Benjamin Cook (journalist)
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Benjamin Cook (born 17 October 1982) is a British writer, journalist, video editor,
YouTuber A YouTuber is an online personality and/or influencer who produces videos on the video-sharing platform YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006. Influence Influent ...
, and a regular contributor to ''
Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...
'' and ''
Doctor Who Magazine ''Doctor Who Magazine'' (abbreviated as ''DWM'') is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Launched in 1979 as ''Doctor Who Weekly'', the magazine became a monthly publication the followi ...
''. He has also been published in ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...
'', ''
TV Times ''TV Times'' is a British television listings magazine published by Future plc. It was originally published by Independent Television Publications, owned by the participating ITV companies. The magazine was acquired by IPC Media in 1989, which ...
'', ''
Filmstar A movie star (also known as a film star or cinema star) is an actor or actress who is famous for their starring, or leading, roles in movies. The term is used for performers who are marketable stars as they become popular household names and wh ...
'', ''
Cult Times Visual Imagination Ltd. was a British company that produced genre magazines. It was founded in 1985 by Stephen Payne and originally only published the science-fiction magazine ''Fantasy Image''. After Payne bought the magazine ''Starburst'' fro ...
'', ''
TV Zone ''TV Zone'' is a British magazine that was published every four weeks by Visual Imagination that covered cult television. Initially, it mostly covered science fiction, but branched out to cover other drama and comedy series. History ''TV Zone'' ...
'' and ''
The Stage ''The Stage'' is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. It was founded in 1880. It contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at those wh ...
'', and is the author of ''Doctor Who: The New Audio Adventures – The Inside Story''. In 2008,
BBC Books BBC Books (also formerly known as BBC Publishing) is an imprint majority-owned and managed by Penguin Random House through its Ebury Publishing division. The minority shareholder is BBC Studios, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasti ...
published ''Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale'', based on a year-long email correspondence between Cook and ''
Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...
'' executive producer
Russell T Davies Stephen Russell Davies (born 27 April 1963), better known as Russell T Davies, is a Welsh screenwriter and television producer whose works include '' Queer as Folk'', '' The Second Coming'', ''Casanova'', the 2005 revival of the BBC One scie ...
. A revised and updated paperback edition, ''The Writer's Tale: The Final Chapter'' (featuring 350 pages of new material, extending the correspondence by another year), was published in January 2010. He is also known for writing and directing the short film ''The Imp of the Perverse'', starring Dan Stokes, Jake Shiels and Myles Wheeler, as well as the documentary series ''Becoming YouTube''.


Early life

Benjamin Cook was born in
Isleworth Isleworth ( ) is a town located within the London Borough of Hounslow in West London, England. It lies immediately east of the town of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane, London, River Crane. Isleworth's or ...
, London, England. He went to
Orleans Park School Orleans Park School is a coeducational secondary school with academy status, located in Twickenham area of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. It is situated 10 miles south-west of central London. Performance As with other s ...
in
Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...
from 1994 to 1999. At the age of 13, in 1996, he won a competition run by
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
children's news programme ''
Newsround ''Newsround'' (stylised as ''newsround'', and originally called ''John Craven's Newsround'' before his departure in 1989) is a BBC children's news programme, which has run continuously since 4 April 1972. It was one of the world's first televi ...
''. In a 2008 interview, he explained:
The first thing I ever wrote was for ''Newsrounds Press Packers... to enter a competition, and I won that, so I got to go to the BBC for the day – and work at ''Radio Times'' for a day, which now of course, a decade later, I'm doing regularly, and getting paid for it! – so that sort of sparked my interest.
He went to
Richmond upon Thames College Richmond upon Thames College is a large college of further and higher education located on a single site in Twickenham. It provides education and training to 16- to 18-year-olds and adults from across the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames an ...
from 1999 to 2001, and then, from 2002 to 2006, attended Collingwood College at the
University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charte ...
, where he studied English Literature. He is half Italian, and has held Italian citizenship since 2019.


