The Wednesday Play
The Wednesday Play | |
---|---|
Cathy Come Home (1966) | |
Genre | Drama, Anthology, television plays, social realism, kitchen sink realism |
Created by | Sydney Newman |
Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Original language | English |
Original release | |
Network | BBC 1 |
Release | 28 October 1964 27 May 1970 | –
Related | |
Play for Today |
The Wednesday Play is an anthology series of British television plays which ran on BBC1 for six seasons from October 1964 to May 1970. The plays were usually original works written for television, although dramatic adaptations of fiction (and occasionally stage plays) also featured. The series gained a reputation for presenting contemporary social dramas, and for bringing issues to the attention of a mass audience that would not otherwise have been discussed on screen.
Some of British television drama's most influential, and controversial, plays were shown in this slot, including Up the Junction and Cathy Come Home. The earliest television plays of Dennis Potter were featured in this slot.
History
[edit]Origins and early series
[edit]The series was suggested to the BBC's Head of Drama, Sydney Newman, by the corporation's director of television Kenneth Adam after his cancellation of the two previous series of single plays.[1] Newman had been persuaded to join the BBC following the success of the similar programme Armchair Theatre, which he had produced while Head of Drama at ABC Weekend TV from 1958 to 1962. Armchair Theatre had tackled many difficult and socially relevant subjects in the then-popular 'kitchen sink' style, and still managed to gain a mass audience on the ITV network, and Newman wanted a programme that would be able to tackle similar issues with a broad appeal. Newman also wanted to get away from the BBC's reputation of producing safe and unchallenging drama programmes, to produce something with more bite and vigour, what Newman called "agitational contemporaneity".[1]
The Wednesday Play succeeded in meeting this aim, and the BBC quickly developed the practice of stockpiling six or seven Wednesday Plays in case there were problems with individual works.[2] One production, The War Game (1965), was withdrawn from broadcast by a nervous BBC under pressure from the government, while John Hopkins' Fable (20 January 1965),[3] an inversion of South Africa's Apartheid system, was delayed for several weeks over fears that it would incite racial tensions.[3]
Intended as a vehicle for new writers, several careers began thanks to the series. Television programmes had a much shorter lead time in this era, and Dennis Potter's first four accepted television plays were shown during the course of 1965. The two Nigel Barton plays (8[4] and 15 December 1965)[5] first brought him to widespread public attention and the slightly earlier Alice (13 October 1965),[6] about Lewis Carroll's relationship with Alice Liddell, developed themes to which Potter would return.
In the first half of 1966 a series of 26 Wednesday Plays were produced by Peter Luke, the playwright, and story edited by David Benedictus. Highlights included The Snow Ball (20 April 1966),[7] adapted from the novel by Brigid Brophy, Toddler on the Run adapted by Shena Mackay from her novella and directed by James MacTaggart, (25 May 1966),[7] Cock Hen and Courting Pit (renamed A Tour of the Old Floorboards, 22 June 1966)[7] by David Halliwell and two plays by Frank O'Connor (which Hugh Leonard adapted)[8] virtually without dialogue[8] and which, renamed Silent Song, won The Prix Italia award[9] in 1967 for 'original dramatic programmes' jointly with a French programme.[10] The other O'Connor/Leonard work was The Retreat (11 May 1966).[7] These two plays starred Milo O'Shea and Jack MacGowran. Cathy Come Home by Nell Dunn and Jeremy Sandford was offered to the Luke/Benedictus team who passed it on to Tony Garnett.
Tony Garnett and Ken Loach
[edit]Garnett was quickly seen as someone capable of delivering plays which would gain much publicity for the BBC and its Drama department.[11] He had the enthusiastic support of Newman, his immediate superior, who lobbied for increased funding to allow for more location shooting on film rather than shooting productions in the multi-camera electronic television studio, a practice which was felt to impair realism, the preferred mode.[11]
Director Ken Loach made ten plays in all for The Wednesday Play series.[12] Two of them are among the best remembered of the entire run: an adaptation of Nell Dunn's Up the Junction (3 November 1965),[13] and the saga of a homeless young couple and their battle to prevent their children being taken into local authority care: Cathy Come Home (16 November 1966).[14] The latter began Loach's 13-year collaboration with Tony Garnett as his producer, although Garnett had been closely involved with Up the Junction as well.[15]
Plays like Up the Junction though were controversial among more conservative viewers. The 'Clean-Up TV' campaigner Mary Whitehouse accused the BBC of portraying "promiscuity as normal" in Up the Junction[16] and The Wednesday Play as featuring "Dirt, Doubt and Disbelief".[17] The writer on television Anthony Hayward quoted Garnett in 2006: "Mary Whitehouse was on the prowl, which was an added frisson, but it was actually very good free publicity and helped the ratings."[16] The "drama documentary" approach was criticised by television professionals who thought it was dishonest. In a Sunday Telegraph article published before its first repeat transmission Grace Wyndham Goldie complained that Cathy Come Home "deliberately blurs the distinction between fact and fiction ... [viewers] have a right to know whether what they are being offered is real or invented."[18] Loach has admitted that "[w]e were very anxious for our plays not to be considered dramas but as continuations of the news" which preceded The Wednesday Play's slot.[19]
Later series
[edit]The last three years of the strand were predominantly produced by Irene Shubik and Graeme MacDonald; by this time the BBC Drama head Sydney Newman had left the BBC. Highlights from this period include several plays by David Mercer such as In Two Minds (1 March 1967)[20] and Let's Murder Vivaldi (10 April 1968)[21] and Potter's Son of Man (16 April 1969),[22] a modern interpretation of the story of Jesus.
Suffering from declining audience figures, the run of The Wednesday Play ended in 1970 when the day of transmission changed, and the series morphed into Play for Today.
Reputation and availability
[edit]It is regarded as one of the most influential and successful programmes to be produced in Britain during the 1960s and is still frequently referenced and discussed. In a 2000 poll of industry professionals conducted by the British Film Institute to find the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes of the 20th century, two Wednesday Plays made the list: The War Game was placed twenty-seventh, and Cathy Come Home was voted the second greatest British television programme of the century.
Some examples of The Wednesday Play, such as The War Game (which was not screened by the BBC for 20 years) and Cathy Come Home (1966), a television play exploring the theme of housing and homelessness, were, according to filmmaker Roger Graef, "a giant wakeup call for the whole nation,"[23] and some of the Potter plays, surfaced on VHS and DVD; the Potter play, Alice was a bonus feature of a Region 1 DVD in 2010 of Jonathan Miller's surrealist version of Alice in Wonderland. The Ken Loach material has resurfaced in a Ken Loach at the BBC set, and the two plays directed by Alan Clarke in the Alan Clarke at the BBC set. However, as with much British television of this era, many episodes are lost, leaving 79 surviving in the archives (along with 3 with some surviving sequences) out of 182 transmitted.
