cover of episode David Nicholls, writer

David Nicholls, writer

2024/8/17
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Desert Island Discs

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Lauren Laverne
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@Lauren Laverne : 本期节目邀请到的是作家大卫·尼科尔斯,他是一位屡获殊荣的编剧,也是六部小说(包括畅销书《一天》)的作者。他的作品常常是苦乐参半的,既关乎失去也关乎爱情。 @David Nicholls : 我认为幸福不是一个很有趣的主题,我的作品中总是贯穿着某种程度的忧郁和悲伤。快乐的结局只有在故事结束时才有效,如果继续发展,还会有其他的事情发生。我更感兴趣的是悲伤和快乐的混合,并试图将两者都包含在内。很难写关于幸福和满足的内容,因为这些体验虽然美好,但观看起来却很乏味。喜剧和悲伤是交织在一起的,我无法想象两者分离。 流媒体对编剧来说是有益的,因为它允许创作任意长度的剧集,并以新的方式进行选角。但我仍然喜欢传统的电视节目制作方式。我经常在写作时会考虑到演员,但这些演员的选择并不总是实际可行的。音乐对我来说非常重要。 我的童年是一个相当正常、稳定、郊区的童年。我和父亲的关系并不轻松,他工作努力,但我们之间缺乏深入的沟通。我母亲则非常关心我。我从小就对知识和书籍非常痴迷,图书馆对我来说是一个重要的避难所和资源。我在学校里很认真,有点书呆子气,并且很紧张。直到十几岁才开始走出自己的壳,参与戏剧表演,并且在女性朋友的陪伴下更自在。 我在布里斯托大学学习英语文学和戏剧,这段经历改变了我的生活。大学期间,我痴迷于喜剧,并与朋友组成了一个喜剧二人组。我曾尝试过表演,在国家剧院工作期间,我意识到自己更喜欢写作而不是表演。我从演员转型为编剧的经历很漫长,我曾担任剧本阅读员和剧本编辑,最终才开始创作剧本。 改编经典小说时,我既感到兴奋也感到压力。我一直都有焦虑和失眠的困扰,但我提醒自己要保持乐观。我和汉娜的相遇彻底改变了我的生活,并让我更有信心进行写作。 《一天》的创作灵感来自于我阅读《苔丝》的经历。我花了很长时间来规划小说的结构,并进行了多次修改。我很高兴《一天》的成功是口碑相传的结果。在《一天》取得成功后,我很难再写出新的作品。我租了一个简陋的办公室来进行写作,这体现了我对写作的严苛态度。散步有助于我的创作,即使它不能直接带来灵感。我喜欢散步,因为它可以让我进行长时间的体育活动,并且我喜欢和朋友一起散步。 我参与制作了Netflix版《一天》,并创作了倒数第二集的剧本。我选择《安娜·卡列尼娜》作为我的孤岛书籍,因为它一直是我的阅读清单上的一个目标。我选择钢琴作为我的奢侈品,因为我想学习钢琴。 Lauren Laverne: 大卫·尼科尔斯在节目中分享了他的人生经历和创作感悟,包括他与父亲的关系,他从演员到编剧的转型,以及他创作小说《一天》的心路历程。他谈到了幸福、悲伤、写作、表演、家庭、时间等主题,展现了他对人生和创作的深刻思考。

Deep Dive

Key Insights

Why did David Nicholls choose 'I Say a Little Prayer' by Aretha Franklin as his first desert island disc?

David chose 'I Say a Little Prayer' by Aretha Franklin because it was a pivotal song for him at 16, introducing him to a different kind of music with complex chord changes and time signatures. He loved the warmth and emotion of the song.

Why did David Nicholls feel that writing about happiness is challenging?

David found writing about happiness challenging because it is a wonderful experience but a boring thing to watch. He believed that happiness and contentment are hard to sustain in a story without making it grim or pessimistic.