''Radio Times''

For ''
Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...
'' magazine, Cook has written on E4 teen drama '' Skins'' ("The assertion that it's our job simply to reflect life is always a cop-out," co-creator
Bryan Elsley Bryan Elsley (born 17 May 1961 in Dalkeith, Midlothian) is a Scottish television writer, best known for the co-creation of E4 teen drama '' Skins'' with his son, Jamie Brittain. Other television dramas include ''Rose and Maloney'', '' The You ...
told him. "But people who think it's our duty to educate young people on the correct way to live are just as bonkers"),
ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
talent show ''
The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...
'' ("We weren't always fighting,"
Dannii Minogue Danielle Jane Minogue () is an Australian singer, television personality, and actress. She initially gained recognition for her appearances on the television show ''Young Talent Time'' (1982–1988) and for her role as Emma Jackson on th ...
confessed about ex-judge
Sharon Osbourne Sharon Rachel Osbourne (née Levy, later Arden; born 9 October 1952) is a British-American television personality, music manager and author. She is married to heavy metal singer-songwriter Ozzy Osbourne and came to prominence while appearing ...
, "but Sharon made it clear that she didn't like me, so she won't be missed. Not by me"), short-livedrama ''
Demons A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in media such as comics, video games, movies, anime, ...
'' ("I didn't entirely understand ''Demons''," actor Richard Wilson told Cook. "I just had to say I did and hope no-one caught on"), the BBC's ''
The Omid Djalili Show ''The Omid Djalili Show'' is a British sketch comedy/stand-up comedy television show produced by the BBC and directed by Michael Cumming. Writing by Omid Djalili, Will Smith, Roger Drew, Ian Stone, Ricky Grover Michael Cumming, Rich Fulcher and ...
'' ("The first series was OK, but we all agreed it was there to be bettered," said
Omid Djalili Omid Djalili ( fa, امید جلیلی; born 30 September 1965) is a British actor, comedian and writer. Early life and education Djalili was born on 30 September 1965 in Chelsea, London, to Iranian Baháʼí parents. He attended Holland Park ...
. "It was a bit slapdash, to be honest"), ''
Dan Cruickshank's Adventures in Architecture ''Dan Cruickshank's Adventures in Architecture'' is a BBC series first aired on BBC Two in April 2008 in which British architectural historian Dan Cruickshank travels around the world visiting what he considers to be the world's most unusual and ...
'' and ''
Wild China ''Wild China'' is a six-part nature documentary series on the natural history of China, co-produced by the BBC Natural History Unit and China Central Television (CCTV) and filmed in high-definition (HD). It was screened in the UK on BBC Two ...
'', Comedy Central's ''
Kröd Mändoon and the Flaming Sword of Fire ''Kröd Mändoon and the Flaming Sword of Fire'' is a British-American comedic sword and sorcery series created by Peter A. Knight, co-produced by Hat Trick Productions and Media Rights Capital for Comedy Central and BBC Two, which premiered on ...
'', as well as BBC dramas ''Doctor Who'', ''
The Sarah Jane Adventures ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' is a British science fiction television programme that was produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC, created by Russell T Davies, and starring Elisabeth Sladen. The programme is a spin-off of the long-running BBC sc ...
'', ''
Merlin Merlin ( cy, Myrddin, kw, Marzhin, br, Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mage, with several other main roles. His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historic and le ...
'', ''
Little Dorrit ''Little Dorrit'' is a novel by Charles Dickens, originally published in serial form between 1855 and 1857. The story features Amy Dorrit, youngest child of her family, born and raised in the Marshalsea prison for debtors in London. Arthur Cl ...
'' and '' Spooks''. In 2009, Cook interviewed US boy band
the Jonas Brothers The Jonas Brothers () are an American pop rock band. Formed in 2005, they gained popularity from their appearances on the Disney Channel television network. They consist of three brothers: Kevin Jonas, Joe Jonas, and Nick Jonas. Raised in ...
for ''Radio Times'', in which they spoke out about the controversy surrounding comedian
Russell Brand Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian and actor known for his flamboyant, loquacious style and manner. Brand has received three British Comedy Awards: Best Newcomer (2006), Best Live Stand-Up (2008), and the award for ...
's ridicule of their chastity rings at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards: "You know what? We were happy to see he recognised their value," reasoned
Joe Joe or JOE may refer to: Arts Film and television * ''Joe'' (1970 film), starring Peter Boyle * ''Joe'' (2013 film), starring Nicolas Cage * ''Joe'' (TV series), a British TV series airing from 1966 to 1971 * ''Joe'', a 2002 Canadian animated ...
. "You have to learn to laugh,"
Kevin Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ). The variant '' Kevan'' is anglicized from , a ...
added. The next year, Cook conducted the "first Twitter interview" with
Stephen Fry Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director and writer. He first came to prominence in the 1980s as one half of the comic double act Fry and Laurie, alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring ...
, asking him how he accounted for (fellow 2010
National Television Award The National Television Awards (often shortened to NTAs) is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV (TV network), ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the ...
nominee)
Piers Morgan Piers Stefan Pughe-Morgan (; né O'Meara; born 30 March 1965) is a British broadcaster, journalist, writer, and television personality. He began his Fleet Street career in 1988 at '' The Sun''. In 1994, aged 29, he was appointed editor of the ...
's career: "It's pretty hard to imagine, isn't it?" replied Fry. "Biodiversity is the answer... Just as nature needs a few snakes and bugs, TV needs Piers Morgan and me!"


