Y Touring Theatre Company
Encyclopedia
Y Touring Theatre Company is a national touring theatre company which produces original plays and debates exploring contemporary issues. It was founded in 1989 by Nigel Townsend. The company is based in Kings Cross
, London, England and is an operation of Central YMCA.
, drama
, and digital media
to engage our audiences, young people and adults, in an informed debate about often complex and challenging issues.'
Y Touring's first production was 'The Inner Circle' by Patricia Loughrey, originally commissioned by The New Conservatory Theatre Centre in San Francisco, adapting it for British young people’s audiences. This play told the story of a group of four friends, one of whom had been infected by HIV
and went on to develop AIDS
and die.
To celebrate the company's 21st anniversary Y Touring have created a website with a blog, each day they are showing interviews and publishing essays on this blog Y Touring 21st Anniversary
Y Touring are currently developing a new play by Abi Bown called Dayglo which will explore the ethical and scientific issues around Pharmacogenetics
.
The play is expected to go into production shortly and begin touring in the autumn of 2011
2011
Mind the Gap * by Abi Bown
(Revival of 2004 production)
Was performed at Royal Albert Hall
as part of National Science & Engineering Week
Mind the Gap was filmed and broadcast in 8 cinemas nationwide, click here for details.
This production won the Runner-Up of the National Science and Engineering Week 2011 Best Science Event category
2009
'Breathing Country' by Ben Musgrave is a play which explores the issues raised by the use of electronic patient records in medical research. The production was developed in partnership with the Royal Academy of Engineering
(RAEng) and was supported by the Wellcome Trust
and Central YMCA.
The play was shortlisted for the Brian Way
award 2010 for best play for young people .
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
There is an audio version of this play available for download at this link Breathing Country audio play
Photos from the autumn 2009 production Breathing Country photos
Wellcome Trust blog about 'Breathing Country'
2009
'Starfish' by Judith Johnson is a play which explores the issues raised by clinical trials.
The project was funded by the Wellcome Trust
.
The Daily Telegraph article about 'Starfish' commented on that the play that, 'The heartfelt response to this tear-jerking story of love, romance and grief was all the more surprising given that the play was also an attempt to explore the issues surrounding clinical trials in medicine.'
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
There is an audio version of this play available for download at this link Starfish audio play
Photos from the spring 2009 production Starfish photos
Read Sue Elkin's blog about 'Starfish'
The virtual world exploring clinical trials created by Rezzable in partnership with Y Touring
2008
'The Projectionist' by Laura FitzGerald is an audio play/podcast exploring social, moral, scientific and political questions posed by the rise of a privacy and surveillance society. The production was developed in partnership with the Royal Academy of Engineering
.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
There is an audio version of this play available for download at this link The Projectionist audio play
Production photos The Projectionist photos
Video clip from a reading of the play
2007
'Nobody Lives Forever' by Judith Johnson, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by stem cell
research. The production was developed in partnership with the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC) and was supported by the Medical Research Council
(UK) (MRC), the Department of Health, Action Medical Research and the Royal Albert Hall
.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
Read about the performance at the Wellcome Collection
2007
'Full Time' by Rachel Wagstaff is a play that explores racism
, homophobia
and sexism
in football. The production was developed in partnership with the Football Association and the Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF). The project was supported by the Football Foundation and Central YMCA.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
2006
'Every Breath' by Judith Johnson, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by the use of animals in medical research. This production was developed in partnership with the Association of Medical Research charities.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
There is an audio version of this play available for download at this link Every Breath audio play
* 2004
'Mind the Gap' by Abi Bown, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by advances in neuroscience. This production was developed in partnership with The European DANA Alliance for the Brain.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
2000
'Learning to Love the Grey' by Jonathan Hall, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by advances in Cloning
and stem cell therapy. Developed in partnership with, and supported by, the Wellcome Trust
.
1999
'Sweet As You Are' by Jonathan Hall, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by the Genetic Modification of crops. Developed in partnership with, and supported by, the John Innes Centre and the Teachers Scientist network.
The play won a fringe first award at the Edinburgh festival
1999
1997
'Pig in the Middle' by Judy Upton
, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by advances in Xenotransplantation (animal to human transplants). Developed in partnership with the Nuffield Council on Bioethics.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
1996
'Cracked' by Nicola Baldwin
, exploring the biological basis of mental illness and depression in particular. Developed in partnership with The Mental Health Foundation, supported by the Wellcome Trust
.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
1995
'The Gift' by Nicola Baldwin
, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by advances in Genetic selection.
