This work came out of a two-month stint I did at the BFI during my MA, when I made the acquaintance of screenonline‘s editor Mark Duguid. Mark subsequently commissioned me to write various biographies and overviews of television series, the funds from which kept me in groceries during the financially lean but otherwise pleasurable PhD years. The site was aimed at Further Education students, so the tone is formal but not too high-flown. I was again writing to specified lengths depending on the importance Mark accorded each subject, and the focus had to be on Britain. Even if an actor had enjoyed a substantial Hollywood career, this would receive comparatively scant attention. It was a very good discipline, and felt a lot like my previous copywriting work: I was given a brief, and worked to it – only this time with an educational bent, rather than promotional. The website is no longer updated, sadly; entries are listed here alphabetically.
Biographies