Agency.

Onyinye Egenti

Onyinye Egenti is a writer/director from a scripted background and writes for TV and Film. She is about to direct her first crime drama series for South African streaming service, Showmax.

For TV, Onyinye is currently working on an original drama series ‘Talent Nerve’ with support and mentoring from SISTER Pictures. She has two more projects in development, a period/contemporary drama series ‘Lost Queens’, and climate-change inspired series ‘I Will Take the Northern Lights’.

For Film, her first feature screenplay ‘A Season in Talgarreg’ was selected for MUBI & Wscripted's 2nd Cannes Screenplay List Selection 2022 and featured at the Cannes Film Market’s Producers Network on 17/18 May 2022. It was previously selected for Film London’s Microwave 2017 where she became a semi-finalist, and EIFF’s Talent Lab Connecta in 2019.

Her past work has been selected for London Calling Plus 2016 and the TCN Writerslam 2016 where she became a finalist and won a BBC Writers Award, later joining the BBC’s CDS workshop in 2017. She is also a 2013 Berlinale Talent Alumna.

Onyinye would love to write comedy on demand, but this usually only happens by accident. Currently she is a shadow writer and mentee on Netflix's mythological series in development ‘KAOS’ with SISTER Pictures and Charlie Covell (‘The End of the F***ing World’).

Tim Fraser

Tim Fraser’s five-star, sellout debut play ‘Candy’ was performed at the King's Head Theatre in 2020 (right before you-know-what), and is coming to the Edinburgh Fringe this August, with a short film adaptation also in development. With animator Sarah Soe, Tim is co-writing ‘Juniper Mae’, a series of illustrated children's books for Flying Eye Books, with the first set to be released next year.

He was shortlisted for the BBC Writersroom Drama Room in 2020 and got into the top 100 of entries for the Verity Bargate Award with his play ‘As It Comes’, assisted in the writers room for History Channel's ‘Knightfall’ in 2018, and graduated from the NFTS in 2017 with an MA in Screenwriting.

Topics that interest Tim include love, loss and identity. Having grown up a young carer, he often writes about disability and care, and draws from his experiences at a Catholic state school to explore subjects such as guilt, masculinity and authority. Along with his passion for comedy, drama and sci-fi, he would love to write TV for older children and teens. He also likes cats.

Lucy Goodman

Lucy Goodman is an emerging writer based in London. As a Cystic Fibrosis sufferer she seeks to tell stories based around illness and disability, both visible and non-visible. She wants to change the narrative of how disabled characters are commonly portrayed; subverting the overly sanitised approach, and showing that people with illnesses and disabilities are human beings with flaws, who don't always operate with moral purity.

Lucy made the shortlist for BBC Writersroom Drama Room 2021. In 2022 she was selected for Channel 4's Screenwriting scheme, where she is currently developing her next script.

Recently, she completed the Curtis Brown Creative course with tutor, Colin Teevan. By the end of the year Lucy plans to have directed her first play ‘The Little Yellow Pill’.

Stephen Hoo

Stephen Hoo is a British-Chinese writer and actor who grew up in Croydon. He studied Theatre at The Brit School before studying Modern & Classical Chinese at SOAS.

He then went on to complete an MA in Theatre Lab at RADA. His staged works include: ‘Jamaica Boy’ (Theatre Royal Stratford East), ‘Naked Eyes’ (Tristan Bates Theatre), and ‘YOLO’ (Arts Theatre).

He was a member of the Critical Mass programme at the Royal Court Theatre, and of New Earth Theatre Voices.

Stephen's writing explores themes of displacement, race and sexuality and the diasporic experience.

Lao Lee

Lao Lee is a British-Chinese playwright and composer. She is currently under commission with New Earth Theatre as part of their Professional Writers Programme.

She wrote her first play ‘Roots’ whilst on Soho Theatre Writers' Lab 2018/19, which was long listed for the Tony Craze Award and the Women’s Prize for Playwriting.

She was also part of Selladoor’s New Writers Programme and writing groups at the Royal Exchange. Her first musical ‘Spaces’ ran at Camden People’s Theatre in 2017.

