Simon Mayo

Given that we're talking during a heatwave.

Dear England is on the television.

All the episodes will be on iPlayer.

I guess most people really know where we are with this, but assuming someone is coming to this completely blank, they've got no idea what we're talking about, where does this TV drama take us?

Well, that's the trouble is we know most of the ethics, even though we've forgotten the agony, you bring it back to us like in every episode.

So the play was fantastically well received, won an Olivier.

Adapting it to the TV required what?

Are you good at adapting your own material?

And what did you add or subtract from this?

There's some words that appear before each episode, James.

The dialogue has been imagined by the author.

Yes.

I was interested in that because we obviously know that because you are the writer.

And it was a line that I kind of wished always appeared before every episode of The Crown, which people took as gospel, you know, that we now know what the Queen said to Harold Wilson, which of course we don't.

Was that your suggestion that you put it in?

Because obviously you have created these conversations.

Tell us about Joseph Fiennes, who played Gareth Southgate on stage.

And here he is reprieving the role.

Was he the only... Do you audition for this?

Did you just know that Joseph Fiennes was the guy straight off?