Jack Thorne has been named the new president of the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain.
The playwright and screenwriter replaces Sandi Toksvig in the role and said that he was taking up the post as writers face “the battle of our lives”.
Thorne said: “This is such a huge honour for me. I think the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain is a union to be hugely proud of. I was proud of it from the outside and I’m delighted to now fight for it from the inside. And I do think we’re about to be in the battle of our lives. The landscape for writers is brutal right now, and the conservatism that has crept into commissioning is vital to combat.”
He added: “But more than all that, there are people coming after our copyright, vultures who’d steal it to put into their machines, and we need to make sure the government is robust in defending us. As a kid, I went on marches with my parents where we’d chant ‘Together, united, we’ll never be defeated’, and I do think these next few years are going to be about us all working together to fight.”
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Known for Adolescence, His Dark Materials, Help, This Is England ’90 and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Thorne joins a long line of WGGB presidents, including David Edgar, JB Priestley and Rosemary Anne Sisson. He described Toksvig as “an incredible champion”.
“I’m a size 13 and would have no hope of following in her footsteps, but I will do my very best. With Emma Reeves as our chair – a fellow working writer, passionate about these issues – we stand every chance, and I will do all to support her and all our activist members to win the clash that’s ahead of us,” he said.
Toksvig said: “During my six years as president, we’ve seen a global pandemic, the rise of AI, the fallout from Brexit, a cost-of-living crisis, the disturbing re-emergence of the far right and brutal cuts to the arts. From deep in the trenches, I’ve been proud to witness my union rise to these challenges and fight at every turn to protect writers’ jobs, rights and livelihoods.
“As I hang up my president’s hat, I would like to pay tribute to every activist who I’ve been proud to walk alongside, and to all who sail the good ship WGGB. Unions are precious and more important than they have ever been; we must hold on to them tight. It’s been a privilege to serve, and I wish my successor Jack Thorne the very best – I know he’ll make a huge success of it.”
Thorne takes up the position as WGGB president effective immediately.