Roberta Livingston

Roberta Livingston is an actor and writer of Caribbean heritage from London. Her writing credits include ‘Bite Your Tongue’ (2017) for Talawa Theatre Company, ‘La Merde’ (2018) for The MonoBox and ‘Hometime’ (2020) for Tamasha Theatre Company's writers’ group. She also wrote her radio play ‘Precious Little Thing’ (2021) for Talawa, feralinc & Radio 4 which led to a BBC Audio Award nomination.

Roberta was selected by Sky Arts & Creative England for shortFLIX, their scheme for emerging filmmakers. Roberta is also co-founder of Speaks of Rivers, a theatre collective of black women dedicated to making work for young audiences, she co-wrote their play ‘The Fourteenth Stop’ (2021) which debuted at Upstart Festival hosted by Shoreditch Town Hall and went on to be performed at Camden People's Theatre Sprint Festival and the Arcola's Outside Theatre in Autumn 2021.

Recently Roberta just concluded her time with the Almeida's Anthem writers group and currently has a TV series in development.

She enjoys writing about Black British womanhood through genres she adores from comedy to supernatural to thriller.

Shaan Sahota

Shaan Sahota is a doctor and writer living in London. She worked in domestic violence advocacy with Southall Black Sisters before re-training as a medic.

Her first play, ‘The Estate’, deals with a Sikh family in crisis over a disputed inheritance. It was shortlisted for the 2020 Women’s Prize in playwriting and earned her a place on Tamasha’s Writers’ Collective. The play is in development with BBC Drama Studios.

At the height of the pandemic Shaan was commissioned by The Oxford Playhouse and Tamasha to write ‘Under the Mask’ when her reflections on working in Covid ICU were published by the Guardian. ‘Under the Mask’ is an audio drama in 3D sound, and had a national tour of the UK in summer 2021.

In 2022 Shaan was seed commissioned by Theatre 45 North to write a new play and is taking part in a Royal Court writers’ group. She is due to start a writing attachment with the National Theatre in April.

Kevin Shen

Kevin Shen is an Asian-American and British East Asian actor and writer based in London. His feature screenplay ‘Angel Island’ was selected to the 2021 CAPE List (ten screenplays curated by the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment and The Black List), as well as to Dreamago’s Plume & Pellicule workshop in Sierre, Switzerland.

He is a recent alumnus of the Royal Court Theatre Introduction to Playwriting Group, Soho Theatre Writer’s Lab, New Earth Theatre Professional Writers Programme, School of High Tide, BEATS Screenwriting Fellowship, and Well-Tempered Productions’ Fresh Ink feature development programme, among others.

His short plays have been produced by Theatre503 and New Earth Theatre. Kevin co-produced and starred in the UK Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Pulitzer Prize finalist play ‘Yellow Face’ at the National Theatre and works as an actor across stage and screen in the UK and US.

Ava Wong Davies

Ava Wong Davies is a writer from London. Her theatre credits include ‘i will still be whole when you rip me in half’ (Bunker Theatre), ‘Half Blue’ (Audible/LAMDA), ‘small hours’ (IF Festival/Oxford Playhouse), and ‘Rime of the Second Sister’ (45North).

She is an alumna of the Soho Theatre Writers Lab 18/19, the Bush Theatre Emerging Writers Group 19/20, and the Royal Court Writers Group 20/21. In 2020, her play ‘scum’ was shortlisted for the Verity Bargate and Tony Craze awards, and longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Playwriting.

Her first TV project is currently in development with DNA Films and BBC Drama. Her play, ‘Graceland’, will premiere at the Royal Court in February 2023.

BBC Writersroom's Voices 2022 - Belfast Voices

2022-07-04T08:24:25+00:00

Belfast Voices 2022

It’s an immense pleasure to introduce you to our incredible Voices 2022 cohort. This year we have worked with 69 talented emerging writers from across the UK as they hone their craft skills and industry knowledge and apply their learning and creativity to the creation of treatment documents for new and original series ideas.

Between March and June this year the writers have participated in a range of craft workshops, expert masterclasses and panels with writers including Alice Seabright, Tony Schumacher, Daragh Carville and Lisa Holdsworth, plus industry talks from agents, producers and key industry organisations such as BAFTA Albert and the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain. The Voices have also been working collaboratively in their local groups to define and develop their original ideas with the guidance and editorial support of the BBC Writersroom team.

