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Dateline: 12th May, 2002 Southwest Scriptwriters New Writing Competition Winners Southwest Scriptwriters, Bristol's leading group for writers of drama for all media, is staging its fifth annual season of script-in-hand performances next week from Tuesday, 14 to Saturday, 18 May. This year's event, supported by the National Lottery Awards for All scheme, is taking place at the Tobacco Factory in Bedminster and features staged readings of six scripts by seven local writers. A panel of independent judges selected the scripts from among 33 entries in a competition held last November. The competition's overall winner is Ray Brooking and Judy Thunhurst's television situation comedy, Seven Sisters, set in a London convent. The half-hour sitcom brings together a bride, six nuns, a bishop and an unspeakable relic in an irreverent tale that lays bare the frustrated longings that lurk behind the starched habits and serene smiles. Brian Weaving's stage play, In Charge, is first runner-up. The drama centres on what happens when a school trip goes wrong, examining the damage done to a teacher's career by the ensuing recriminations and media storm. Second runner-up is Canute2, a play by John Colborn set amid the intrigues and romance surrounding the struggle for the eventual succession to King Canute. Canute2 also promises a fun explanation of Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity! Kate Stonham's radio drama Won't You Come Home, Bill Bailey is third runner-up. As her ageing grandfather heads towards rapid decline, Mandy finds herself reassessing what has always been a difficult relationship. The fourth runner-up is Claire Griffiths' stage play, Daisy's Chain, in which an adopted daughter's search for her real mother opens a Pandora's Box of family revelations. Michael Karwowski's Oh, I Don't Know About That, a play about love found, lost and found again, is fifth runner-up. The action centres on three characters - a farmer, a PR executive and a sculptor. Local actors and directors, including Bristol Old Vic's assistant director, Joyce Branagh, and writer-in-residence, Toby Farrow (the people behind the recent Bare Face Chic season in the New Vic Studio Basement), will present the scripts. Toby's play Gringos, which went on to receive full productions in Bristol and London, was debuted in Southwest Scriptwriters' first season of script-in-hand performances in 1998. Other plays presented originally in the group's New Writing seasons include Mark Breckon's The Camp and Steve Hennessy's Still Life, both of which received productions at the Tobacco Factory last year. Southwest Scriptwriters' artistic director, Tim Massey, commented: 'The New Writing season is the highlight of the group's annual programme. It's fantastic to be able to give members' work a public showcase, demonstrating the wealth of talent we see every Tuesday at our meetings.' The season's programme is as follows:
Tickets priced £5 (£4 concessions) per performance or £12 (£9 concessions) for all performances are available from the Tobacco Factory box office on 0117 902 0344. Please note that all three Archive indices are very long and will therefore take some time to download.
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