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Do SWs make it up as they go along?

• Message 1. 

  Posted by smoothy (U4912281) on Wednesday, 18th October 2006

  On reading the synopses I see that the scriptwriters change regularly,sometimes daily.
  
  How does this work when developing a storyline?
  
  Do the "powers that be" give the SWs a basic story to work with for each episode or are the SWs given carte blanche to write as they wish ( presumably as long as it links in with what has gone before)?
  
  I have wondered about this particularly with the latest David/Ruth saga. How this situation will conclude is anyone's guess and it would be interesting to know if the eventual outcome will be the responsibilty of whichever SW is on duty at the time the story is deemed to have run its course.

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• Message 2

  , in reply to message 1.

  Posted by triffid (U2389672) on Thursday, 19th October 2006

  I've no idea what happens nowadays (perhaps Mr Keri will be kind enough to enlighten us?) but in the programme's early years the two scriptwriters namely Geoffrey Webb and Edward J Mason must have had a certain degree of licence as far as plotlines were concerned. I say this because I distinctly remember reading that each would deliberately introduce problems into the storyline which the other had to resolve (they probably wrote two weeks' scripts at at time). However I wouldn't think this licence would have extended to really major incidents involving the characters.

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• Message 3

  , in reply to message 1.

  Posted by Reggie Trentham (U2746099) on Thursday, 19th October 2006

  I am sure I've read messages from Mr. K. about script planning meetings. So there is not just a random story line. How much freedom the SWs have within this I'm not sure.
  
  I would be interested to know whether listener reaction (in general, not just from MLers) has ever caused the reconsideration of a plot line. I'm thinking specifically of the Adam/Ian/mad woman story which appears to have been definitively killed. But was this always planned (if so why introduce it in the first place) or was it because of listener reaction?

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• Message 4

  , in reply to message 3.

  Posted by mike (U2254029) on Thursday, 19th October 2006

  See for the storyline planning process.
  
  My guess would be that Ian/Madds/Adam storyline was always going to finish that way (the idea of Ian fathering Madds' child was barmy). You say: why have it as a storyline? Er, ... why not?

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• Message 5

  , in reply to message 3.

  Posted by Keri Davies (U2219620) on Friday, 20th October 2006

  >I would be interested to know whether listener reaction (in general, not just from MLers) has ever caused the reconsideration of a plot line.
  
  Yes - for example we shortened and reduced the prominence of Greg and Helen's romance.
  
  >I'm thinking specifically of the Adam/Ian/mad woman story which appears to have been definitively killed.
  
  No, this was how the story was planned to end.

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