Beth Johnson 
Paul Abbott 

Creator of television series such as Shameless, Clocking Off, State of Play, Reckless, Linda Green and Children’s Ward, Paul Abbott is a British ‘showrunner’ and writer whose name and reputation for edgy, intelligent, successful and socio-political programmes holds significant weight both in the contemporary television industry and with the public. This is the first book-length academic study of the television programmes created, written by, and/or executive-produced, by Abbott. It is also the first academic study to attempt to consider his complete oeuvre.

Within a broadly chronological structure this book elucidates, decodes and evaluates key examples of Abbott’s output, exhibiting a vital evaluation of Abbott’s work over the past three decades and assessing his contribution to British television. Engaging with thematic and ideological notions of the personal, the autobiographical, the honest, the shameless, the pleasurable and the painful recourse of the specificity of ‘ordinary life’, the volume seeks to combine close textual analysis of Abbott’s work with archival research and specially commissioned interviews with Abbott and other important industry practitioners.

Table of Content

Foreword by Paul Aabbott
List of illustrations
General Editors’ preface
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Biographical sketch: Abbott as writer, producer and creator
2. Reckless
3. Clocking Off
4. Linda Green
5. State of play
6. Shameless
7. Abbottvision, global reach and epilogue
Appendix 1: Interviewing Paul Abbott
Appendix 2: List of programmes and films
Bibliography
TV/Filmography
Index

About the author

Steven Peacock is Reader in Film and Television Aesthetics at the University of Hertfordshire