Letters in blood WW1 based Radio Drama Treatment.

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Letters in Blood.
Treatment
Brief Synopsis
1989, Rose finds a letter about her father, it had been 70 odd years and she finally finds out what had happened, she is reading it to her grandchildren, and there is a flashback. It is World War 1, 1916, two brothers one the age of 17 named James and another 24 named Oliver. They are in the trenches, hearing gunshots and explosions behind them, neither one of them had been over the trench yet, they hear from the Captain that they were the only ones left out of their friends, James becomes frightened and he shows it more to Oliver. Oliver is frightened too but he tries to comfort and stay strong for his brother even though they knew that the next day they have to go over the trench and perhaps face the same death as everyone else. The next morning arrives and neither of them has had any sleep the only sound is that of the birds and the quietness everything was always quiet during the night. Oliver was sat the night before writing a letter to his mother telling her that they have to go over the trench, apologising if anything had happened, promising that he will try to look out for James, but before he Is able to finish the letter, the first light of dawn breaks, Oliver quickly puts the letter under a rock beside him. Noises of canons and gunshots are heard again, Oliver takes James and the two go over the trench together. They run towards the enemy trench going into no mans land, shooting the German troops, hiding for cover. They then go under the barbed wire and just as they get through, James gets shot in the leg, he tells his brother to go on without him, to focus on their mission to get to the enemy trench, though Oliver is determined to not leave him. Oliver decides to drag his brother to his feet, dragging him through the mud to try to save James, though with the bullet in his leg, Oliver knows that there is no hope for his brother. Oliver decides to pick up his brother, the bayonet over his shoulder. He trips and stumbles, though he still carries him. A loud gunshot is heard, and the clear background sound of the other gunshots and canons start to blur and then with a sudden thud as he falls, there is silence. The flashback ends and it goes back to 1989, Rose finishes the letter and puts it away.

Letters in Blood detailed account

It is 1989, the room is small and cosy, there is a fire crackling in the background. The rustling of paper is heard in the foreground, an old woman speaks reading what seems to be a letter. Dear mother, It is night time here in the trench. I like the night, everything is quiet and peaceful. Dont worry, I am looking after James, he is frightened but I know he will pull through. We are told that we are to go over the trench at the first light of dawn.. The writing is cut off as if he never finished it.

As she speaks the words fade out and then the sounds of canons and gunshots begin to fade more into the foreground. The sounds become clearer and the womans voice begins to fade even more until the only sounds are the canons and gunshots. There is the sound of a boys voice and the sounds of the explosions and gunshots are quietened James speaks. Im scared Oliver

He is rather breathless fear in his tone, another boy speaks in reply he is younger, voice much softer though there is a comforting tone as if he is trying to comfort the other boy.

Youll be alright, I promise

The younger boy begins to talk quite frantically about how they are going to die like all of their friends, and that he is afraid that they wont make it; What if we die, what if we end up like everyone else. I dont think I can do this. We could get shot, or have a canon land on our heads his voice shakes as he speaks. The older brother tells him to calm down and try and sleep. James just calm down and try to get some sleep, youll need it alright? Im not going to leave you, I made mother a promise that nothing would happen to you, you do trust me dont you? Yes..I trust you. James replies quieter.

As the night draws in, everything slowly becomes quieter the sounds of canons and gunshots fade out, no mans land almost silent apart from the sounds of birds.

There is the sound of pen to paper scratching as the ink is engraved into the material. The voice of the older brother is heard as he writes, telling his mother that they are to go over the trench at the

first sign of light, that he is sorry if anything happens to him or his brother, he makes a promise to keep James safe for as long as he can and that if he doesnt make it through the war, that he loves her, his brother, his wife and daughter. Dear mother, It is night time here in the trench. I like the night, everything is quiet and peaceful. Dont worry, I am looking after James, he is frightened but I know he will pull through. We are told that we are to go over the trench at the first light of dawn, for all I know this could be my last letter to you. If that is the case, then mother, I am sorry. I am sorry that if I die in the events tomorrow that I love you, tell Rose and Cecilia that I love them and that I always will. I will make it my job to look after..

