The ScreenUK Podcast

In this episode of the ScreenUK Podcast, host Michael Leader goes inside the making of SHAUN THE SHEEP: THE BEAST OF MOSSY BOTTOM with co-director Matthew Walker and executive producer and chief creative director at Aardman Animations, Sarah Cox. They discuss how the film sets out to do something genuinely new with one of animation’s most beloved characters - taking Shaun’s world into spooky Halloween territory for the first time, drawing on the British fun horror tradition that the team at Aardman grew up with. Matthew and Sarah talk through the ambition behind the film’s bold new visual palette, the creation of The Beast - the most challenging new character to design - and the introduction of The Vet, a brand new character who steals scenes wherever she appears. The conversation also turns to the craft at the heart of what Aardman does: what it means to make a genre film in stop-motion, how a character as expressive as Shaun communicates everything without a single word, and why, after all these years, this little sheep continues to resonate with audiences of all ages around the world. SHAUN THE SHEEP: THE BEAST OF MOSSY BOTTOM is available to watch now - head to the ScreenUK website to find out where you can watch it. Matthew Walker Matthew Walker is a writer, director and story artist based in Bristol. He created and developed the series LLOYD OF THE FLIES (2022) for Aardman and has been working in the animation industry since 2005 across commercials, TV series and feature films, including SHAUN THE SHEEP: ADVENTURES FROM MOSSY BOTTOM, SHAUN THE SHEEP: THE FLIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS and CHICKEN RUN: DAWN OF THE NUGGET. Sarah Cox Sarah Cox sits on the Board of Directors at Aardman and leads the Development and Creative Pillar. As Chief Creative Director she is responsible for shaping the creative strategy of the studio and the development slate. Her Executive Producer credits include two Emmy-winning Shaun the Sheep productions and the Oscar® nominated and BAFTA® winning WALLACE & GROMIT: VENGEANCE MOST FOWL (2024), and she has brought a range of new projects to the Aardman roster including the Oscar-nominated ROBIN ROBIN (2021) and Aardman’s first CG series LLOYD OF THE FLIES (2022).

Jane Austen published SENSE AND SENSIBILITY anonymously in 1811. More than two hundred years later, director Georgia Oakley and writer Diana Reid have made an adaptation that feels entirely new - and in this episode of the ScreenUK Podcast, Rhianna Dhillon sits down with both of them to find out how. They unpack the choices behind that fresh take: Diana on why she keeps circling back to stories about women and the identities they build in relation to each other; Georgia on the decision to shoot on 35mm film through the chaos of a Dartmoor autumn; both of them on the dark reading of the book that nobody talks about - is Marianne actually punished by ending up with Colonel Brandon? And why did making the men feel truly worthy of the women require rewriting Edward's entire backstory? They also get into the Devonshire beaches, the hunting dogs, the duel that's in the book but never on screen, the fight scenes between Elinor and Marianne that had every agent in London turning up on set, the pug named Phyllis, and Diana's firmly held theory that Jane Austen was, above all else, a little bit of a bitch - and that that is the highest possible compliment. SENSE AND SENSIBILITY is in UK cinemas from 25 September and in the US from 16 October 2026. Georgia Oakley - Director Georgia Oakley is an award-winning writer and director. Her debut feature BLUE JEAN had its world premiere at the 2022 Venice Film Festival where it won the People's Choice Award and the Valentina Pedicini Award. Georgia was nominated for Best Debut at the BAFTAs for the film, and won the BIFA for Best Debut Screenwriter, one of four BIFAs BLUE JEAN was awarded. She was selected as a BAFTA Breakthrough that year. She is currently writing an original feature for BBC Film, as well as adapting two short stories: Life Ceremony by Sayaka Murata for Tessa Ross/House Productions and Film4; and Pillory for Michael Parets/Sinestra and Fremantle. Diana Reid - Writer Diana Reid is a screenwriter and novelist. Her debut novel, Love & Virtue, won several prizes and she was named Sydney Morning Herald's Best Young Australian Novelist in 2022. She wrote a film adaptation of Jane Austen's SENSE AND SENSIBILITY for Working Title and Focus Features. Her television adaptation of Middlemarch is in development with Working Title and Netflix UK. Born in Sydney, Diana is currently based in London.

