Category Archives: Media

But it’s news… Some questions about Woolwich coverage

Posted on May 23, 2013 by samiraahmed

 I’ll be discussing questions about BBC TV’s news coverage of the horrific Woolwich street murder of a young soldier on Newswatch with the head of the BBC Newsroom, Mary Hockaday on Friday May 24th. This blog post lays out some … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Justice, journalism, Media, TV, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 45 Comments

Loving the Alien: Bowie and the ‘Burbs

Posted on March 15, 2013 by samiraahmed

              How did  I come to make a documentary for Radio 4 called I Dressed Ziggy Stardust? It was pitched and commissioned about 6 months ago, long before anyone thought Bowie might be releasing new … Continue reading →

Posted in Children, Culture, Media, Music, TV, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Philip Larkin and how internet porn began in 1963 (sort of)

Posted on March 11, 2013 by samiraahmed

1963 was a remarkable year. Among the glut of cultural and historical anniversaries — Dr Who, the assassination of JFK, Billy Liar and Oh What Lovely War! — we should I reckon be marking 50 years since the invention of … Continue reading →

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Alan Bennett: Why spilling all is not the art of the monologue

Posted on March 8, 2013 by samiraahmed

I was lucky enough to be asked to chair an In Conversation with the playwright, diarist and screenwriter Alan Bennett at the British Film Institute last night. It was focussed on his skills with the monologue, as part of a season of TV monologues. … Continue reading →

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Murder, Mirth and Care Bears: The uses of an Oxford English degree

Posted on February 13, 2013 by samiraahmed

Writing for news bulletins, writing for standup comedy, writing murders for tv drama, writing for comics and fantasy gaming novels. These were some of the uses to which a group of graduates from my old Oxford College have put our … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Comedy, Comics/graphic novels, Culture, Education, Media, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

A child-sized gap in the TV schedules?

Posted on January 29, 2013 by samiraahmed

Children’s TV is on my mind this week as I’m chairing an event at the BFI Southbank on Saturday Feb 2nd with the original creator of Playschool,Jackanory and producer of Catweazle Joy Whitby. They’re screening several of her programmes and … Continue reading →

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Mocha in the Family Latte: Race on American screens

Posted on January 15, 2013 by samiraahmed

“He should not be here, ” said the fish in the pot. ” he should not be here when your mother is not.” – The Cat In the Hat Dr Seuss (1957) It is a conundrum worthy of the massive … Continue reading →

Posted in Children, Cowboys!, Culture, Film, Media, TV, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

That Was Then, This Is Now – Satire from JFK to Savile

Posted on November 28, 2012 by samiraahmed

Last night I went to the British Film Institute’s celebration of 50 years of the breakthrough TV satire programme, That Was The Week That Was. (TW3). It featured many of the original cast, writers and modern satirists, and clips including … Continue reading →

Posted in Comedy, Media, Politics, TV | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Curse of the Typewriter

Posted on November 20, 2012 by samiraahmed

The last typewriter was made in Britain yesterday at a factory in Wales. But has the stigma of typing for women really been lost? This was originally written earlier this year to look at how far the QWERTY keyboard might … Continue reading →

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Hacks on Film: Essential viewing and reading

Posted on October 3, 2012 by samiraahmed

This is an updated version of an article I first wrote for The Spectator blog, that formed the basis of a lecture to journalism students at Kingston University in October. It has links to scripts, films and articles about all … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, History, journalism, Media, Politics, TV, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment