Bristol Sitcom Trials meeting - you are invited.

Vince Stadon, Sitcom Trials Bristol producer writes:

 Next Bristol Sitcom Trials Team meeting: Sunday Sept 2nd - ALL WELCOME!

On the fields of Flanders in February 1918, British officer Major Summerfield was struck by lightning. He fell off his horse and was paralysed from the waist down. After the war, he retired to Vancouver, to indulge his passion for fishing. In 1924, as he fished alongside a river, lightning hit the tree he was sitting under. The tree fell on him, paralysing his right side. Remarkably, he recovered, and four years later he had regained the use of his legs. He was walking through a park when he was struck by lightning and completely paralysed. He died two years later. Four years later, lightning struck a cemetery and completely destroyed his tombstone.
...

The next meeting of the slightly luckier Bristol Sitcom Trials team will take place at the Oxford pub, Oxford Street, Totterdown, 3pm, on Sunday 2nd September. It would be very splendid indeed if you could come along. Everybody is welcome, we especially like to see new faces, so please feel free to come along.

We'll be reading the top five scripts (as voted by peer review) entered into competition for the Halloween Sitcom Trials. From that five, we'll be choosing at least two scripts to take forward to the show on Friday October 19th. We'll also discuss scripts in progress from the Bristol team, and we'll examine German Chancellor Angela Merkel's handling of the Eurozone liquidity crisis and its impact on long-term global fiscal policy decisions.

See you Sunday, if I can avoid being struck by lightning.

Kind regards and very best wishes,

--Vince

Sitcom Trials creator & executive producer Kev F Sutherland adds:

I'll be there, will you?

The result of the online script voting was: 

Draszic's Lot 18
Separate Parents *16 14
Randolph Carter 13
Three in Tow *15 13
Brides of PeteE *13 11
Thirtn Gormley St *12 10
Blackstable 10
Country Rock *12 10
Red Sky at Night 10
What Was That?¬¬¬*9 7
Who Judges Judges 5
Roy Richards *7 5
Kill Bob *6 4
Purgatory *6 4
Trick or Treat *6 4
Witching Hour 3
Femme Fatale 2
Gravesend (late) 0
Café Rico -1
Womb Witha View -2
Istanbul -2
Three Ex Husbands *-3 -5
Friends Like These -6
Enter Twineman *-6 -8
Storm in a Teacup -9
Centipede Human *-9 -11
Lord Mayor -14
Ghost Partner -17
Scare Room -17

Halloween Sitcom Trials: Deadline over, scripts in, let's vote

The deadline has passed for the Halloween Sitcom Trials, the entries are all in, now it is time for all good women & men to read, review and vote on the scripts. You are asked, if you can, to read as many scripts as you can manage, and when you've done so to post a set of Twitter-length reviews and Votes for every script you've read. Vote YES, MAYBE or NO as to whether the script you've read deserves showcasing in the Sitcom Trials stage show.

The scripts are being considered for the Halloween Sitcom Trials taking place in Bristol on Oct 19th and Manchester on Oct 20th. We would like your votes and reviews posted either to the SitsVac forum or the British Comedy Guide forum by midnight Saturday Sept 1st (in order that the Bristol team can select scripts for a Sept 2nd meeting). There may be time for a further round of voting after this date, but the 1st Sept cut-off date will affect the first scripts to be selected for performance.

The scripts in contention can be found in the Sits Vac Halloween files here, and are:

'Who judges the judges' by Elliot 'Jay'Stewart..pdf
13 GORMLEY STREET.pdf 
A Womb With A View To A Kill - Andrew Blair - ST.pdf
Blackstable.pdf 
Cafe Rico Halloween.pdf
Country Rock- Halloween Special.pdf 
Draszic's Lot - Halloween ST.pdf
Enter Twineman by Robin Wiggs (Halloween Sitcom Trials).pdf 
femme_fatale.pdf
Friends Like These (Halloween Sitcom Trials).pdf 
Istanbul - 'Twilight of the Bone Idle'.pdf
Kill Bob.pdf 
Purgatory--LostSouls.pdf
Randolph Carter's Casebook- The Shadow Out of Outsmouth.pdf 
Red Sky at Night - Halloween Episode.pdf
ROY_RICHARDS_LETHAL_GARDENER_by_McHaleHendricksCarney.pdf 
Separate Parents-Halloween.pdf
Storm in a Tea Cup ....pdf 
The Brides of Pete-enstein - SitsVac Halloween 2012 entry.pdf
The Centipede Human by Shahan Miah and Martin Lejeune.pdf 
The Ghost Partner by Emma Roy- Williams.docx
The Lord Mayor - Trick but no Treat.pdf 
The Scare Room (Halloween Sitcom Trials).pdf
The Witching Hour - SitsVac Halloween 2012 entry.pdf 
Three Ex Husbands and a Vicar.pdf
THREE_IN_TOW_by_EOIN_CARNEY_HalloweenSitcomTrialsPilot_v1p0.pdf 
trick or treat.pdf
What was that.pdf 

