Show Notes
In this bonus episode, RLF trustee Mark Lawson explores the challenges new and established dramatic writers face today as the Royal Literary Fund celebrates the announcement of the first recipient of the Robert Holman Award this #WorldTheatreDay. The discussion features the award-winning playwrights and founder of The Friends of Robert Holman, David Eldridge (Festen, Market Boy, Under the Blue Sky, Beginning, Middle) and friend of Holman, Simon Stephens (Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, Vanya), in addition to Juliet Gilkes Romero, RLF Fellow and National Theatre Writer in Residence (The Gift, The Whip, Day of the Living), Ishy Din, RLF Fellow and Royal Court Associate Playwright (Snookered, Champion), Joe Ward Munrow (The Legend Ned Lund, Screaming Heart) Robert Holman Grant Award recipient, and also TV screenwriter Sameera Steward (Geek Girl, Get Even) and the Olivier nominated writer for stage, screen and audio, Joe White (Blackout Songs, Little Big Things, 1984 on Audible), both of whom are recipients of the RLF's JB Priestley Award, given to writers of promise. You can watch this discussion on our YouTube channel and you can find out more about our Grant Awards on our website. www.rlf.org.uk © Royal Literary Fund
More from Collected: The Podcast
Celebrating 100 years of Winnie-the-Pooh with Her Majesty The Queen Recorded at a special event attended by the Royal Literary Fund's patron Her Majesty The Queen in Ashdown Forest, home of the Hundred Acre Wood, this bonus episode celebrates the legacy of Winnie-the-Pooh and the bequest author AA Milne left the RLF. Highlights include broadcaster and writer Gyles Brandreth on his friendship with Christopher Robin Milne, Gruffalo illustrator Axel Scheffler explaining the enduring power of the stories, former CBeebies presenter and author Cerrie Burnell sharing what Winnie-the-Pooh means to her, as well as conversations with children's author Sita Brahmachari, writer and journalist Mark Lawson, and RLF Chief Executive Edward Kemp. Since donating a portion of his Winnie-the-Pooh royalties to the RLF, AA Milne's bequest has generated £91 million for the Royal Literary Fund's grants, education, and outreach programmes, a legacy that means Winnie-the-Pooh is helping to support hundreds of writers today. © Royal Literary Fund www.rlf.org.uk
After a summer of heatwaves and with 2027 set to be another record-breaking year for temperatures, Jay Griffiths joins host Jonathan Tulloch for a very timely discussion about nature writing and its role in combatting the climate crisis. The conversation touches on the importance of libraries, how we can foster a love of the environment in children, the bravery that investigative journalism requires and Jay's work with Extinction Rebellion. © Royal Literary Fund www.rlf.org.uk
Tying in with International Translation Day, the Belarusian writer joins host Julia Copus to discuss the joys and sensitivities of bringing poetry into English, and the challenges of writing in the face of authoritarianism, sharing how her time in prison following the 2020 Belarusian uprising laid the foundations for her latest book. © Royal Literary Fund www.rlf.org.uk
Celebrated memoirist and novelist Cathy Rentzenbrink talks about how she exorcised the ghost of her brother from her novels by writing The Last Act of Love, why writing can be a struggle, the healing power of reading projects, and why she loves talking to strangers on trains. © Royal Literary Fund www.rlf.org.uk
Critically acclaimed writer Lauren J Joseph joins Ann Morgan to discuss how acting informs her writing process, why the time after you finish a manuscript can be so difficult, how generative failure can be and the publishing industry's treatment of marginalised communities. The pair also celebrate their shared love of Iris Murdoch's The Bell and talk about the overlooked intellect of Muriel Spark. © Royal Literary Fund www.rlf.org.uk