The man behind the soapie
EXCLUSIVE: PRODUCER AND WRITER CAN’T IMAGINE LIFE WITHOUT BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL Bradley Bell says that he didn’t expect the soapie to last this long.
Brad Phillip Bell is a busy man, difficult to get hold of for obvious reasons. Producing and writing a multi-award winning soapie that has been airing for 30 fruitful years on the CBS Television Network and leaving loyal viewers intrigued every weekday cannot be a walk in a park. Nonetheless Bell managed to take time off and give The Citizen an exclusive interview, chatting a bit about how he kept The
Bold and the Beautiful going for three decades.
“I think it’s the excitement of every new episode. It’s the magic of having your words brought to life by so many talented people; the actors and directors, makeup and wardrobe,” he said. “At the beginning it was just an occupation,” he said. “I feel like it may be in my blood. It’s what I have always wanted to do and I have had a passion for it from the very beginning. I have always loved the study of human relation and drama, and all that combined is perfect for a life in soap opera. Doing what I do feels natural,” he further said. Bell is the son of William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell. His parents co-created the soap operas The
Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful. His mother was also an Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist and talk show personality.
Bell says he believes that he wouldn’t have made it this far if he didn’t have passion for television or storytelling. “I’m passionate about the TV show. When I started it with my father in 1987, I had no idea it would last this long. We thought ten-years would be great, but here we are, 30-years now,” he said, explaining that he wrote the first five-years’ episodes with his dad and the rest of the soapie without him. “I’m still excited about the story today as I was back in the 80’s and 90’s.”
The 53-year-old says he tries to keep in touch with what is happening in the world around him and makes an effort to reflect that in his writing. “Recently with the Maya storyline and the character being transgender, starting a family and getting married, we are trying to get people to think and to really be more accepting of other people’s individual choices,” he said, indicating that with this particular role, the audience is allowed to see that despite being transgender, Maya wants what everybody else wants; to live a life filled with love and happiness.
He says besides the exciting location shoots in Australia and Monte-Carlo this year, what will leave the viewers further absorbed is the fact that some old characters will be returning to
The Bold and the Beautiful, adding that he would really like the soapie to one day shoot in South Africa.
The father of four says when he is not busy with the soapie he is surfing or spending time with his kids over the weekend.