That's 28 entries, a very healthy turnout for a themed show, and quite the challenge for any budding script readers. Let's see who can get them all read in the first week of voting. Bring it on.

Kev F Sutherland
Creator & Executive Producer
The Sitcom Trials

Facebook
SitsVac Forum - vote here
BCG Forum - or vote here

Halloween Sitcom Trials new deadline Sat Aug 25th

We've extended the deadline for script entries for the next Sitcom Trials. You now have until midnight Saturday August 25th to get your scripts into the Halloween Sitcom Trials. This change is not because there was any shortage of scripts, but simply because we cocked up the announcement earlier (referring to Friday August 21st, a date which quite simply doesn't exist). So you now have until August 25th to get your script in. Bring them on!



The Halloween Sitcom Trials will be taking place in Bristol on October 19th and Manchester on October 20th, and both shows will be performing scripts selected from your online submissions. We are looking for scripts now.

Both the Bristol and the Manchester shows will be selecting their scripts to perform from the same online entries, so you only have to enter once to have double the chance of seeing your sitcom performed live on stage. The Bristol team will be choosing two scripts to be part of their show, and the Manchester team are choosing three, the remainder of the show being prepared by the performers themselves.

Since this is a Halloween show, we're specifically looking for the spooky, the supernatural and the macabre.  You can re-write an existing sitcom, tailored to the Halloween theme; or you can come up with something new.  

Scripts should be NO MORE THAN 15 pages long, with a solid and exciting CLIFFHANGER around the 8-10 page mark.
 If you want to enter a script, simply upload your scripts to the SitsVac files. First read The Brief below for guidelines.

If you have any questions about The Sitcom Trials you can ask at
The Sits Vac Forum
The British Comedy Guide Forum
or Facebook

Scripts should be written to be performed with NO PROPS, SETS or COSTUMES - we're going minimalist on this occasion, since the last show nearly killed us.  Ideally, we'd like ONE CONTINUOUS PIECE OF ACTION, with no scene changes, and with no more than SIX CHARACTERS.  One day we won't need to say this, but please please please write some strong female characters.

The deadline is: Friday 21st August.  There will be a week of voting (usual rules apply: YES=2 / MAYBE=1 / NO=-1), and then the cast will read the top five scripts at a meeting on Sunday 2nd September, and we'll decide which two will make the show.  All writers (and performers) are welcome to attend our meetings, particularly if they buy us drinks.

Kev F Sutherland

Executive Producer

Sitcom Trials

Sitcom Trials Halloween Special Manchester - scripts wanted

Isn't it marvellous? You wait 13 years for a Sitcom Trials Halloween Special, and then two come along at once. Yes, hot on the heels of the announcement of the Bristol Sitcom Trials Halloween Special on Friday 19th October, we are pleased to announce the Manchester Sitcom Trials will be performing a Halloween Special the following night, Saturday October 20th, as part of the Manchester Comedy Festival. And we are looking for scripts.



Both the Bristol and the Manchester shows will be selecting their scripts to perform from the same online entries, so you only have to enter once to have double the chance of seeing your sitcom performed live on stage. The Bristol team will be choosing two scripts to be part of their show, and the Manchester team are choosing three, the remainder of the show being prepared by the performers themselves.

Since this is a Halloween show, we're specifically looking for the spooky, the supernatural and the macabre.  You can re-write an existing sitcom, tailored to the Halloween theme; or you can come up with something new.  

Scripts should be NO MORE THAN 15 pages long, with a solid and exciting CLIFFHANGER around the 8-10 page mark.
 If you want to enter a script, simply upload your scripts to the SitsVac files. First read The Brief below for guidelines.

If you have any questions about The Sitcom Trials you can ask at
The Sits Vac Forum
The British Comedy Guide Forum
or Facebook

Scripts should be written to be performed with NO PROPS, SETS or COSTUMES - we're going minimalist on this occasion, since the last show nearly killed us.  Ideally, we'd like ONE CONTINUOUS PIECE OF ACTION, with no scene changes, and with no more than SIX CHARACTERS.  One day we won't need to say this, but please please please write some strong female characters.

