Helen Blakeman

Last updated

Helen Blakeman
Born1971 [1]
Liverpool, [2] England
OccupationPlaywright, screenwriter
LanguageEnglish
GenreDrama

Helen Blakeman (born 1971) is a British playwright and screenwriter from Liverpool. She has written three plays. Caravan, her first, was written while she studied at Birmingham University and won her the George Devine award. Her second play, Normal, was followed by an entrance into screenwriting. Pleasureland is a 2003 television film about teen sexuality, for which Blakeman was nominated for the British Academy Television Craft Awards for Best New Writer in 2003, after which Blakeman wrote her third and most recent play, The Morris. In 2008, she wrote the screenplay for the award-winning television film Dustbin Baby , which was well received by critics, and for which she won the British Academy Children's Award for Best Writer. Helen is also the co-founder of Heroic Books LTD.

Contents

Early life

Blakeman became involved in female morris dancing at age three. It was this dancing, combined with watching pantomimes and plays at Butlins, which led to her going into a career in theatre. She then joined the National Youth Theatre and studied drama at John Moores University. It was at university that she began to write. Blakeman then took a Master's course at Birmingham University under David Edgar. [3]

Career

Publicity still for Dustbin Baby, written by Blakeman in 2008. Dustbin Baby- April and Marion.jpg
Publicity still for Dustbin Baby , written by Blakeman in 2008.

It was at Birmingham University that Blakeman wrote Caravan. Terry Johnson saw a performance of the play, and took a script to Mile Bradwell of Bush Theatre. The play was then shown at the Bush Theatre. [3] The play tells the story of a mother and her two daughters staying in a caravan in north Wales, [3] and Robert Butler of The Independent described the play as displaying "a lively gift for dramatising family disputes and representing young people's sex lives with a good-humoured frankness". [4] A black comedy, David Benedict, also writing for The Independent, criticised the plot as "contrived", saying that "The problem with this kind of writing on stage is that unlike a soap, it has to have theatrical shape, not least in that it has to end". [5] The play won Blakeman the George Devine award. [4] Blakeman's second play, Normal, also opened at The Bush. Normal tells the story of a mother who lost two children in child birth and her surviving daughter, and the play alternates between a character's monologues in a police station and the events leading up to the incident which brought her to the station. Butler described this as "tougher going" than Caravan, and said that "Blakeman's talent for unlikely scenes is largely on hold". [4]

Blakeman then entered television writing, writing Pleasureland , a television film for Channel Four as part of their Adult at 14 season. Pleasureland tells the story of 14‑year-old Jo, a girl who commits herself to be accepted by her classmates by losing her virginity. [6] The Times described Pleasureland as "raw and alarming", and claimed it "is loaded with scenes certain to cause outrage". [6] The show attracted controversy, with Michelle Elliott, from Kidscape, describing scenes depicting 14‑year-olds engaging in sexual activity as "basically irresponsible and sick." [7] Blakeman responded by claiming that she only approached the subject after learning that Britain had the highest rate of teenage pregnancy in Europe, claiming "sex was more of a rumour mill when I was at school – but there is more pressure now to partake in that activity". [7] Despite this, Blakeman was nominated at the British Academy Television Craft Awards for Best New Writer in 2003, but lost out to Rosemary Kay, for her work on This Little Life . [8]

Blakeman's third play, The Morris, follows a troupe of female morris dancers. Female morris dancing is a tradition in the north west of England which is only loosely related to traditional morris dancing. Blakeman had been a female morris dancer until she was 16, but the play "is as much about bickering, bonding and fierce rivalry between women". It was given a two out of five by Lynne Walker, reviewing the play for The Independent . [9] [10]

In 2008, Blakeman wrote the screenplay for Dustbin Baby , a film based on the Jacqueline Wilson novel of the same name. She said that when she had read a copy of the novel, she "knew it was something [she] had to write". [11] The film debuted on television in December of that year, and was received positively by critics. In an article in The Times David Chater awarded the programme the TV choice of the day, describing it as "tremendous", and "the wonderful surprise of Christmas". [12] The Telegraph described the film as a "rare treat", as it is "something that teenagers and parents can watch together". [13] The film won an International Emmy in the children and young people category, [14] and Blakeman herself won the British Academy Children's Award for Best Writer. [15]

She has been featured in Variety for her developing adaptation of the novel 'Listen to the Moon' by Michael Morpurgo.