In June 1944, the fate of D-Day came down to a single weather forecast. In this episode of the ScreenUK Podcast, host Rhianna Dhillon sits down with writer David Haig and director Anthony Maras to go inside the making of PRESSURE - the World War II thriller that tells the extraordinary, little-known story of meteorologist James Stagg, the unsung Scottish hero whose forecast would decide the largest seaborne invasion in history. David Haig spent more than a decade with this story - first as a playwright, performing Stagg himself over 300 times, then through years of screenplay development that stretched across Covid lockdowns and industry strikes before Anthony Maras came on board to guide it to the screen. Together they talk about the challenge of making a slow-moving weather system as terrifying as a gun or a shark, the decision to cast Andrew Scott in a role built on restraint and stillness rather than conventional heroism, and why Brendan Fraser was the only person to play Eisenhower. They also reveal the extraordinary story of filming the D-Day beach sequence in real autumn storms that cleared at the exact right moment - and the remarkable coincidence that saw James Stagg's own grandson walk into Working Title's offices to help cut the archival footage that tells his grandfather's story. PRESSURE is in UK and Irish cinemas now. US audiences can find it on streaming. David Haig - Writer David Haig is an actor and playwright whose stage play PRESSURE - in which he performed the central role of James Stagg over 300 performances in Edinburgh and London - was a critical and commercial success. Scenes from the play were performed at the 75th anniversary celebrations of D-Day in Portsmouth in 2019, attended by Queen Elizabeth II, President Trump, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and President Macron. Haig adapted the play for the screen, developing the screenplay through multiple drafts over more than a decade before co-writing the final version with director Anthony Maras. Anthony Maras - Director Anthony Maras is an Australian filmmaker who co-wrote, directed and edited PRESSURE. He is best known for his feature debut HOTEL MUMBAI (2018), a thriller based on the 2008 terrorist attack on the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, which received widespread critical acclaim for its tension and emotional immediacy. Working Title and StudioCanal approached Maras to direct PRESSURE after being blown away by HOTEL MUMBAI, seeing in him the rare ability to create visceral suspense from human psychology under extreme pressure.

It took producer Pippa Harris nearly 20 years to bring THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE to the big screen. In this episode of the ScreenUK Podcast, she joins director Ben Gregor and writer Simon Farnaby to share how they finally did it - and what it took to turn one of Enid Blyton's most beloved children's classics into a film worthy of the millions of people who grew up with it. The conversation ranges from the nearly 40 drafts that shaped the script, to the custom tattoos Andrew Garfield insisted on, the beard-stroking unit that brought the Land of Know-Alls to life, and the independent VFX company they built above a tube station because no one else could afford to do it for them. It's a conversation about creative ambition, the chaos of independent filmmaking, and what it actually means to make a family film that works for everyone in the room - grandparents, parents, kids, and the rugby dads who didn't expect to cry. THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE is in cinemas in the US from 21 August 2026. It is currently the second most successful independent UK film of the year. Ben Gregor - Director Ben Gregor is the director of THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE. He has previously collaborated with Simon Farnaby as an actor on projects including BLAKES JUNCTION 7 and ALL STARS, while his television directing credits include BLACK OPS, BRASSIC and BRITANNIA. His work on BRITANNIA led to his relationship with Pippa Harris and Nicolas Brown at Neal Street Productions. THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE marks his first collaboration with Farnaby as a writer. Pippa Harris - Producer Dame Pippa Harris DBE is an Oscar-nominated, BAFTA-winning film and television producer and co-founder of Neal Street Productions, which she established with Sam Mendes and Caro Newling in 2003. Her film credits include 1917, EMPIRE OF LIGHT, STARTER FOR TEN and HAMNET, while her television work includes CALL THE MIDWIFE, BRITANNIA, PENNY DREADFUL and THE HOLLOW CROWN. Pippa first began pursuing an adaptation of THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE nearly two decades ago. Simon Farnaby - Writer / Cast Simon Farnaby is a screenwriter, actor and author. His screenwriting credits include WONKA, PADDINGTON and PADDINGTON 2 with long-term collaborator Paul King, as well as MINDHORN and THE PHANTOM OF THE OPEN. His television work includes THE DETECTORISTS, HORRIBLE HISTORIES and GHOSTS. Simon wrote THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE and also appears in the film as local farmer Brian.

