Word Scrubs
Peggy Stanhope's literary executors, siblings Meg and Mitch, face tough decisions in order to secure re-publication of her children's books, written in a very different era.
Mitch and Meg, siblings in their 30s, are the great great nephew and niece, and literary executors, of Peggy Stanhope (1889-1959), a prolific and profitable writer of books for children and young adults from a very different era.
Beloved by generations of children around the world, White Star (1943), winner of the Carnegie Medal, is the story of a snowy horse, owned by a young woman, who frightens away the evil stallion Black Boy from a village. Because of its time of publication, White Star was seen by some teachers and preachers as a patriotic allegory of Allied superiority to the Nazis, although Stanhope, denied this.
In 2023, a Hollywood streamer wants to adapt the book as movie, but, as a condition, wishes to change the title and some of the plot and language.
The meetings between the siblings and the publishers are intercut with Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Service readings from Stanhope’s work, and interviews with their author on Desert Island Discs, in a drama that takes its inspiration from the current debate over whether classic texts should be rewritten for contemporary re-publication.
Written by Mark Lawson
CAST
DAME JESS ELLIOTT - Jane Slavin
MITCH - Damian Lynch
MEG - Tracy-Anne Green
PEGGY STANHOPE - Barbara Flynn
SKIPPY LEAVESDEN-SMART - Tom Glenister
LORD JUSTICE SHARP - Clive Hayward
Producer/Director: Eoin O'Callaghan
A Big Fish Radio production for Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4
Last on
Broadcasts
- Thu 6 Apr 2023 14:15Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4
- Sat 15 Apr 2023 14:45Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4
Opening Lines
John Yorke unpacks the themes behind the stories in Radio 4's weekend afternoon dramas.
The Shakespeare Sessions
Immerse yourself in Shakespeare’s world