Productions
[edit]This table is based on records in the BBC Genome archive of the Radio Times.[24] Titles billed as The Wednesday Play (or The Wednesday Play presenting: ...) in the Radio Times listings for their first or a subsequent transmission are included, plus an additional two for the reasons given in the notes. Repeats of the individual productions are excluded, as are some additional repeats from Theatre 625 shown in the Wednesday Play slot during 1968–69 but not billed as such in the Radio Times. All episodes were broadcast on BBC1, with the introduction of colour from November 1969.
The archival status has been ascertained for almost all productions based on the BFI National Archive[25] and TV Brain[26] online databases. Most of the extant versions are in the form of 16mm or 35mm black & white telerecordings (prints or negatives), or in a few cases original film versions where that was the original medium used for production. Some of the later plays exist in videotape formats.
Original Air Date | Title | Author(s) | Producer | Director | Performers | Notes | Archive status |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
28 October 1964 | A Crack in the Ice | A story by Nikolai Leskov.
Dramatised by Ronald Eyre. |
Peter Luke | Ronald Eyre | Bill Fraser James Maxwell Derek Newark Michael Hordern Jack May Conrad Monk John Bay Peter Madden Richard Hurndall Eric Richard |
Repeated under Encore on BBC2 4 June 1965. | Yes (35mm tr) |
4 November 1964 | In Camera | by Jean-Paul Sartre.
Adapted for television and directed by Philip Saville. |
Peter Luke | Philip Saville | Harold Pinter Jane Arden Katherine Woodville Jonathan Hansen Andre Boulay David de Keyser |
Repeated under Encore on BBC2 11 June 1965. | Yes (35mm tr) |
11 November 1964 | Pale Horse, Pale Rider | Katherine Anne Porter | Eric Till | Joan Hackett Keir Dullea John Drainie Ruth Springford Deborah Turnbull Arch McDonell |
A filmed production by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, first broadcast by CBC under Festival, 23 October 1963. | Unknown | |
18 November 1964 | The Big Breaker | Alun Richards | Peter Luke | Charles Jarrott | Rupert Davies Nigel Stock Daphne Slater Edward Evans |
Yes (16mm print) | |
25 November 1964 | Mr. Douglas | John Prebble | Peter Luke | Gilchrist Calder | Michael Goodliffe Jean Anderson Laurence Hardy Claire Nielson Gary Bond Margo Croan |
Repeated under Encore on BBC2 30 July 1965. | Yes (35mm tr?) |
2 December 1964 | Malatesta | by Henry de Montherlant.
translated by Jonathan Griffin. adapted by Rosemary Hill. |
Peter Luke | Christopher Morahan | Patrick Wymark Jessica Dunning Cyril Shaps John Glyn-Jones John Hollis Edward Burnham Blake Butler Dallas Cavell Jack Melford Reginald Jessup David Grey Judy Geeson David March |
Adapted from the play. Repeated under Encore on BBC2 28 May 1965. | missing |
9 December 1964 | The July Plot | by Roger Manvell.
Based on the book by Roger Manvell and Heinrich Fraenkel. |
Peter Luke | Rudolph Cartier | John Carson Charles Lloyd-Pack Peter Copley Joseph Fürst Cyril Luckham John Lee John Paul John Abineri Graham Leaman Jeffry Wickham |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
16 December 1964 | First Love | From the story by Ivan Turgenev. | Mario Prizek | Mario Prizek | Heather Sears Richard Monette |
Produced and directed for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, first broadcast by CBC under Festival, 22 January 1964. | Unknown |
6 January 1965 | Tap on the Shoulder | by James O'Connor | James MacTaggart | Kenneth Loach | Lee Montague Richard Shaw Griffith Davies George Tovey Tony Selby Tom Bowman Noel Johnson Michael Mulcaster Lucy Griffiths Michael Collins Michael Goldie Tony Caunter |
Repeated under Encore on BBC2 17 September 1965. | Yes (16mm (BFI) or 35mm tr (TVBrain)?) |
13 January 1965 | Sir Jocelyn, the Minister Would Like a Word… | Simon Raven | James MacTaggart | Stuart Burge | Michael Hordern Alec John McCowen Phillips Derek Francis James Maxwell Agnes Lauchlan Leonard Maguire Gerald Cross Felix Felton Colin Jeavons Christopher Benjamin Frank Williams Steven Berkoff |
missing | |
20 January 1965 | The Navigators | Julia Jones | James MacTaggart | Vivian Matalon | George Baker Kathleen Byron Patience Collier Terence Woodfield |
Shown instead of the originally scheduled Fable due to the latter's postponement, so not listed in the Radio Times but listed as a Wednesday Play in the BFI database. | missing |
27 January 1965 | Fable | John Hopkins | James MacTaggart | Christopher Morahan | Thomas Baptiste Barbara Assoon Ronald Lacey Eileen Atkins Keith Barron Rudolph Walker Carmen Munroe Frank Singuineau |
Postponed from 20 January 1965. | Yes (35mm tr?) |
3 February 1965 | Dan, Dan, the Charity Man | Hugh Whitemore | James MacTaggart | Don Taylor | Barry Foster Ernest Clark Philip Locke Dora Reisser Antony Carrick Arthur Mullard Michael Barrington Michael Brennan |
Repeated under Encore on BBC2 1 October 1965. | missing |
10 February 1965 | Ashes to Ashes | Marc Brandel | James MacTaggart | Alan Cooke | Toby Robins Scott Forbes Oscar Quitak Tony Steedman |
Yes (16mm tr) | |
17 February 1965 | Wear a Very Big Hat | Eric Coltart | James MacTaggart | Kenneth Loach | Neville Smith Sheila Fearn William Holmes Johnny Clive Malcolm Taylor Alan Lake Royston Tickner William Gaunt James Hall Ken Jones David Jackson |
Repeated under Encore on BBC2 24 September 1965. | missing |
24 February 1965 | The Confidence Course | Dennis Potter | James MacTaggart | Gilchrist Calder | Dennis Price Stanley Baxter Neil McCarthy Yootha Joyce Gilly Flower Jack Le White |
missing | |
3 March 1965 | Campaign for One | Marielaine Douglas and Anthony Church | James MacTaggart | Moira Armstrong | Barry Foster Jeremy Kemp David Bauer Jerry Stovin Robert Arden Thomasine Heiner George Roubicek David Garth |
Repeated under Encore on BBC2 3 September 1965. | missing |
10 March 1965 | Horror of Darkness | John Hopkins | James MacTaggart | Anthony Page | Alfred Lynch Nicol Williamson Glenda Jackson |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
17 March 1965 | A Little Temptation | Thomas Clarke | James MacTaggart | Peter Duguid | Barbara Jefford Denholm Elliott Caroline Mortimer Michael Barrington Cheryl Molineaux |
Recorded in BBC Scotland's Glasgow studios | Yes (35mm tr?) |
24 March 1965 | Moving On | Bill Mellen | James MacTaggart | Brian Parker | Peter Jeffrey David Collings Godfrey Quigley Jack Watson Eric Thompson Kenneth Thornett Tony Wall James Appleby David Brewster Peter Diamond |
missing | |
31 March 1965 | Cat's Cradle | Hugo Charteris | James MacTaggart | Henric Hirsch | Leo Genn Barbara Murray Rachel Thomas Billy Russell Sheila Dunn |
Recorded in BBC Scotland's Glasgow studios | missing |