Developed with Prof Bernadette Modell supported by the Wellcome Trust
.
, funded by the Wellcome Trust
and shown on the BBC Learning Zone
. 'Sweet As You Are' was filmed by the BBC
as a theatre performance.
'Every Breath' was also produced as a DVD in partnership with DCSF.
Y Touring produced, in partnership with Maverick Productions, a three-part adaptation of 'Learning to Love the Grey' and a three-part drama 'Making Astronauts', a drama which complements the Nuffield Council on Bioethics
’ report on the ethics of research into the relationship between genes
and behaviour. Both of these dramas were commissioned by the Open University
’s Open Science programme.
Y Touring has digitalised five plays with Maverick Productions for the SIN website (Science Invention and Nature), a partnership between the Science Museum
, The Natural History Museum, Wildscreen
Trust and Y Touring. The resultant site, genetic futures gained approval from the National Grid for Learning
.
'Every Breath', 'Breathing Country', 'Starfish' and 'The Projectionist' have all been produced as audio plays and are available to download from Theatre of debate.
Kings Cross, London
King's Cross is an area of London partly in the London Borough of Camden and partly in the London Borough of Islington. It is an inner-city district located 2.5 miles north of Charing Cross. The area formerly had a reputation for being a red light district and run-down. However, rapid regeneration...
, London, England and is an operation of Central YMCA.
Mission statement
Y Touring's website states that the company's mission is 'to create high quality theatreTheatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
, drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
, and digital media
Digital media
Digital media is a form of electronic media where data is stored in digital form. It can refer to the technical aspect of storage and transmission Digital media is a form of electronic media where data is stored in digital (as opposed to analog) form. It can refer to the technical aspect of...
to engage our audiences, young people and adults, in an informed debate about often complex and challenging issues.'
Y Touring Theatre Company history
Y Touring has produced 54 regional, national and international tours of plays by professional playwrights including Judith Johnson, Judy Upton, Jonathan Hall, Nicola Baldwin and Rhiannon Tise, reportedly reaching over 2 million young people in schools, youth clubs, community venues, studio theatres, prisons and young offenders centres.Y Touring's first production was 'The Inner Circle' by Patricia Loughrey, originally commissioned by The New Conservatory Theatre Centre in San Francisco, adapting it for British young people’s audiences. This play told the story of a group of four friends, one of whom had been infected by HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
and went on to develop AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
and die.
To celebrate the company's 21st anniversary Y Touring have created a website with a blog, each day they are showing interviews and publishing essays on this blog Y Touring 21st Anniversary
Theatre of Debate
Y Touring's projects generally follow a 'Theatre of Debate' model. Each project consists of a play aiming to engage its audience in an informed debate about a specific subject. The play is followed by a live debate between the actors (who remain in character) and the audience. The play and debate are supported by online resources which are available for download from the company's website.Y Touring Theatre of Debate Productions
2011Y Touring are currently developing a new play by Abi Bown called Dayglo which will explore the ethical and scientific issues around Pharmacogenetics
Pharmacogenetics
The terms pharmacogenomics and pharmacogenetics tend to be used interchangeably, and a precise, consensus definition of either remains elusive...
.
The play is expected to go into production shortly and begin touring in the autumn of 2011
2011
Mind the Gap * by Abi Bown
(Revival of 2004 production)
Was performed at Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
as part of National Science & Engineering Week
Mind the Gap was filmed and broadcast in 8 cinemas nationwide, click here for details.
This production won the Runner-Up of the National Science and Engineering Week 2011 Best Science Event category
2009
'Breathing Country' by Ben Musgrave is a play which explores the issues raised by the use of electronic patient records in medical research. The production was developed in partnership with the Royal Academy of Engineering
Royal Academy of Engineering
-Overview: is the UK’s national academy of engineering. The Academy brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across the engineering sectors for a shared purpose: to advance and promote excellence in engineering....
(RAEng) and was supported by the Wellcome Trust
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13.9 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research...
and Central YMCA.
The play was shortlisted for the Brian Way
Brian Way
Brian Way , established the Theatre Centre in London, England in 1953. The company originated the modern concept of theatre for children in an educational context....
award 2010 for best play for young people .
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
- Professor Simon WesselySimon WesselySimon Wessely is a British psychiatrist. He is professor of epidemiological and liaison psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London and Head of its department of psychological medicine, Vice Dean for Academic Psychiatry, Teaching and Training at the Institute of Psychiatry, as...
