Beautiful shot and thoughtful, The First ultimately hits all the beats you expect it too, with no surprises. The First is a futuristic drama documenting the first manned mission to Mars. It’s set in the near future – the latter part of the 21st century – and as a result feels very contemporary, albeit with… Continue reading The First: No alarm and no surprises
Tag: story telling
Dark River
I’ve just come back from watching a preview of Dark River, Clio Barnard’s new film, and hearing Clio speak about the making of the film and it’s pretty much all I can think about. I love the look of this film. The score is sparse with the sounds of the landscape making up a great… Continue reading Dark River
Week three: Moving things on
Embarking on this course was with a couple of objectives in mind. To develop a creative practice where I am writing regularly, and collecting and reflecting upon ideas. Deadlines. I’m a classic procrastinator and without a deadline I will never finish anything. Praxis. Learn through doing: the best way to get better is to write… Continue reading Week three: Moving things on
Red by Somalia Seaton
Oh my god, I loved this play. An exploration of grief and friendship, I love the replaying of scenes, looking for the missed clues, dropped stitches, trying to make sense of things. It’s a motif I also found powerful in Rabih Alameddine’s I, The Divine where the book is entirely told in first chapters, as… Continue reading Red by Somalia Seaton
Hanna by Sam Potter
What’s a play? This short play by Sam Potter is a one-woman performance of the story of a child, accidentally sent home from the hospital with the wrong family as an infant, and the chaos that ensues when the mistake is discovered. Sadly, I didn’t to see this performed, but the story is so compelling,… Continue reading Hanna by Sam Potter
Mosquitoes
When I found out about Mosquitoes it was fully booked, but the gradual release of a few tickets and my willingness to head down to London for a Saturday matinee, meant I was lucky enough to see it. I think Mosquitoes is one of the most visually impressive plays I have ever seen, played in… Continue reading Mosquitoes
Experiences, not things: watching telly get made
Spotting locations from Happy Valley has been a highlight of my recent visits to Calderdale. Not content, however, I embarked upon a journey to see some of it being filmed. It was amazing to see the work and dedication which goes into a single scene of television drama, which will amount to a matter of… Continue reading Experiences, not things: watching telly get made
Books to read: Into the Woods – John Yorke
Inspired by Nick Hornby, I am listing my books bought/books read. I’ll review some as I go. But to begin with this is my latest acquisition, a non-fiction number.
Ten books
I was thinking last night about some of the stories which have meant a lot to me, and stayed with me, despite it being years since I had read them. I read most of these books between 1999 and 2005 – a hugely transformative time in my life where I moved out of my parent’s… Continue reading Ten books
Why I write
I have always been obsessed by storytelling. As a child I had a writing desk and a favourite pen and a notebook, and I wrote. I had to write. Pretty much nothing has changed. I write every day. I have to write. It’s a compulsion. Recently I heard the glorious Sarah Lancashire talking about acting… Continue reading Why I write