7 April 1965 | 3 Clear Sundays | James O'Connor | James MacTaggart | Kenneth Loach | Tony Selby Rita Webb Glynn Edwards George Sewell Kim Peacock Finuala O'Shannon Will Stampe Alec Ross Eric Mason Griffith Davies Ken Jones Harry Littlewood Michael Goldie George Tovey Jack Cunningham Hayden Jones Jack Melford Reg Lever Ben Howard Leslie Bates David J. Grahame Desmond Cullum-Jones James Appleby |
Repeated under Encore on BBC2 16 July 1965. | Yes (35mm tr?) |
14 April 1965 | The Interior Decorator | Jack Russell | James MacTaggart | James Ferman | Barry Foster Jane Arden |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
21 April 1965 | Auto-Stop | Alan Seymour | James MacTaggart | Brian Parker | David Hemmings Delphi Lawrence Kevin Stoney Janice Dinnen Katherine Schofield Jonathan Burn Gertan Klauber |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
28 April 1965 | The Good Shoemaker and the Poor Fish Peddler | Jean Benedetti | James MacTaggart | John Gorrie | John Barrie Robert Ayres Cec Linder Bill Nagy John Bailey Robert Arden |
Based on the lives of Sacco and Vanzetti. | missing |
5 May 1965 | Cemented with Love | Sam Thompson | Peter Luke | Michael Leeston-Smith | Harold Goldblatt Elizabeth Begley Anton Rodgers J. G. Devlin Denys Hawthorne Paddy Joyce |
Postponed from December 1964. Shown in The Wednesday Play slot and listed as such in the BFI database, although apparently not billed as such in the Radio Times, according to the BBC Genome database. | missing |
12 May 1965 | A Knight in Tarnished Armour | Alan Sharp | James MacTaggart | John Gorrie | Paul Young Paul Curran Hamish Wilson Brian Cox Henry Stamper |
missing | |
26 May 1965 | For the West | Michael Hastings | James MacTaggart | Toby Robertson | John Castle Julian Glover Freddie Jones Edwin Richfield Roy Stewart Nigel Stock John Stratton Zena Walker Gordon Gostelow Declan Mulholland |
missing | |
2 June 1965 | And Did Those Feet? | David Mercer | James MacTaggart | Don Taylor | David Markham Willoughby Goddard Patrick Troughton Sylvia Kay Jo Rowbottom Victor Lucas Anna Wing Jack May Kristopher Kum Donald Morley |
Yes (35mm tr) | |
9 June 1965 | The Man Without Papers | Troy Kennedy Martin | James MacTaggart | Peter Duguid | Benito Carruthers Geraldine McEwan James Maxwell Charles Victor Ingrid Hafner John Woodnutt Tom Bowman Ian Fleming |
partial | |
16 June 1965 | The Pistol | A novel by James Jones.
Adapted for television by Troy Kennedy Martin and Roger Smith. |
James MacTaggart | James Ferman | Clive Endersby John Brandon Hal Galili Walter Sparrow Steven Berkoff Callen Angelo Robert Arden |
Repeated under Encore on BBC2 10 September 1965. | Yes (35mm tr?) Incomplete prints - com-opt audio on studio sequences only, film sequences are mute, no music or effects. |
23 June 1965 | Women in Crisis: With Love and Tears |
Colin Morris | Cedric Messina | William Slater | Katharine Blake Nigel Green Alan Baulch Margot Robinson Margaret Ward Margaret Denyer Michael Brennan Peter Thornton |
Repeat of 27 September 1964 Theatre 625 production, substituting the advertised Vote, Vote, Vote for Nigel Barton due to the latter's late postponement.[27] | Yes (16mm tr) |
30 June 1965 | The Seven O'Clock Crunch | David Stone | James MacTaggart | Toby Robertson | Nigel Stock Peter Jeffrey Zena Walker Jan Waters Trevor Baxter June Brown |
missing | |
13 October 1965 | Alice | Dennis Potter | James MacTaggart | Gareth Davies | George Baker Rosalie Crutchley David Langton Deborah Watling John Bailey Tony Anholt |
Yes (35mm tr) | |
20 October 1965 | The Girl Who Loved Robots | Peter Everett | James MacTaggart | Brian Parker | Dudley Foster Isobel Black Norman Rodway Michael Guest David Dodimead John Bryans Geoffrey Hinsliff Kevin Stoney Howard Charlton |
missing | |
27 October 1965 | A Designing Woman | Julia Jones | James MacTaggart | Brian Parker | Reginald Marsh Rhoda Lewis John Collin |
missing | |
3 November 1965 | Up the Junction | Nell Dunn | James MacTaggart | Kenneth Loach | Carol White Geraldine Sherman Vickery Turner Tony Selby Michael Standing Ray Barron Rita Webb Hilda Barry Jessie Robins Sheila Grant George Sewell Frank Jarvis George Tovey Ben Howard James Haswell Will Stampe Gilly Fraser Anna Wing Reg Cranfield James Appleby |
Based on the book. Repeated also 14 July 1993 on BBC2. | Yes (35mm tr?) |
10 November 1965 | The Trial and Torture of Sir John Rampayne | Alan Seymour | James MacTaggart | Peter Duguid | Jack Hawkins Ian McKellen Faith Brook Mary Hinton Meredith Edwards Robert James Morris Perry Richard Coe Alan Mason Rex Robinson Milton Johns Bill Lyons Kenneth Benda Penelope Lee |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
17 November 1965 | The End of Arthur's Marriage | Christopher Logue and Stanley Myers | James MacTaggart | Kenneth Loach | Ken Jones Maureen Ampleford Edward de Souza Fanny Carby Toni Palmer Lucy Griffiths Nicholas Courtney Neville Smith |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
24 November 1965 | Tomorrow, Just You Wait | Fred Watson | James MacTaggart | James Ferman | James Chase Janina Faye Amelia Bayntun Tony Selby Charles Lamb Joss Ackland Judy Parfitt Gábor Baraker |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
1 December 1965 | The Bond | Dawn Pavitt and Terry Wale | James MacTaggart | Mary Ridge | Hannah Gordon Barry Lowe Nancie Jackson Campbell Singer Joan Young William Marlowe Annette Crosbie Angus MacKay George Selway Geoffrey Cheshire Ian Frost John Flint Peter Forbes-Robertson Kenton Moore |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
8 December 1965 | Stand Up, Nigel Barton | Dennis Potter | James MacTaggart | Gareth Davies | Keith Barron Jack Woolgar Katherine Parr Janet Henfrey Johnnie Wade Godfrey James Llewellyn Rees Brian Badcoe Peter Madden Alan Lake Ian Fairbairn Michael Davis Sheila Dunn |
Repeated 11 August 1987 on BBC1, and also 12 June 2004 and 31 January 2005 on BBC4. | Yes (35mm tr) |
15 December 1965 | Vote, Vote, Vote for Nigel Barton | Dennis Potter | James MacTaggart | Gareth Davies | Keith Barron Valerie Gearon John Bailey Cyril Luckham Donald Hewlett Betty Bowden Aimée Delamain |
Postponed from 23 June 1965. Repeated 18 August 1987 on BBC1, and also 15 June 2004 and 31 January 2005 on BBC4. | Yes (35mm tr) |
22 December 1965 | The Coming Out Party | James O'Connor | James MacTaggart | Kenneth Loach | Toni Palmer George Sewell Dennis Golding Will Stampe Alec Ross Griffith Davies George Tovey Aubrey Richards Fanny Carby Ray Barron Frank Jarvis Patrick O'Connell |
Yes (16mm (BFI) or 35mm tr (TVBrain)?) | |
5 January 1966 | The Boneyard | Clive Exton | Peter Luke | James MacTaggart | Nigel Davenport Neil McCarthy Michael Robbins John Le Mesurier |
Originally scheduled for 30 September 1964 (as The Bone Yard, without Wednesday Play billing) but postponed. | missing |
