Newskids on the Net

Nick Handel

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Why I wrote this book

Synopsis

A gripping adventure story for young people aged 10 up to early teens.

Fourteen year old Max Taylor dreams of running his own TV news station. With the help of cameraman Ollie ‘Sniffer’ Morris (who can smell a great news story from five miles away), designer Becky Morris (aka the ‘IT’ girl because of her impressive computer skills), presenter Rachael Cooper (a cool and talented American actress in year 10) and Akbar Khan (techno wizard of the school drama club), he manages to create one in his dad’s garden shed. Newskids on the Net’s first programme is a disaster, involving a narrow escape of a break dancing hamster from a man who puts ferrets down his trousers; but the reaction from the audience is beyond the team’s wildest dreams.

The station is soon a national hit – and covering some big stories. Using a loyal network of viewers across the UK, the Newskids trace a school friend who has become the subject of a national missing person’s search. Their success makes national headlines, and this newfound celebrity status opens doors that would otherwise have remained closed - including the chance to go behind the scenes at the world cup, being staged ‘at home’ in the new Wembley Stadium.

The Newskids discover that a top England striker is set to sign for their local Premiership team, but as they arrange an interview they discover that the national hero is not all he seems, and as the world cup final looms, the Newskids have to act before it’s too late... resulting in late-night stakeouts, secret recordings and a nerve-jangling climax atop the 400 foot Wembley Arch.

About the Author

Nick Handel is a former BBC TV producer whose many credits include In At The Deep End (with Chris Serle and Paul Heiney), Jobs For The Girls (with Pauline Quirke and Linda Robson) and Children in Need.

His production career began in local radio where one of his duties was writing and presenting a thrice-weekly children's story slot; then came the move to network radio as a producer in Light Entertainment, where he made comedy and factual entertainment for Radios 2 and 4. One of his programmes was was 'Ask a Silly Question!' (a somewhat unusual idea for a radio quiz in that all the contestants were dummies - led by Basil Brush).

Moving to television in the mid-seventies, Nick became film director on That's Life!, making stars of Tramp (an Old English sheepdog who drove a car) and Prince (a Yorkshire Terrier who made the word "Sausages!" a national catchphrase). Since then, he has made documentaries and factual series on a wide range of subjects from missing persons to the price of fame. Now freelance, he spends much of his time training producers and directors both at the BBC and for many leading independent production companies.

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