''Doctor Who Magazine''

Cook first wrote for ''
Doctor Who Magazine ''Doctor Who Magazine'' (abbreviated as ''DWM'') is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Launched in 1979 as ''Doctor Who Weekly'', the magazine became a monthly publication the followi ...
'' (''DWM'') in March 1999. Since then, his catalogue of interviews for the publication ranges from
David Tennant David John Tennant (''né'' McDonald; born 18 April 1971) is a Scottish actor. He rose to fame for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor (2005–2010 and 2013) in the BBC science-fiction TV show '' Doctor Who'', reprising the rol ...
,
Billie Piper Billie Paul Piper (born Leian Paul Piper; 22 September 1982) is an English actress and former singer. She initially gained recognition as a singer after releasing her debut single "Because We Want To" at age 15, which made her the youngest woman ...
,
Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter and actress. She is the highest-selling female Australian artist of all time, having sold over 80 million records worldwide. She has been recognised for reinve ...
and
Richard E Grant Richard E. Grant (born Richard Grant Esterhuysen; 5 May 1957) is a Eswatini, Swazi-English actor and presenter. He made his film debut as Withnail in the comedy ''Withnail and I'' (1987). Grant received critical acclaim for his role as Jack Hoc ...
to
Peter Kay Peter John Kay (born 2 July 1973) is an English actor, comedy writer and stand-up comedian. He has written, produced and acted in several television and film projects, and has written three books. Born and brought up in Bolton, Kay studied ...
,
Charlotte Church Charlotte Maria Church (born Charlotte Maria Reed, 21 February 1986) is a Welsh singer-songwriter, actress, television presenter and political activist from Cardiff. Church rose to fame in childhood as a classical singer before branching i ...
and
McFly McFly are an English pop rock band formed in London in 2003. The band took their name from the '' Back to the Future'' character Marty McFly. The band consists of Tom Fletcher (lead vocals, guitar, and piano), Danny Jones (lead vocals, har ...
, and the first ever major print interview with
Matt Smith Matthew Robert Smith (born 28 October 1982) is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as the Eleventh Doctor, eleventh incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the BBC series ''Doctor Who'' (2010–2013), Daemon Targarye ...
. Cook's regular back-page interview column, ''Who on Earth is...'', has featured such diverse names as
Bernard Cribbins Bernard Joseph Cribbins (29 December 1928 – 27 July 2022) was an English actor and singer whose career spanned over seven decades. During the 1960s, Cribbins became known in the UK for his successful novelty records " The Hole in the Groun ...
,
Timothy Dalton Timothy Leonard Dalton Leggett (; born 21 March 1946) is a British actor. Beginning his career on stage, he made his film debut as Philip II of France in the 1968 historical drama ''The Lion in Winter''. He gained international prominence as ...
,
Duncan James Duncan James (born Duncan Inglis, 7 April 1978) is an English singer and actor. He became widely known in 2001 as a member of the boy band Blue (English group), Blue and later for playing Ryan Knight (Hollyoaks), Ryan Knight in the British soap ...
from
Blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obs ...
and
Professor Richard Dawkins Richard Dawkins (born 26 March 1941) is a British evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist and author. He is an Oxford fellow, emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford and was Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science, Prof ...
. Cook has compiled six ''DWM'' Special Editions – published between 2005 and 2010, under the umbrella title ''In Their Own Words'' – providing a chronological commentary on the making of the TV series, from 1963 to 2009, by those involved in its production, collated from extracts of interviews previously published in ''DWM''. In 2002, Cook tracked down elusive ''Doctor Who'' scriptwriter Christopher Bailey and interviewed him for ''DWM''. This inspired
Robert Shearman Robert Charles Shearman, sometimes credited as Rob Shearman, is an English television, radio, stage play and short story writer. He is known for his World Fantasy Award-winning short stories, as well as his work for ''Doctor Who'', and his asso ...
to write ''
