Overview

Rupert Walters - Restoration; Lee Hall - Billy Elliot; Richard Curtis - Notting Hill, Four Weddings, Bridget Jones, The Tall Guy, Blackadder; Frank Cottrell-Boyce - Welcome to Sarajevo; Neal Purvis and Robert Wade - The World is Not Enough; Shawn Slovo - Captain Correlli's Mandolin; William Boyd - Chaplin; Hossein Amini - The Wings of the Dove; Simon Beaufoy - The Full Monty From the editor of Smoking In Bed: Conversations with Bruce Robinson, praised by playwright David Hare as 'the most puely likeable book about cinema I have ever read' (Guardian, Books of the Year) comes the first ever anthology of interviews with British screenwriters. Talking about their work at home and in Hollywood, some giving in-depth interviews for the first time are ten of the top names in British screenwriting. Lively and funny, challenging and revealing, this series of exclusive interviews with the unsung heroes of contemporary British cinema provides a unique behind-the-scenes look at the movie business, eseential for wannabe writers, industry insiders and film fans alike.

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9780747561897

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Reviews

'Owen's thorough research and penetrating questions are what make this book ... the conversation is hilarious as well as informative, and budding screenwriters should pay close attention to extraordinary nuggets' Guardian 'A fascinating, insightful collection' Independent on Sunday

This is an anthology of interviews with leading British screenwriters, conducted and edited by Alistair Owen. The interviewees - some of whom have directed as well as written films - represent a fair cross-section of contemporary British cinematic blood: Notting Hill's Richard Curtis (responsible, amongst other things, for the divine Blackadder series); Simon Beaufoy (writer/director of The Full Monty); Lee Hall (Billy Elliot), and the writers behind Bond thriller Die Another Day all appear. There are nine interviews in total, each spanning roughly 30 pages; space enough for Owen to tease out plenty more than the bare bones from his more than willing subjects. His questions are incisive and encourage elaboration; the writers respond amply, providing masses of incidental detail and name-dropping. Most are eager to talk about cinema in a wider sense, relating their own work to the themes and concerns of British film-making as a whole - what defines the success of a British film; how does the British movie hold up in the shadow of Hollywood; what is it about the Brit-flick that has captured the imagination of its audience? And, of course, how does one write it? The book's chief success lies in Owen's willingness to sit back and allow his interviewees space to talk; he and his readers are repaid with loquacity and bonhomie. There is more than enough flavour in the meat of the interviews for the general reader as well as the specialist, and the easy style of the transcriptions encourages reading. This is obviously an enthusiastic labour from a man who knows - and cares - a great deal about his subject; film buffs and budding writers will snap it up, but they need not be the only ones. (Kirkus UK)

Author Information

Alistair Owen writes for Time Out and the Independent on Sunday. He is the author of Smoking in Bed: Conversations with Bruce Robinson.

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