12 January 1966 | A Man on Her Back | by Peter Luke.
From a novel by William Sansom. |
Peter Luke | Waris Hussein | Norman Rodway Valerie Gearon Barrie Ingham Jo Rowbottom Milo Sperber Hana Maria Pravda Douglas Ditta John Baker |
Yes (35mm tr) | |
19 January 1966 | Rodney, Our Intrepid Hero | Brian Finch | Peter Luke | Michael Simpson | Graham Crowden Danny Green Jim Norton Jacqueline Ellis Kristopher Kum Derek Ware Alf Joint Lucy Griffiths |
missing | |
26 January 1966 | Calf Love | Philip Purser.
From a novel by Vernon Bartlett. |
Peter Luke | Gilchrist Calder | Simon Ward Warren Mitchell Madeleine Christie Isobel Black Deborah Watling Eileen Way Nigel Lambert Lisa Daniely |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
2 February 1966 | Silent Song | Frank O'Connor and Hugh Leonard | Peter Luke | Charles Jarrott | Tony Selby Leo McCabe Milo O'Shea Jack MacGowran |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
9 February 1966 | Who's a Good Boy Then? I am | Richard Harris | Peter Luke | James Ferman | Thora Hird Ron Moody Ronald Lacey |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
16 February 1966 | A Game - Like - Only a Game | John Hopkins | Peter Luke | Christopher Morahan | Susan Richards Alethea Charlton Stanley Meadows Shelagh Fraser Geoffrey Hibbert David Webb Peter Ducrow Jack Wild |
missing | |
23 February 1966 | Why Aren't You Famous? | Ernie Gebler | Peter Luke | Peter Sasdy | Alan Dobie Fionnula Flanagan Martin Benson John Forgeham |
missing | |
2 March 1966 | Macready's Gala | Hugh Whitemore | Peter Luke | Waris Hussein | Richard Pearson John Le Mesurier Barbara Couper Jane Eccles Donald Eccles |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
9 March 1966 | A Walk in the Sea | James Hanley | Peter Luke | Geoffrey Nethercott | Mora Nicholson Kenneth Griffith Marius Goring Peter Hawkins Howard Lang Harry Littlewood Keith Pyott |
missing | |
16 March 1966 | Boy in the Smoke | Patrick Galvin | Peter Luke | William Slater | Sean Caffrey Ray Mort John Sharp Tony Steedman John Barrard Frank Jarvis Paddy Joyce Allan Mitchell |
Repeat; first shown in the series Londoners on BBC2 13 May 1965. | missing |
23 March 1966 | Barlowe of the Car Park | Paul Ableman | Peter Luke | Gareth Davies | Jack Woolgar Annabel Maule Betty Romaine Annette Robertson Donald Hewlett Michael Robbins |
missing | |
30 March 1966 | The Portsmouth Defence | Nemone Lethbridge | Peter Luke | James MacTaggart | Emrys James Fanny Carby Deborah Cranston Maureen Ampleford Michael Coles Jerome Willis Yootha Joyce Roy Evans Clifton Jones John Woodnutt John Garvin |
Yes (35mm tr) | |
6 April 1966 | Pity about the Abbey | John Betjeman and Stewart Farrar | Peter Luke | Ian Curteis | Henry McGee John Harvey Suzanne Mockler Derek Francis Pamela Ann Davy |
Repeat; first shown in the series Londoners on BBC2 29 July 1965. | Yes (35mm tr?) |
13 April 1966 | The Big Man Coughed and Died | Brian Wright | Peter Luke | Peter Duguid | George Baker Eileen Atkins John Sharp Diana Coupland Nicholas Smith Harry Towb Philip Anthony Martin Friend |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
20 April 1966 | The Snow Ball | Brigid Brophy
Dramatised by Ursula Gray. |
Peter Luke | Charles Jarrott | Patrick Allen Katharine Blake Clare Kelly Trisha Noble |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
27 April 1966 | A Cheery Soul | Patrick White
Adapted by Jonquil Antony |
Peter Luke | Gilchrist Calder | Hazel Hughes Aubrey Richards Lucy Griffiths May Warden Jack Bligh |
Adapted from the play. | missing |
4 May 1966 | The Connoisseur | Hugo Charteris | Peter Luke | Waris Hussein | Derek Francis Rosalie Crutchley Michael Goodliffe Richard O'Sullivan Ian Ogilvy Rosalie Westwater Stephen Whittaker |
Yes (35mm tr) | |
11 May 1966 | The Retreat | Hugh Leonard | Peter Luke | Charles Jarrott | Gerry Sullivan Harry Webster Juno Tobin Gerry Duggan David Kelly |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
18 May 1966 | Ape and Essence | Aldous Huxley
Dramatised by John Finch. |
Peter Luke | David Benedictus | Alec McCowen Robert Eddison Derek Sydney Petra Markham Sydney Bromley Yvonne Antrobus |
Adapted from the novel. | missing |
25 May 1966 | Toddler on the Run | From the novel by Shena Mackay. | Peter Luke | James MacTaggart | Ian Trigger Anneke Wills Jerome Willis Iain Cuthbertson Renu Setna Mona Bruce Michael Robbins |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
1 June 1966 | The Executioner | Robert Muller | Peter Luke | Michael Hayes | Rosalie Crutchley Sandor Elès Elizabeth Bell David Garfield Meier Tzelniker Eileen Way Steven Scott David de Keyser |
missing | |
8 June 1966 | Way Off Beat | David Turner | James MacTaggart | Toby Robertson | Brenda Bruce Sydney Tafler Helen Fraser Gordon Reid Stephanie Bidmead Jimmy Hanley Noel Johnson |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
15 June 1966 | A Soiree at Bossom's Hotel | Simon Raven | Peter Luke | Gilchrist Calder | Fabia Drake Raymond Huntley Sarah Lawson Wallas Eaton Sally Bazeley Roddy Maude-Roxby Barbara Couper Clive Morton Henry McGee Jeremy Young |
missing | |
22 June 1966 | Cock, Hen, and Courting Pit | David Halliwell | Peter Luke | Charles Jarrott | Nicola Pagett Maurice Roëves June Murphy Clifford Cox |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
21 September 1966 | Photo Finish | Peter Ustinov | Bernard Hepton | Naomi Capon | Paul Rogers Robert Brown James Maxwell Simon Prebble Peter Ashmore Barbara Couper Daphne Slater Meg Wynn Owen Alice Montego Priscilla Morgan Michael Bates |
