The Society of Authors (SoA), alongside the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain (WGGB) and Equity, are calling for the BBC to reconsider its planned cuts to BBC Radio 3 audio drama programming.
Together, we have launched a petition to gather support, addressed to BBC Director-General Tim Davie.
Sign the petition to save audio drama at the BBC here
The planned cuts to Radio 3 remove all radio drama slots from the station’s programming, effectively wiping out the only platform for 90-minute full-length radio plays in the UK.
The removal of these slots, along with diminishing opportunities for audio drama on Radio 4, could benefit large commercial platforms such as Amazon’s Audible, allowing them to keep rates low and ignore the high contractual standards set by the BBC which are often used as a benchmark within the industry.
The BBC’s Royal Charter states that its priority is ‘to show the most creative, highest quality and distinctive output and services, including taking creative risks to develop fresh approaches and innovative content.’ We believe that moving away from original scripted audio drama goes against this statement.
BBC Radio 3 audio drama fuels the eco-system of British drama, and the removal of these opportunities will be a devastating loss for writers and actors alike.
We urge the BBC to reconsider this damaging decision and would like to seek some concrete commitments as to how many hours of scripted audio drama will be commissioned going forward across BBC radio channels and audio platforms.
Read the full letter to Tim Davie, and sign the petition here