From Tumbledown to Shameless, this season of pioneering British television fiction looks at changes in 'radical' drama as writers reacted to the Thatcherite revolution and explored the realities behind 'New Labour'.
Introduction by Marcus Prince
The finest British television drama has tended to emerge from those writers seeking to challenge the prevailing establishment view, who explore the inequalities within society or push at the boundaries of morality and taste - the so called 'radical' dramatists.
Last month, part one of this season examined the origins of the radical drama movement and its reaction to the emerging right-wing politics of the Thatcher government.
This month we explore the changes that have taken place in radical drama as a new generation of writers has emerged, with a more tenuous connection to the left-wing ideology of the 60s and 70s, whose craft was more likely to have been honed on genre-led series than overtly political dramas. From powerful responses to Britain at war (The Falklands Play and Tumbledown) to examinations of the mistrust and cynicism engendered by the reaction to New Labour (The Deal; The Government Inspector), the season considers the changing definition of what it means to be a 'radical' dramatist now.
Having already focused on how Thatcher changed the television industry, we ask how the genre has had to adapt to survive in the post-Thatcher television marketplace and what form it should take in the multi-channel age. To help us examine such issues we will be joined in a special discussion by the writer and producer Paul Abbott, director Peter Kosminsky, Head of Drama Channel 4 Liza Marshall, producer Kenith Trodd, and the writer/creator of Skins, Bryan Elsley. The debate will follow a preview screening of an episode from the new series of Abbott's Shameless, a fine example of an almost 'post'-radical drama.
Other screenings will include talks by writers, producers and directors such as Peter Flannery, Ian Curteis, Jeremy Howe and, filming schedules permitting, Stephen Frears and Peter Morgan. There will also be a lecture examining The Government Inspector in greater detail prior to the screening.
In collaboration with the Department of Media Arts, Royal Holloway, University of London and with support from LCACE.
November calendar (PDF)