Why did David Nicholls choose 'Cloudbusting' by Kate Bush as one of his desert island discs?

David chose 'Cloudbusting' by Kate Bush because it was a song that hovered between joy and sadness, and it was a piece of music he idolized as a 15-year-old. He found it strange, eccentric, and wonderful.

Why did David Nicholls choose 'Life on Mars?' by David Bowie as his third desert island disc?

David chose 'Life on Mars?' by David Bowie because of its grandiosity, the mix of classical piano and glam rock drums, and its unexpected directions. He found it to be a fantastic and almost ridiculous piece of music.

Why did David Nicholls choose 'Goldberg Variations' by Bach as his fourth desert island disc?

David chose 'Goldberg Variations' by Bach because it reminded him of his time in New York, where he would listen to it while writing letters to friends. It felt very writerly and like writing music.

Why did David Nicholls choose 'Coyote' by Joni Mitchell as his fifth desert island disc?

David chose 'Coyote' by Joni Mitchell because it was a song that reminded him of his collaboration with Sam Shepard. He and his friend Matthew adapted a Sam Shepard play, and this song was a significant part of that experience.

Why did David Nicholls choose 'We Belong Together' by Rickie Lee Jones as his sixth desert island disc?

David chose 'We Belong Together' by Rickie Lee Jones because it was a song he and his partner, Hannah, shared in the early days of their relationship. It made him think of Hannah and meant a lot to him.

Why did David Nicholls choose 'Who Knows Where the Time Goes?' by Fairport Convention as his seventh desert island disc?

David chose 'Who Knows Where the Time Goes?' by Fairport Convention because it resonated with his awareness of time accelerating as he got older. The song is tender and poignant, and it was used in the soundtrack of the adaptation of his book 'Us'.

Why did David Nicholls choose 'Protection' by Massive Attack as his final desert island disc?

David chose 'Protection' by Massive Attack because it was a theme song for 'One Day' and was used in the Netflix adaptation. He loved the voice of Tracey Thorn and the happy experience of working on the Netflix series.

Why did David Nicholls choose Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy as his book choice for the island?

David chose Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy because it was a great love story he hadn't read yet. He wanted to complete it and see it through, considering it a mission and a chance to fill a gap in his reading education.

Why did David Nicholls choose a piano and sheet music as his luxury item for the island?

David chose a piano and sheet music because he loved music but had no musical ability. He saw it as a chance to finally learn to play the piano and improve beyond grade two, which he had reached as a teenager.

Shownotes Transcript

The writer David Nicholls is best known for his 2009 novel One Day which has sold 6 million copies, been made into a film and a Netflix series which reached the top 10 in 89 countries. He’s written six novels and his work as a screenwriter has won him a BAFTA and an Emmy nomination.

He was born in 1966 and studied Drama and English Literature at Bristol University. This partly inspired his novel Starter for Ten. After university he spent one year in New York studying acting before returning to the UK to try and forge a career as an actor. He spent three years at the National Theatre but was mostly an understudy which inspired his novel Understudy.

After a few years, David left acting and pursued a writing career and had success as a TV screen writer. Alongside his award-winning career as a TV writer he has won many prizes for his novels.

David lives in London with his partner, Hannah and their two children.

Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor

DISC ONE: I Say a Little Prayer - Aretha Franklin DISC TWO: Cloudbusting - Kate Bush DISC THREE: Life on Mars? - David Bowie DISC FOUR: Goldberg Variations, BWV 988: Aria. Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach and performed by Glenn Gould (piano) Coyote - Joni Mitchell DISC FIVE: Coyote - Joni Mitchell DISC SIX: We Belong Together - Rickie Lee Jones DISC SEVEN: Who Knows Where The Time Goes? - Fairport Convention DISC EIGHT: Protection - Massive Attack featuring Tracey Thorn BOOK CHOICE: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy LUXURY ITEM: A piano and sheet music CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: I Say a Little Prayer - Aretha Franklin