MD FMedSci, Professor of Epidemiological and Liaison PsychiatryPsychiatryPsychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
at the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, and Honorary Consultant PsychiatristPsychiatristA psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
at King’s and Maudsley Hospitals - Dr Trevor Yellon, General Practitioner, The Killick Street Community Health Centre, Kings Cross
- Marlene Winfield OBE, Director for Patients and Public at NHSNational Health Service (England)The National Health Service or NHS is the publicly funded healthcare system in England. It is both the largest and oldest single-payer healthcare system in the world. It is able to function in the way that it does because it is primarily funded through the general taxation system, similar to how...
Connecting for Health - Martyn ThomasMartyn ThomasMartyn Thomas CBE FREng FBCS FIET FRSA is a British independent consultant and software engineer. He founded the software engineering company Praxis in 1983, based in Bath, southern England. He has a special interest in safety-critical systems and other high integrity applications...
FREng, Director and Principal Consultant, Martyn Thomas Associates. - Gus Hosein, Visiting Fellow, London School of EconomicsLondon School of EconomicsThe London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
There is an audio version of this play available for download at this link Breathing Country audio play
Photos from the autumn 2009 production Breathing Country photos
Wellcome Trust blog about 'Breathing Country'
2009
'Starfish' by Judith Johnson is a play which explores the issues raised by clinical trials.
The project was funded by the Wellcome Trust
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13.9 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research...
.
The Daily Telegraph article about 'Starfish' commented on that the play that, 'The heartfelt response to this tear-jerking story of love, romance and grief was all the more surprising given that the play was also an attempt to explore the issues surrounding clinical trials in medicine.'
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
- Sir Iain ChalmersIain ChalmersSir Iain Chalmers is a British health services researcher, one of the founders of the Cochrane Collaboration, and coordinator of the James Lind Initiative, which includes the James Lind Library and James Lind Alliance....
, Editor, James Lind Library - Dr David Tovey, Editorial Director, BMJ Knowledge
- Professor Simon WesselySimon WesselySimon Wessely is a British psychiatrist. He is professor of epidemiological and liaison psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London and Head of its department of psychological medicine, Vice Dean for Academic Psychiatry, Teaching and Training at the Institute of Psychiatry, as...
, MD FMedSci, Professor of Epidemiological and Liaison PsychiatryPsychiatryPsychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
at the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, and Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist at King’s and Maudsley Hospitals - Lester Firkins, Employed by the Department of Health and the Medical Research Council as a lay representative for various areas of concern
- David Kaskel, CEO and Managing Director, Languagelab.com
- Professor Max Parmar, Joint Director of the UK Clinical Research Network, Medical Research Council Clinical Trials Unit, Associate Director of the National Cancer Research Network
- Professor Janet DarbyshireJanet DarbyshireJanet Howard Darbyshire, CBE is a British epidemiologist and science administrator.Darbyshire joined the Medical Research Council in 1974, first co-ordinating clinical trials and epidemiological studies of tuberculosis, asthma and other respiratory diseases in the UK and East Africa for the MRC...
, Joint Director of the UK Clinical Research Network - Dr Sophie Petit-Zeman, Head of External Relations, Association of Medical Research Charities
There is an audio version of this play available for download at this link Starfish audio play
Photos from the spring 2009 production Starfish photos
Read Sue Elkin's blog about 'Starfish'
The virtual world exploring clinical trials created by Rezzable in partnership with Y Touring
2008
'The Projectionist' by Laura FitzGerald is an audio play/podcast exploring social, moral, scientific and political questions posed by the rise of a privacy and surveillance society. The production was developed in partnership with the Royal Academy of Engineering
Royal Academy of Engineering
-Overview: is the UK’s national academy of engineering. The Academy brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across the engineering sectors for a shared purpose: to advance and promote excellence in engineering....
.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
- Nigel GilbertNigel GilbertNigel Gilbert is a British sociologist and a pioneer in the use of agent-based models in the social sciences. He is the founder and director of the Centre for Research in Social Simulation , author of several books on computational social sciences, social simulation and social research and editor...
, Professor Department of Sociology, University of SurreyUniversity of SurreyThe University of Surrey is a university located within the county town of Guildford, Surrey in the South East of England. It received its charter on 9 September 1966, and was previously situated near Battersea Park in south-west London. The institution was known as Battersea College of Technology...