Deadline Deadline(s) or The Deadline(s) may refer to: * Time limit, a narrow field of time by which an objective must be accomplished Arts, entertainment, and media Comics * Deadline (DC Comics), a fictional villain * ''Deadline'' (magazine), a British ...
'', an acclaimed audio play starring
Derek Jacobi Sir Derek George Jacobi (; born 22 October 1938) is an English actor. He has appeared in various stage productions of William Shakespeare such as ''Hamlet'', ''Much Ado About Nothing'', ''Macbeth'', ''Twelfth Night'', ''The Tempest'', ''King ...
as retired writer Martin Bannister (loosely based on Bailey) and
Ian Brooker Murray Ian Hill Brooker AM (2 June 1934 – 25 June 2016), better known as Ian Brooker, was an Australian botanist. He was widely recognised as the leading authority on the genus ''Eucalyptus''. Ian Brooker was born in Adelaide, South Australi ...
as journalist Sydney (loosely based on Cook), reporter for the fictional ''Juliet Bravo Magazine''. In a 2004 interview, Shearman explained:
I think ''Deadline'' is in some ways inspired by the idea that he
artin Bannister Artin may refer to: * Artin (name), a surname and given name, including a list of people with the name ** Artin, a variant of Harutyun Harutyun ( hy, Հարություն and in Western Armenian Յարութիւն) also spelled Haroutioun, Harut ...
gets tracked down by, essentially, Ben Cook. Not called Ben Cook in the play, of course – but it was actually based on ''DWM''s Christopher Bailey interview. Here was a writer who hadn't been interviewed for many years, and was obviously not bitter about it, but had ..his own perspective of what he wanted to say and do.
In February 2008, Cook had a contentious interview with actor
Clive Swift Clive Walter Swift (9 February 1936 – 1 February 2019) was an English actor and songwriter. A classically trained actor, his stage work included performances with the Royal Shakespeare Company, but he was best known to television viewers for ...
. "I'm quite aggrieved," Swift told him. "Why should I do this? I'm not getting paid, am I?" Swift refused to answer some of Cook's questions and replied brusquely to others. When Cook asked Swift – best known for his portrayal of Richard Bucket in BBC sitcom ''
Keeping Up Appearances ''Keeping Up Appearances'' is a British sitcom created and written by Roy Clarke. It originally aired on BBC1 from 1990 to 1995 with two specials airing in 1997 and 2008 on PBS. The central character is an eccentric and snobbish middle class s ...
'' – whether people shout "Richard" at him in the street, the actor replied: "Sometimes. I tell them to fuck off." The encounter ended with Swift insisting, "I know that you all think that this is a big world, this ''Who'' business. But it isn't. There are much bigger things than this." When Cook replied, "Maybe, but it means a lot to a great many of us," Swift terminated the interview. In another controversial interview, in January 2010, outgoing ''Doctor Who'' star David Tennant told Cook:
Clearly the Labour Party is not without some issues right now ..but they're still a better bet than the
Tories A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...
. I would still rather have
Gordon Brown James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...
than
David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
. I would rather have a Prime Minister who is the cleverest person in the room than a Prime Minister who looks good in a suit. I think David Cameron is a terrifying prospect. I think he's a regional newscaster who will jump on whatever bandwagon flies past. I get quite panicked at the notion that people are buying into his rhetoric, because it seems very manipulative to me... It's very weird that you can work in the arts – which tends to be about empathy, and understanding the human condition, and hopefully feeling some kind of sympathy for your fellow man – and vote for the Tories. I do find that inconceivable.
Tennant's comments were widely reported, with Cameron offering a rebuttal on Richard Bacon's
BBC Radio 5 Live BBC Radio 5 Live is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that broadcasts mainly news, sport, discussion, interviews and phone-ins. It is the principal BBC radio station covering sport in the United Kingdom, broadcast ...
show on 11 January:
Well, that's a pity, but there we are. You're never going to win over everybody. I definitely believe there's no point trying to win over everyone. Say what you think, say what you believe in, say what you believe needs to be done – and if people will come with you, they will come with you. I never give up, so maybe I'll have another go at convincing him.