Works

Plays

Films

Television

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maggie Smith</span> English actress (born 1934)

Dame Margaret Natalie Smith is an English actress. With an extensive career on screen and stage beginning in the mid-1950s, Smith has appeared in more than sixty films and seventy plays. She is one of the few performers to achieve the Triple Crown of Acting, having received highest achievement for film, television and theatre, winning two Academy Awards, a Tony Award and four Primetime Emmy Awards. Hailed as one of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actresses, she was made a Dame by Queen Elizabeth II in 1990 for contributions to the Arts, and a Companion of Honour in 2014 for services to Drama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julie Walters</span> English actress (b. 1950)

Dame Julia Mary Walters, known professionally as Julie Walters, is an English actress. She is the recipient of four British Academy Television Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, two International Emmy Awards, and a Golden Globe Award. Walters has twice been nominated for an Academy Award: once for Best Actress and once for Best Supporting Actress. In 2014 she was honored with the BAFTA Fellowship. She was made a Dame (DBE) in 2017 for services to drama by Queen Elizabeth II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helen Mirren</span> English actor (born 1945)

Dame Helen Mirren is an English actor. The recipient of numerous accolades, she is the only performer to have achieved the Triple Crown of Acting in both the United States and the United Kingdom. She received an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen, a Tony Award and a Laurence Olivier Award for the same role in The Audience, three British Academy Television Awards for her performance as DCI Jane Tennison in Prime Suspect, four Primetime Emmy Awards and a Children's and Family Emmy Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kim Cattrall</span> British and Canadian actress (born 1956)

Kim Victoria Cattrall is a British and Canadian actress. She is known for her role as Samantha Jones on HBO's Sex and the City (1998–2004), for which she received five Emmy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning the 2002 Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress. She reprised the role in the films Sex and the City (2008) and Sex and the City 2 (2010).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jennifer Ellison</span> English actress, model and singer

Jennifer Lesley Ellison is an English actress, former glamour model, television personality, dancer and singer. Ellison is perhaps best known for playing Emily Shadwick in the television soap opera Brookside until 2003, and as Meg Giry in the 2004 film adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera. Ellison also starred on the reality television show Dance Mums with Jennifer Ellison, the UK version of the American show Dance Moms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helen Baxendale</span> English actress

Helen Victoria Baxendale is an English actress of stage and television, known for her roles as Rachel Bradley in the British comedy drama Cold Feet (1997–2003), and Emily Waltham in the American sitcom Friends (1998–1999).

Catherine Tyson is an English actress. She won the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the film Mona Lisa (1986), which also earned her Best Supporting Actress nominations at the Golden Globes and BAFTA Awards. She has starred in The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988), Priest (1994), and Band of Gold (1995–1997). She won the British Academy Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2022 for her performance in the film Help.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheridan Smith</span> English actress and singer

Sheridan Caroline Sian Smith OBE is an English actress, singer and television personality. Smith came to prominence after playing a variety of characters on sitcoms such as The Royle Family (1999–2000), Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps (2001–2009), Gavin & Stacey (2008–2010), and Benidorm (2009). She played the role of Joey Ross on the drama series Jonathan Creek (2009–2013) and went on to receive acclaim for starring in a succession of television dramas, such as Mrs Biggs (2012), Cilla (2014), The C Word (2015), Black Work (2015), and The Moorside (2017). Her feature film credits include Tower Block (2012), Quartet (2012), and The Huntsman: Winter's War (2016).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romola Garai</span> British actress

Romola Sadie Garai is a British actress and film director. Known for her extensive work on stage and screen she often acts in period films. Her early film roles include Nicholas Nickleby (2002), I Capture the Castle (2003), Inside I'm Dancing (2004), and Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004). She's gained prominence for her performances in the critically acclaimed costume dramas such as Vanity Fair (2004), As You Like It (2006), Amazing Grace (2007), Atonement (2007), Glorious 39 (2009), and Suffragette (2015).

Pleasureland is a 2003 Channel 4 feature-length television drama focusing on a group of teenagers in Liverpool who feel pressured to grow up. Written by Helen Blakeman, directed by Brian Percival and produced by Kudos, the makers of the BBC One espionage series Spooks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hermione Norris</span> British actress

Hermione Jane Norris is an English actress. She attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in the 1980s, before taking small roles in theatre and on television. In 1996, she was cast in her breakout role of Karen Marsden in the comedy drama television series Cold Feet. She appeared in every episode of the series from 1998 to 2003 and was nominated for a British Comedy Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dakota Blue Richards</span> British actress (born 1994)

Dakota Blue Richards is an English actress. Her film debut at the age of 13 was in The Golden Compass, as the lead character Lyra Belacqua. Other lead roles include the wayward teenager April in Dustbin Baby and Maria in the 2009 film The Secret of Moonacre. In 2011 she played Franky Fitzgerald in the third generation cast of British teen drama Skins. She has also played roles in television, film and on stage.