, Guildford - Martyn ThomasMartyn ThomasMartyn Thomas CBE FREng FBCS FIET FRSA is a British independent consultant and software engineer. He founded the software engineering company Praxis in 1983, based in Bath, southern England. He has a special interest in safety-critical systems and other high integrity applications...
FREng, Director and Principal Consultant, Martyn Thomas Associates - Colin Langham-Fitt, formerly Deputy Chief Constable, Suffolk ConstabularySuffolk ConstabularySuffolk Constabulary is the territorial police force responsible for policing Suffolk in East Anglia, England.Suffolk Constabulary is responsible for policing an area of , with a population of...
- Charlie Edwards, Senior Researcher DemosDemos (UK think tank)- History :Demos was founded in 1993 by former Marxism Today editor Martin Jacques, and Geoff Mulgan, who became its first director. It was formed in response to what Mulgan, Jacques and others saw as a crisis in politics in Britain, with voter engagement in decline and political institutions...
(UK think tank) - Dr Ian Forbes, Social Science Consultant & Director
- Gus Hosein, Visiting Fellow in the Information Systems Group at the London School of EconomicsLondon School of EconomicsThe London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
and Political Science
There is an audio version of this play available for download at this link The Projectionist audio play
Production photos The Projectionist photos
Video clip from a reading of the play
2007
'Nobody Lives Forever' by Judith Johnson, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by stem cell
Stem cell
This article is about the cell type. For the medical therapy, see Stem Cell TreatmentsStem cells are biological cells found in all multicellular organisms, that can divide and differentiate into diverse specialized cell types and can self-renew to produce more stem cells...
research. The production was developed in partnership with the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC) and was supported by the Medical Research Council
Medical Research Council (UK)
The Medical Research Council is a publicly-funded agency responsible for co-ordinating and funding medical research in the United Kingdom. It is one of seven Research Councils in the UK and is answerable to, although politically independent from, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...
(UK) (MRC), the Department of Health, Action Medical Research and the Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
- Dr Sophie Petit-Zeman, Head of External Relations, Association of Medical Research Charities
- Dr Calum MacKellar, Director of Research, Scottish Council on Human Bioethics
- Dr Robin Lovell-Badge, Head of Developmental Genetics, MRC National Institute for Medical Research
- Josephine Quintavalle, CORE - Comment on Reproductive Ethics
- Dr Donald Bruce, formerly Director of Society, Religion and Technology Project, Church of Scotland
- Dr Stephen Minger, Lecturer in Biomolecular Sciences at King's College LondonKing's College LondonKing's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
Read about the performance at the Wellcome Collection
2007
'Full Time' by Rachel Wagstaff is a play that explores racism
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
, homophobia
Homophobia
Homophobia is a term used to refer to a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards lesbian, gay and in some cases bisexual, transgender people and behavior, although these are usually covered under other terms such as biphobia and transphobia. Definitions refer to irrational fear, with the...
and sexism
Sexism
Sexism, also known as gender discrimination or sex discrimination, is the application of the belief or attitude that there are characteristics implicit to one's gender that indirectly affect one's abilities in unrelated areas...
in football. The production was developed in partnership with the Football Association and the Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF). The project was supported by the Football Foundation and Central YMCA.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
- Cassie Smith, National Development Manager, Women's Sport and fitness Foundation
- Chris Lillistone, Research and Information Coordinator, Women's Sport and fitness Foundation
- Lucy Faulkner, Equality Manager, Football Association
- Leon Mann, Europe and Media Relations Officer, Kick It Out
- Johan Jensen, Education Officer, StonewallStonewall (UK)Stonewall is a lesbian, gay and bisexual rights charity in the United Kingdom named after the Stonewall Inn of Stonewall riots fame. Now the largest gay equality organization not only in the UK but in Europe, it was formed in 1989 by political activists and others lobbying against section 28 of the...
- Adam Banda, Homeless World CupHomeless World Cup-The Cause:There are one billion homeless people in our world today. This is a global issue that affects every nation.Homelessness can force people into isolation, which affects their ability to share, communicate their thoughts and work with others...
- Tony Peacock, Homeless World CupHomeless World Cup-The Cause:There are one billion homeless people in our world today. This is a global issue that affects every nation.Homelessness can force people into isolation, which affects their ability to share, communicate their thoughts and work with others...