During half way through a sentence the light appears and the sounds of gunshots begin to fade in. James quickly passes Oliver the bayonet, he puts the bayonet into the gun with a snapping sound.

There is the sound of a rock moving and the sound of the letter being folded before a thump of the rock on top of the paper. Oliver grabs the gun, he backs up against the trench, the sound of footsteps are slow and careful, the sound of a whistle is heard and they climb of th e top, Jamess voice is heard

telling his brother that they will stick together. Stick with me james!

Wires moving are heard and the sounds of gunshots and explosions get slightly louder as they draw in closer to the action of the enemy. The sounds of dirt being moved, the wire stops moving and they get to their feet. The footsteps start to get faster as they begin to run; the sounds of their own gunshots are now heard as they start to shoot. Oliver questions if James is alright, which he replies that he is.

Suddenly a louder gunshot is heard, and James cries out in pain. Oliver shoots the enemy, the sound of him skidding to the floor. Oliver says that he is going to pull James for cover. Grip hold of my arms, Im going to try to pull you to cover. Oliver states loudly trying to speak over the gunshots. You promised that youd keep me safe! James starts to panic. Im going to die arent I?! No James youre not, not if you do as I say, so for once just listen to me!

The sound of the bayonet is heard being thrown

over his shoulder as he takes James for cover. As he pulls James across the mud, a louder gunshot is heard, there is a brief silence before a loud ringing is heard, as the ringing fades out slightly, all the other sounds, the gunshots and canon sounds alike, are muffled and blurred together before two muffled thuds and then there is complete silence. The sound of fire crackling slowly fades in, this happens for a few seconds before she starts to speak again That is all I know of my father and all I ever will know.. the sound of paper is heard rustling as she puts the letter away, and then the credits appear.

Sectioned important details of radio drama the codes:

Music The only Music I have within the radio drama is for the end credits and opening credits, the music will have a feel of drama and war, which will help set the mood of the Drama and genre of the production and so that the audience will get an idea of what the Drama would be out. Aural Signposting Aural Signposting would be a big part of the production, I will need it so that the audience will know when it is the present day and when it is the war. The sound of the fireplace will be in the background when Rose Hobbs is talking, this will indicate when it is present day, when it is the war, the fireplace will slowly fade out and the sounds of gunshots and canons will be heard in the background, this will then indicate when it is the war in 1916. Chronological development and the use of flashbacks The use of chronological development and flashbacks are linked. Although the storyline is linear in the sense that it has a beginning, middle and an end, there will be a flashback, but the flashback is linked toward the letter which Rose Hobbs is reading. Style The style of the drama is a traditional standalone drama, this is because a traditional style will consist of a strong storyline, narrator and characters. The Characters are usually working toward solving something, in my radio drama, Rose Hobbs is trying to solve the death of her father Oliver Hobbs.

Duration The duration of the drama is four minutes long, it is quite short because if it was longer, my target audience would get bored and it might sound too long and would start to ramble with the scripting. Although my Target Audience is for those who like Historic Dramas, I feel that if it is short it will get to the point quicker which is something that happens in a lot of Historic Dramas.

Character Biographies:

Oliver Hobbs: Name: Oliver Hobbs Age: 24 Occupation: Farmer. Background: Oliver Hobbs was born in 1892 in Devon; he was brought up in
a rather poor family, with not much to live by. His father was a known alcoholic, as a child he always liked to ride the small horses whenever his mother would allow him to, it was then in 1899 when Oliver was just seven years old, he had a younger sibling who was named James. Oliver instantly took a brotherly role with looking after James, especially as he grew up and he was learning new things Oliver would always be making sure that James was safe, he felt as if it was almost his job since their father never did a lot with the family, the role was in a sense passed down to him. When Oliver was 16, his father had suddenly died which was most likely due to alcoholic poisoning, he did not feel much remorse for the loss, though he knew that his mother did which made him rather angry at the fact she was hurting so much and it was in that moment did Oliver decide to take care of his mother and James. When he was 21, 1912 he got married to one of the village girls named Cecilia, at the age of 22 1913, they had a daughter named Rose.

