News

Providing creative inspiration

Published 14 December 2011

The man behind some of the country's top comics revealed secrets of his success when he came to the University of Brighton to give creative writing masterclasses for students.

Graham Duff, scriptwriter, producer and comic actor, has written for the likes of Johnny Vegas, Mark Gatiss, Julia Davis, Steve Coogan, Ben Miller and Simon Pegg, and recently presented at Screen South's Stories for Screen conference.

Graham, who graduated from the University of Brighton's Faculty of Arts with a Expressive Arts (Theatre) BA(Hons) in 1985, has over the years created a body of work for TV and radio, often taking inspiration from the worlds of music, horror, sci-fi and art house cinema.

Jess Moriarty, the university's senior lecturer in humanities, said: "Graham is a genuine inspiration and we were thrilled that he was able to work with students to develop ideas and enhance their creative work."

The event proved such a success that Graham is expected to return to the university for a repeat seminar next year.

Graham's scripts are known for pushing comic genre boundaries and attracting some of the biggest names in British comedy. Outside the world of TV and radio, Graham has worked with acclaimed sound collagist Vicki Bennett on three of her 'People Like Us' albums, as well as collaborating with Mark E. Smith, Wire's Colin Newman and 'art terrorist' Stewart Home. He also executive produced Celebricide's debut album and has DJ'd at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Graham uses a range of cultural references to inspire his writing, producing scripts that draw on the sit-com genre but then explode into unknown worlds that are permeated, according to critics, by the surreal, hilarious and utterly bizarre.

As an actor, Graham played Death Eater General in the recent 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’ Part 1 and 2, and he is soon to be seen in a role as a convicted paedophile in David Cross's dark US sit-com 'The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret'.

Stories for Screen was sponsored by the university’s careers service and launches an initiative by the Faculty of Arts to network the university's media students from across the five campuses with industry professionals including film makers, commissioners, distributors and producers and writers in an explosion of ideas and advice.

The event was organised by Gilly Smith, writer and lecturer in Broadcast Media at the university, and Jess Moriarty, poet and senior lecturer in creative writing at the university.