Attended by Northern Life Magazine
Adelle Stripe, Claire MacDonald, George Costigan with Michael Stewart
Andrea Dunbar the Writer
Andrea Dunbar began writing her play The Arbor at the age of 15. Just three years later, it premiered at London’s Royal Court Theatre and was later extended and performed in New York. Her 1987 film, Rita, Sue and Bob Too, has become a Northern cult classic. Andrea’s life was short and troubled, but also very productive and her honest depictions of life on a run-down Bradford estate have made her one of Yorkshire’s most inspirational writers.
We are delighted to welcome actor George Costigan (Bob) to talk about his experiences acting in Rita, Sue and Bob Too, one of the most controversial films of the 1980s that was both set and shot in Bradford.
Revd Dr Claire MacDonald will reflect on her time spent with Dunbar at Keighley Women’s Aid and writer, Adelle Stripe, will discuss her debut novel, Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile, which was inspired by Dunbar’s extraordinary life and works.
This event will examine how Dunbar captured the humour, humanity and hope of some of Bradford’s most deprived areas, without shying away from the problems they faced.
About The Speakers
George Costigan
Known for roles in Rita, Sue and Bob Too and Happy Valley, George Costigan’s career has included working with Sally Wainwright, Willy Russell, and Clint Eastwood. He has directed Daniel Day-Lewis and Pete Postlethwaite, and his writing for the stage includes Trust Byron, for which he was nominated for Best Actor at the Edinburgh Festival.
Photo by Ant Robling
Claire MacDonald
Revd. Dr. Claire MacDonald FRSA is a London based writer and Unitarian minister. She met Andrea Dunbar in 1978 at Keighley Women’s Aid, and Adelle Stripe in 2014 when Adelle began researching Andrea’s work. She is currently Professorial Fellow at Central School of Speech and Drama, her most recent collection of plays and essays, Utopia: Three Plays for a Postdramatic Theatre was published by Intellect in 2015
Adelle Stripe
Adelle Stripe was born in 1976 and grew up in Tadcaster. She holds an MA in Creative Writing from Manchester University and is the recipient of the 2016 K Blundell Award for Fiction. She teaches at MMU. Her writing has appeared in publications in the US and UK including The Guardian, Stool Pigeon, Caught by the River, Penny Dreadful and Chiron Review.
About The Chair
Michael Stewart
Michael Stewart is from Salford but is now based in Bradford. He has won several awards for his scriptwriting, including the BBC Alfred Bradley Bursary Award. His debut novel King Crowwas the winner of The Guardian’s Not The Booker Award. His new novel, Ill Will, will be published by HarperCollins later this year.
Northern Life Magazine – http://northernlifemagazine.co.uk/
Rita, Sue and Bob Too
Billed on its release as “Thatcher’s Britain with her knickers down”, Rita, Sue and Bob Too is a classic British comedy drama and one of Bradford’s best-loved films. Based on Andrea Dunbar’s semi-autobiographical stage plays, the film follows two teenagers from Bradford’s run-down Buttershaw estate as they embark on a farcical fling with a married man, with hilarious and, at times, disturbing consequences.
The film captures the mood of its era, transporting viewers on a darkly comic and chaotic journey around 1980s Bradford.
Rita, Sue and Bob Too in all its northern glory.