writing room
King of All Creatures
A contemporary reimagining of the Celtic myth Beddgelert. King Of All Creatures examines loyalty and love in a community battling against recession. Charles Mansford manages ‘The Griffin’, a pub that serves stale beer and topless dancers for under a tenner. Never far from his side is loyal companion Chops, a mute dependant who has a history of violence. Together, Mansford and Chops must try to keep the wolf from the door - but trouble comes knocking when Mansford’s illegitimate teenage daughter turns up. Money pressure and the prospect of becoming a father forces Mansford to question his morals. In order to protect the pub and his new family, he must do the right thing - but, judgment is clouded by love, and loyalty is lost in the fight for a better future.
The story of Beddgelert was the first story I heard as a child, that really stuck with me. It was an unhappy ending that seeped into my subconscious and tapped me on the shoulder twenty years later. As a devote dog lover, it breaks my heart every time I hear it. I have cried many tears writing, re-writing and editing this script. I wanted to do the myth justice - but couldn’t resist revisiting it reimagined in a grotty titty-pub where all the beasts became human characters. This work is my childhood. I can’t say much more than that.