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Press Releases
The Pitman Painters and Baghdad Wedding part of exciting Winter line-up on
Drama On 3
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The broadcast premiere of Lee Hall's The Pitman Painters, Douglas Coupland's
Girlfriend In A Coma and Hassan Adbulrazzak's Baghdad Wedding – together with new
plays by David Eldridge and Pat McCabe – are among the exciting mix of new
writing and stage transfers on 91Èȱ¬ Radio 3's Drama On 3 this winter.
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The Pitman Painters is an inspirational and potent drama telling the story
of a group of Thirties Northumbrian miners who, after starting an art
appreciation society, begin to paint, gaining widespread acclaim for their
work.
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The radio production of the play reunites Oscar-winning playwright
Lee Hall (Billy Elliot) and director Kate Rowland for their ninth radio
production, including the highly-celebrated Spoonface Steinberg.
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Also dramatised for radio for the first time is Douglas Coupland's
gripping, state-of-the-world novel, Girlfriend In A Coma, adapted by Dan
Rebellato, and Baghdad Wedding, Hassan Adbulrazzak's darkly comic play set
in London and Baghdad between 1998 and 2005.
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Directed by Lisa Goldman, who
directed the original Soho Theatre production, Baghdad Wedding tackles the
challenges and heartbreak of living in Baghdad, as three friends grapple
with their sexual, cultural and political identity.
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New plays on Drama On 3 this winter include The Picture Man by David
Eldridge starring Martin Freeman.
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Neil (Martin Freeman), a man pushed to
the edge by the loss of manners and sense of community in modern society,
decides to intervene and make a stand against what he perceives as
society's ills, but has he bitten off more than he can chew?
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All The
Colours Of Love by Pat McCabe (The Butcher Boy) is loosely drawn from his
most recent novel, Winterwood, and continues in the rich vein of work which
he describes as "Bog Gothic".
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The cast includes Dermot Crowley, TP McKennaand Karen Ardiff. It is a dark tale of isolation and violence, curdling
behind the mask of an Irish welcome – not one for the fainthearted!
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Other new writing on Drama On 3 includes The Trial And Death Of Socrates,
The Cool Bag Baby and Donation.
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Devised by playwright Sebastian
Baczkiewicz, The Trial And Death Of Socrates attempts to unravel the
mystery surrounding Socrates' trial and subsequent execution which has
puzzled historians: what could Socrates have said or done to a prompt
a jury of 500 Athenians to sentence a 70-year-old philosopher to death?
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Starring Sophie Stanton, The Cool Bag Baby, by Katie Hims, is the story of
an abandoned baby left outside a café to be found, taken home and cherished. But, when the café fails to open, the baby remains undiscovered.
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Donation, by
Sean Buckley, explores the issues around transplants and the medical and
spiritual implications of organ donation.
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Drama On 3 winter schedule
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Sunday 23 December: The Pitman Painters, by Lee Hall.
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Sunday 30 December: All's Well That Ends Well (repeat), by William
Shakespeare.
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Sunday 6 January 2008: The Picture Man, by David Eldridge.
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Sunday 13 January 2008: Donation, by Sean Buckley.
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Sunday 20 January 2008: Baghdad Wedding, by Hassan Abdulrazzak.
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Sunday 27 January 2008: All The Colours Of Love, by Pat McCabe.
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Sunday 3 February 2008: The Devil Was Here Yesterday, by Colin Teevan.
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Sunday 10 February 2008: The Trial And Death Of Socrates,
by Sebastian Baczkiewicz.
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Sunday 17 February 2008: The Cool Bag Baby, by Katie Hims.
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Sunday 24 February 2008: Girlfriend In A Coma, by Douglas Coupland,
adapted
by Dan Rebellato. Ìý
Radio 3 Publicity
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