Dead Good

Our YouTube video featuring the theme tune of ITV police drama Taggart has seen its popularity grow once more.

The film, which was created to celebrate programme creator Glenn Chandler's visits to Norwich Writers' Circle in October and December 2010, has now been watched over 2,500 times.

To view the video please go here.

Murder City

The popularity of our YouTube video featuring the theme tune of ITV police drama Taggart has continued to grow.

The short film, created to celebrate programme creator Glenn Chandler's visits to Norwich Writers' Circle in October and December 2010, has now been watched over 2,000 times.

To view the video please go here.

Visiting Writers Celebration

Our YouTube channel has been updated to include a video featuring all the visiting writers from our most recent programme.

Amongst the writers featured in the short film are Martin Figura, Paeony Lewis and Glenn Chandler.

To watch the film please go here.

Taggart

Following the recent announcement of the show's demise, our YouTube video featuring the theme tune of police drama Taggart has now been viewed over 1,000 times.

This video was created to celebrate Glenn Chandler's - the creator of long-running programme - visits to Norwich Writers' Circle in October and December 2010.

To view the video please go here.

No Mean City

To celebrate author and screenwriter Glenn Chandler's visits to Norwich Writers' Circle in October and December 2010, our YouTube channel has been updated.

Our latest upload features a selection of images from Glenn's visits, along with the opportunity to listen to the original theme tune to ITV1's long running police drama Taggart, which was created by the BAFTA award-winning writer.

Please go here to watch the short film.

Midwinter Murders Mix

The complete Midwinter Murders series, featuring NWC members and their work, can now be listened to in one easy online mix.

Please go here to enjoy the complete Midwinter Murders.

Mystery Solved

The concluding part of our Midwinter Murders series is now available to listen to online.

Please go here to listen to the final part of the BBC Radio Norfolk broadcast which featured competition winners Phyllida Scrivens and Mickie Dann, alongside Norwich Writers' Circle committee member Lyn Fountain.

Safe Hands

Mickie Dann's competition winning short radio play Safe Hands is now available to listen to online.

Please go here to listen to the radio drama.

Return to this Blog soon for the latest instalment of our online Midwinter Murders series.

Mickie Dann Chats

Our Midwinter Murders online series continues with the opportunity to hear another BBC Radio Norfolk interview.

Please go here to listen to Maggie Secker's Sunday afternoon chat with Norwich Writers' Circle competition winner Mickie Dann.

Mickie won our Radio Script Competition, which was adjudicated by BAFTA award-winning writer Glenn Chandler, with her short play Safe Hands.

The drama continues very soon as we will be giving you the opportunity to listen to the winning play.

Phyllida Scrivens Speaks

Our Midwinter Murders season begins today with the opportunity to hear Phyllida Scrivens' recent BBC Radio Norfolk interview.

Phyllida appeared on Maggie Secker's Sunday afternoon show having been runner-up in our Radio Script Competition, judged by Taggart creator Glenn Chandler, with Switch Over Beethoven.

Please go here to listen to the radio broadcast.

The next instalment of this online series will appear on this Blog very soon. Watch this space for more information.

Midwinter Murders

Join us next month for our online Midwinter Murders season.

Please return to this Blog during January 2011 for more info.

Box Office Now Open

The box office is now open for recent visiting writer Glenn Chandler's new musical Cleveland Street.

The show which has been described as a wicked and bawdy Victorian tale of sex, lies, hypocrisy and cover-ups that threatened to bring down the Government.

To purchase your tickets for this interesting new show, which runs from 26th April to 29th May 2011 at London's The Above The Stag Theatre, please ring 020 8932 4747.

Check out clevelandstreetthemusical.com for more info.

Radio Times

The winners of our Radio Script Competition will be broadcast this weekend on the BBC.

The competition winners were announced by adjudicator and famed scriptwriter Glenn Chandler on Tuesday evening, in what turned out to be another packed Norwich Writers' Circle meeting.

Tune into Maggie Secker on BBC Radio Norfolk between 5.00pm and 5.40pm this Sunday - the 12th - to hear the competition winners' entries, and to the authors themselves, who will be discussing their work.

Don't forget our next meeting is on the 14th December. The final NWC meeting of 2010 is our annual Christmas Celebration in The Pierce Room - see you there!

Glenn Chandler's Crime Time

Following his visit to us earlier in the year, author and screenwriter Glenn Chandler returned to Norwich Writers' Circle this evening to adjudicate our Radio Script Competition.

