The Write Stuff
Encyclopedia
The Write Stuff is a lighthearted quiz about literature on BBC Radio 4
, taking a humorous look at famous literary figures, chaired by James Walton and with the two teams being headed by Sebastian Faulks
and John Walsh, and Beth Chalmers reading the extracts.
Each week, the programme has an "Author of the Week" - W.B. Yeats, E.M. Forster, D.H. Lawrence, Robert Burns
, Philip Roth
and J.K. Rowling have all so featured on the programme. The programme normally ends with panellists having to write a pastiche
based on that week's author of the week - this typically takes the form of getting contestants to write something that would be so out of style of the author in question that a pastiche would be humorous. For example, when Robert Burns
was the author of the week, contestants were asked to write a poem, in the style of Burns, celebrating something typically English, and when the Jewish and very intellectual author Philip Roth was the author of the week, contestants were asked how he might have written a children's story.
The programme has normally been broadcast at 6:30 p.m. on a weekday, the normal Radio 4 comedy slot. BBC Radio Four recently started a new series of the programme, on 27 January 2010, with Lynn Truss taking over from Sebastian Faulks
as one of the team captains. On her debut as team captain, her side won the programme with 24 points (the other side received 21 points). The author of the week on the programme was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. For the pastiche, the panelists had to suggest how Sir Arthur Conan Doyle would have written about an everyday thing. More recently, the author of the week was Irvine Welsh
, who is perhaps best remembered as the author of Trainspotting
. Since Jane Austen
is one of his favourite novelists, the panel had to do, for their pastiche, a skit on how Irvine Welsh might have written a Jane Austen novel. The programme has, on occasion, featured a group of writers, rather than a single author, as its key study - for example, poets of the Beat Generation
were the featured authors on 26 October 2010.
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
, taking a humorous look at famous literary figures, chaired by James Walton and with the two teams being headed by Sebastian Faulks
Sebastian Faulks
-Early life:Faulks was born on 20 April 1953 in Donnington, Berkshire to Peter Faulks and Pamela . Edward Faulks, Baron Faulks, is his older brother. He was educated at Elstree School, Reading and went on to Wellington College, Berkshire...
and John Walsh, and Beth Chalmers reading the extracts.
Each week, the programme has an "Author of the Week" - W.B. Yeats, E.M. Forster, D.H. Lawrence, Robert Burns
Robert Burns
Robert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
, Philip Roth
Philip Roth
Philip Milton Roth is an American novelist. He gained fame with the 1959 novella Goodbye, Columbus, an irreverent and humorous portrait of Jewish-American life that earned him a National Book Award...
and J.K. Rowling have all so featured on the programme. The programme normally ends with panellists having to write a pastiche
Pastiche
A pastiche is a literary or other artistic genre or technique that is a "hodge-podge" or imitation. The word is also a linguistic term used to describe an early stage in the development of a pidgin language.-Hodge-podge:...
based on that week's author of the week - this typically takes the form of getting contestants to write something that would be so out of style of the author in question that a pastiche would be humorous. For example, when Robert Burns
Robert Burns
Robert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
was the author of the week, contestants were asked to write a poem, in the style of Burns, celebrating something typically English, and when the Jewish and very intellectual author Philip Roth was the author of the week, contestants were asked how he might have written a children's story.
The programme has normally been broadcast at 6:30 p.m. on a weekday, the normal Radio 4 comedy slot. BBC Radio Four recently started a new series of the programme, on 27 January 2010, with Lynn Truss taking over from Sebastian Faulks
Sebastian Faulks
-Early life:Faulks was born on 20 April 1953 in Donnington, Berkshire to Peter Faulks and Pamela . Edward Faulks, Baron Faulks, is his older brother. He was educated at Elstree School, Reading and went on to Wellington College, Berkshire...
as one of the team captains. On her debut as team captain, her side won the programme with 24 points (the other side received 21 points). The author of the week on the programme was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. For the pastiche, the panelists had to suggest how Sir Arthur Conan Doyle would have written about an everyday thing. More recently, the author of the week was Irvine Welsh
Irvine Welsh
Irvine Welsh is a contemporary Scottish novelist, best known for his novel Trainspotting. His work is characterised by raw Scottish dialect, and brutal depiction of the realities of Edinburgh life...
, who is perhaps best remembered as the author of Trainspotting
Trainspotting (novel)
Trainspotting is the first novel by Scottish writer Irvine Welsh. It is written in the form of short chapters narrated in the first person by various residents of Leith, Edinburgh, who either use heroin, are friends of the core group of heroin users, or engage in destructive activities that are...
. Since Jane Austen
Jane Austen
Jane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.Austen lived...
is one of his favourite novelists, the panel had to do, for their pastiche, a skit on how Irvine Welsh might have written a Jane Austen novel. The programme has, on occasion, featured a group of writers, rather than a single author, as its key study - for example, poets of the Beat Generation
Beat generation
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they both documented and inspired...
were the featured authors on 26 October 2010.