The Casting Website

Interview with Shaun Macloughlin

To watch the interview please click here

Interview with Shaun Macloughlin, Radio Producer

Have you heard of the small boy who preferred radio to television because the pictures were better, or of the small girl who preferred radio to television because the colours were more vivid? In radio you can create any picture you can imagine.

Hello my name is Shaun Macloughlin I worked for the BBC for 30 years, first as TV script editor, in drama single plays, then moved to radio, a move I never regretted, I love radio drama. I was a drama script editor for the afternoon place slot on Radio 4, and then became a full time radio drama producer, producing about 400 programmes, drama, documentaries, poetry and readings.

What is radio drama?

I prefer to call it audio drama, because although the BBC have 1 or 2 plays every day, and there is a great market for actors as well as writers and technicians in the BBC, I think that the future is audio drama on the internet, as the internet expands and the days of radio begin to decline. I think that’s the future, so I prefer the term audio drama.

Who listens to audio drama?

Well it’s interesting actually, we did some research not long ago, about 5 million people, almost 10% of the country listen to about 2 plays a month and they are usually very pro active people with lots of interests, but when they have a moment they really enjoy listening to a radio play often while they’re doing something else, they are exercising their imaginations.

What are the benefits of audio drama to a listener?

Well, a listener participates in a way that they don’t in other media. In TV I don’t mean to be rude but you have passive zombies, couch potatoes who are just been fed but they are not participating. In radio or in audio you are inviting your listener to participate to create the pictures out of their imagination, this should particularly appeal to young people who have vivid imaginations, so I think audio drama is really important, great fun, and stimulating to younger people.

What are the benefits of creating audio drama?

The benefits are not in just making productions, as an actor, you can learn the skills in dubbing films, in voice over, in narration and in workshops. You can also get together as a team, not just to act but to understand the other sides of audio drama. You can become a writer, producer, actor, performer, narrator, sound recorder, software editor, the list goes on. You can acquire all of these skills and build up your confidence and ability to work with other people and be part of a team.

What are the benefits of performing in audio drama?

Most good actors, have radio experience. Because what they learn about voice technique in audio drama, is of tremendous value in other media. So an actor who hasn’t acquired radio drama, has missed out enormously.

What is a voice reel?

A voice reel is usually on a CD, and is an example of your work, you could be aiming at two markets, the first being audio drama and secondly commercials. With a little bit of help from somebody like myself, and I’m more than happy to help, I could advise you and help produce a voice reel for you to send to prospective employers.

What are the benefits of having a good voice reel?

Well, it’s your passport to future employment. In fact, I would say it is absolutely essential. It is very unlikely you will get very far without a voice reel.

If I want to become a professional actor, why should I master voice technique?

The voice technique you will learn from audio, will teach you so many things about voice technique for other media. Just as most of the great writers for stage and screen started in radio, and so have many great actors where they mastered the use of the human voice,  and that is a terribly important part of your equipment as an actor, you can’t really do without it.

How can I create my own audio drama?

You can create your own audio drama for a very small outlay compared to other media, you don’t need to hire a theatre, and you don’t need to buy expensive film equipment. All you need is a simple sound recorder or record straight onto a computer, a microphone and for post production, you will need software for editing, which can be very inexpensive these days. Then you need the understanding on how to use this, which is easily acquired.

What is the difference between writing audio drama and writing for TV and Film?

Writing audio drama is not easy, because you have to convey so much through the use of sound. Firstly it is really essential to tell a really gripping story, because you can only captivate your listener for a very short time. You need to find a situation with a character which is really interesting and make your listener not switch off and want to know what happens next. That’s something that you really need to understand as a writer, and that’s the most important thing, writing the script and making sure it really works.

Can audio drama be used to get into the TV and Film industry?

It’s interesting actually, because not only can you produce audio drama for its own sake but you can use it as a pilot, because it is so inexpensive to produce. You can use it as a pilot for film, TV and for theatre. Many people have done this in the past and I’m sure you might be interested in doing this in the future.

What is the future of audio drama?

I believe the future of audio drama, probably isn’t so much on radio, I mean the BBC has managed to last very valiantly into the 21^st Century and is still going strong in radio drama, but who knows what the future of the license fee is.  I think the future is actually on the internet and I think it will be possible to make this commercially viable. It will need a lot of thought and a lot of pioneering but I do think that will be the future. The wonderful thing about the World Wide Web is that you can be broadcasting right around the world and sharing this beautiful language of English with so many nations.

Where can I go for more information about the benefits of audio drama?

To find out more about the benefits of audio drama, I suggest going to 2 websites, the first of course is the BBC (www.bbc.co.uk) and look up ‘WritersRoom’. The other website is one that I have spent a lot of time as a very experienced BBC radio producer designing myself and it’s called English Word Play (www.englishwordplay.com) and there you can find lots of examples of scripts and audio, how to do it, what to do, what not to do and the fun involved in creating spoken word audio.

Do you have any advice for young actors, who want to be involved in this industry?

Well, I’d say first of all, do it. If you want to get ahead in this industry, nothing beats actually beginning to do it, so that you have made something that you can actually ask people to listen to because that’s your CV. It isn’t what you want to do, it’s what you’re doing. That’s what impresses people, having the courage, the energy, the staying power to actually create something. Don’t give up at the first hurdle, if you get a rejection, learn from it, try to learn from your mistakes carry on and persevere. The victory is to those who try, try and try again. Please don’t give up.