Kirsty Taylor named as Kay Mellor Fellowship recipient

Preserving the late screenwriter's legacy, the fellowship is a year-long paid opportunity for a writer based in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Kirsty Taylor, a poet and playwright renowned for drawing inspiration from the real lives of Yorkshire people, will be developing her work for the stage and screen.

She recently brought Cashy C’s: The Musical to the former Fulton’s Foods shop on John Street, Bradford city centre.

Some of the local people involved in Cashy Cs: The Musical

The poet's debut play was a ‘politically charged rap musical’ with rap and bassline.

It told the story of “people who live hand-to-mouth; people who are trading in a kettle on Monday and buying it back on Friday because they really need a fiver”.

During her Fellowship, Kirsty will explore stories of adoption and severance from the perspective of birth families.

Working alongside birth mother groups across the region, she will explore the ways children get taken into care.

Kirsty is the first of three fellows over the next three years.

Each will receive a bursary and spend their year on attachment with Leeds Playhouse and Rollem Productions, as well as receiving a place on the BBC Writers Voices writer development programme.