Appearance:
Oliver is a tall man his height is 62. He is not too muscular, though he is rather strong, he has warm brown eyes, and kind features. Oliver has a scar across his arm from an accident at the farm, he was ploughing the horses when there

was a sudden dip in the mud the blades had moved up and as he went to move away, the blade had cut his arm causing the scar he has now.

Hobbies:
Since Oliver was a child he had always enjoyed horse riding, he has his own horse named Raffles which he takes on rides where he doesnt have to do farm work for a day.

Costume: Blue shirt, trousers, farming boots, and a cotton murky brown jacket.

Personality: Due to his father not taking much care for the family, Oliver has always been a rather protective person, especially of the people he cares for. He has a specific connection with his brother that is more fatherly then brother like. He is a kind person though he does have his moments where he gets angry and also stubborn, when he is angry he tends to lash out at people not in a physical way but a verbal way which can then result in saying things he perhaps did not mean.

Likes and Dislikes: Oliver doesnt like being called Olly, his mother sometimes calls him this and he tends to correct her in a rather blunt tone. He doesnt like pushy and bossy people and gets rather annoyed and can easily lash out at them. James Flynn Hobbs Name: James Flynn Hobbs Age: 17 Occupation: Farmer

Background: James Hobbs was born in 1899, he was brought into a poor family, that lived off the crops they made and the horses they sold for money. He has one older brother named Oliver, whom is 7 years older than he is. As a child, James liked to explore and perhaps got himself into more trouble than

was necessary, though he sometimes learnt by his mistakes. James had always looked up to Oliver and had always aspired to be like him, his older brother was like his role model. At the age of 9, their father had died though much like his older brother, James never connected with his father since he was always so disconnected to the family. James had never been confident unlike Oliver, he was always much smaller too and was easily picked on by the other village boys.

Personality: James is naturally quite a mischievous person; he always gets himself into trouble and likes to find it too. Though he causes a lot of mischief, he is rather shy too, though because he is shy he is able to cause more mischief in a silent and sneaky way. Though there is sometimes another side to James, he can be kind and he can be helpful, though for him to do this, it is usually on very rare occasions. Hobbies: James doesnt have any hobbies apart from getting himself into trouble. Costume: Grey shirt, blue trousers, farming boots and a dark blue almost black cotton thinned jacket. Likes and Dislikes: James likes to cause mischief, he doesnt like it when people mess with his family, although he is the youngest and because he aspires to be like Oliver, he still becomes rather protective and angry.

Actors: Harry Cowley as James Flynn Hobbs Zachary Mitchell as Oliver Hobbs

Jacqui OConnor as Rose Hobbs

Budget
Budget Description Writer Director Editor Actor 1 Actor 2 Actor 3 Technician Studio Hire Gunshots Cannon Fire Footsteps Bird Song Fire crackling Pen writing Loading the Bayonet High pitched ringing Rock movement Falling to the ground Paper rustling Sundries 20,000.00 333.33 1,211

Unit Cost No of Units Total (inc VAT) Notes 60.00 3.00 180.00 0.00 4.00 0.00 Self Directed 40.00 5.00 80.00 50.00 4.00 250.00 50.00 3.00 200.00 50.00 2.00 150.00 80.00 2.00 160.00 80.00 2.00 160.00 2.00 2.00 4.00 2.00 1.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 4.00 2.00 1.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 2.00 5.00 1.00 5.00

Total

1,211.00

Target Audience:
The Target Audience for my production would be people who like Historic Dramas, since it is based in WW1 the main audience would be from teenagers to adults, or students who are studying history might like the drama. There is no distinct gender preference for the listeners of Letters in blood. I feel as if the main audience would go out to those whom are studying some form of history and since mixed genders study the subject, that there is no distinct form of which gender. The age range would range between 30+ this is because there is a lot of violence and emotive in the drama which younger people wouldnt understand or have the knowledge to understand what is happening. If it is going out towards history students then the drama would need to be accurate to that time, the sounds and the setting would need to be accurate. My Radio station is BBCs Radio 4, this is quite a popular radio station and so therefore, a lot of people would tune into the station, the time it would air would be at 7pm, this is because it is not too late, and it is not too early. Most ages listen to BBC Radio 4, and so therefore, my drama may also attract new audiences if they feel as if they are interested in the brief plot given on the description if they are listening through BBCs own website.