''The Writer's Tale''

In 2008, BBC Books published ''Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale'', based on an in-depth email correspondence between Cook and ''Doctor Who'' executive producer Russell T Davies, spanning February 2007 to March 2008, during production of the show's fourth series. Extracts were published in ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' on 16 and 17 September 2008, and the book itself met with positive reviews. Esther Walker of ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' predicted that "the fans will adore it. Davies has engaged with the book totally and there is full disclosure from him about everything."
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...
's Robert Colvile called the book "Remarkably open", adding: "Despite the self-deprecating bonhomie, there's a ruthless confidence to Davies." In a five-star review for ''
Heat In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is al ...
'' magazine, Boyd Hilton called it "a funny, revealing insight into the workings of the genius who puts the show together." In another five-star review, ''
SFX Magazine ''SFX'' is a British magazine covering the topics of science fiction and fantasy. Its name is a reference to the abbreviated form of "special effects". Description ''SFX'' magazine is published every four weeks by Future plc and was founded in 19 ...
'' said, "You can douse all the other books about new ''Who'' in lighter fuel and spark up your Zippo – this is all you need. It's the only one that opens a door into the brain of the series' showrunner." Darren Scott of ''
The Pink Paper The ''Pink Paper'' was a UK publication covering gay and lesbian issues published by Millivres Prowler Limited. Founded in 1987 as a newspaper, it switched to internet-only publication in June 2009. The decision to go online-only was announced ...
'' – which also awarded the book five stars – agreed: "If you're an uber fan of the show... or an aspiring (or even established) writer, this book will very, very quickly fall into the 'can't put down' category." Scott Matthewman of ''
The Stage ''The Stage'' is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. It was founded in 1880. It contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at those wh ...
'' said, "I can't recommend ''The Writer's Tale'' highly enough... It's a genuine insight into the entire television production process." "''The Writer's Tale'' is an enormous book, but consumed compulsively it doesn't last very long at all," said Thom Hutchinson of ''
Death Ray The death ray or death beam was a theoretical particle beam or electromagnetic weapon first theorized around the 1920s and 1930s. Around that time, notable inventors such as Guglielmo Marconi, Nikola Tesla, Harry Grindell Matthews, Edwin R. Scot ...
'' magazine. "We learn, brilliantly, the difference between bellowing media personage Big Russell and the apprehensive, chain-smoking obsessive who exists alone and silent in the early hours." ''
The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its par ...
s team of arts writers said: "''The Writer's Tale'' offers a fascinating insight into the writing of one of TV's biggest hits." Veronica Horwell of ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' called it "the ''Doctor Who Annual'' for adults", suggesting that 500-odd pages "is not nearly enough, should have been 1001 pages, because Davies doesn't need to be writing fiction, shaping stuff retrieved from the flux of his Great Maybe, to be a storyteller. He's the
Scheherazade Scheherazade () is a major female character and the storyteller in the frame narrative of the Middle Eastern collection of tales known as the ''One Thousand and One Nights''. Name According to modern scholarship, the name ''Scheherazade'' deri ...
of
Cardiff Bay Cardiff Bay ( cy, Bae Caerdydd; historically Tiger Bay; colloquially "The Bay") is an area and freshwater lake in Cardiff, Wales. The site of a former tidal bay and estuary, it serves as the river mouth of the River Taff and Ely. The body of w ...