- Lorraine Deschamps, Director, Sporting Equals
- Meg Ryan, Teacher, Redden Court School
2006
'Every Breath' by Judith Johnson, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by the use of animals in medical research. This production was developed in partnership with the Association of Medical Research charities.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
- Dr. Jarrod Bailey, Science Director, Europeans for Medical Progress
- Alistair Currie, formerly Campaigns Director, British Union for the Abolition of VivisectionBritish Union for the Abolition of VivisectionThe British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection is a British animal protection and advocacy group that campaigns for the abolition of all animal experiments...
- Vicky Cowell, Director, Seriously Ill for Medical Research
- Dr. Penny Hawkins Deputy Head, Research Animals Department, RSPCA
- Betty McBride, Marketing and Communications Director, British Heart FoundationBritish Heart FoundationThe British Heart Foundation is a charity organisation in Britain that funds research, education, care and awareness campaigns aimed to prevent heart diseases in humans.-Foundation:...
- Professor John Martin, Director Centre for Cardiovascular Biology and Medicine, UCL
- Dr. Sophie Petit-Zeman, Director of Public Dialogue, Association of Medical Research Charities
- Dr. Janet Radcliffe Richards, Lecturer in the Philosophy of Medicine, UCL
- Harald Schmidt, Assistant Director, Nuffield Council on BioethicsNuffield Council on BioethicsThe Nuffield Council on Bioethics is a UK-based independent charitable body, which examines and reports on ethical issues raised by new advances in biological and medical research...
There is an audio version of this play available for download at this link Every Breath audio play
* 2004
'Mind the Gap' by Abi Bown, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by advances in neuroscience. This production was developed in partnership with The European DANA Alliance for the Brain.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
- James Butcher, Editor, Lancet Neurology
- Prof Russell Foster, Head of the Department of Integrative and Molecular Neuroscience, Imperial College
- Prof Sir Michael Rutter, formerly Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, University of London
- Prof Steven RoseSteven RoseSteven P. Rose is a Professor of Biology and Neurobiology at the Open University and University of London.-Life:...
, Director of Brain and Behaviour Research Group, Open University - Prof Richard Ashcroft, Medical Ethics Unit, Imperial College
2000
'Learning to Love the Grey' by Jonathan Hall, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by advances in Cloning
Cloning
Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells , or...
and stem cell therapy. Developed in partnership with, and supported by, the Wellcome Trust
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13.9 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research...
.
1999
'Sweet As You Are' by Jonathan Hall, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by the Genetic Modification of crops. Developed in partnership with, and supported by, the John Innes Centre and the Teachers Scientist network.
The play won a fringe first award at the Edinburgh festival
Edinburgh Festival
The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August...
1999
1997
'Pig in the Middle' by Judy Upton
Judy Upton
-Life:She collaborated with Lisa Goldman at The Red Room Theatre Company.She has written radio plays for the BBC.Ashes and Sand has been adapted into film.-Works:*Everlasting Rose, Old Red Lion Theatre, London, 1992...
, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by advances in Xenotransplantation (animal to human transplants). Developed in partnership with the Nuffield Council on Bioethics.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
- Dr John Dunning, Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon
- Paula Keenan & Vanessa Morgan, Transplant Coordinators
- Prof Mark Wolpert, then Prof of Medicine, Member of Nuffield Council’s Working Party on ethics of animal to human transplants
- Susan Frade, Transplant Recipient
- Andrew Tyler, Director Animal AidAnimal AidAnimal Aid, founded in 1977, is a British animal rights organisation. The group campaigns peacefully against all forms of animal abuse and promotes a cruelty-free lifestyle. It also investigates and exposes animal cruelty....
1996
'Cracked' by Nicola Baldwin
Nicola Baldwin
-Life:She wrote for "Where the Heart Is ",and "Have Your Cake" for BBC Radio 4.-Works:*Confetti, Oval House Theatre, London, 1992*Undeveloped Land, Chelsea Theatre, London, 1993*20:39, Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, 1999...
, exploring the biological basis of mental illness and depression in particular. Developed in partnership with The Mental Health Foundation, supported by the Wellcome Trust
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13.9 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research...
.
The project's Advisory Panel included the following:
- Dr Sophie Petit Zeman
- Professor Roy PorterRoy PorterRoy Sydney Porter was a British historian noted for his prolific work on the history of medicine.-Life:...
- Dr Michael O’Donovan, Senior Lecturer and Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist, University of Wales College of Medicine
- Professor Chris Fairburn, University of OxfordUniversity of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
- Professor Lewis WolpertLewis WolpertLewis Wolpert CBE FRS FRSL is a developmental biologist, author, and broadcaster.-Career:Wolpert was educated at the University of Witwatersrand , at Imperial College London, and at King's College London...
