World Service drama
The Writers' Guild has written to Nigel Chapman, Director of BBC World Service, to complain about the recent decline in drama output.
In her letter, Guild Deputy General Secretary, Anne Hogben, says that "the decline in World Service Drama since 2005 represents a loss of over 100 hours of commissions for writers and over 600 days of work for actors."
Before 2005, she continues, "a play and two episodes of the popular ongoing series, Westway, were broadcast each week. Now it would appear that just eight plays will be made in-house and only fourteen plays in total will be broadcast per year. We are, of course, relieved that the drama slot still remains, but it is just not enough."
Urging Chapman to reverse the decline in drama and commit to producing at least 26 new plays per year, Hogben concludes that: "If you are unable to do so, we will urge Mark Thompson, the BBC Trust, the Foreign Office and Parliament to assist us."
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