Edward Woodward, star of The Wicker Man, Callan, The Equalizer and Common as Muck, to name but a few, has died at the age of 79.
I feel terribly sad at the loss of someone who has been a screen presence throughout my life, and has left such a fantastic body of work behind them.
BBC item
Wikipedia
IMDB
Edgar Wright on Edward Woodward
The best laid plans, eh?
The weekend went well. I failed to complete the first draft of The Preservationists but will do so in the next few days. The reason for non-completion? Mainly that weekends are perhaps not the best time to lock yourself away in your writey den. I knew that certain jobs would need doing, and that was fine, but Sunday afternoon became a casualty of necessary maintenance on the garden, and whilst it's true that I could have stayed up and worked into the small hours I was happy enough that I can finish it this week not to bother.
Friday saw 13 pages written, a respectable start.
Saturday was another 13 page day.
Sunday saw only five pages written.
So that's about 31 pages written of a likely 60.
I'm out laughing at Eddie Izzard on Tuesday night so I'm unlikely to get any work done then but the rest of the week looks good. If I were a betting man I'd bet on wrapping on Wednesday night.
I'll keep you posted.
I've been watching stuff and I thought I'd share...
Medium - You know, it's funny. I was always aware of Medium. I knew it existed. I knew it starred the lovely Patricia Arquette. Somehow I never bothered watching it though. I think I may have made some assumptions about the nature of the format and/or the quality of the show, based on what I don't know. Anyway the twittering of Mr and Mrs James Moran inspired me to take a look at the first episode. The first episode inspired me to watch the second episode. The second episode - well you get the idea. Medium is excellent and I'm happy to tell you why... The relationship between the main characters is totally believable, they are very real, rounded, flawed characters. Patricia Arquette and Jake Weber portray a couple who don't always see eye to eye but love each other deeply, and usually find a compromise together. There is a variety in the stories that I didn't expect. Most of all though I enjoy the interaction between the characters, and those unexpected shocks they slip in sometimes. It's a great series and I recommend it wholeheartedly.
Burn Notice - I had heard murmers about this series but hadn't seen any until I stumbled upon a Burn Notice marathon on the USA channel while Emma and I were in New York in the summer (meant to post about that but never got around to it - Best. Holiday. Ever. New York is now my second favourite city). It's a brilliant show. Anything featuring Bruce Campbell is always going to be worth a look, but the premise, the tone and the performance of star Jeffrey Donovan make this excellent viewing. Think Hustle with a dash of Bond and a broad streak of humour. I haven't actually seen that much of Burn Notice yet, but now Lost is out of the way (probably) I plan on catching up.
FM - Caught up on this thanks to Virgin Media's ITV player. Just brilliant. Great cast, great scripts, great show. The only downside was the pop star cameos - appearances are OK but actually having them play a song while the characters watch is BORING! Hoping a second series will be forthcoming.
Lost - After eighteen months and 103 episodes I am finally up to date with what I have come to think of as probably the best and most consistent series of all time. Now I'm resisting the urge to try and watch it all over again before the sixth and final series starts next year. So far so good...
I think my calendar is broken. It's telling me November but that can't possibly be right can it? Hmm. Seems my phone is broken too. And my laptop. And my watch. Oh hang on, I don't wear a watch...
"So how come you're so enthusiastic about your work again?" You're probably not asking. I'm glad you asked. It's because there's something I haven't told you, dear reader. A couple of months ago I left my employer of some ten years for a job that allows me more flexibility, a shorter commute, and some hope of having the energy to work when I come home of an evening. I was sad to leave the old firm, they've been good to me and I will always be fond of them, but there are changes on the way and it was a prudent move. Happily my new job has been a terrific success. I'm home much earlier in the evening and writing most evenings.
Better yet, don't use a dyson to hoover your laptop keyboard.YES! I have finally started work on my long gestating family drama series. Fingers crossed for the Robin Hood slot. Actually there's not a hope in hell of it being made. It would cost a fortune and no one would invest in an expensive series by an untested writer. It's just meant to show what I can do. It's great fun to outline anyway, and hopefully that will come across to readers. Planning to have the first pass on the pilot script complete by the end of October.
I've been working on one feature script all year, in between changing jobs and other scary/exciting real life stuff, so it feels good to put that aside and work on something new. One skill I seem to totally lack is the ability to juggle numerous projects at the same time. I have to crack that. The revised target for this year is to hit January with three new specs, feels like I'm on course for the first time in ages. Very exciting.
There seems to have been some grumbling recently from writers who want to get into TV but don't want to write for Doctors, or Casualty or the soaps. There's nothing wrong with those shows you know. Chances are, unless you're incredibly fortunate, you'll have to write for something along those lines before anyone decides to film your magnificent octopus so don't get too precious. No one is too good for Casualty or the serial dramas, and those shows are going to look pretty damn good on your cv. Here are some gob-smackingly excellent writers who started out on these shows; 
Tony Warren (Corrie)
Jack Rosenthall (Corrie)
Paul Abbott (Corrie)
Frank Cottrell Boyce (Corrie)
Paul Cornell (Corrie, Casualty)
Matt Jones (Corrie)
Gerry Davis (Corrie)
Barbara Machin (Emmerdale Farm)
Tony McHale (Eastenders)
Catherine Tregenna (Eastenders, Casualty)
Ashley Pharoah (Casualty)
Keith Temple (Casualty)
And some fella called Tony Jordan (Boon, Eldorado, Minder, Eastenders).
If it was good enough for them (and many more) then it's well good enough for me.
Watching The Blair Witch Project and The Haunting in the same week has highlighted to me that the two films, though very different in execution, use the same techniques to render the viewer terrified.
In neither film do you ever see anything truly supernatural or horrific. The tension and scares come from hearing the history of Hill House, or the urban myths of Burkittsville as locals recall stories concerning the history of the town.
Even when the forces of evil strike you still see nothing. The presence of evil is demonstrated purely through the terrifying sound effects and reactions of the cast, building on what you have learned from the films characters.
So sometimes it does pay to tell, not show.
TV's James Moran and the previously mentioned Monsieur Daniel Turner have a new project coming at the end of October, just in time for Halloween.
It's a web series called Girl Number 9 which will be available internationally from here at 9pm GMT on October 30th.
The press release says...
Vincent Boylan (Joe Absolom) has just been arrested, suspected of being behind the brutal murder of seven girls, but the team only have a limited time to get a confession. If they can't make him talk, he could slip through their fingers. Detective Matheson (Gareth David-Lloyd), who is leading the investigation, is sent in to try and get some answers. But things soon take a horrifying turn for the worse, as Matheson and his boss Lyndon (Tracy-Ann Oberman) find out that all is not as it seems. The mystery deepens as everyone is drawn into Boylan's sick mind games, and each twist-packed episode ends on a tantalising cliffhanger, making every instalment a must-see.
Those Twitter links are...
