Helen Watts

A play adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion Anne Elliot fell in love with the dashing young naval officer Frederick Wentworth at the age of nineteen but with neither fortune nor rank to recommend him Anne's family were against the match and persuaded her to break off the engagement. Eight years later circumstances have changed and Wentworth is back. Can Anne be persuaded again? This play is in two acts and has a cast of 12 women and 8 men with possibilities for doubling. There are good monologues and duologues within the text and the show is suitable for schools, universities and drama groups.

Escape to the Cotswolds in this big-hearted, feel-good and life-affirming story of new beginnings, second chances, female friendship and the healing power of books and the communities that form around them. Perfect for fans of Milly Johnson, Maddie Please and Stephanie Butland, Helen reminds us of the importance of living life to the full without age limits.

England, 1820: The isolated town of Sleepy Hollow is disrupted by the arrival of a new schoolteacher, Ichabod Crane, who challenges the town's superstitions with science, reason and fact. The locals instantly mistrust him; but Katrina van Fleet, heiress to Sleepy Hollow's rich land is charmed by his intellect and passion. But Ichabod is mistaken: as behind each one of the villagers' tales lies a dark and bloody truth. As the spirits of the Hollow Wood grow restless, and as the hooves of the Headless Horseman thunder ever nearer, Katrina is forced to make a choice that will change the fate of Sleepy Hollow forever. Based on Washington Irving's infamous short story, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is a powerful and atmospheric musical by Helen Watts and Eamonn O'Dwyer. It is a story of community; a story of faith, of blood and belief; a story that asks the simple question: what happens when good people make bad choices?

"As with the commander of an army, so is it with the mistress of a house". Isabella Beeton was only twenty three years old when she penned these words in Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management, first published in 1861. She could not have predicted how they would resonate with the women of England, nor could she have imagined how her name would become synonymous with culinary expertise and domestic bliss for generations to come. Mrs Beeton Says... is a charming and vibrant musical examining the life and legacy of this extraordinary woman: a spirited journalist, a tireless entrepreneur, and if not a perfect homemaker, then certainly a queen of organization. In a world where a woman could not vote, own a house, nor even ride a bicycle, Mrs Beeton's book gave the women of England something they desperately wanted: a bit of control.

Kelly, a Traveller girl, is isolated and unhappy at her new school. Until the hot summer day when she meets Ben. Ben offers to help Kelly with her history project. It's just schoolwork - except that the investigation quickly becomes compelling. Strange puzzles are revealed. A dark secret of the local quarry comes to life. Soon the mystery of the past is spilling into the present - and into Kelly's own life. Kelly must bring the long-buried truth to light. And she will leave no stone unturned... A tense, moving mystery with brilliant historical detail of Victorian life, by the author of the Carnegie-nominated One Day In Oradour.

From 2014 to 2018, people all over the world will be commemorating the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War. They will not only be honouring those who lost their lives on the battlefield between 1914 and 1918, they will also be remembering everyone who played a part in, or lived through, those troubled times. First World War Folk Tales is a very special collection of legends and folk tales from the First World War era. This special centenary collection shows how elements of truth can become legend, how people often attempt to explain the strange and the mysterious through stories and tales, and how storytelling can ease the pain and burden of war.