The Stage

The Bill finds producer to fill Black’s shoes

Published Tuesday 20 January 2004 at 14:15 by Joanna Taylor

Claire Phillips has been appointed as the new producer of ITV1 series The Bill, replacing Carson Black who left under controversial circumstances last year.

Phillips’ last production was Carlton’s Sweet Medicine, shown in ITV1’s Sunday prime time slot and starring Patricia Hodge. She began her career as a graduate trainee for Mersey Television in 1995 where she wrote for teen drama Hollyoaks and then became Brookside’s assistant producer. Phillips has also worked on Bad Girls and Footballers’ Wives.

Thames Television head of drama Paul Marquess said: “Claire Phillips is a very talented, experienced and popular producer who will undoubtedly take the revitalised The Bill onwards and upwards.”

She replaces former producer of The Bill, Black, who left in October 2003 after less than six months at the helm. His departure was understood to have been prompted by a disagreement with Marquess about the direction of the show.

In his short time as producer on the programme, Black was attacked by the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain for flouting industry practice after he offered £200 to buy out all rights for storyline ideas without guaranteeing a commission. Marquess has since reversed the decision.

Meanwhile, Robson Green, Michael French and Jamie Theakston are among the stars taking part in BBC1’s second instalment of its Afternoon Plays strand. Starting on Monday (January 26) the single daytime dramas will run for one week, beginning with Venus and Mars starring Green and Holby City’s Tina Hobley. The programme is written by Johanna Baldwin and directed by Nick Jones.

Other highlights include Viva Las Blackpool which stars Paula Wilcox and was directed by Sarah Lancashire. Glasgow Dreams, which is based around a Muslim family living on a rough Glaswegian council estate, stars Shabana Bakhsh - former cast member of the BBC’s first Scottish soap River City.

n Critically acclaimed BBC2 sitcom Early Doors has been commissioned for a second series. Written by Caroline Aherne’s long-term collaborator Craig Cash, the series first aired in March 2003 and was then repeated in October. It attracted modest audiences of between 1.6 and 1.8 million but has been tipped to be the next cult comedy following The Office, also on BBC2.

Cash and Aherne co-wrote the Royle Family and the pair were originally working together on Early Doors until Aherne walked out part-way through the project. The new series of six half-hour episodes will be made by independent production company Ovation Entertainment. Cash will again star in the series, with co-writer Phil Mealey, as locals in a pub set in Manchester.