Belfast actress writes the script

Comedy drama follows colourful lives of Dublin girls

By Jane Bardon BBC News Online

Any Time Now, a comedy drama series soon to be screened on BBC One, started out as the brainchild of actress Ali White and three friends - two other actresses and an aspiring producer.

It grew out of their frustration at auditioning for the parts of "fourth peasant to the left" in big films being made in Ireland.

"We created a story for a film with parts for each of us. But when it came to actually writing it down, no-one else volunteered," Ali said.

She was aware, at the discussion stage five years ago, that it would be a hard slog to write and even harder to get the script accepted, but was prepared for the challenge.

Ali White has challenging dual career as actress and writer

A frequent youth performer in Belfast, where she was born, Ali found her acting "niche" as a student in Edinburgh where she performed in and wrote for the student theatre and the annual Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

A professional actress since 1990, now living in Dublin, Ali has appeared in numerous plays, and her on-screen performances include roles in A Love Divided and With or Without You.

While still acting full time, Ali wrote up the idea for the film script. In 1998 her producer friend Lesley McKimm took the proposal to the Irish Film Board, who suggested it might be better suited to television.

When they re-submitted the idea in 1999, with a draft of the first episode, they were awarded a £9,000 development grant.

The BBC and the Irish state broadcaster RTE agreed to develop the project with a view to making a co-production.

Reworking

Ali said the continuous writing and rewriting was sometimes frustrating and she was always aware that many scripts never make it past the development stage.

There were moments when she foresaw the growing pile of drafts ending up as a BBC office doorstop.

The series was formally commissioned last July for a prime time slot.

Ali and her co-originators realised this would mean "names" would be needed for the main roles, but she said they were delighted that their idea was finally going to make it onto the screen.

While her friends continued with their acting careers, Ali had taken on a huge workload.

Writers do not normally write all of the episodes of a series, but the producers could not find anyone who could match her voice - a mixed blessing.

"After a long development process, suddenly you're in pre-production. Storylines are still changing though the first episodes are about to be shot. It's exciting, but the pressure is in incredible."

'Friendship and betrayal'

Ali said it was great to see the actors taking on the lives of her characters.

Stevie Macutcheon a single mum, Kate O'Dowd a young career woman and Nora Moggin an aspiring actress, (played by Susan Lynch, Zara Turner and Angeline Ball), come to life in a "heightened version of contemporary Dublin".

"It's basically about female friendship, the betrayals that start happening within this, and there are other storylines involving fate and a psychic weather man," Ali said.

"The girls are always hoping their lives will work out any time now, but life and messy love affairs always get in the way."

If Any Time Now proves popular, when it is screened by the BBC and RTE, Ali has ideas for further episodes.

She is also developing an idea for a film, and she would like to get back onto the stage and screen herself once she has reminded everyone "that acting is my other job".