In this episode of the ScreenUK Podcast, host Rhianna Dhillon sits down with director Mike Christie and producer Alice Popplewell to go inside the making of WHAM! 10 DAYS IN CHINA - a new documentary about George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley's landmark 1985 visit to China, when Wham! became the first Western pop group to perform in Communist China. They tell the story behind the story: the maverick PR plan conceived by manager Simon Napier Bell, the Pandora's box of restored and never-before-seen archive footage, and the years of detective work it took to piece together a film that is 41 years in the making. Mike and Alice discuss tracking down contributors from across three continents, including Ling Ling Coe - Wham!'s bilingual translator who was one of the only people in the world at the time who could bridge both cultures - and travelling to China with Andrew Ridgeley on the 40th anniversary of the tour. They also explore the film's bigger picture: what the visit meant for Chinese music culture, what the archive reveals about George and Andrew's relationship under pressure, and why Wham! turned out to be the perfect UK ambassadors for that extraordinary moment in history. WHAM! 10 DAYS IN CHINA is in cinemas worldwide from 28 July 2026. Mike Christie, Director of Wham! 10 Days in China. Mike began his career in the music industry before moving into filmmaking. He has become one of the UK’s leading music documentary directors, making acclaimed films on Wham!, Nick Cave, New Order, Suede and Hansa Studios, alongside a wider body of documentaries exploring art, sport, technology and culture. His work has been commissioned by broadcasters and platforms including the BBC, Channel 4, Sky, Discovery/MAX, Showtime, Sony Music Vision and Amazon Prime, earning nominations and awards from Emmy, RTS, Grierson, Rose d’Or, New York Festivals and Focal. Alongside his documentary work, Mike directs films for brands including Red Bull, LEGO, Apple and Mercedes F1, and has worked on major live events including the London 2012 Olympic Ceremonies and a range of concert productions for artists including Gary Barlow, Pet Shop Boys, and New Order. Mike is Creative Director of Supercollider at Zinc Media Group. He lives in London and works internationally. Alice Popplewell, Producer of Wham! 10 Days in China. Alice is a Grierson- and RTS-nominated documentary producer whose work spans acclaimed music documentaries including Ed Sheeran: the Sum of it All and Nick Cave’s Veiled World. Her latest feature, WHAM!: 10 Days in China, revisits the band's landmark 1985 tour through newly restored archive footage, uncovering a pivotal moment in cultural and political history.

In the first episode of the ScreenUK Podcast, host Frankie Ward goes behind the scenes with Supermassive Games - the UK studio redefining the line between cinema and interactive storytelling. Frankie sits down with Will Doyle (Creative Director) and Hannah Sigston (Senior Producer) to explore the making of DIRECTIVE 8020, the latest entry in THE DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY and Supermassive's first foray into sci-fi horror. Together, they unpack what it takes to build a branching narrative game with the scale of a blockbuster: casting Lashana Lynch, collaborating with stunt performers and motion capture artists, upgrading to a new game engine mid-development, and designing systems - like the new Destiny and Turning Point mechanics - that put players genuinely in control of life and death. They also talk about Guildford's thriving games scene, the relationship between cinema and gaming, and what comes next for one of the UK's most exciting studios. Whether you're a lifelong gamer or a film and TV fan curious about the craft behind interactive storytelling, this one's for you. Will Doyle, Creative Director, Supermassive Games - A veteran of the UK games industry, Will has designed dozens of games across a wide variety of formats and genres. Narrative games are his speciality, and it’s no surprise he’s a huge fan of horror. He has led the development of Supermassive Games’ The Dark Pictures narrative horror series, serving as Creative Director on Directive 8020 (2026), Switchback VR (2023), and The Devil in Me (2022), as well as Game Director on House of Ashes (2021). In his spare time, he’s also a keen tabletop gamer and designer, swapping mouse and keyboard for a d20 and character sheet. Hannah Sigston, Senior Producer at Supermassive Games- Hannah’s a Senior Producer at Supermassive Games with over seven years of experience across video games, VFX, and virtual production. She has contributed to titles including The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes, The Devil in Me, Switchback VR, and most recently Directive 8020, and is passionate about creating standout player experiences with strong teams. Outside of work, she enjoys fantasy, horror, and tabletop games such as Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering. Learn more about DIRECTIVE 8020 https://www.supermassivegames.com/ Discover more about UK film, tv, animation and games https://www.screenuk.org/   

A podcast opening up the worlds of UK film, TV, animation and games. Across each episode, we speak to the people behind standout UK film, TV, animation and games - from established names to emerging voices - exploring the stories, influences and creative choices that bring their work to life.