Lee Bullen - Screen Writer

Title: New Aging
Author: Lee Bullen
Format: Situation Comedy
Market: 15-80 year olds
Status: Script available

Logline: Lifelong hippie and rock aficionado, Jim Starbright, attempts to reintroduce his commune ‘family’ into suburban normality, despite the stiff-upper-lipped protestations from affluent neighbours.

Synopsis: 'New Aging' is a sitcom set in an idyllic well-to-do village, featuring new-age wrinklies, Jim & Janice Starbright, as original 60's hippies whose devotion to the subculture hasn't waned in time, unlike their waist and hair lines. The relocated ‘Starbright Commune', now a psychedelic suburban semi-detached, is also home to their straight-laced daughter, Summer, and hippie-stoner, Brian, who lives in a tepee in the back garden.
Commune leader, Jim, is mellowing and seeks a more serene existence to that of his quirky, peacenik wife, Janice. Jim still enjoys the liberal life of a free-spirited individual, as well as the soft drugs and classic rock music associated with being a hippie, however, since floods destroyed their forest commune and forced them to lodge with accountant daughter, Summer, Jim covets a more conventional outlook to the change-the-world ideology of Janice.
Long-suffering Summer Starbright curses the day her parents showed up on her doorstep with LCD-pickled Brian Woodstock in tow. Ever since, her neutral-coloured, IKEA-clad semi has transformed into a brash, nausea-inducing farmyard, complete with roving livestock and nomadic new-agers.
As the first series develops, Jim finds it increasingly difficult to steer Starbright Commune in the right direction. Every effort to grow old gracefully and integrate into the neighbourhood is met with antagonism and disaster, and Jim finds himself more alienated than ever. The strain is compounded by Janice and Brian, both unwilling to replace placards with pipe and slippers and missing life on a real commune.

Other: Similar to sitcoms such as My Name Is Earl, music will be integral to the show’s set-up. Songs from the ‘golden age’ of rock and psychedelic-rock will add texture to the colourful visual appearance.

Keywords: sitcom, comedy, rock & roll, music, hippy, hippies, new age, subculture, psychedelic, liberal, free, mind, cannabis, marijuana, joint, community, commune, integration, neighbors, family, love, peace, sex

No of Words: 5,673 / No of Pages: 29

Author Bio: Lee Bullen is a comedy writer and illustrator who spends most of his time creating comedy gold at his writing retreat in Spain, which he shares a with his family, a dozen goats and an army of cacti. He’s decided that he gets most sense out of the cacti.
Lee sometimes collaborates with award-winning author, Joe Cawley, who openly admits he prefers the company of his wife and children to any neighboring succulents. He does, however, have a favourite palm tree.

Title: Where Are They Now?
Author: Lee Bullen
Format: Situation Comedy
Market: 15-80 year olds
Status: Script available

Logline: Two expiring celebrities, living together and competing for the same media attention, struggle to maintain a profile during a belt-tightening crisis. With fresher faces perpetually whooping their way onto the telly, Lance and Orlando must fight to keep their faces in the media... by whatever means possible!

Synopsis: Polystyrene pillars and ornate interior fountains fail to add a hint of intended showbiz sophistication to the small council house inhabited by former reality TV contestants, Lance and Orlando, and Orland's out-of-work, anarchic-blogging sister, Lucy.
Set during the present climate of economic hardship, the boys - approaching thirty and well past their ‘15 minutes’ - must scrap for the same 'celebrity' work while being coaxed by struggling celebrity agent and self-dubbed ‘Fame-Guru’, Des'ree O’Hara. Also hard-up, Des'ree needs one of them to get a break, so she’ll manipulate them anyway she can to get their faces in the papers or on the telly.
'Where Are They Now?' takes a comedic look at the come-today-gone tomorrow nature of celebrity culture and what celebrities do once they’ve fallen from favour and the cameras aren't around.
We follow two celebrities plotting, rehearsing and embarking on media stunts, auditions, TV work, appearances, etc, set up by a crafty agent and sabotaged at every opportunity by Lucy – the antithesis to what her brother and oldest friend, Lance, stand for.