We’ve had a blast working with and getting to know these talented early career writers and we’re delighted to introduce them all to you. We'll be announcing one group a day this week (Belfast, London, Northern, Scottish, Welsh).

We are still in the process of deciding which writers will take part in the Voices development groups for 2023 following our Open Call script submission window which closed in January this year.

Jess Loveland, Head of New Writing, BBC Writersroom and BBC Drama

It has been an absolute blast working with this incredibly talented group of writers and it has been so exciting to see their ideas develop and evolve over the course of the programme. They’ve been an incredibly creative, enthusiastic, inspiring and supportive group and we can’t wait to see what our brilliant Belfast Voices do next!

Heather Larmour, Assistant Commissioner for Northern Ireland, BBC Writersroom & BBC Drama

Tom Berkeley and Ross White

Tom Berkeley and Ross White began working as a writing partnership in 2019. Their debut short film ‘Roy’, which the pair co-wrote and directed, played in competition at 14 Oscar-qualifying film festivals, before going on to be one of ten films longlisted for Best British Short at the 75th BAFTA Awards.

Their second short, the rural black comedy ‘An Irish Goodbye’, was filmed in Northern Ireland in Spring 2021 before going on to premiere at the Oscar®, BAFTA and IFTA qualifying Leeds International Film Festival. Currently on festival release, ‘An Irish Goodbye’ has recently won the European Audience Award at the Academy Award® qualifying Leuven International Film Festival in Belgium, the inaugural Norman Houston Award at the Capital Irish Film Festival in Washington D.C., and the Festival Award at Chicago Irish Film Festival.

The duo are currently in pre-production on a third short film whilst also developing a number of television and feature film projects.

Ash Corristine

Ash Corristine

With screenwriting training from UCLA, Ash Corristine’s work has been selected and showcased at the BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum twice. Her TV and feature scripts have won a number of awards including Table Ready, My Screenplay and Shore Scripts. In 2020, her play ‘David Duchovny’s Sperm’ was chosen for the New Irish Playbook and she made the interview stage of BBC Dramaroom. In 2021 her short script ‘Shadow’ won funding from Screen Ireland and her play ‘Savages’ was selected by Prime productions for Verge Season 2. She has a feature film in production with Screen Ireland, Northern Ireland Screen and Next Wednesday Films. She lives in Spanish Point with her partner and son.

Gina Donnelly and Seón Simpson

Gina Donnelly and Seón Simpson

SkelpieLimmer (Misbehaving Child) is a writing partnership featuring Seón Simpson and Gina Donnelly dedicated to making uncensored theatre that provokes change and starts conversations. They believe that “serious theatre doesn’t have to feel serious” and that is why they are committed to discussing taboo subjects in a fun and entertaining way. They premiered their partnership at Dublin Fringe Festival 2019 with the award winning ‘Two Fingers Up’. They have gone on to become resident Hatch & Scratch Artists at The MAC, Belfast for 2020/21 and are currently developing new piece ‘Crushed’ under the Abbey Theatre & Dublin Fringe Festival Creative Thinking Award, to premiere early 2023. Their hit show ‘Two Fingers Up’ is featured in Summerhall at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2022 as part of the Culture Ireland showcase.

Oliver Doone

Oliver Doone is a playwright from the North Coast of Ireland, who now lives in Belfast. After deciding writing was a pipe-dream, he abandoned his ambitions to go and study something he didn’t want to study, travel somewhere he didn’t want to travel, and work as something he didn’t want to work as. But no matter what he did, the spectre of writing always haunted him, and he eventually capitulated to his dream and started writing again.

His first play ‘The Free State of ‘Rathlin’ was shortlisted by Druid Theatre Company, his second play ‘A Matter Of Course’, is being performed by Theatre Royal Haymarket Masterclass at Latitude Fest in July. Oliver recently entered the realm of television writing, and subsequently reached the interview stage for BBC Dramaroom 2018 & 2020. He has several writing credits for BBC NI comedy ‘Soft Border Patrol’. In 2020, Oliver set up Feckless Theatre Company, and will be staging excerpts from his newest play ‘Murder Hole Beach’ in Belfast in August. His short film ‘Fable of a Ditherer’ will hit the Irish film circuit later this year.

