Fathers4Justice threatens London musical producers with legal action
The organisation Fathers4Justice has threatened legal action against the producers of at London musical.
Superhero, was a one-man musical which ran at the Southwark Playhouse from 28th June to 22nd July, and told the story of a father fighting to see his child. It was written by by Richy Hughes (lyrics), Joseph Finlay (music) and Michael Conley (book) and, according to the show's website, was 'based on an original idea by Hughes'.
In a press statement, Fathers4Justice claim the group 'found substantial parts of the 2007 book, Fathers4Justice: The Inside Story, written by F4J founder Matt O'Connor, may have been used in the show'.
The campaigners have sent a letter to the show's writers asking them to cease and desist the use of the script, and suspend development of the show "pending resolution of the dispute".
An unnamed spokesman for Fathers4Justice said: "We are very supportive of projects that tell the important story of Fathers4Justice and the separated fathers we represent, however we are disappointed that substantial elements from Matt O'Connor's life story, as published in his autobiography, appear to have been used without permission, in breach of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988."
"Had we been approached by the show's creators prior to its launch, we are confident this situation could have been avoided.
"The matter is with our lawyers and we hope the situation can be resolved with the cooperation of the creators of Superhero."
The statement also claims a rock musical based on O'Connor's autobiography is currently in development.
Southwark Playhouse and the musical's producers, Tim Johanson Productions, have been contacted for comment.
Photo of Superhero by Alex Brenner.
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