Repeat; first shown as a Thursday Theatre on BBC2 28 January 1965. | missing |
28 September 1966 | A Hero of Our Time | Ian Dallas.
Based on the novel by Mihail Lermontov. |
Peter Luke | Henric Hirsch | Alan Bates Mary Miller Terence De Marney Jeremy Young Donald Sumpter Brigit Forsyth Michael Mulcaster |
Adapted from the novel. | Yes (35mm tr?) |
12 October 1966 | The Frighteners | Daniel Farson | Peter Luke | Gilchrist Calder | Tom Adams Griffith Davies Ben Howard George Sewell Frank Jarvis June Murphy Peter Ducrow John Harvey |
Repeat; first shown in the series Londoners on BBC2 8 July 1965. | missing |
19 October 1966 | A Piece of Resistance | Terence Dudley | Cedric Messina | Geoffrey Nethercott | Lally Bowers William Kendall Frederick Jaeger James Villiers Gerald Cross Michael Craze Gábor Baraker |
Repeat of 26 December 1965 Theatre 625 on BBC2. | missing |
2 November 1966 | Where the Buffalo Roam | Dennis Potter | Lionel Harris | Gareth Davies | Hywel Bennett Megs Jenkins Glyn Aubrey Houston Richards Richard Davies |
Repeated also 25 August 1976 on BBC2 and 21 July 1993 on BBC2. | Yes (35mm tr) |
9 November 1966 | The Head Waiter | John Mortimer | Lionel Harris | Rex Tucker | Donald Pleasence Peter Madden Pauline Letts Alexandra Bastedo |
missing | |
16 November 1966 | Cathy Come Home | Jeremy Sandford | Tony Garnett | Kenneth Loach | Carol White Ray Brooks Barry Jackson Geoffrey Palmer Barry Jackson John Baddeley Paddy Joyce Lennard Pearce Will Stampe Lila Kaye |
Repeated also 11 August 1976 on BBC2, 23 December 2001 on BBC Choice, 5 June 2003 on BBC4, 11 June 2003 on BBC4, 26 November 2006 on BBC4. | Yes (original negative) |
23 November 1966 | The Private Tutor | Christopher Williams | Lionel Harris | Alan Gibson | Ian McShane Marty Cruickshank Patricia Garwood Alan Tucker Christopher Wray |
missing | |
30 November 1966 | A Pyre for Private James | Simon Raven | Lionel Harris | Gilchrist Calder | Basil Henson Percy Herbert Dudley Sutton David Conville Grant Taylor John Bailey William Fox Basil Dignam Nick Tate John Garvin |
missing | |
7 December 1966 | A Tale of Two Wives | Marc Brandel | Lionel Harris | Peter Duguid | Dinsdale Landen Peter Jeffrey Amanda Barrie Suzanna Leigh |
missing | |
14 December 1966 | Little Master Mind | Nemone Lethbridge | Tony Garnett | James MacTaggart | George Sewell John Porter Davison Michael Robbins Robert Russell Jerome Willis Yootha Joyce John Woodnutt Roy Evans Charles Morgan John Garvin Lila Kaye |
missing | |
21 December 1966 | The Mayfly and the Frog | Jack Russell | Lionel Harris | Robin Midgley | John Gielgud Isa Miranda David Stoll Felicity Kendal Timothy Bateson |
Repeated 10 July 1968 under Playbill. | Yes (35mm tr?) |
4 January 1967 | Person to Person | Joan Henry | Lionel Harris | Raymond Menmuir | Elizabeth Sellars Robin Bailey Michael Standing Michael Wennink |
missing | |
18 January 1967 | The Order | Fritz Hochwälder.
Translated by Patrick Alexander. |
Cedric Messina | Basil Coleman | John Neville Catherine Lacey George Coulouris Laurence Hardy George Murcell Clive Morton John Woodvine Jerold Wells James Cairncross Yvonne Antrobus Michael Pennington |
A Wednesday Play production for The Largest Theatre in the World project of the EBU. | missing |
25 January 1967 | Everyone's Rich Except Us | Thomas Clarke | Lionel Harris | Brian Parker | Alfred Lynch Jennifer Jayne Richard Vernon Vic Wise Wallas Eaton David Hutcheson Llewellyn Rees Howard Charlton Leonard Grahame Patsy Smart James Ottaway |
missing | |
1 February 1967 | The Lump | Jim Allen | Tony Garnett | Jack Gold | Leslie Sands Joby Blanshard James Caffrey Frank Gatliff Ken Jones Paddy Joyce Neville Smith |
Yes (16mm print) | |
8 February 1967 | Who's Going to Take Me On? | Andrew Davies | Lionel Harris | John Glenister | Richard O'Sullivan Garfield Morgan George Moon Trisha Mortimer Ann Holloway Derek Seaton Clifford Cox |
missing | |
15 February 1967 | Death of a Teddy Bear | Simon Gray | Lionel Harris | Waris Hussein | Brenda Bruce Hywel Bennett Rachel Kempson Kenneth J. Warren John Bailey |
Repeated 17 July 1968 under Playbill. | missing |
22 February 1967 | Days in the Trees | Marguerite Duras
Translated by Sonia Orwell. adapted by Jeremy Brooks. |
Lionel Harris | Waris Hussein | Peggy Ashcroft George Baker Frances Cuka Brian Badcoe Dallas Adams Roger Brierley Noel Collins Patricia Maynard |
A Wednesday Play presentation.
