I’m a playwright, screenwriter and book writer – drawn inexorably and always to the same stories. Stories about women who are underestimated – chafing against the narrow confines of society, grappling with love, and fighting to change the system. Irreverent. Maverick. Rule-Breakers. Game Changers. Kick Ass bad girls doing good.
My plays have been on the BBC and performed on the British stage. Casts have included Andrew Scott, George MacKay and Claire Rushbrook. I am a recipient of the Jerwood Arvon Playwrighting Award, The Young Vic’s Playwright’s Matchmaking Scheme, and was nominated for a BBC Drama Award.
I have written a feature film based on one of the world’s greatest unsung heroines – the children’s rights campaigner – Eglantyne Jebb. The screenplay is an adaptation of my stage play which was performed at the Roundhouse and starred Helena Bonham-Carter and Joely Richardson. It is based on the brilliant historian Clare Mulley’s award winning biography – The Woman Who Saved The Children, and her support has been invaluable. I am co-writing a musical with Ralph Pelleymounter and Dan Smith, lead singer of Grammy-nominated band Bastille, whose track Pompeii has been streamed over a billion times.
A passionate cinephile – I founded and run The Script Factory – one of Britain’s leading film development organisations for filmmakers. Past Script Factory Board members included Anthony Minghella (The English Patient), Eric Fellner (Working Title) and Jenne Casarotto (Casarotto Ramsay & Associates) . Alumni include Stephen Knight (Dirty Pretty Things), Moira Buffini (The Dig) and Geetika Lizardi (Bridgerton). Described by The Times as “the beating heart of the British film industry”, The Script Factory is highly regarded for its staged readings, screenwriting programs and masterclasses including such luminaries as Wes Anderson, Alfonso Cuarón, the Coen Brothers, Gurinder Chadha, Charlie Kaufman, Aaron Sorkin and Spike Lee.
I was an active elected Board member the British Council, Scottish Screen and The Film Committee of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). I chaired BAFTA’s Education and Events Committee and chaired their Awards Juries for Best Original and Adapted Screenplay, Best Foreign Film, Best Costume Design and Best Short Film. ( I promise I am not nearly as opinionated as this list makes me sound.)
During the Covid lockdown, alongside the amazing Dan Smith, I co-hosted an online film club, Distraction Tactics, whose weekly audiences reached up to 60,000 people. It was a total joy and an utter privilege to connect with film lovers from around the globe.