Georgia Taylor is an English actress. Her TV roles include Toyah Battersby in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street, Ruth Winters in the BBC One medical drama series Casualty (2007–2011), and Kate Barker in the ITV crime series Law & Order: UK (2013–2014).

<i>Dustbin Baby</i> 2001 novel by Jacqueline Wilson

Dustbin Baby is a children's novel by Jacqueline Wilson. It focuses on April, a fourteen-year-old girl who was abandoned by her mother in a dustbin when she was only a few minutes old. After a blazing row with her foster mother, she goes in search of her past. The book was adapted into a television film in 2008 by the BBC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wunmi Mosaku</span> British-Nigerian actress (born 1986)

Oluwunmi MosakuListen is a Nigerian-born British actress. She is known for her roles as Joy in the BBC Two miniseries Moses Jones (2009) and Holly Lawson in the ITV series Vera (2011–2012). She won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Gloria Taylor in the TV film Damilola, Our Loved Boy (2016). In 2019, she starred in the fifth series of Luther. In 2020, she starred as Ruby Baptiste in HBO's Lovecraft Country, and starting in 2021, starred as Hunter B-15 in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) television series Loki.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claire Foy</span> British actress (born 1984)

Claire Elizabeth Foy is a British actress. She is best known for her portrayal of the young Queen Elizabeth II in the first two seasons of the Netflix series The Crown (2016–2017) for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.

<i>Dustbin Baby</i> (film) 2008 television film directed by Juliet May

Dustbin Baby is a BBC television film directed by Juliet May, based on Jacqueline Wilson's 2001 novel of the same name. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 21 December 2008. The film stars Dakota Blue Richards as April, a troubled teenager who was abandoned in a dustbin as an infant, and Juliet Stevenson as Marion Bean, April's adoptive mother. David Haig stars as Elliot, Marion's friend and colleague. The screenplay was written by Helen Blakeman, and the film was produced by Kindle Entertainment. Dustbin Baby deals with themes including maternal bonding, bullying, and youth crime. The story revolves around April running away on her fourteenth birthday, while Marion searches for her. April's life is recounted in flashbacks as she meets people and visits places that are significant to her.

Jane Greenwood is a British costume designer for the stage, television, film, opera, and dance. Born in Liverpool, England, she works both in England and the United States. She has been nominated for the Tony Award for costume design twenty-one times and won the award for her work on The Little Foxes.

Kindle Entertainment is an independent television production company based in London, England. Kindle Entertainment was formed after ITV Kids was closed, and current personnel includes Anne Brogan, the former controller of ITV Kids, and former head of development at ITV Kids, Melanie Stokes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucy Hutchinson (actress)</span> English child actress

Lucy Rose Hutchinson is an English child actress, best known for playing young Elizabeth Shaw in Ridley Scott's Prometheus.

References

  1. ↑ "Helen Blakeman". Doollee.com. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  2. ↑ "Pom-poms on parade". Chester Chronicle. 29 April 2005. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  3. 1 2 3 Key, Phillip (29 April 2005). "A rare kind of dancing". Liverpool Daily Post . Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  4. 1 2 3 Butler, Robert (2 May 2000). "All dressed up but going nowhere". The Independent . Retrieved 20 December 2009.[ dead link ]
  5. ↑ Benedict, David (18 November 1997). "Theatre Review: Join the caravan of love and war" . The Independent . Archived from the original on 9 May 2022. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  6. 1 2 "Victoria Segal finds a startling young acting talent in Katie Lyon". The Times . 8 November 2003.
  7. 1 2 Barrett, Tony (10 November 2003). "Mersey TV drama is branded 'sick'". Liverpool Daily Post .
  8. ↑ "Craft Nominations 2003". British Academy of Film and Television Arts . Retrieved 4 January 2010.
  9. ↑ Walker, Lynne (26 May 2005). "The Morris, Everyman Theatre, Liverpool". The Independent .[ dead link ]
  10. ↑ Rees, Jasper (5 May 2005). "The lone male is in the kitchen, helping with the tea". The Telegraph .
  11. ↑ Riley, Joe (19 December 2008). "Helen's tale of woe". Liverpool Echo . Retrieved 21 December 2008.
  12. ↑ Chater, David (20 December 2008). "TV Choice". The Times . London. Retrieved 22 December 2008.
  13. ↑ McNulty, Bernadette (19 December 2008). "Dustbin Baby". The Telegraph . Retrieved 21 December 2008.
  14. ↑ Robinson, James (24 November 2009). "Sir David Frost wins International Emmy in ceremony dominated by Brits". The Guardian . Retrieved 16 February 2010.
  15. ↑ "Richard Hammond wins Bafta for best presenter". BBC. 30 November 2009. Retrieved 16 February 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.