Original Royal Shakespeare Company stage production directed by: John Schlesinger. |
missing |
1 March 1967 | In Two Minds | David Mercer | Tony Garnett | Kenneth Loach | Anna Cropper George A. Cooper Neville Smith Malcolm Taylor Patrick Barr |
Repeated also 16 August 1977 on BBC2, 22 November 1980 on BBC2, and 21 July 1988. | Yes (35mm tr?) |
8 March 1967 | Another Day, Another Dollar | Michael Standing | Lionel Harris | Raymond Menmuir | Victor Maddern Tony Selby Michael Standing Reg Lye Garfield Morgan Eric Flynn Harry Landis |
partial | |
15 March 1967 | Public Inquiry | Raymond Williams | Lionel Harris | Gareth Davies | Charles Williams Edward Evans Clive Graham Roderick Jones Richard Davies Michael Elwyn |
missing | |
22 March 1967 | A Crucial Week in the Life of a Grocer's Assistant | Thomas Murphy | Lionel Harris | James MacTaggart | T. P. McKenna Elizabeth Begley Fionnula Flanagan Dermot Tuohy Denis McCarthy David Kelly |
missing | |
29 March 1967 | A Breach in the Wall | Ray Lawler | Lionel Harris | Gilchrist Calder | Robert Harris Barry Justice John Phillips Rosemary Leach Jennifer Daniel John Bryans Donald Morley |
Repeated 31 July 1968 under Playbill. | missing |
5 April 1967 | The Voices in the Park | Leon Griffiths | Tony Garnett | John MacKenzie | Kenneth Haigh George Sewell Brian Oulton Paddy Joyce Will Stampe Wendy Richard Alec Ross Sonnie Willis Eric Mason |
missing | |
12 April 1967 | Dismissal Leading to Lustfulness | Thomas Whyte | Lionel Harris | Rex Tucker | Peter Copley Petra Davies Fiona Duncan Carl Jaffe John Moffatt Ronald Radd Jane Wenham |
missing | |
19 April 1967 | A Brilliant Future Behind Him | Thomas Clarke | Lionel Harris | Robert Fleming | David Buck John Phillips Isobel Black James Bree Patricia Garwood Robert Harris Guy Middleton Ann Tirard Stephen Jack Philip Latham Richard Carpenter Frank Gatliff Yvonne Antrobus Barry Humphries |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
3 May 1967 | Message for Posterity | Dennis Potter | Lionel Harris | Gareth Davies | Patrick Magee Joseph O'Conor Geoffrey Chater Donald Hewlett Peter Welch John Golightly |
missing | |
10 May 1967 | A Way with the Ladies | Simon Gray.
Based on the novel A Helping Hand by Celia Dale. |
Lionel Harris | John Glenister | Bill Fraser Barbara Couper Amy Dalby |
missing | |
17 May 1967 | The Playground | Hunter Davies | Lionel Harris | John Robins | John Ronane Ann Lynn Wendy Gifford Roy Purcell Jim McManus |
missing | |
24 May 1967 | Drums Along the Avon | Charles Wood | Tony Garnett | James MacTaggart | Leonard Rossiter Valerie Newman Maureen O'Reilly Salmaan Peer Derek Ware |
Yes (16mm print) | |
11 October 1967 | Sleeping Dog | Simon Gray | Graeme McDonald | Waris Hussein | Marius Goring Rachel Kempson Johnny Sekka |
missing | |
18 October 1967 | Wanted: Single Gentleman… | James Broom Lynne | Irene Shubik | John Gorrie | Peter Jeffrey John Stratton Alan Rowe Eileen Atkins |
missing | |
25 October 1967 | A Black Candle for Mrs Gogarty | Edward Boyd | Pharic MacLaren | Duncan MacRae John Grieve Phil McCall Peggy Marshall |
From BBC Scotland | missing | |
8 November 1967 | The Devil a Monk Would Be | Peter Luke
Based on a story by Alphonse Daudet. |
Lionel Harris | Waris Hussein | Max Adrian Tony Selby Elizabeth Begley Derek Francis Bernard Archard Roger Hammond John Sharp |
missing | |
15 November 1967 | Fall of the Goat | Fay Weldon | Graeme McDonald | Gilchrist Calder | Joss Ackland Patricia Lawrence John Stratton Christine Hargreaves Sheila Burrell Joan Sanderson Arthur Hewlett |
missing | |
22 November 1967 | The Profile of a Gentleman | Jimmy O'Connor | Graeme McDonald | John MacKenzie | Lee Montague George Sewell Ken Jones Paddy Joyce Richard Shaw Eric Mason Michael Goldie |
partial | |
29 November 1967 | Dial Rudolph Valentino One One | Ewart Alexander | Graeme McDonald | Gareth Davies | Keith Barron Roy Dotrice Nerys Hughes Alan Lake John Rees Richard Davies Edward Burnham |
missing | |
6 December 1967 | Kippers and Curtains | Vickery Turner | Lionel Harris | Alan Gibson | Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies Angela Baddeley John Glyn-Jones Paul Angelis Stephen Hubay |
missing | |
13 December 1967 | Death of a Private | Robert Muller
Based on Georg Büchner's Woyzeck. |
Irene Shubik | James Ferman | Dudley Sutton Liam Redmond John Nettleton Geraldine Sherman Harry Fowler Ralph Watson Godfrey James Jack Bligh |
Yes (35mm tr) | |
20 December 1967 | An Officer of the Court | Nemone Lethbridge | Tony Garnett | James MacTaggart | Tommy Godfrey Yootha Joyce Bryan Pringle Ronald Radd Glynn Edwards Alec Ross Mona Bruce Desmond Cullum-Jones Frank Jarvis Erik Chitty Bill Burridge Joby Blanshard Steve Peters |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
27 December 1967 | The Fat of the Land | Jack Russell | Graeme McDonald | Toby Robertson | Joan Greenwood Willoughby Goddard Roy Holder Hazel Hughes Peter Jones Helen Fraser Russell Hunter Yvonne Antrobus |
missing | |
3 January 1968 | Toggle | Ian Roberts | Graeme McDonald | Waris Hussein | Alan Badel Moray Watson Daphne Heard Ray Armstrong |
missing | |
10 January 1968 | House of Character | David Rudkin | Irene Shubik | Alan Cooke | Alfred Lynch Shelagh Fraser John Collin Rex Garner Elroy Josephs Brian Badcoe Sylvia Coleridge |
Yes (35mm tr) | |
17 January 1968 | Jamie, on a Flying Visit | Michael Frayn | Graeme McDonald | Claude Whatham | Anton Rodgers Caroline Mortimer Dinsdale Landen Felicity Gibson Norman Mitchell Reg Whitehead Jane Enshawe John Scott Martin |
Repeated 7 August 1968 under Playbill. | missing |
24 January 1968 | Monsieur Barnett | Jean Anouilh | Lionel Harris | Donald McWhinnie | Michael Redgrave Miriam Karlin Harold Lang |
missing | |
31 January 1968 | The Drummer and the Bloke | Rhys Adrian | Irene Shubik | Herbert Wise | Peter Sallis Peter Vaughan Donal Donnelly Michael Robbins John Dearth |
