Theatre

Find out who won…

Back in May, Theatre 503, working in partnership with www.theatrevoice.com threw down a challenge to Time Out readers. A bold new online audio drama project, ‘Urban Scrawl’ promises an extraordinary journey through the capital: a total of 53 new podcast dramas, each related to a different stop on the Piccadilly Line, will carve their way through the beating heart of the city.

Some well-known playwrights had already signed up, but a number of stops were still up for grabs, including Arnos Grove, Hounslow East, Knightsbridge, Park Royal and Turnham Green, and TO readers were offered the opportunity to take part. All the scripts have now been read and the winners have been chosen, so we asked Dominic Cavendish how ’Urban Scrawl’ came about and what happens next… Feature continues

'It all happened because I was sitting on the tube slightly drunk one night and as you do when you’re drunk I was staring at the tube map and began counting the stops along the Piccadilly line. At that time, before Terminal 5, the total was 52, which seemed highly significant and so I sent a mad email to Theatre 503 with the idea of creating a different kind of audio product and they leapt on the idea.

'It’s possible that people are a little tired of the conventional channel of Radio 4 drama. A lot of new writing is now quite experimental and doesn’t fit into the 45-minute format, so there’s a gap in the market for writers who want to try out ideas and this is an ideal format. Podcasting is now almost the fastest way of reach an audience because people listen to the radio on the move.

'The idea behind this was to fling open the doors and see what landed. As well as asking professional playwrights like Simon Stephens and Laura Wade to contribute, we thought it would be a great idea to ask the public to join in through Time Out.

'All the scripts are going into production at Rose Bruford drama school in December and the four TO winners will now join the pile. Some writers wanted to tackle the loneliness and fear that goes with travelling on your own, while others latched on to the idea of romantic encounters and fleeting glances. But it’s a great testament to human idiosyncrasy that even if you have a similar theme, everyone comes at it through an entirely different angle.'

The Time Out winners

Knightsbridge
‘Knightsbridge’ by Natalia Savvides

Park Royal
‘Park Royal’ by Effie Woods

Turnham Green
‘Word Power’ by Ros Bentley

Arnos Grove
‘Love's Terminus’ by Karen L Ackerman

www.theatre503.com
www.theatrevoice.com