1995
'The Gift' by Nicola Baldwin
Nicola Baldwin
-Life:She wrote for "Where the Heart Is ",and "Have Your Cake" for BBC Radio 4.-Works:*Confetti, Oval House Theatre, London, 1992*Undeveloped Land, Chelsea Theatre, London, 1993*20:39, Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, 1999...
, exploring the social, moral, scientific and political questions raised by advances in Genetic selection.
Developed with Prof Bernadette Modell supported by the Wellcome Trust
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13.9 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research...
.
Digital Media
'The Gift' was adapted into a TV drama by Y Touring and Zenith ProductionsZenith Productions
Zenith Productions was a British independent film and television production company which made a number of drama series including Inspector Morse for ITV, and several series including Byker Grove and Hamish Macbeth for the BBC...
, funded by the Wellcome Trust
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13.9 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research...
and shown on the BBC Learning Zone
BBC Learning Zone
The BBC Learning Zone is an educational strand run by the BBC as an overnight service on BBC Two. It shows programming aimed at students in Primary, Secondary and Higher Education and to adult learners...
. 'Sweet As You Are' was filmed by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
as a theatre performance.
'Every Breath' was also produced as a DVD in partnership with DCSF.
Y Touring produced, in partnership with Maverick Productions, a three-part adaptation of 'Learning to Love the Grey' and a three-part drama 'Making Astronauts', a drama which complements the Nuffield Council on Bioethics
Nuffield Council on Bioethics
The Nuffield Council on Bioethics is a UK-based independent charitable body, which examines and reports on ethical issues raised by new advances in biological and medical research...
’ report on the ethics of research into the relationship between genes
Gênes
Gênes is the name of a département of the First French Empire in present Italy, named after the city of Genoa. It was formed in 1805, when Napoleon Bonaparte occupied the Republic of Genoa. Its capital was Genoa, and it was divided in the arrondissements of Genoa, Bobbio, Novi Ligure, Tortona and...
and behaviour. Both of these dramas were commissioned by the Open University
Open University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
’s Open Science programme.
Y Touring has digitalised five plays with Maverick Productions for the SIN website (Science Invention and Nature), a partnership between the Science Museum
Science museum
A science museum or a science centre is a museum devoted primarily to science. Older science museums tended to concentrate on static displays of objects related to natural history, paleontology, geology, industry and industrial machinery, etc. Modern trends in museology have broadened the range of...
, The Natural History Museum, Wildscreen
Wildscreen
Wildscreen is an educational charity based in Bristol, England, working globally to promote the conservation of nature, and the public’s appreciation of biodiversity, through wildlife imagery....
Trust and Y Touring. The resultant site, genetic futures gained approval from the National Grid for Learning
National Grid for Learning
The National Grid for Learning was a United Kingdom Government-funded gateway to educational resources on the Internet. It featured many individually selected links to resources and materials deemed to be of high quality...
.
'Every Breath', 'Breathing Country', 'Starfish' and 'The Projectionist' have all been produced as audio plays and are available to download from Theatre of debate.
Social Media
- Y Touring's Youtube channel
- Y Touring's Facebook fan page
- Y Touring's Flickr photo stream
- Y Touring's online virtual world exploring clinical trials
- Y Touring's Twitter stream
- Y Touring's documents on Issuu
Actors Y Touring have worked with
- Adam DeaconAdam DeaconAdam Deacon is a British actor and rapper from Hackney, North-East London who rose to prominence after starring in the film Kidulthood as well as the sequel Adulthood...
- Craig RobertsCraig RobertsCraig Roberts is a Welsh actor. He is best known for playing the lead role of Oliver Tate in the coming-of-age comedy-drama film Submarine, and for playing the character Rio in The Story of Tracy Beaker.-Life and Career:...
- Elyes GabelElyes GabelElyes Gabel is a British Asian actor who played Dr Gupreet "Guppy" Sandhu in the BBC medical drama, Casualty. He starred as PE teacher Rob Cleaver in BBC drama, Waterloo Road and appeared in the ITV Drama Identity...
- Louisa Milwood-Haig
- Darren Saul
- Steven Helliwell
- Andrew Hobday
- Tara Shaw
- Stephanie-Jade Lynch
- Darcy Ida
- Charlyne Francis
- Rebecca Thorn
- Daniel Rabin