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Factual: Arts, Culture & the Media

Live magazine programme on the worlds of arts, literature, film, media and music

Kirsty Lang

Angie Nehring

Ian McEwan

Briony Hanson

Joe Dempsie

Jack O'Connell

Shane Meadows

Gene Wilder

Front Row: Ian McEwan, Gene Wilder, Things to Come, The Television Workshop

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30/08/2016

Ian McEwan, Gene Wilder, Things to Come, The Television Workshop

BBC Radio 4 - Front Row, Ian McEwan, Gene Wilder, Things to Come, The Television Workshop

Ian McEwan on writing from the point of view of a foetus, and Gene Wilder in his own words

Ian McEwan explains why his new novel is told from the point of view of a foetus, Gene Wilder in his own words, Briony Hanson reviews Things to Come, and The Television Workshop.

Ian McEwan's new novel, Nutshell, is a murder mystery set in a grand, decrepit Georgian home in London. It's based on Shakespeare's Hamlet, and features a pregnant woman, her estranged husband, and his brother who is now the woman's lover. He explains why he chose to tell the story from the point of view of the foetus.

Things to Come is a new film by the 35-year old French director Mia Hansen-Love. Her previous features have been semi-autobiographical films about people of her own age, however this one explores the life of an aging woman whose husband leaves her, mother dies, and whose reputation as a philosophy professor is starting to fade. All of which offer her a kind of freedom. Briony Hanson reviews.

At a time when elitism in acting is a hot topic, Kirsty visits The Television Workshop, a BAFTA winning acting school in Nottingham which has been giving opportunities to young actors from a less privileged background since 1983. Where she meets the current intake and we hear from some of its famous alumni, including Games Of Thrones actor Joe Dempsie, star of Starred Up and Jack O'Connell, and This Is England creator, Shane Meadows.

In tribute to Gene Wilder - the star of films such as Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles, and The Producers - who has died, we hear part of an interview first broadcast in 2005 about his autobiography, Kiss Me Like A Stranger: My Search for Love and Art.

Presenter: Kirsty Lang
Producer: Angie Nehring.

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