." Horwell described Davies as "a total romantic about writing. It's his love, his drug, his force for change: over the year even invisible, unopinionated Cook emerges as a proper companion who challenges Davies over the last image in the series. And wins. Brilliant." In the blogosphere, ''Sci-Fi Online''s Daniel Salter claimed that ''The Writer's Tale'' "could be one of the most important ''Doctor Who'' books you're ever likely to read, even if it's not always about ''Doctor Who''." "Page after page of banter that's just as exciting and suspenseful as the show itself," enthused Sebastian J. Brook of ''Doctor Who Online''. "Cook's fearless and intelligent approach to asking questions pave icthe way for some fantastic responses as he manages to temper Davies' fun, energetic and sometimes insecure narrative with good, solid and sometimes cheeky responses." ''Off The Telly''s Graham Kibble-White concluded: "Candid, lucid and an all-too painful evocation of the challenges inherit in writing and running perhaps the most important show on the BBC". In November 2008, it was announced that
Richard and Judy Richard and Judy is the name informally given to Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan, a British married couple who are both television presenters and columnists. They presented the daytime television programme '' This Morning'' from 1988 until 2 ...
, the couple credited with revolutionising the reading habits of Britons, had selected ''The Writer's Tale'' for their Christmas Presents book strand – in the Serious Non-Fiction category – as part of the prestigious ''
Richard & Judy Book Club ''Richard & Judy'' (also known as ''Richard & Judy's New Position'') is a British television chat show presented by the married couple Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan. The show originally aired on Channel 4 from 26 November 2001 to 22 Augus ...
''. The couple described the book as "an absolute snapshot into the mind of a creative writer... It's a free flow of thought – a stream of consciousness. It's a great book." On 2 December 2008, inspired by ''The Writer's Tale'',
Charlie Brooker Charlton Brooker (born 3 March 1971) is an English television presenter, writer, producer and satirist. He is the creator and co-showrunner of the sci-fi drama anthology series ''Black Mirror'', and has written for comedy series such as ''Bras ...
devoted an extended edition of his
BBC Four BBC Four is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002
TV show '' Screenwipe'' entirely to interviews with prestigious writers, including Russell T Davies. In June 2009, ''The Writer's Tale'' was shortlisted in the "Best Non-Fiction" category at the 2009
British Fantasy Awards The British Fantasy Awards (BFA) are awarded annually by the British Fantasy Society (BFS), first in 1976. Prior to that they were known as The August Derleth Fantasy Awards (see August Derleth Award). First awarded in 1972 (to ''The Knight of S ...
, but ultimately lost out to Stephen Jones' ''Basil Copper: A Life in Books''. Published in January 2010, the paperback edition, ''The Writer's Tale: The Final Chapter'', updates Davies and Cook's correspondence to September 2009, to cover Davies' final year as Head Writer and Executive Producer of ''Doctor Who'', taking in David Tennant's final few episodes as the Doctor. Critical reception was generally positive. ''SFX'' magazine's Ian Berriman described the book as "satisfyingly voyeuristic" and said, "It's well worth buying, even if you've already got the original edition." ''The Guardian''s Vera Rule called it "Far more than a ritual 'making of'" and the "Best masterclass in telly I've ever attended," adding: "Made me cry." ''Heat'' magazine included the book on its "Hot List" of "The Top Ten Things We At ''Heat'' Are Completely Obsessed With This Week." However, ''
Private Eye ''Private Eye'' is a British fortnightly satire, satirical and current affairs (news format), current affairs news magazine, founded in 1961. It is published in London and has been edited by Ian Hislop since 1986. The publication is widely r ...
'' criticised the tome for being "breathlessly self-congratulatory" – "a bring-your-own-extolment party in which readers are invited to bask in the outrageous genius of this bear-like TV demagogue." Asked, in a February 2010 interview, whether there were any plans to conduct a similar correspondence with Davies' successor as showunner,
Steven Moffat Steven William Moffat (; born 18 November 1961) is a Scottish television writer, television producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his work as showrunner, writer and executive producer of the science fiction television series ''Doct ...
, Cook replied:
Not at the moment. Well, not by me. Maybe Steven's e-mailing someone else! But look, e-mailing me isn't a prerequisite for taking the job of showrunner. I'm not handed down from head writer to head writer, like a soup recipe. Or a genetic disorder. ''The Writer's Tale'' sort of came about by accident, really, and it was quite an organic process, at a time when Russell already had three series under his belt...


