Category: Radio
Date: 25.01.2005
Printable version
Anthony Cropper is the winner of the seventh biennial
Alfred Bradley Bursary Award with his play Telling
Stories.
The award, open to northern based writers who have already had a small
amount of work published or produced but who have not had a Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio
Drama commission, is one of the most prestigious and generous awards
for dramatists in the country.
The judges - playwright and novelist Willy Russell; Caroline Raphael
(Commissioning Editor at Radio 4); poet and author Jackie Kay; actor
Barbara Marten; Petra Bradley (daughter of the late Alfred Bradley);
and Melanie Harris (project director, Northern Exposure) - selected
Telling Stories from over 280 entries.
Anthony's play focuses on four people who seem set on destroying each
other. They meet for a meal. They bicker and fight, they flirt and tell
stories. They chip away at each other, pouncing on weaknesses.
Their varying interpretations of that evening highlight the difficulties
of communication. The characters are out to score points and they raise
the stakes until one of them breaks.
Willy Russell said: "As soon as I began reading the play, I had
that unmistakeable sense of being drawn into an expertly drawn world.
"I liked the script's sense of daring and its ability to present
the bleakness of these lives without the play itself ever becoming bleak
or nihilistic.
"Although this is a muscular, robust and meaningful drama, the
author understands the need to engage and entertain his audience."
In addition to a bursary of Β£5,000, Anthony will also be considered
for a Radio 4 commission and the opportunity to develop further ideas
into future commissions.
Anthony said: "This is just fantastic news. It's just what I need
at this point in my career. It's great to get some sort of recognition
for the years in the dark and the bursary will enable me to work on
my writing whilst awaiting the birth of my third child."
The award, established to commemorate the life and work of Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ radio
producer Alfred Bradley, is unique in its dedication to encouraging
writing for radio drama.
Anthony Cropper is originally from Fleetwood and his first novel, Weatherman,
was published in 2001.
In 2002 he wrote Wanderlust for the acclaimed cross-art form production
company Talking Birds, seen at Scarborough's Festival of Light, and
contributed text to the Orfeo 5 concerts developed by writers and musicians
through Word Hoard in Huddersfield.
He has also had over 30 short stories published.
In 2004 he collaborated with Talking Birds again on their 24 Piers
Project.
His second novel, Jack and Sal, was published in June 2004 and his
second edited collection of stories, Naked City, was published in November
2004.
Telling Stories is his first play for radio.
The runners-up are Dick Curran, from Whitley Bay with Therapy, and
Brigie de Courcy, from Leeds with The Wolf's Eyelashes, whose plays
were highly commended by the judges.
Dick's novel Almost Persuaded was published in 1999 and he has written
a number of stage plays and screenplays.
In 2003 he was awarded a TAPS showcase for his TV script Wedding Plans.
Brigie is currently the Senior Story Editor on Emmerdale and has written
several theatre plays for children, which have been produced by Handwritten
Theatre Company in Ireland.
Dick and Brigie will each receive a bursary of Β£500.
Notes to Editors
1. Previous winners include Lee Hall, who won in 1994 with I Luv You
Jimmy Spud.
He went on to write the critically-acclaimed Spoonface Steinberg for
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio and the Golden Globe winning film, Billy Elliot.
Peter Straughan, 1998 winner, wrote The Ghost of Frederico Garcia
Lorca Which Can Also Be Used As A Table, broadcast on Radio 3.
His Radio 4 commissions include When We Were Queens in 2000, adapted
from his own stage play; his adaptation of Andrew Motion's book Wainewright
the Poisoner; and Centurions, which he co-wrote with Bridget O'Connor
for Woman's Hour.
2. Alfred Bradley (1925-1991)
Alfred Bradley joined the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ in 1959 as a radio producer in Leeds,
moving to Manchester in 1971.
His work with the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ over 24 years was widely recognised as outstanding
and he won many awards.
Alfred set out to enhance the drama tradition of the North, broadcasting
the work of the region's writers and actors to national audiences.
Among the dramatists he helped to launch during his career were Alan
Plater, Keith Waterhouse, Alan Ayckbourn, Stan Barstow and Alun Owen.