Tom Floyd

Tom Floyd grew up on the north coast of Northern Ireland, a landscape and community to which he is constantly drawn back in his writing. He is a graduate of the Screenwriting MA at the London Film School. His background is in writing films, with numerous short credits over the years, and his most recent feature script in development with TW Films - ‘Heather’ - a drama about a woman nursing her dying mother while managing her own condition of lycanthropy. At the start of 2020, Tom completed the NI Screen-funded short ‘Caroline’ with Village Films, which he directed from his own script. His work exists at the intersection between a naturalism of the everyday and the excitement of genre conventions. Not all his projects are single word titles of a woman’s name however. Increasingly interested in the scope offered by TV miniseries as a broader form for storytelling, Tom is developing, amongst other ideas, a four-part thriller about the mental health pressures faced by a man who works for the police, on the task force for a serial acid attacker investigation in contemporary Belfast. Its working title is ‘Policeman’.

Dan Gordon

Dan Gordon is a writer, actor, and director. He has presented and co-authored many tv and radio documentaries, has a number of produced stage plays to his credit and is a weekly columnist for the Sunday Life Newspaper since 2009. He has written a series of published plays for children on Shipbuilding, Linen, Blitz, Education, Agriculture and Titanic. His work has been performed across the UK and Ireland in Belfast, Dublin, London, Edinburgh, Mold and New York. He won the BBC NI inaugural Radio Drama playwriting competition and has had a short story broadcast on Radio 4. He regularly writes for the public and corporate sectors recently completing work for Belfast Harbour Commission (175 Anniversary), Belfast City Council (Commemoration), Bushmills Whiskey (Tasting Notes), Titanic Visitor Attraction (Chartered Association of Business Schools) and W5 Science & Discovery Centre Belfast (Belfast Blitz). He has written and performed radio comedy for BBC Radio Ulster and is a regular contributor to news and current affairs programmes.

Aidan Largey

Aidan Largey is the Writer/Director of numerous award winning short films, with commissioned work for BBC, BBC3 and RTE. He created the crime series ‘Farr’ which debuted at Number 1 on the RTE Player. It was also critically successful, winning Best Drama from ITVFest and Best Original Pilot and Best Director at Series Fest and is now in development as a long form series.

Aidan then directed new episodes of ‘The Break’ series ‘Last Night In Belfast’ and ‘Binbagged’ (Nominee for Best Short at Celtic Media Festival) for BBC3 as well as ‘Eat The Rich’ for RTE Storyland. He was selected for the prestigious David Puttnam Scholarship and recently completed post-production on ‘Human Error, an ambitious BFI sci-fi short and directed 20 episodes of the first series of Channel 5’s new kids’ drama ‘Mimi’s World’.

He is currently in development with Causeway Pictures and Northern Ireland Screen on debut feature thriller ‘Monsters(s)’ with Heather Basten casting (Dashcam/Blumhouse Production, Jungle/Amazon Studios, Dreaming Whilst Black/BBC3). ‘Monsters(s)’ was an international screenplay finalist including Austin Film Festival, PAGE International, Screencraft Fellowship and Austin Film Festival. Aidan is currently directing episodes of a YA Sci Fi Drama series for Zodiak.

Nicky Larkin

Nicky Larkin is an incurable introvert who feels a bit too comfortable writing about himself in the third person. He's a writer/director and documentary filmmaker from Offaly, living in Belfast.

Excused from the obligations of human interaction during the first lockdown, he wrote the comedy short ‘Gone Viral’ about a middle-aged man’s bleak quest for social media stardom during the Covid pandemic. Funded by Northern Ireland Screen and produced by Green Dragon Media, ‘Gone Viral’ was filmed during a brief window between lockdowns, and went on to win 'Best UK Short' at the North London Comedy Festival, and 'Best Comedy' at the Oxford International Short Film Festival.

His feature-length screenplay 'The Screamers' is currently in development as part of the Northern Ireland Screen New Writer Focus, the first draft of which he also wrote during the lockdown - an incredibly productive time that as an incurable introvert he sometimes pines for, but is afraid to admit that publicly.

