lessons! as the director of the national theatre, what is it about alan bennett plays that seem to make them absolutely bullet proof when it comes to success? don t say that! well, the way alan talks through his characters is the way large audiences wanted to be talked to. they trusted what he had to say, they trusted the way he said it. there s a kind of bond that alan creates in the way he writes, which i can always depend upon. put the van in your drive? that never occurred to me. such as the lady in the van, a play which they subsequently turned into a film about an eccentric old lady who inveigles her way into alan bennett s life. you re not doing me a favour, you know. i have got other fish to fry. is it true that you write about the outsider, principally? well, i suppose it is true. but not consciously. i don t go casting about for people who aren t in the charmed circle, as it were. have you ever had a situation, alan, where you ve taken a play to nick, he was une
By Alex Prior, London South Bank University Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced that a general election will take place on Thursday July 4. Over the course of the next six weeks, therefore, he and Labour leader Keir Starmer will pit their parties, themselves, and their stories, against each other.…