Writers Guild Equality Writes

Listed below are just some of the writers, MPs and organisations who have pledged their support

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Sandi Toksvig

Kay Mellor

Gwyneth Hughes

Jack Thorne

Lucy Kirkwood

April De Angelis

Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti

Katherine Ryan

Gaby Chiappe

JoJo Moyes

Sarah Solemani

Katy Brand

Alison McGovern MP, Chair of the Performers' Alliance APPG

Tracy Brabin MP

Kate Kinninmont MBE, CEO, Women in Film & TV (UK)

Musicians' Union

Equity

ERA

Writers Guild of America, East

International Affiliation of Writers Guilds

Spotlight

"No woman writer has got through without a struggle and it’s criminal that I can count on one hand how many women signature writers there are on TV right now. Sometimes it takes a collective to say 'this is not fair' and it’s not. It’s time things changed."
Kay Mellor
"If I’d been given a job for every time I’ve been asked about the lack of female screenwriters I could have turned these terrible statistics round single-handed. What we need is not more hand-wringing and not being able to find any women writers but equal opportunity for all."
WGGB President Olivia Hetreed
"It's time to stop pretending that things are spontaneously going to get better for female writers. It's time for action and commitment to change from those in power. It's the right thing to do for our industry and our audience."
Lisa Holdsworth, WGGB Deputy Co-Chair
"The industry needs to look further afield and examine hiring practices that favour men. ERA 50:50 is proudly supporting the 'Equality Writes' campaign, launched by the WGGB. Steps must be taken by those in power to address the issues deeply rooted in the screen industries, as without equality for female writers and directors in film and TV, we stand little chance of on-screen equality."
Polly Kemp, Co-founder, ERA 50:50
"Any industry showing such endemic gender inequality needs to ask itself a serious question. The reasons behind these depressing statistics may be many and varied but ‘women can’t write’ won’t be among them."
Gaby Chiappe
"This report demonstrates that despite an abundance of talent – with women writers behind financially and critically successful dramas, from Happy Valley to Call the Midwife – women writers in TV and film are less likely to get commissioned and to get opportunities to move into bigger shows. By failing to make the most of these ‘untapped resources’, we are also missing out on a richer variety of voices and storylines."
Alison McGovern MP, Chair of the Performers' Alliance APPG
"All we're asking for is a meritocracy for all writers regardless of gender, race, disabilities or class. Let us into the meetings. Read our pitches. Work with us. We all have glorious stories to tell. Let us tell them."
WGGB Chair Gail Renard
"There is no shortage of talented women writers in the UK, and therefore no excuse that so few of them are getting commissions in film and TV. WGGB’s Equality Writes campaign is a vital one, and one that I – as a member – wholeheartedly support."
Sandi Toksvig
"We do not live in an all-white, all-male, classless society. Our stories need to reflect that. "
Tony Grisoni
" Equity wholly supports the ‘Equality Writes’ campaign of the WGGB as a means of securing the improved portrayal of women on screen through an increase in the number of women screenwriters. Across the entertainment industry we need to see clear, measurable targets set to improve the status and employment of women and engagement with efforts to tackle conscious and unconscious bias. We will work closely with the WGGB in aligning our aims with theirs."
Christine Payne, Equity General Secretary
"The conclusions of this new research have confirmed what we have all long suspected. There is a dire need for change. It's also very clear that there is now a pressing need for more such studies to support the drive for equality on all fronts. This is only the beginning. "
Andrea Gibb and Line Langebek, WGGB Film Co-Chairs
"Films and TV shows written by women in the UK have flatlined over the past decade and remain at a shockingly low level. Let’s have an open and honest debate about how we can collectively bring about positive change for all under-represented groups of writers in film and television."
WGGB General Secretary Ellie Peers
"Writing reflects and examines our entire society and culture. We can't do that properly if most of the writers are straight, white, able-bodied and male."
Darren Jones
"It is unacceptable that all writers do not have the same avenues open to them and we believe that this evidence and the potential solutions outlined will change this situation for the better in the future."
Barbara Hayes, Deputy CEO, ALCS
"The results of the Writers' Guild research make shocking reading. I hope we can move on to an honest and open debate about why this inequality still afflicts our industry."
Gwyneth Hughes
"Women have stories to tell, about ourselves, humanity and the world. We just want equal airtime in which to share them."
Katy Brand
"The figures in this report are truly shameful. Sadly, they also accurately reflect many areas of our industry. Women directors are scarcely better off and women composers are much worse off. Even in areas where women dominate – such as wardrobe and makeup – we know that the top men are paid more than the top women. The bias is everywhere. Transparency is the only answer. Everyone needs to be aware of how bad things are before we can begin to improve them."
Kate Kinninmont MBE, CEO, Women in Film & TV (UK)
"As a woman and a professional writer, I've encountered more discrimination in writers rooms than I did working on building sites in the 1990s."
Lisa Gifford
"Most of the recent successes in comedy have been written or co-written by women. I’m thinking of Fleabag, This Country, Motherland and Catastrophe. Comedy is about surprise, about constantly refreshing and challenging the audience’s POV. There are so many more stories to tell, let’s make sure we keep up that variety in our comedy. We are the envy of the world. "
Lucy Lumsden
"This report confirms that the many great female writers currently working in British TV and film face glass ceilings and systemic bias. Women are under-represented in high-profile genres and ghettoised in lower-paid and less prestigious areas. The situation has barely improved in the last decade. Action must be taken."
Emma Reeves, WGGB TV Chair
"We’ve seen little action for too long, all the while hearing that ‘things are improving’. They are not. We need wholesale change and we need it now."
Sophie Petzal
"This is an appalling statistic. How can the stories we tell reflect our lives if they're only told by men? "
David Lemon
"I feel very fortunate to be one of the 28% writing for TV for 20 years. I know a lot of women who had to give up along the way. All those voices gone. All those stories lost. "
Katherine Smith
"At last I have the stats to back up what I’ve felt so keenly for 10 years of working in television – that talent, ambition and perseverance simply isn’t enough, not if you’re a woman. This discrimination must end, and quickly too."
Dominique Moloney
"Until we see a more equal division of screen time for female writers, we’re unlikely to see women's lives – their real lives, where they are not necessarily victims or sexual objects – reflected back at us. Let’s move forward."
Jojo Moyes
"Film and television don't just reflect the world; they are a powerful tool for shaping it. Too often this tool is used to reinforce inequities and peddle stereotypes rather than challenging them."
Catherine Mayer
"These statistics are a shocking reminder that decision makers in the creative industries remain predominantly male. This is bound to have a knock-on effect throughout the production process and leave a trail of gender bias which will affect creators, workers in the industry and audiences. We hope the WGGB's report will be a catalyst for change."
Naomi Pohl, MU Assistant General Secretary
See the full list of campaign supporters