missing | |
7 February 1968 | Rebel in the Grave | Marc Brandel | Lionel Harris | Raymond Menmuir | Grégoire Aslan Michael York |
missing | |
21 February 1968 | Coincidence | Piers Paul Read | Graeme McDonald | Moira Armstrong | Clive Revill Caroline Blakiston Donald Douglas Emrys James John Franklyn-Robbins John Savident Llewellyn Rees Bella Emberg Roger Avon Michael Sheard Desmond Cullum-Jones Michael Mulcaster |
missing | |
3 April 1968 | Light Blue | Gerald Vaughan-Hughes | Graeme McDonald | Alan Cooke | Calvin Lockhart Maureen O'Brien Robert Gillespie |
missing | |
10 April 1968 | Let's Murder Vivaldi | David Mercer | Graeme McDonald | Alan Bridges | Denholm Elliott Gwen Watford Glenda Jackson David Sumner |
Repeated also 7 July 1988. | Yes |
17 April 1968 | The Golden Vision | Neville Smith and Gordon Honeycombe | Tony Garnett | Kenneth Loach | Ken Jones Bill Dean Neville Smith Joey Kaye |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
1 May 1968 | The Man Behind You | Jeremy Scott | Irene Shubik | Moira Armstrong | Michael Bryant Tony Steedman Alan Tucker Stephen Whittaker |
missing | |
8 May 1968 | Infidelity Took Place | John Mortimer | Irene Shubik | Michael Hayes | Judy Cornwell Paul Daneman John Nettleton Patrick Newell |
missing | |
21 August 1968 | Mrs. Lawrence Will Look After It | Tony Parker | Irene Shubik | John MacKenzie | Mary Miller Ray Smith Barry Jackson James Appleby Ray Barron Pauline Collins Griffith Davies Gilly Fraser Sheila Grant Ben Howard Frank Jarvis Eric Mason Royston Tickner |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
28 August 1968 | Spoiled | Simon Gray | Graeme McDonald | Waris Hussein | Michael Craig Elizabeth Shepherd Simon Ward |
missing | |
4 September 1968 | The Gorge | Peter Nichols | Tony Garnett | Christopher Morahan | Billy Hamon Constance Chapman Reg Lye Neil Wilson John Woodnutt David Webb |
Repeated also 8 September 1976 on BBC2, 28 July 1993 on BBC2. | Yes (35mm tr?) |
11 September 1968 | A Night with Mrs. Da Tanka | William Trevor | Irene Shubik | John Gorrie | Jean Kent Geoffrey Bayldon Arthur Lowe Peter Bathurst Daphne Heard John Savident Reginald Barratt Christopher Burgess Barry Andrews |
missing | |
18 September 1968 | Charlie | Alun Owen | Irene Shubik | Michael Hayes | Barrie Ingham Julian Glover Mary Chester |
missing | |
25 September 1968 | Anyone for Tennis? | J. B. Priestley | Graeme McDonald | Claude Whatham | Clifford Evans Rachel Kempson Joseph O'Conor Ernest Clark Michael Pennington Angharad Rees |
missing | |
2 October 1968 | Mooney and his Caravans | Peter Terson | Irene Shubik | James Ferman | John Alderton Diana Bishop Dave Prowse Jerry Holmes |
missing | |
9 October 1968 | The Lower Largo Sequence | Edward Boyd | Pharic MacLaren | Patrick Allen Isobel Black |
From BBC Scotland | missing | |
16 October 1968 | Hello, Good Evening, and Welcome | Hugh Whitemore | Graeme McDonald | Claude Whatham | Robert Hardy Michael Robbins James Marcus Roshan Seth George Roubicek Ralph Bates Dallas Cavell |
missing | |
30 October 1968 | A Bit of Crucifixion, Father | Julia Jones | Graeme McDonald | Geoffrey Nethercott | Walter Fitzgerald Valerie White Margery Mason Alan Lake P.G. Stephens |
missing | |
6 November 1968 | Nothing will be the Same Again | James Hanley | Irene Shubik | Peter Hammond | Patrick Magee Bernard Lee Gwen Cherrell Tessa Wyatt |
missing | |
20 November 1968 | A Beast with Two Backs | Dennis Potter | Graeme McDonald | Lionel Harris | Patrick Barr Denis Carey Christian Rodska Basil Henson Madeleine Newbury Geraldine Newman Llewellyn Rees |
Yes (16mm print) | |
27 November 1968 | On the Eve of Publication | David Mercer | Graeme McDonald | Alan Bridges | Leo McKern Thorley Walters Michele Dotrice Kay Dotrice |
Repeated also 6 December 1980 on BBC2, on 30 June 1988, and on 19&20-10-2002 on BBC4. | Yes (35mm tr) |
8 January 1969 | The Fabulous Frump | James Gibbins | Irene Shubik | Peter Hammond | Sheila Steafel Peter Butterworth Donald Churchill Patsy Rowlands Richard Stilgoe |
missing | |
15 January 1969 | Smoke Screen | Fay Weldon | Graeme McDonald | Donald McWhinnie | Lally Bowers Stephanie Bidmead Gemma Jones Edwin Richfield Jonathan Newth Ian Lavender Geoffrey Cheshire |
missing | |
22 January 1969 | Dr. Aitkinson's Daughter | Hugo Charteris | Graeme McDonald | Gilchrist Calder | Raymond Huntley Peter Barkworth Fanny Rowe Jennifer Hilary Sylvia Coleridge David Langton Helen Lindsay Neil Wilson Reginald Barratt |
missing | |
29 January 1969 | The Apprentices | Peter Terson | Graeme McDonald | James Ferman | James Gibson Barrie Rutter Allan Swift Paula Wilcox Russell Dixon Gareth Thomas Loftus Burton Peter Turner |
The National Youth Theatre production of The Apprentices | missing |
12 February 1969 | Birthday | Michael Frayn | Graeme McDonald | Claude Whatham | Rosemary Leach Angela Pleasence Clive Swift Georgina Ward Roshan Seth Tariq Yunus |
missing | |
19 February 1969 | The Big Flame | Jim Allen | Tony Garnett | Kenneth Loach | Norman Rossington Godfrey Quigley Ken Jones Griffith Davies Neville Smith Michael Lynch Paddy Joyce |
Yes (35mm tr?) | |
26 February 1969 | A Serpent in Putney | Fred Watson | Graeme McDonald | Geoffrey Nethercott | Tony Britton Angela Browne Frances White John Alderton Barry Stanton |
missing | |
5 March 1969 | Bam! Pow! Zapp! | Nigel Kneale | Graeme McDonald | William Slater | Clive Revill Pauline Delany Robert Powell Jeremy Ranchev Robert James |
missing | |
2 April 1969 | Sling Your Hook | Roy Minton | Irene Shubik | Michael Tuchner | Michael Bates Joe Gladwin Kenneth Cranham Barry Jackson Warren Clarke Patrick O'Connell Jo Rowbottom George Layton Johnnie Wade Norman Jones Neville Smith Colin Spaull Andrew McCulloch Derek Keller |
Yes (35mm tr) | |
9 April 1969 | A Child and A Half | Owen Holder | Graeme McDonald | Alan Bridges | Geoffrey Bayldon Caroline Mortimer Dinsdale Landen Rhoda Lewis |
