UK Stageplay Template
Our UK Stageplay Template is based on BBC's UK Stageplay formatting standards, ensuring compliance with industry expectations. While similar to the standard Stageplay Template, this version has specific formatting differences, including side-by-side character and dialogue placement.
The document template's line types have been formatted to follow traditional stageplay formatting standards, offering flexibility for playwrights.
In This Article
UK Stageplay Template Tutorial Video
Key Differences from Standard Stageplay Formatting
- Character and Dialogue lines are side-by-side
- Because of this, Dual Dialogue is built into the background and cannot be used manually
- Scene numbers appear only on the right-hand side
- Action lines default to uppercase instead of italics
Apply Stageplay Template
This will affect the entire document and adjust all formatting.
- Select Format > Document Template > Default Templates
- Select UK Stageplay Template
- If there is content in the document, it will ask if you want to confirm the template change.
- Select Apply Template
Core Line Types
These line types form the foundation of the UK stageplay format and are the most commonly used.
- New Act – The first line of the script, aligned to the left
- Scene – Marks a new scene, appearing to the right of New Act lines
- Action – Describes set description and what is happening on stage, formatted in uppercase in the right margin
- Character – The name of a speaking character, aligned to the left
- Dialogue – Appears to the right of the Character name, formatted side-by-side
- Parenthetical (Parens) – Unlike in screenplays, parentheticals appear in all caps on the same line as dialogue due to the dual-column formatting
- End Act – Indicates the end of an act, automatically formatting a New Act when pressing Enter
Additional Line Types
- Audio – Represents sound cues, functioning similarly to Action lines
- Transition – Rarely used in stageplays but can indicate cues like
Lights Fade to Black - Lyrics - Dialogue that is sung or recited appearing in italics, typically for musicals
- Text – Unformatted lines for miscellaneous content or production notes
- Image – Allows inserting multimedia such as images, videos, or reference sketches
Outlining Line Types
- Notes – Indented comments for reference, not counted in the page count
- Outline – Provides structural guidance, hidden unless Show Outline is enabled
- Sequence – Groups scenes into story beats, with similar functionality across templates