Assisted play
Sir: In his Diary of 27 July 1996, Keith Waterhouse reported that he had 'received a begging letter from a student hoping to do an MA degree course in "playwriting studies" '. As well as course fees and main- tenance, the student was trying to raise funds to buy a computer on which to write her play. Would not — the diarist mused an old ballpoint be just as good?
Unencumbered by Keith Waterhouse's help (though aided by others), the student concerned went on to write a remarkably assured and acute first play, which was immediately snapped up by the Bush The- atre, London. Helen Blakeman's Caravan opens at that venue on 12 November: I trust that Keith Waterhouse will be there. David Edgar
Department of Drama and Theatre Arts, The University of Birmingham, Birmingham
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