'The world's a stage' - politics and storytelling with James Graham

<p>In this edition, Rafael Behr talks to England's most prodigious political screenwriter and playwright - James Graham.</p> <p>He's probably most well known for writing the recent BBC1 hit drama 'Sherwood', which aired on BBC One in 2022 to rave reviews, and will return for a second series. </p> <p>James also wrote Quiz (ITV) in 2020, which was one of the most watched UK television dramas of the year; and Brexit: An Uncivil War, which garnered huge public attention and critical acclaim in 2019. It was broadcast on Channel 4 and HBO, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, and was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Television Movie, and a BAFTA for Single Drama. </p> <p>In this episode James talks to Rafael about how narratives are fundamental to political storytelling, what they are, why recently parties on the right seem to be better at them, where James draws his inspiration from for writing, and what his next play is about. </p> <p><strong>News update</strong></p> <p>For Apple podcast listeners we're now trialling a subscription service - where once a week you'll get an exclusive bonus episode which will either be:</p> <ul> <li>Raf ruminating on the week's politics or looking forward to what's coming up; or</li> <li>Some bonus chat with Raf's guest of that week; or</li> <li>Raf answering any questions you have about politics, writing, art, life etc</li> </ul> <p>The first bonus episode is Rafael and James chatting about their shared love of Star Wars, and its many political and democratic themes and metaphors.</p> <p>And you should be able to find here with a two week free trial. </p> <p><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/politics-on-the-couch/id1507787935">https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/politics-on-the-couch/id1507787935</a></p> <p><strong>Why are we doing this?</strong></p> <p>We're doing this because it takes a huge amount of work to put these epsiodes together, and Phil the Producer's wife is starting to complain that he's never about, plus he's also missing out on paid work. </p> <p>So, if y