Former 2000AD Editor Turns "Pill Pusher"

Pill pushing of the fictional kind, of course (what did you think we meant?), as tomorrow (Wednesday 10th February at 1.45pm) see the broadcast of former Judge Dredd: The Megazine and 2000AD editor David Bishop's first drama commission - an episode of the award-winning serial drama Doctors titled A Pill for Every Ill.

Doctors is, currently, the only UK made soap that gives all of its episodes a title.

"It's official," David recently enthused on his blog. "I am a TV drama writer. Now comes the tough part, getting a second commission. Onwards!"

In the episode, Doctor Simon Bond (David Sturzaker) finds himself out of his depth when treating a woman with extreme PMS symptoms, while Elise (Hannah Steele) invites Immie (Charlie Clemmow) to spend the night at her house. Meanwhile, Daniel Granger (Matthew Chambers) has to apologise to Zara when his jealousy almost gets the better of him.

"I appreciate most people won't be at home to watch the show," David told downthetubes, "but it'll be available on the BBC's iPlayer from late tomorrow afternoon if you felt the urge to have a look.

"Personally I think director Seán Gleeson, the cast, crew and production team have done me proud..."

David has had a busy career since his 2000AD days, continuing to write comic strips such as The Phantom and authoring several novels and audio dramas. In 2007, he won the PAGE International Screenwriting Award in the short film category for his script, Danny's Toys. He's even won an episode of The Weakest Link, back in 2008.

Last year, he began work as a tutor at Edinburgh's Napier University for its MA in Creative Writing course taken by Sam Kelly. As we previously reported, guest speakers included comics luminaries such as Alan Grant, Mark Millar and Leah Moore.

And to think, when he finally gets that much sought-after Doctor Who commission, I can say, "I shared a house with that bloke, once"... Congratulations, David!

• Doctors Official web site (for iPlayer links and episode information)


• Vicious Imagery: David Bishop's official blog


Doctors: A Pill for Every Ill image © BBC