RICHARD’S BLOG

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I became a playwright in 1996, having been an avid theatregoer throughout my life (averaging around 120 plays a year – watching, not writing!) I semi-retired from my day job shortly thereafter and for the next 25 years I worked only part-time, allowing me time to write. I ventured briefly into the world of television and wrote a couple of screenplays, although this pretty much came to nothing, except for TAPS making a short film of one of my scripts starring (a virtually unknown) Benedict Cumberbatch and Georgia Mackenzie, which was cool, and sufficient to get me BAFTA membership. Since the pandemic, theatre in the UK has never really found its way back to what it used to be, and so my attention has drifted more towards film. I am now fully retired from my day job and whilst I still visit the theatre two or three times a month, I now watch upwards of 500 films a year (crazy, but true!) Since I watch so many films and can write, I decided to create a blog – it seemed a very 21st-Century thing to do.

REVIEW: Extra Geography ★★★★☆

Extra Geography is a 2026 British drama film, directed by Molly Manners, from a screenplay by Miriam Battye, adapted from Rose Tremain’s 2007 short story. The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January and went on general release in the UK last Friday, 2 October.

Flic (Marni Duggan) and Minna (Galaxie Clear) are best friends. They are both academically gifted Year 11s, and top of the class when it comes to lacrosse. However, as 15-year-olds, living in the protective environment of a girls’ boarding school in the North of England, they are naïve and rather uninformed, especially when it comes to boys, kissing, love, and, of course, sex. They spend every waking moment together and tell each other everything, to the exclusion of everyone around them, including Phoebe (Aoife Riddell) who would love to be a part of their tiny cohort.

The girls join the cast of the school play, A Midsummers Night’s Dream, a co-production with the local boys’ school: Minna is cast as Titania, Queen of the Fairies, whilst Flic is cast as a tree! They speculate on what it might be like to be in love and, inspired by Titania’s role, they decide they will fall in love with the first person they see on entering the school canteen: it is their geography teacher, Rosalind Delavigne (Alice Englert). So, Minna, as a lead in the play, will mix with the local boys; and Flic, well she has Miss Delavigne to pursue. Can their friendship survive the resulting upheaval?

This is a very watchable coming-of-age drama. The two leads are excellent in their roles, perfectly balancing the confidence of youth with the naivety of their closeted upbringing, and they are ably supported by Riddell and Englert. The script is an absolute joy and Molly Manners’ direction, in what I believe is her first feature, showed real promise for the future. I also very much enjoyed the cinematography, which made the most of Castle Howard and the surrounding area.

Extra Geography is a delight from start to finish, although there were moments so wonderfully cringe-worthy that they leave one squirming with embarrassment recalling one’s own naïve teenage assumptions. I whole-heartedly recommend it. In fact, I enjoyed it so much I have ordered a copy of Rose Tremain’s short story collection so that I can read the original tale!

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