Daniel Cotton (Philip Glenister)
Why did you want to write a 驶love letter to Manchester始?
It's interesting this because what I actually said I set out to write was, "A love letter to Manchester, warts un'all" So it's supposed to encompass the good and the bad side of the . The city is more aesthetically pleasing and has nicer shops and cafes but has it lost some of its soul in the process? It始s a tough one. The drama is about reinvention - not just the city but the characters in the drama - they embody the rapid change of the era I suppose. I was particularly keen to dramatise the pull of the city to those living in the suburbs. Manchester has reinvented itself repeatedly over the years but the attitude and humour and openness has remained the same. But, in the end, if the drama doesn始t transcend its setting and speak to a wider audience then I始ve failed. So it始s about the usual human problems. The What Ifs? The What Nots ...
What is it about that particular event and that particular time-period that appealed to you?
The summer of 96 seemed to be one of those moments when you could feel change in the air. The combination of . The . . The fag end of an unloved and tired Tory Government. I started writing this after the coalition came to power in 2010. That for me represented the end of the optimistic bubble that had sustained us since 1996. This isn始t partisanship on my part (although I am partisan) but an observation about the national mood. So I wanted to write about the death of something in 2010. And the best way to do that was to try and mark where it began. And then the story of 96, 97 and 2000 started to fall into place.
Samuel (Bernard Hill), Robbo (Steven Mackintosh)
You have a fantastic cast 鈥� did you write any of the characters with certain actors in mind?
I始ve wanted to write for for a long time, he seemed right. He created an iconic figure in but I also remember his gentleness in a cameo role in , his vulnerability in and . Two sides to him. I knew it was going to be a story about a man who can始t choose and I knew Phil could embody that. and I have worked with before so they are never far from my thoughts. And who wouldn始t want in their drama? () On the whole though I write with old Hollywood actors in mind. I find it frees the story up.
How did you develop the characters and how do they help you tell the story?
Just watching human beings and see how messed up we all are. Take my character - self made business man, no nonsense,a bit bewildered by how soft the modern world seems to be. Well. If I meet someone like that, with that degree of certainty then I know they must be hiding something. Deceiving themselves or someone else or usually both. The deception may well just be emotional but it始s there. Any man or woman with that degree of certainty is a man or woman with a lot of repressed emotion and self doubt and pain. So that is interesting to write about.
and are the two brothers from the Prodigal Son. The good one who stays to help his Father and the bad one who strays.
Daniel (Philip Glenister), Joanne (Liz White)
I was determined that the women should not be just dupes, or passive recipients of Daniel始s emotional conflict.
is a deliberate attempt to celebrate the heroism of single mothers. On her own, two jobs and a sofa from a skip. Two teenage boys - one with learning disabilities. Whatever the prevalent media line, like most single mothers she works hard every day of her life. No real time for meaningful emotional engagement in her life. And Daniel finds her attractive in the same way I do, I think. He finds her heroism attractive. Which is all well and good but as his brother Robbo points out - he doesn始t have to live that life.
again is a tough, articulate woman but of a different sort. She has raised the kids, pursued community projects. They met at university. She始s cleverer than him but has parked that because he始s gone back into the family business. She has energy, intelligence and an immense sense of frustration. And he doesn始t see that. Not after the bomb he doesn始t. He doesn始t see anything after the bomb other than his own place in the world. And in she has her moment, believe me. She gets all this out there.
What did you learn from your time working on Continuing drama shows?
That every scene has to serve the story. That structure is the key (for me at least), and don始t go out of a scene on more than one gag. My early seemed to turn and into a double act. Nobody could leave a cubicle without a quip or oneliner. Sometimes you can just let a scene sit. The next scene may actually be the punchline ...
What tips have you got for other budding writers?
Keep writing. Keep rewriting. Nurture any relationships within the industry when you find someone on your wavelength. Never give up! It is such a fluid industry now that you are never too old to make a breakthrough. And when you go to a meeting to pitch always have a spare idea up your sleeve ...