THE Edit, a new play by Poole-based BBC writer Sarah Gordon, shows at Lighthouse, Poole on Thursday, May 9. In many ways it brings Sarah back to where it all started. We caught up with her to find out more...

Tell us a little about your connection to Poole?

“I grew up in Poole and I still absolutely love it here. Growing up so close to the sea is pretty lucky! It definitely still informs my work; mostly in the sense of space that it gives, rather than the city where I find thoughts can get quite crowded.

“I used to think of theatre as quite an inaccessible world, something that only people from London were allowed to do. But once I started looking I found the approach to drama here much more nurturing.

“In fact, one of the first things I did was a summer writing and acting course at Poole Lighthouse! I was so bad I actually managed to break my foot on stage. Clearly an early warning to follow writing rather than acting.”

So tell us about The Edit?

“The Edit is basically a story about what happens after the ‘love story’ is over. It’s two people trying to make sense of their past together so they can both move forward.”

Is it at all autobiographical – does rewriting the past make anything better?

“It’s not an autobiographical play, but I think that there are elements of Nick and Elena’s relationship that most people have gone through. We all mess up and edit each other constantly. Witnessing something like that at the theatre can show you that that’s OK.

“Rewriting the past I think is a deadly concept – in both your own personal history and in a wider social sense. Instead, I think the characters in The Edit realise that they need to accept what has happened in order to learn from it.”

In what ways do you think modern relationships differ from those of earlier generations?

“I love this question! I really hope that relationships have moved on from the past generations – at least in terms of equality.

“Having grown up on a strict diet of 1990s romantic comedy films, I find this era of dating apps desperately depressing, but overall, I think our attitudes towards relationships are now much healthier in terms of respecting each other as individuals.

“I really reject the idea of the millennial generation as being selfish or unable to commit in relationships. Just our ideas about what we consider to be ‘romantic’ have changed. Who knows!”

How did you create opportunities to write for stage and screen and what advice would you give young writers wondering how to make a career?

“I’ve gone quite a traditional route into writing and I’m a massive believer in first getting the right qualifications and training. But knowing that those qualifications aren’t actually going to get you very far in terms of work is quite crucial.

“I’ve always made work alongside whatever formal training I was doing and that’s come from (very luckily) being surrounded by like-minded people I really respect. Find a tribe and rather than wait for people to give you permission to put something on, make it anyway.

“For ages I thought the process of writing was just about that, the writing. But you have to be really active (and confident, which can be hard) about creating opportunities for yourself.”

What is your ambition as a writer and what are we going to see next from you?

“I have a few TV projects currently in development, which is a much longer process than theatre, but hopefully you’ll be seeing something on screen fairly soon!”