"The minute she crosses that line first, it'll be like the whole world has changed for us..."

Five Londoners pin their hopes on a greyhound's first race. But their dreams go awry when a violent situation erupts and suspicion falls on one of their number.

Matt Charman's A Night at the Dogs was chosen from over 700 submissions in Soho Theatre’s nationwide hunt for the best new play by a first-time playwright.

The 25-year-old newcomer (pictured) was educated in London and inspired by the characters he encountered during a holiday job washing cars in a garage in Sussex.

Were your former colleagues as motley a crew as the syndicate in your play?
On the whole I worked with a lovely bunch of guys, all real individuals with very different interests. I couldn't help borrowing elements of the way they said or did things, but I'm pretty confident that no-one who comes up in the mini-bus to watch it will be too offended.

Your characters seem to be a bunch of losers and in denial over certain aspects of their lives. No wonder they think a big win at the dogs will sort everything out...
I thought the idea of these guys owning a grey hound worked well. Horses are so expensive, but dogs are affordable and they provide just the same sort of thrill when you watch them. All of these guys are staking a lot on this dog, especially Carl, who believes a win might restore some sort of glory to his pathetic existence. The other men are drawn in by his enthusiasm and by the simple idea of owning something pure and fast that's been bred to win.

Were you conscious of influences during the writing process?
Not really conscious but I suppose you can't help certain things seeping through. I've always loved listening to people talk. Dialogue that flies around between characters is my favourite thing so whatever made me like that style in the beginning must have been a factor. I just can't remember what it was...

Some writers say their characters take them over and what follows is a flow of 'automatic' writing. Is this true in your case?
I'm pretty sure that if you think too much about dialogue, it ends up sounding forced. I also think it's true to say there are a lot of writers who sit in their rooms and do little voices for the characters while they write, like some sort of Punch and Judy show - I know I do. It's a great way of getting the stop/start nature of dialogue, and it's certainly a great feeling when you get on a roll and things seem to flow naturally. By the way, that Punch and Judy thing is perfectly normal you know, nothing for you to worry about...

And what was it like to know you'd been chosen from over 700 submissions to get A Night at the Dogs performed?
An incredible feeling. Of course you always think you've got a chance or you'd never stick the script in the post, but when I heard there'd been 700 submissions I did write it off in my mind. Then I got a phonecall saying I'd made it down to the final 6, and then a week or so later that I'd won. It's only dawned on me since what a big deal the Verity Bargate award is and how much time and effort the Soho invest in finding the winner. I only hope I do them all proud.

It must have been an eye-opener to see the play's journey from page to stage...
You write these things alone, in a bedroom or wherever. They live completely in your head and then all of a sudden, it's the first day of rehearsal and five amazing actors are reading your lines. I'll never forget that feeling on that first day, there's nothing like it. They make these characters you've written into people, right in front of you. That's an eye-opener.

Are you pleased with the outcome and the reaction? People are saying some very positive things about you...
I'm over the moon. I want to write for theatre and TV and when you get the sense that there's actually people out there who also want you to do that, it feels great. I'm working on a TV project and a second play for the Soho, so I'm starting to feel like a proper writer rather than someone who just spends too much time in
their bedroom.

What's the best piece of advice you've had?
Don't write for other people. Write for yourself, and what you would like to see on a stage or on a TV. You can't second-guess people's tastes I don't think.

A Night at the Dogs is at Soho Theatre, 21 Dean Street W1 until 14 May. Box office 0870 429 6883.
Soho Theatre & Writers' Centre acts as a resource to emerging playwrights, offering training and outreach programmes and the country's only unsolicited script-reading service, reporting on over 2,000 plays each year.

Take a Thames Tour of Rotherhithe including the home of London's whaling and timber trades

Today's weather for London

Saturday Max 9 °C Min 5 °C

For all other forecasts, enter a town, city, country name, or a UK postcode    View National Forecast