The deadline is: Friday 21st August.  There will be a week of voting (usual rules apply: YES=2 / MAYBE=1 / NO=-1), and then the cast will read the top five scripts at a meeting on Sunday 2nd September, and we'll decide which two will make the show.  All writers (and performers) are welcome to attend our meetings, particularly if they buy us drinks.

Kev F Sutherland

Executive Producer

Sitcom Trials

Scripts invited for Sitcom Trials Halloween Special

Having sold out the last two shows, and garnered 4 star reviews, the Bristol Sitcom Trials will be back with a special Halloween show on Friday 19th October at the Wardrobe Theatre.  We're looking for TWO SCRIPTS to perform as part of a line-up of five brand new spooky sitcoms, and you're all invited to submit material (the other three sitcoms will be written by the Bristol team of writers and performers).

UPDATE: There is now also a Manchester Sitcom Trials Halloween Special on Oct 20th for which these script entries will also be eligible, you only need enter the once to be counted for both. See here for details.

Since this is a Halloween show, we're specifically looking for the spooky, the supernatural and the macabre.  You can re-write an existing sitcom, tailored to the Halloween theme; or you can come up with something new.  

Scripts should be NO MORE THAN 15 pages long, with a solid and exciting CLIFFHANGER around the 8-10 page mark.
 If you want to enter a script, simply upload your scripts to the SitsVac files. First read The Brief below for guidelines.

If you have any questions about The Sitcom Trials you can ask at
The Sits Vac Forum
The British Comedy Guide Forum
or Facebook

Scripts should be written to be performed with NO PROPS, SETS or COSTUMES - we're going minimalist on this occasion, since the last show nearly killed us.  Ideally, we'd like ONE CONTINUOUS PIECE OF ACTION, with no scene changes, and with no more than SIX CHARACTERS.  One day we won't need to say this, but please please please write some strong female characters.

The deadline is: Friday 21st August.  There will be a week of voting (usual rules apply: YES=2 / MAYBE=1 / NO=-1), and then the cast will read the top five scripts at a meeting on Sunday 2nd September, and we'll decide which two will make the show.  All writers (and performers) are welcome to attend our meetings, particularly if they buy us drinks.

Vince Stadon

Producer

Sitcom Trials Bristol

Sitcom Trials Manchester video

Here is a video giving a small taste of the Manchester Sitcom Trials, July 20 2012.



The Manchester Sitcom Trials team, July 2012 was Jog Maher, Christine Dalby, Amir Rahimzadeh, Lisa Connor, Michael Loftus and actor-producer Michelle Ashton, hosted by Trials creator Kev F (just out of shot)

The running order was:

Thrift Collection by Graeme & Nicky Knowles
My Best Mate by Bob Ferris
End Of The Line by Oliver Ley
Post Docs by Eoin Carney
Games Night by Ed Campbell

The Sitcom Trials is planned to return to London, Manchester and Bristol in October, watch this space for news.

Manchester Sitcom Trials result

Thanks to everyone who took part in and attended last night's Manchester Sitcom Trials at the Lass O'Gowrie. A packed show full of the highest quality of scripts, a video will follow a little later*. Here are the results.


The Manchester Sitcom Trials team, July 2012 (from left) Jog Maher, Christine Dalby, Amir Rahimzadeh, Lisa Connor, Michael Loftus and actor-producer Michelle Ashton. Presenter Kev F just out of shot

The running order was:

Thrift Collection by Graeme & Nicky Knowles
My Best Mate by Bob Ferris
End Of The Line by Oliver Ley
Post Docs by Eoin Carney
Games Night by Ed Campbell

And the audience vote, which is just a bit of fun that decides which sitcom's ending they're going to see, gave us..... a tie. Yes, in joint first place were End Of The Line and Games Night. (In deference to Oliver, the writer of EOTL who'd travelled over from Yorkshire to see his script performed, the cast delivered the ending of that on the night).



So congratulations to all the writers and tremendous work by all of the cast. The next Manchester Sitcom Trials will most likely be in October as part of the Manchester Comedy Festival, keep watching this space for news.




*I write this from my Manchester hotel room having performed not only the Sitcom Trials but then the Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre in Manchester last night, and today I'm playing with the Socks at the Splendour Festival in Nottingham in the afternoon, then doing another Socks Edinburgh preview in Guildford at night, so editing and uploading will have a wee wait. It'll happen, stay tuned.