YouTube and other work

On 16 August 2012, Cook released a trailer on his YouTube account ''ninebrassmonkeys'' for his project, ''Becoming YouTube'', a 12-part "weekly" video series about the British YouTube community. Presented in a documentary style and incorporating sketch comedy and fantasy sequences featuring popular YouTube stars. The first episode was launched on 9 December 2012. After uploading the last episode of ''Becoming YouTube'' of the first series on 23 February 2014, he announced Project:Library, which is written by Cook, Tim Hautekiet and Jack Howard. On 7 April 2013, Cook was featured in ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' in an article about Britain's 20 most popular video bloggers and about his success with Becoming YouTube. Cook is also involved with the development of Tofu, an 8-part sex-culture web series commissioned by Channel 4 to accompany the television productions Cucumber and Banana. On 8 January 2015, Benjamin Cook has uploaded a trailer for the 2nd season of his project, '' Becoming YouTube'', claimed to be the last in the series.TenEightyUK Magazine interview with Benjamin Cook
/ref> He also conducted interviews with a number of YouTube personalities including
Charlie McDonnell Charlie McDonnell (born 1 October 1990) is a British filmmaker, screenwriter, musician, former vlogger, author and Twitch streamer from Bath, Somerset. On 15 June 2011, her YouTube channel charlieissocoollike became the first in the UK to re ...
,
Emma Blackery Emma Louise Blackery (born 11 November 1991) is an English musician, singer, YouTube vlogger, record producer, and author. Active since 2012, Blackery has released EPs, singles, and Vevo music videos. She has toured with Busted, and headline ...
, Jack Howard,
Daniel Howell Daniel James Howell (born 11 June 1991) is an English YouTuber, presenter, comedian and author. He gained prominence through his YouTube channels ''Daniel Howell'' (formerly known as ''danisnotonfire''), which reached over six million subscrib ...
,
Phil Lester Philip Michael Lester (born 30 January 1987) is an English YouTuber and radio host. He is best known for his YouTube channels ''AmazingPhil'', which gained over 4 million subscribers, and ''DanAndPhilGAMES''. Together with frequent collaborato ...
, amongst others.


''Tofu''

Tofu Tofu (), also known as bean curd in English, is a food prepared by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness; it can be ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', ''extra firm'' or ''super firm ...
is a British online documentary series presented by Cook released in 2015 on 4oD, Channel 4's video-on-demand service. The series complements two series by
Russell T Davies Stephen Russell Davies (born 27 April 1963), better known as Russell T Davies, is a Welsh screenwriter and television producer whose works include '' Queer as Folk'', '' The Second Coming'', ''Casanova'', the 2005 revival of the BBC One scie ...
,
Cucumber Cucumber (''Cucumis sativus'') is a widely-cultivated Vine#Horticultural climbing plants, creeping vine plant in the Cucurbitaceae family that bears usually cylindrical Fruit, fruits, which are used as culinary vegetables.
and
Banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", distinguis ...
. Cook interviews the cast members and the public about modern sex, sexuality, and issues referenced or arisen in the 2 shows. Like Cucumber and Banana, the name of the series refers to the same urological scale of hardness of the male erection which starts at ''tofu'', goes through ''peeled banana'' and ''banana'', and ends at ''cucumber''. * Cook, Benjamin (2003). ''Doctor Who: The New Audio Adventures – The Inside Story''. Berkshire: Big Finish. . * Hickman, Clayton, ed. (2005), "Cook, Benjamin", ''Doctor Who Annual 2006'', pp. 47–52. Kent: Panini Books. . * Davies, Russell T; and Cook, Benjamin (2008). ''Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale''. London: BBC Books. . * Davies, Russell T; and Cook, Benjamin (2010). ''Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale: The Final Chapter''. London: BBC Books. . * Hickman, Clayton, ed. (2010), "Cook, Benjamin", ''The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2011'', pp. 104–107. London: BBC Books. . * Hickman, Clayton, ed. (2011), "Cook, Benjamin", ''The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2012'', pp. 10–14, 36–39, 64–67, 94–97, 154–159. London: BBC Books. .


References


External links


Official website

Benjamin Cook
on Twitter
Benjamin Cook (ninebrassmonkeys)
on YouTube {{DEFAULTSORT:Cook, Benjamin 1982 births British atheists British feminists British video bloggers Living people English video bloggers English male journalists People from Isleworth Alumni of Collingwood College, Durham Alumni of Richmond upon Thames College