Nell Mercier

Nell Mercier is a comedy writer and improviser from Connemara. She is a resident performer at the alternative comedy company ‘Mob Theatre Dublin’, where she performs with her house team ‘Sneak Preview’. She also writes and performs with her improv group ‘Pseudo Queens’. Nell’s first script was shortlisted for the BBC Comedy Writer’s room in 2020, starting her screenwriting career. She has a playful approach to any theme she writes about but gets a great kick out of writing about wild Irish women and teenage girls.

Katie Bridget Murphy

Katie Bridget Murphy is a writer, filmmaker & actor from Belfast. She is also a law & politics graduate with a background in radio production, having produced several shows for local radio station, Blast106.4fm, including music & politics/current affairs.

After completing her law degree, Katie studied acting & filmmaking in London at the ‘International School of Screen Acting’ in East London at the Three Mills Studios and at the ‘Margie Haber’s Studio’ in LA where she received a scholarship to study. In 2018-2019, she was offered a place on Northern Ireland Screen’s ‘New Shorts Focus’ writing scheme and subsequently wrote & directed her first funded short film ‘Miss & Missus’ produced by Farset Films, Northern Ireland Screen & BFI Network.

She has most recently finished writing & directing her NI Screen funded film ‘Fourth’ and her Arts Council funded film ‘Silver’. Her poetry has recently been included in CAP’s newest ‘Poetry in Motion’ anthology ‘Threshold’ 2021-2022.

Mark Kavanagh

Mark Kavanagh is a graduate from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (LAMDA) and has worked as an actor in the UK and Ireland. Mark has always written extensively and for the theatre wrote/directed ‘Mad North Northwest’, ‘Cold Snap’, ‘Wake’, ‘A Noose for Hanratty’, and ‘Ratchet’. Mark moved back to Northern Ireland in 2019 and his new play ‘The wife and me…and my sex doll Ruby’, premiered in Belfast in 2022. Mark has recently been commissioned by the BBC and worked on ‘The Break’ and ‘Soft Border Patrol’.

Eimear Morgan

Eimear Morgan is a screen writer from Newry. She came to the attention of the BBC by applying to multiple writing opportunities through their BBC Writersroom page. To date she has been short listed for the BBC The Biggest Weekend comedy monologues May 2018, short listed for Sideline Production’s comedy showhouse radio play Oct 2019, long listed for BBC Zodiak Kid’s Writers Award Scheme Dec 2019, long listed for BBC iPlayer comedy shorts March 2020 and long listed for 33Films Short Film call April 2021.

Eimear wrote her first feature, ‘Faces In the Grain’ during the 2020 lockdown. With a love for dark comedy, she finds writing an excellent form of therapy for grief. After ten years working in retail, she is more than ready to try and carve out a career as a writer.

Karen Quinn

Karen Quinn is an award winning writer and educator based in Donegal. She was longlisted for the Mammoth Screen TV Writer’s Award 2021, and twice shortlisted for the Sir Peter Ustinov Television Scriptwriting award run by the International Emmy Committee, in both 2014 and 2015. She was also the winner and recipient of the Northern Ireland Comedy Writers programme in 2016, organised by Grand Scheme Media, and a shortlisted writer and director for Jameson First Shot 2016. She has toured her writing both nationally and internationally. She is also a published children’s writer, with her work broadcast on television and published in short story collections. At the moment, her main focus of creative work is on young women’s mental health.

Claire Whyte and Matt Whitby

Matt Whitby and Claire Whyte’s first screenplay ‘Living with Abaddon’ was shortlisted for interview by the BBC Writersroom Open Call 2021. They subsequently joined the BBC Writersroom Belfast Voices programme 2022, where they developed ‘Charitable Causes’, as well as an anthology series ‘Dog Walkers’ – both with a dark comedy slant.

In 1997 Matt and Claire moved from the UK Midlands to Ireland and retain a shared connection to their roots and the sharp tongues they grew up around. After thirty years of friendship, they formally began writing collaboratively as Whitby and Whyte.

Determined and hardworking, Whitby and Whyte write surreal stories with darkly comic undertones and authentic, multi-layered characters. These two have an appetite for telling original and funny stories - that bite!