Imaginary Worlds

At the Writers’ Guild Centre on 1 November, Edel Brosnan chaired a panel of four fellow writers – Phil Ford, Ashley Pharoah, Philip Palmer and Adrian Hodges – to reflect on the current success of British sci-fi and fantasy.

Edel Brosnan: How did you come to write sci-fi and fantasy writing?

Phil Ford: I don’t necessarily think of myself writing in particular genres. All fiction and drama has to be about people and relationships. Sometimes you see sci-fi and fantasy getting carried away with the bizarre – I think it needs to be grounded in reality.

Ashley Pharaoh: I’m a recent convert, with the creation of Life On Mars. But I’m really, really enjoying it.

Philip Palmer: My first TV work was on The Bill and during my time there, and as a script editor on other dramas, it became clear that there was no place on TV at that time for sci-fi, fantasy or the supernatural. I’ve always loved sci-fi, so I wrote a novel on spec that got me a three-book deal. I have to deliver one a year, and, though they all have to be written within the same ‘universe’, it’s a fantastic opportunity to write pretty much whatever I want. These days I think things have changed on TV. Russell T. Davies’s reinvention of Doctor Who has shown that ‘imaginative’ writing can be as effective as realist writing.

Edel Brosnan: We all owe a huge debt to Russell T. Davies for getting Doctor Who back on screen. And, prior to that, to Joss Whedon – Buffy got a big audience and, importantly, a lot of young people. I suppose the question now is, given that sci-fi has returned to our screens, is it a short lived thing, or will it remain?

Adrian Hodges: ITV prefer the word ‘fantasy’ – the term ‘sci-fi’ seems to make them nervous. But there does now seem to be a recognition that, essentially, it’s just a different way of telling a story. I think Life On Mars has been as important as Doctor Who, for proving that these genre shows can work at 9pm, not just for a family audience. I don’t think things can go backwards now but dramas will only do well if they are character-driven. The majority of people aren’t interested in sci-fi or fantasy as genres. It’s the stories and characters that count.

Ashley Pharoah: We pitched Life On Mars for seven years before it got made. We got very, very close along the way but there was a reluctance to take what was seen as a big risk. It wasn’t just execs who found it hard to get, though. Some writers have been quite hostile as well. There seems to be some kind of snobbery about anything that isn’t social realism. But that is changing – it seems to be mostly an older generation who feel that way.

Adrian Hodges: There has always been sci-fi and fantasy in British TV, of course. But writers like Nigel Kneale (The Quartermass Experiment) have been regarded as occupying slightly strange territory. It’s noticeable that now, since his death, Kneale is being reassessed and his reputation is growing.

Philip Palmer: Writers like Troy Kennedy Martin (Edge Of Darkness) and Dennis Potter (The Singing Detective) were also part of our non-realistic TV drama tradition. It’s always been there.

Adrian Hodges: What’s interesting is the level of engagement you get from the audience. The response to Primeval was quite different than with anything else I’ve written.

Edel Brosnan: Phil, what was it like writing sci-fi for a children’s show (The Sarah Jane Adventures)?

Phil Ford: I never really worried about it too much. Obviously there are things you can’t do, and it’s very different from, say, writing an episode of Torchwood. But if you know your audience then you can pitch a show to them. It’s certainly okay to scare a young audience, you just have to be careful nopt to terrify them and to make sure things work out in the end.

Edel Brosnan: Adrian, you’ve written several historical dramas – how different is that from writing a show like Primeval?

Adrian Hodges: I’m not sure it’s very different at all. I’m a dramatist. When I write historical pieces I’m not aiming for 100% authenticity, I have to re-imagine the past. So, whether it’s sci-fi or historical the challenge is to create a world that the audience believes in and that works on its own terms.

Audience question: Do you consider budget when you’re writing?

Phil Ford: Not at all. Let other people worry about that – they’ll tell you if something can’t be done.

Adrian Hodges: It’s better not to have to self-censor because, especially with CGI, you don’t always know what’s possible. It can be cheaper to have a dinosaur trashing a shopping centre than filming two people talking in a moving car.

Audience question: How important has the influence of sci-fi and fantasy cinema been on TV?

Philip Palmer: It’s been significant. Social realism dominated TV for decades but sci-fi has been the dominant genre in cinema for the last 10 years. Now, thanks to Harry Potter, fantasy is getting a look-in too.

Adrian Hodges: In the sixties people made allowances for TV in a way that they didn’t for film and would accept dodgy sets and effects for a TV drama. That changed with Star Wars. Audiences wanted effects to that same standard and most TV simply couldn’t afford it. New technology in recent years has changed that and allowed sci-fi to flourish more widely on TV.

Philip Palmer: Bear in mind, though, that on TV sci-fi has to come with another genre.

Phil Ford: That’s right. The first series of Doctor Who was actually about Rose’s journey and was as much soap as sci-fi.

Audience question: What are the main differences between American and British sci-fi on TV?

Edel Brosnan: I think Americans love the British approach and have started using it themselves. Their shows aren’t about conquering space any more, they’re about the underdog – take Heroes, for example. And Buffy couldn’t have been more British. It even used British swear words! And, of course, the dominant person in US sci-fi is Alan Moore (The Watchmen) and he’s British.

Ashley Pharoah: It’s interesting that for the new Star Wars TV series, George Lucas doesn’t seem to want American writers. The two lead writers are from the UK.

Edel Brosnan: As has been said several times tonight, ultimately whether you’re writing dirty realism or fantasy, it’s all about characters. That’s what marks out the recent success of British-written shows and that’s why they’ve done so well all round the world.

Article published 06.11.2007