Andrew Davies
Andrew Davies
Andrew Wynford Daviesis a Welsh writer of screenplays and novels, best known for House of Cards and A Very Peculiar Practice, and his adaptations of Vanity Fair, Pride and Prejudice, Middlemarch and War & Peace. He was made a BAFTA Fellow in 2002...
ProfessionScreenwriter
Date of Birth20 September 1936
baggy bleak boils characters chuck comic extra flavor great himself horrible house include lose nice plot related sorts spine stick stop tinker work
Bleak House is a great baggy thing, the plot doesn't work in all sorts of parts, so you've got to tinker with it. Usually I tell myself, find the spine of the story and stick to that and chuck out anything not related to the spine of the story, but that doesn't work with Dickens. You lose the flavor of him if you don't include all those other extra comic characters that he couldn't stop himself from creating. The plot bulges out. It's like horrible boils or something, but in a nice way.
access allow benefit bus buses cannot community conscious continues disabled elderly extent free hugely improve local meet nature needs people persons project scheme services severity test transport travel
Our scheme guaranteeing free travel for elderly and disabled people on local bus services continues to be hugely successful. Nevertheless, we are conscious it cannot benefit people who are not able to use even low-floor buses because of the nature or severity of their disability. This project will not only immediately improve access for these passengers, it will also allow us to test the extent to which community transport is able to meet the transport needs of persons who cannot use conventional buses.
clothes necks excuse
One of the things I've always thought is a drag in so many period adaptations is that they are always buttoned up to the neck in so many clothes all the time. I'm always looking for excuses to get them out of their clothes.
drama tvs needs
Novels often have leisurely openings; a TV drama needs an arresting opening.
wife likes documentaries
My wife likes history and documentaries, but I'm not so keen on them. I generally go and do some work if there's one of those on.
thinking people quality
I'm absolutely delighted if people think of me as a reliable purveyor of quality period stuff.
taste teach university
I suppose I have the tastes of someone who teaches at a university in the provinces.
frustration classic adaptation
I adore doing classic adaptations, but I also feel their frustrations and their limitations.
gratitude moving eye
The most moving scene for me in 'Pride and Prejudice' is the Pemberley music room scene: Elizabeth has just saved Darcy's sister from embarrassment and confusion, and as the music plays on, Darcy's look of gratitude becomes a look of love, which we see reciprocated in Elizabeth's eyes.
years office producers
A distinguished producer called Kenith Trodd actually lived in his office for over a year - the cleaners refused to go in because it was such a tip.
office people dying
People in the BBC are always dying to get out of their open-plan offices.
thinking people bonnets
People like bonnets. I don't think you can under-estimate that.
thinking episodes plans
Plan for each episode to be a satisfying experience, but still leave the audience thinking, 'Oh, my God! Now what?
hate giving together
Most actors hate readthroughs - they're exposing themselves before they're ready to, and before they've bonded. But I love them because they give us all the first inkling of what the whole show is going to be like, how each part affects every other part, and we won't see that again until it's all edited together.