Glenn, who is best known for creating the long-running ITV1 police drama Taggart, commented to a packed Sexton Room, that he was immensely impressed with all 17 competition entries.

The BAFTA award-winner also noted that he was also impressed with the inventive of our scripts, plus the variety of murder methods featured within them. Glenn also said that due to the quality of our writing, he would feature 3 commended entries, along with a joint 3rd place.

The winning entries were:

1st
Safe Hands
by Mickie Dann

2nd
Switch Over Beethoven
by Phyllida Scrivens

Joint 3rd
A Bit Of A Shock
by Doreen Rosser

Joint 3rd
The Female Searcher
by Diana Wilson

Commended
Brute Force
by Lyn Fountain

Commended
Serial Killer
by Andrew Heron

Commended
Intuition
by Cathy Rushbrook

The top two prize-winning entries will be broadcast as part of Maggie Secker's popular Sunday afternoon BBC Radio Norfolk show. Watch this space for more information.

We next meet on the 14th December, in The Assembly House's Pierce Room, for our annual Christmas Celebration.

We hope to you can celebrate Christmas with us.

Cleveland Street Update

Recent Norwich Writers' Circle visiting writer Glenn Chandler has written a musical, Cleveland Street.

The musical, which features music written by Matt Devereaux, will be premiered at the The Above The Stag Theatre, Victoria, London, in April 2011.

Visit cleveelandstreetthemusical.com to experience some recent website updates, including an opportunity to hear a selection of selection of songs from the show.

Glenn will be returning to NWC on 7th December to adjudicate our Radio Script Competition. We hope you can come along.

Script Smart

Following the recent visit to Norwich Writers' Circle by Glenn Chandler, who launched our Radio Script competition, for a drama that features of no more than 2 characters and 750 words, there has been some confusion.

To clarify any confusion regarding the layoutof the drama, please follow visit the Script Smart section of the BBC Writersroom website by going here. This excellent site also features writing opportunities and tips, and is well worth the visit.

If you have any further queries regarding the competition, please feel free to contact us.

Visit Cleveland Street

Recent Norwich Writers' Circle visiting writer Glenn Chandler has written a musical, Cleveland Street.

The musical, which features music written by Matt Devereaux, will be premiered at the The Above The Stag Theatre, Victoria, London, in April 2011.

The show tells the story of the scandal that broke in 1889 when Telegraph Messenger boys were discovered selling sexual favours to members of the aristocracy at a house in Cleveland Street, London. One of the clients who regularly visited the male brothel at 19 Cleveland Street was Lord Arthur Somerset, Private Equerry to the then Prince of Wales. Another reputed visitor, it was alledged, was Queen Victoria's grandson, Prince Albert Edward Victor, known more popularly as Prince Eddy. The whiff of Royal connections was enough to set the machinery of the law in motion, and the brothel was shut down, with numerous people escaping across the Channel to France.

At its heart, it is a story of Victorian hypocrisy, and how the establishment always looks after its own. Three people went to prison. One of them was a 19 year old employee of the Post Office, another the editor of a newspaper who dared to print the truth. None of the clients of the brothel were ever charged, despite homosexuality being illegal at the time.

For more information on this interesting and exciting new musical, please visit clevelandstreetthemusical.com.

News updates on the show can also be found via Facebook.

Glenn Chandler's Crime Scene

Our 2010/2011 programme continued this evening with a visit from author and screenwriter Glenn Chandler.

The evening featured Glenn discussing his varied writing career to date. Along with creating the long-running ITV police series Taggart, the Scottish author has also written for the theatre and cinema, plus several fiction and non-fiction books.

This meeting saw the launch of our In-House Competition One. This competition is the writing of a Murder Mystery Radio Script, which features a maximum of 2 characters and has a length of no longer than 750 words. This competition will be adjudicated by tonight's visiting writer.

In addition to the above, some of the winning entries will be featured on Maggie Secker's Sunday afternoon BBC Radio Norfolk programme. The winnners' scripts will be aired during the popular county-wide radio show on 12th December.

It was recommended to us by Glenn Chandler that our competition entries:

• Grab your attention in the first line.
• Do not cheat the reader.
• Include early clues that benefit the story later.

It was also suggested to us that our scripts are well constructed with a beginning, middle and end. Glenn also said that we must consider subplots and try to take the focus away from the murderer. We must also think of our tale as a journey.

We next meet on the 19th October, where we will be welcoming Neil Storey to NWC. During this meeting, the author and historian with be discussing Writing Ghosts and History.

Hope to see you then.