Other: So how will a sitcom about celebrities be funnier than the real thing? Visually and tonally 'Where Are They Now?' will have the feel of a sitcom and appear far removed from a reality show. It will also incorporate surreal and satirical elements, alongside punchy dialogue, flashbacks and drop-ins. It’s a created world, depicting how celebrities live and conduct themselves, and is about three likeable and distinct characters and their drive for recognition.
Also, considered celebrity cameos could be written in for every episode

Keywords: sitcom, comedy, celebrities, celebrity, culture, fame, famous, crisis, profile, unemployed, agent, agency, stars, media, publicity, auditions, casting, appearances, casting, TV, television, recognition, PR.

No of Words: 5,408 / No of Pages: 28

Title: Off-Centre
Author: Lee Bullen & Joe Cawley
Format: Situation Comedy
Market: 15-80 year olds
Status: Script available

Logline: Set in a rundown community centre in the fictitious town of Grimholl, Off-Centre is a modern day sitcom about Grimholl Community Centre's popular group leader, Syd McQueen and his dogged determination to install ‘community spirit’ in a town otherwise known as Malice.

Synopsis: Reformed addict and rock ‘n roll bohemian, Syd, is battling to stay on the shiny side of a transformation that has taken him from a drain on society to becoming the centre's much-loved, if a little unorthodox, group leader. He believes attending classes at Grimholl Community Centre helped save him, and has vowed to keep the centre open by helping those in a similar situation. A steady following of deadbeats and miscreants attend Syd's classes, all afflicted with obsessions and compulsions such as sex addictions, clutter issues and witchcraft aspirations.
Together, the centre's staff and groups of misfits, pit their wits against Corey Tory, a local crime-boss intent on closing the centre to pave the way for his swanky new for-profit centre, part of his big 'Circle of Life' plan. He feeds the needs of a community in despair through sex, drugs and over-priced loans, then provides services to 'remedy' their dependency - for a price, of course.
Weak-kneed centre manager, Graeme O'Neal, believes the centre is doomed anyway - He's been promised a job at Corey's new centre and believes his own centre should close as soon as possible. He holds no interest in seeing it survive and eventually resorts to sabotage attempts.
Ally Monroe, the centre's attractive but condescending secretary, resents Syd's unorthodox methods and gritty group meetings. With aspirations to be a social worker, she constantly tries to 'help' the group members but unwittingly makes things worse through her complete lack of empathy and undiplomatic manner. This still doesn't stop her from thinking that she can do better than Syd and she's constantly seen reading self-help books in an aspiration to pursue her ambitions.
The centre's kitchen worker, Palmolive, completes the eclectic staff roster. He's desperately trying to run an organic kitchen complete with wandering livestock, but his aversion to harming any living thing - even a tomato - means the Grimholl Community Centre canteen is permanently bereft of food.
Through his control of Grimholl's vice world, Corey has leverage over several high-powered members of the community and uses this power to have all manner of spanners thrown in the Community Centre works, such as frequent health and safety checks, investigative journalists, hoodies targeting the centre and a mole acting as a course attendee.
Seeing Grimholl Community Centre as competition to his new for-profit centre, Corey will stop at nothing to have the centre shut down. The big question is, how long will Syd and his group of society misfits be able to sustain their bizarre efforts at fending off his attacks?

No of Words: 5,560 / No of Pages: 28

Author Bios: Lee Bullen is a comedy writer and illustrator who spends most of his time creating comedy gold at his writing retreat in Spain, which he shares a with his family, a dozen goats and an army of cacti. He’s decided that he gets most sense out of the cacti.
Award-winning author and travel writer, Joe Cawley, openly admits he prefers the company of his wife and children to any neighboring succulents. He does, however, have a favourite palm tree.