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As the application window is announced for the next , we spoke to writer Jess Green about what being part of the Academy has meant for her. Jess is currently writing her first episode of EastEnders before moving on to Casualty, Holby City and River City later in the year.

The aim of the 主播大秀 Studios Writers' Academy is to give writers the screenwriting tools and creative confidence to write for the 主播大秀’s flagship popular dramas as well as create stunning series of their own. 80% of past graduates are still working in the industry – on their own shows, or with key credits on some of the biggest programmes in television.

Before the I worked mainly as a performance poet. I’d toured two shows, Burning Books (2015) and A Self Help Guide To Being In Love With Jeremy Corbyn (2018) to the and around the UK. The shows were published as poetry collections by Burning Eye Books, and I also did gigs at poetry nights & delivered workshops in schools, prisons, probation hostels, and libraries nationally. I was on the 主播大秀’s radar because I’d won 主播大秀 Poetry Slam Champion in 2018 and done some gigs and TV and radio for them. In 2019, mid-tour, I dashed up from London to Liverpool to perform at the 主播大秀 6 Music festival, which was special because I went to university in Liverpool, and it is a city which will always have a big chunk of my heart.

I saw tweet a link to the 主播大秀 Writers' Academy around April 2019, saying that she had done it and how gruelling and brilliant it was. I had no TV writing experience but I had written a stage play which had done a 10 date tour. I really wanted to write for TV and had a that I’d been developing for a couple of years, but having sent it to various submission windows with nothing back I was close to giving up.

I didn’t rate my chances of getting very far in the selection process because I felt with a background mainly in poetry I couldn’t be what they were looking for, but three months paid training and three broadcast episodes on shows I’d grown up watching felt like too huge an opportunity to ignore. I sent off my spec' script and my pitch for a regular character in a 主播大秀 Continuing Drama (finally a chance to pitch my very exciting in Doctors storyline!) I then did what I always do, clicked send and tried to forget I’d sent it. So the email saying I’d been longlisted two months later was a surprise.

The next step was going to a workshop in London led by , with six other people who were all as nervous and bewildered as each other. I had thought the hardest bit would be trying to overcome my imposter syndrome but it was actually the 10 question 主播大秀 Continuing Drama pop quiz (who lived either side of Dot Cotton in 1998?)

For me, the 主播大秀 Studios Writers’ Academy was transformative. I lived in London during the week, coming home to Leicester at weekends, I didn’t have to worry about how I was going to pay the bills month to month (an absolute luxury as a freelancer), I just focused on writing and I learnt so much. It’s relentless, there are no days off, you’re exhausted the entire time, but you write the most you’ve ever written in your life.

The key thing I learnt was why stories do and don’t work. My laptop was littered with half-finished scripts; stories I’d lost interest in and couldn’t work out how to fix. The Academy teaches you how to finish stories; how to identify problems and how to fix them.

The format of the Academy is 13 weeks divided into classroom lessons, writing from home, guest speakers and 1-1 tutorials. John’s a really good teacher; I realised that when I came home the first weekend and tried to explain narrative structure to my Engineer husband. On Thursdays the guest speakers ranged from previous Academy graduates to Jimmy McGovern, and Jed Mercurio.

In December we were allocated to our first 主播大秀 Continuing Drama shows. It’s terrifying when you realise that all that stuff you did in the safe environment of the classroom you now have to do for real, but I’m currently working on an EastEnders episode and they've been really supportive. You’re allocated a mentor who’s worked on the show for years, and your Script Editor and the story team know this is the first programme you’ve worked on since the Academy classroom, so you’re not thrown quite in at the deep end. There are a number of people who want to make sure you don’t sink. I’ve still got four more drafts to go before it reaches telly screens in July. By that time I’ll be working on Casualty, then Holby in the autumn, and River City for a story-lining attachment at the end of the year.

As well as guaranteed broadcast episodes with three of the 主播大秀’s flagship shows, what makes the Writers’ Academy special is that you’re also paired up with a production company to develop an original series idea. I’ve just started working with 主播大秀 Studios London to write a treatment for the spec script which got me on the Academy.

In terms of advice for people thinking of applying I would say don’t be put off if you think you’re not what they’re looking for. They’re not looking for people with a load of TV writing credits to their name but just with a talent for writing and a desire to make good quality telly. I definitely didn’t think they’d be interested in a poet who’d been touring shows about The Labour Party for eight years!

The is one of a kind. It’s the hardest I’ve ever worked, but my writing’s in the best shape it’s ever been in. When I’m asked 'Why should people apply?' I think 'Well why wouldn’t you?' It’s the 主播大秀. It’s John Yorke. If you want to learn how to write really good telly, it’s probably one of the best things you can do.

Applications for the next 主播大秀 Studios Writers' Academy will be open from Monday 30th March to Sunday 19th April. Applications will be via the 主播大秀 Writersroom E-Submissions system. This year this unique paid training programme will, for the first time, invite applications from all writers, with no professional credit or representation required.