CHILDREN'S
In recent years, children's TV has become my favourite genre to work in. Kids are the best audience to write for: smart, funny and engaged, they place absolute trust in us and reward it with loyalty and commitment. They will remember the programmes we make now for the rest of their lives. And don't even think about talking down to them, they'll smell it a mile away and switch off: a great rule to keep us on our toes.
After writing an episode of ME AND MY MONSTERS for Tiger Aspect/Jim Henson, I joined the writing team of BING at the development stage and wrote 14 episodes, including part of the Christmas special that had a cinema release in 2019.
Writing on Bing was an incredibly rewarding challenge: with input from child psychologists, animators and producers, and working closely with the creator Ted Dewan, we put the experiences of a preschool audience at the heart of the storytelling in a way that hadn't been approached before. I was able pinpoint tiny but hugely significant experiences in my own young children's lives and build stories around them.
In 2016, Bing won the International Emmy Award for best preschool programme, and was nominated for a BAFTA in the same category.
BING: 'FROG'
Around the same time I joined the writing team on THE DUMPING GROUND, CBBC's hugely popular drama about children in care, created by Jacqueline Wilson. I've written three episodes, for series 3, 4 and 10. Both series 3 and 4 were nominated for best drama at the Children's BAFTA Awards.
THE DUMPING GROUND: 'THE LONG WAY HOME'
Full episode available here
I've also written for Sky's THE ATHENA, set among the teenage students of a London art college. The Athena was nominated for best drama at the 2019 Children's BAFTAs.
