Guy Jenkin – författare

Martin Jarvis stars in this BBC radio satire set in the competitive world of advertisingHappiness... is a career in advertising. Or is it? Activist turned ad writer Ken Handley isn''t so sure. Back in the day, he used to hitch-hike and attend peace protests. Now, he finds himself writing copy for the Conservative Party and extolling the virtues of products he hates - while also coping with a drunken boss, strait-laced colleagues and an overactive mind.Over three series, we follow his exploits and moral dilemmas as he grapples with the challenges of winning accounts, presenting to clients and dealing with the women in his life. A pitch for a motorway services chain drives him round the bend, a seven-foot squirrel nearly sends him nuts, and he faces his own emergency when he''s coerced into a Samaritans campaign. On the domestic front, Ken''s got a divorce and a new home to contend with - but things start looking up when leggy model April comes on the scene...Written by Guy Jenkin (Drop the Dead Donkey) and Jon Canter (Posh Nosh), this sardonic advertising sitcom stars Martin Jarvis as Ken, with a cast including Imelda Staunton, Lesley Manville, Joss Ackland and Miriam Margolyes.Production creditsScript and commercial concepts by Guy JenkinCommercials by Jon CanterProduced by Geoffrey Perkins (Series 1) and Pete Atkin (Series 2 & 3)First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 18 January-22 February 1982 (Series 1), 7 February-13 March 1984 (Series 2), 7 October-11 November 1986 (Series 3)CastKen Handley - Martin JarvisSarah - Sheila SteafelSandy - Christopher GodwinFreddie - Lockwood WestHitchhiker - Vincent BrimblePortley - Richard BebbRuncie - Simon JonesJune - Wendy RichardJohnnie - Patrick BarrMurray - Gary CadyThe General - Bill FraserMr Sandell - John BlytheBarman - Geoffrey McGivernVirgil - Marc SmithMr Sandell:- John BlytheCindy- Heather BellKatie- Miranda ForbesDirector- David GoodersonRavi - Ahmed KhalilDeborah - Rosalind AyresAmbrose - Paul JessonJanet/Receptionist/Researcher - Stacey TendeterMr Cheater/Mr McCafferty - James GriffithsAngus - Michael JennerDerek - David PeartStella - Imelda StauntonStella''s Heavy - Jim CarterSubjects - David Peart & Michael JennerLeo Gale - Glyn OwenChristina - Jo Manning WilsonReceptionist - Maggie McCarthyGeorge - Peter TuddenhamCorners - Don HendersonBenny - Karl HowmanLesley - Pauline SiddleAndy - Chris EmmettFilm director - Scott CherryTone - Jeremy ClydeDoregan - Lesley ManvilleElvira - Moir LeslieKip - Joseph MarcellApril - Shelley ThompsonHedley - Robert LongdenArtiste - David LearnerLarry Childs - William HootkinsLoretta-Jane Duff - Toni CoyneDawn/Masseuse - Sally WattsSally/Choirboy - Jane LeonardLen - Roger SlomanVal/Veronica - Liz CrowtherAlf - Roger HammondTill lady - Avril ClarkDoorman - Richard DurdenBarman - James MacPhersonPoliceman - Graham BlockeyWith the voices of Joss Ackland, Miriam Margolyes, James Griffiths, John Shrapnel, David Tate, James Griffiths, Sally Grace, Enn Reitel and Anton Rodgers

Shortlisted for the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction 2025

'Clever, funny, ingenious and endearing' Lissa Evans'The most audacious plot ever... gritty, engrossing and great fun' Beth Morrey'A great story, fast, dramatic, funny, full of the sounds and smells of Elizabethan London' Andy Hamilton

It’s 1593, Elizabeth I is Queen and everyone is terrified of the worst outbreak of plague in a generation. Shakespeare has only written six plays and is lagging behind his friend Christopher Marlowe, London’s leading playwright.

When Marlowe is stabbed to death in mysterious circumstances, rumours abound – but the one that won’t go away is that Shakespeare did it to remove his greatest rival. Will is determined to clear his name, and teams up with his old flame, Marlowe’s sister Ann, who has plenty of secrets of her own.

In their search to solve the crime, Will and Ann uncover a dark world of treachery, murder, and corruption – which in turn provides Shakespeare with scenes and characters which will appear in his greatest plays. Murder Most Foul is a dark, witty and fast-paced novel, from one of Britain’s best-loved screenwriters.

'An ingenious, funny and erudite thriller' John O'Farrell'Funny, thrilling and full of wonderful easter eggs for Shakespearean theatre fans... a treat from start to finish' David Greig

Shortlisted for the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction 2025

''Clever, funny, ingenious and endearing'' Lissa Evans''The most audacious plot ever... gritty, engrossing and great fun'' Beth Morrey''A great story, fast, dramatic, funny, full of the sounds and smells of Elizabethan London'' Andy Hamilton

It’s 1593, Elizabeth I is Queen and everyone is terrified of the worst outbreak of plague in a generation. Shakespeare has only written six plays and is lagging behind his friend Christopher Marlowe, London’s leading playwright.

When Marlowe is stabbed to death in mysterious circumstances, rumours abound – but the one that won’t go away is that Shakespeare did it to remove his greatest rival. Will is determined to clear his name, and teams up with his old flame, Marlowe’s sister Ann, who has plenty of secrets of her own.

In their search to solve the crime, Will and Ann uncover a dark world of treachery, murder, and corruption – which in turn provides Shakespeare with scenes and characters which will appear in his greatest plays. Murder Most Foul is a dark, witty and fast-paced novel, from one of Britain’s best-loved screenwriters.

''An ingenious, funny and erudite thriller'' John O''Farrell''Funny, thrilling and full of wonderful easter eggs for Shakespearean theatre fans... a treat from start to finish'' David Greig

'A delicious and intelligent tour de force. I loved it. Truly engaging characters with whom to travel into the dark alleys, playhouses and rogue inhabited streets of the edgy London of James I. Unputdownable' Carol McGrath

'Riotous, subversive and completely bloody brilliant' Chris Lloyd

The hilarious follow-up to Murder Most Foul by the multi BAFTA, RTS and Emmy award-winning writer of Outnumbered and Drop the Dead Donkey.

Something wicked this way comes...

It's 1605 and Will Shakespeare is now a wealthy writer and a respected producer. But when Ann Marlowe arrives at The Globe unexpectedly, fleeing from Canterbury, the pair find themselves once again enmeshed in a bloody conspiracy involving King James, Lord Cecil and various murderous thugs.

Caught up in a world where no one can be trusted and where superstition and witchcraft have taken over people's minds, Will and Ann realise that the only way they will survive is to solve a series of murders and find out who is responsible. The future of England is at stake – and only they can save it.

The Fatal Bellman is Shakespeare at his wittiest – and bloodiest – best.

'Guy Jenkin is a master at combining a dark story with laugh-out-loud humour' G J Williams

'A riotous caper around Jacobean London’s underbelly... filthy, fiery, frenzied and very funny' Beth Morrey