Garry Lyons

Great night on Tuesday at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough catching up with my talented former student Kerry Wright and her punchy play KAILEY, getting its professional premiere 6 years after she began developing it on the Leeds Uni Writing for Performance MA

Great evening last night watching the colourful and accomplished Guys and Dolls, the latest fantastic youth musical from @trwakefield.bsky.social. Great to see so many talented young people on stage rolling the dice and hitting a double six!

Two books about early years of The Bill out on Kindle this week:
1. Oliver Crocker's Witness Statements: Making The Bill 1988 includes a chapter on my script The Coop.
2. Edward Kellett's Reaching a Verdict: Reviewing The Bill 1983-1989 contains a detailed analysis of my episode Speaking Freely.

Great to see Zodwa Nyoni's engrossing play Liberation yesterday @rxtheatre.bsky.social - a fascinating account of the 5th Pan-African Congress in Manchester in 1945, which kickstarted the post-colonial independence movements. Also fab to catch up with Zodwa and my ex-colleague Adam Strickson

Much enjoyed this joyous all-singing all-dancing celebration of Sunderland and its people from Sunderland Culture and @nationaltheatre.org.uk on Saturday. The huge multi-generational company brought the audience to its feet!

Performing arts leaders issue copyright warning over UK government’s AI plans www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...

UK TV industry hit by ‘perfect storm’, says Elisabeth Murdoch www.theguardian.com/media/2025/m...

Huge win! Government announces plan to open up Land Registry This post is by Guy Shrubsole. Today the UK Government has announced plans to open up the Land Registry – which, if delivered, will finally reveal more about who owns land in England and Wale…

Huge win! Government announces plans to open up the Land Registry.

If delivered, will finally reveal more about who owns land in England and Wales.

Read my blog post for more details & how you can write to the Minister to make sure this now happens:

whoownsengland.org/2025/03/06/h...

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The Starmer offer of a state visit now a nightmare.

Opinion | Most Trump Supporters Also Back Ukraine Our poll found that 69% of Republican voters say Russia is the aggressor and 83% disapprove of Putin.

"69% of Republican voters say Russia is the aggressor and 83% disapprove of Putin"

www.wsj.com/opinion/most...

BBC radio drama is in grave danger. Without it we may lose the next generation of writing talent www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...

Tyler Hamilton on Substack “Be careful. When a democracy is sick, fascism comes to its bedside, but it is not to inquire about its health.” Albert Camus

“Be careful. When a democracy is sick, fascism comes to its bedside, but it is not to inquire about its health.”

Albert Camus

‘National catastrophe’: drama school funding crisis in England sparks concern www.theguardian.com/education/20...

Another great panto last night @trwakefield.bsky.social - Cinderella. Rollicking it's behind you energy and naughty ad-libs from Chris Hannon and team. Much enjoyed by the family, big and small.

Future of fire-wrecked mansion fans flames of National Trust rebellion When Clandon Park House was built more than 200 years ago, it was an extraordinary project that resulted in what is considered by many to be an architectural

Another lying hitjob by The Times on @nationaltrust.bsky.social

Restore Trust is not ‘a protest group of national trust members’ or a ‘splinter group’. It’s entryist, a private company of rightwing culture war zealots from circles of Tufton St, GB News and Farage
www.thetimes.com/article/3934...

Drama has a powerful positive impact on young people As drama teaching faces cuts at school, it must be remembered the profound effect on society’s youth it has, and the force for good it is

Since 2017, arts funding from national bodies, including for drama, has been cut by 16% in real terms across the UK.

In 2024, 41% of schools no longer enter any pupils for Drama GCSE.

Please sign me up

Dunno, Gina. I grew up in Kingston, as did my dad. Descended from a line of greengrocers-cum-banjo players from the Willesden area and, further back, Birmingham/Leamington Spa. The family seems to have come out of County Cavan, Ireland around the 1820s.

Please add me, Hannah