Writers' Guild of Great Britain (WGGB)

Overview

The Writers' Guild of Great Britain (WGGB) is the UK trade union representing professional writers working across film, television, theatre, radio, books, poetry, comedy, animation, and video games. The WGGB has approximately 3,074 members as of 2024 and is affiliated with the Trades Union Congress (TUC), the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC), the International Affiliation of Writers Guilds (IAWG), and the Federation of European Writers (FEU). If you are commissioning a writer for a UK production, WGGB minimum terms agreements likely govern what you must pay.

The WGGB negotiates and administers minimum terms agreements with key industry bodies including the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Pact (the UK producers' trade body), the Royal Court, UK Theatre, the National Theatre, and the Royal Shakespeare Company. These agreements establish minimum fees, residual structures, copyright protections, credit entitlements, and pension contributions for covered writers. In March 2024, the WGGB signed a landmark agreement with Netflix UK and the Personal Managers' Association (PMA), the first collective trade union agreement between a streaming service and UK writers' representatives.

History

The WGGB was founded on 13 May 1959 as the Television and Screen Writers' Guild, operating from a basement in Harley Street, London. It originated from two predecessor organizations: the British Screen and Television Writers' Association and the Screen Writers' Association, the latter dating back to 1936 when a group of screenwriters met at London's Cafe Royal to fight the proposed Cinematograph Films Bill of 1937.

In 1961, Chair Ted Willis signed the first national minimum terms agreement for writers in the UK, laying down basic fees for television drama. A second agreement followed in 1962, guaranteeing a minimum fee of GBP 2,000 for a feature film. During the 1960s, the union expanded to cover radio and book writers and adopted its current name, the Writers' Guild of Great Britain, in 1966. The WGGB sponsored the campaigns of the Writers' Action Group to establish the Public Lending Right and the Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS), which has collected and distributed more than GBP 100 million in payments to writers for photocopying and overseas retransmission of broadcasts. The WGGB hosts the annual Writers' Guild Awards, which celebrated their 60th anniversary in 2019.

Membership: Fees, Tiers, and Eligibility

The WGGB operates four membership categories. Full Membership is open to writers 18 and over who have been paid at or above WGGB minimum rates for work under a WGGB agreement, or who have earned more than GBP 5,000 from non-journalistic writing in a single year. Candidate Membership is for emerging writers who do not yet qualify for Full Membership. Student Membership is available for those enrolled in full-time education. Affiliate Membership is for writers who are members of another recognized writers' organization.

Full Membership Annual Subscription Bands (from 1 December 2025)

Full membership uses an income-based banding system, starting at GBP 218 per year for writers earning GBP 18,000 or less from writing:

Other Membership Categories

Full Members receive free contract vetting, casework support, access to the WGGB pension scheme, eligibility for Cannes Accreditation, and a waived joining fee for WGA East and WGA West membership (if they meet eligibility criteria). Candidate and Student Members receive most benefits except pension scheme access and Cannes Accreditation.

Minimum Terms Agreements and Rate Cards

The WGGB maintains minimum terms agreements across multiple craft areas. For film and television, the key agreements and current rate cards include:

BBC TV Rate Card (effective 15 December 2025)

A 2.3% increase was agreed for the Television Script and Sketch Agreements:

ITV Rate Card (effective May 2025)

Netflix UK Agreement (effective 1 February 2024)

The first agreement between a streaming service and the WGGB covers live-action scripted dramatic programming written in the UK for Netflix:

The WGGB also maintains agreements for theatre (including the TAC Agreement with Tynemouth Arts Centre, the ITC Agreement, and the Theatre Agreement), audio, and other craft areas. Where no agreement exists, the WGGB publishes best-practice guidelines with recommended rates (e.g., for video games, animation, and comics). Full rate cards are available on the WGGB Rates and Rights page.

UK Copyright and Statutory Protections

A distinctive feature of UK screenwriting compared to the US model is the stronger statutory copyright protection for writers under UK law. UK copyright law provides writers with moral rights, including the right of integrity (protection against derogatory treatment of the work) and the right of attribution (the right to be identified as the author). These rights exist independently of any WGGB agreement and give UK writers contractual protections even beyond what the agreement specifies.

The European Copyright Directive (ECD), transposed into UK and Irish law, additionally grants writers the right to transparency (annual information on the economic performance of their work), a contract adjustment mechanism (the right to renegotiate if a work significantly outperforms expectations), and a right of revocation (return of rights in the event of non-exploitation). The WGGB actively campaigns against contract clauses that ask writers to waive these statutory rights.

WGGB and WGA: No Automatic Reciprocity

The WGGB and the WGA (East and West) are separate organizations with no automatic reciprocal membership. UK screenwriters are not automatically entitled to WGA protections on US productions, and US WGA members are not automatically covered by WGGB agreements on UK productions. However, Full WGGB Members who meet eligibility criteria can have the WGA joining fee waived. International co-productions involving both US and UK writers may require compliance with both sets of agreements, requiring careful legal guidance.

The WGGB's credit arbitration process, similar in principle to the WGA's, determines which writers receive on-screen credit on UK productions where multiple writers have contributed. Credit arbitration outcomes affect residuals and professional standing for UK screenwriters.

What Filmmakers Should Know

UK producers and international productions commissioning UK-based writers should consult the relevant WGGB rate card before entering into writing agreements. The WGGB publishes current minimum rates for BBC, ITV, Netflix UK, PACT productions, theatre, and audio. Rates in the signed agreements may not reflect current minimums; always check the rate cards on the WGGB website for the latest figures.

For streaming productions, the Netflix UK agreement provides a model for what a streamer should pay UK writers: a minimum script fee of GBP 15,000-17,000 for a 60-minute episode, plus a mandatory Subsequent Use Advance of 125% of the script fee paid on the first day of principal photography. Producers negotiating with other streamers should use these terms as a benchmark.

For screenwriters, WGGB membership provides minimum fee protection, free contract vetting, casework support, access to the pension scheme, model contracts, and professional community through Guild events and advocacy. The income-based banding system means writers earning under GBP 18,000 annually pay GBP 218/year for Full membership.

See Also

For the UK producers' trade body that negotiates with the WGGB, see PACT in this directory. For the US writers guilds with parallel functions, see Writers Guild of America, West and Writers Guild of America, East in this directory. For the Irish writers guild, which has a joint membership agreement with the WGGB, see Writers Guild of Ireland (WGI) in this directory. For budgeting guild-covered UK productions, use the Indie Film Budget Calculator to estimate writer compensation costs.