missing | |
16 April 1969 | Son of Man | Dennis Potter | Graeme McDonald | Gareth Davies | Colin Blakely Robert Hardy Bernard Hepton Brian Blessed Edward Hardwicke Godfrey Quigley Gawn Grainger Godfrey James Eric Mason Hugh Futcher Edmund Bailey David Cannon Roy Stewart |
Repeated also 28 July 1987, and 23 January 2005 on BBC4. | Yes |
23 April 1969 | The Exiles | Errol John | Irene Shubik | Herbert Wise | Errol John Esther Anderson Michael Griffiths Lelia Goldoni Donald Douglas Ann Tirard Hugh Morton Robin Scott |
missing | |
30 April 1969 | Blodwen, Home from Rachel's Marriage | David Rudkin | Irene Shubik | Alan Cooke | Ann Beach Gilbert Wynne Megs Jenkins William Squire Declan Mulholland Eamonn Boyce Clive Merrison Clare Jenkins Heather Emmanuel |
missing | |
6 August 1969 | The Parachute | David Mercer | Tony Garnett | Anthony Page | Alan Badel Jill Bennett John Osborne Isabel Dean Esmond Knight Drewe Henley Barry Jackson John J. Carney Norman Jones Royston Farrell Stephen Whittaker |
Repeat of Play of the Month 21 January 1968. Repeated also 1 September 1976 on BBC2 and 29 November 1980 on BBC2, on 23 June 1988. | Yes (35mm tr) |
24 September 1969 | Pitchi Poi | François Billetdoux
English version by Peter Meyer |
Michael Bakewell | Roderick Graham | Georges Rouquier David Spenser Simon Lack Hana Maria Pravda |
Repeat; originally shown as part of The Largest Theatre in the World project of the EBU, 1 November 1967. | Yes |
1 October 1969 | The Last Train through the Harecastle Tunnel | Peter Terson | Irene Shubik | Alan Clarke | Richard O'Callaghan John Le Mesurier Paul Brooke Robert Hartley Angela Pleasence John Owens Jonathan Burn Bill Lyons Griffith Davies John Scott Martin Eileen Way Claire Davenport Shelagh Fraser |
Yes (35mm tr) | |
8 October 1969 | Patterson O.K. | Ray Jenkins | Pharic MacLaren | Andrew Robertson Roddy McMillan Callum Mill Virginia Stark |
from BBC Scotland | missing | |
15 October 1969 | The Mark-Two Wife | William Trevor | Irene Shubik | Philip Saville | Faith Brook Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies Joanna Lumley Henry Gilbert Roger Hammond Alethea Charlton Philip Madoc Lillias Walker |
Yes | |
22 October 1969 | Close the Coalhouse Door | Alan Plater
from a story by Sid Chaplin |
Graeme McDonald | Bill Hays | Dudley Foster Alan Browning Colin Baker Bryan Pringle John Woodvine Ralph Watson Kevin Stoney James Garbutt |
missing | |
29 October 1969 | The Sad Decline of Arthur Maybury | John Gorrie | Irene Shubik | John Gorrie | Roland Culver Lally Bowers Valerie White John Ringham John Savident Sheila Grant Harry Littlewood Sylvia Coleridge Paul Greenhalgh Peter Stenson |
missing | |
5 November 1969 | All Out for Kangaroo Valley | Noel Robinson | Irene Shubik | Bill Bain | Sandra Gleeson Mark Edwards Jennifer Young Kerry Francis Peter Arne Peter Collier Donald Pickering Eileen Way |
missing | |
12 November 1969 | Happy | Alan Gosling | Irene Shubik | Marc Miller | Malcolm McDowell Richard Vernon Brenda Bruce Leslie Sands Pauline Collins Frank Mills David Ashford |
missing | |
19 November 1969 | There Is Also Tomorrow | Hugo Charteris | Graeme McDonald | John MacKenzie | Glyn Houston Jean Harvey Ann Penfold David Burke Neville Smith John Nettleton Kenneth Farrington Alec Ross |
Colour. Repeated as a Play for Today 24 June 1971. | missing |
26 November 1969 | Double Bill | Johnny Speight | Graeme McDonald | David Myerscough-Jones | Marty Feldman Eileen Atkins Joby Blanshard Diane Aubrey Donald Gee |
Colour. Comprises The Compartment and Playmates. Playmates was repeated as a Play for Today 8 April 1971. | Yes (16mm b&w print) |
3 December 1969 | Blood of the Lamb | Leon Whiteson | Graeme McDonald | Alan Bridges | Frank Finlay Nicola Pagett T.P. McKenna Anthony Corlan Donald Morley Trevor Martin |
Colour | missing |
10 December 1969 | The Vortex | Noël Coward | Graeme McDonald | Philip Dudley | Margaret Leighton Alan Melville Patrick Barr Jennifer Daniel Barry Justice Richard Warwick Felicity Gibson Nancie Jackson David McKail |
Colour. Adapted from the play. | Yes |
17 December 1969 | It Wasn't Me | James Hanley | Irene Shubik | James Ferman | Frances Cuka Ronald Lacey Derek Francis Milton Johns |
Colour | missing |
7 January 1970 | The Season of the Witch | Desmond McCarthy and Johnny Byrne | Anne Head | Desmond McCarthy | Julie Driscoll Paul Nicholas Robert Powell Maurice Quick Fanny Carby Glynn Edwards Tony Caunter |
Colour. Repeated as a Play for Today 22 April 1971. | Yes |
14 January 1970 | Mille Miglia | Athol Fugard | Ronald Travers | Robin Midgley | Michael Bryant Ronald Lacey Guy Deghy George Roubicek Douglas Ditta |
Colour. Repeat of 5 August 1968 Theatre 625 on BBC2. | Yes |
21 January 1970 | The Hunting of Lionel Crane | Roy Minton | Irene Shubik | Michael Tuchner | Robert Powell Michael Robbins Geoffrey Hughes Walter Sparrow John Rees Reg Lye |
Colour | Yes |
28 January 1970 | Rest in Peace Uncle Fred | Alan Plater | Graeme McDonald | Michael Hayes | Susan Jameson Corin Redgrave Jack Watson Jo Rowbottom |
Colour | missing |
4 February 1970 | Mad Jack | Tom Clarke | Graeme McDonald | Jack Gold | Michael Jayston Michael Pennington Clive Swift David Wood Donald Sumpter Ann Beach |
Colour. Winner of the first prize and the silver Dore Catholic Prize at the 1971 Monte Carlo International Television Festival. Repeated as a Play for Today 18 March 1971. | Yes |
11 February 1970 | Nathan and Tabileth | Barry Bermange | Gerald Savory, David Koning | Barry Bermange | Albert van Dalsum Nell Knoop |
Colour (almost entirely in brown and white, with one colour scene). A BBC/NCRV co-production, shot as a silent film then re-dubbed into both English and Dutch. | Yes |
18 February 1970 | The Italian Table | William Trevor | Irene Shubik | Herbert Wise | Leonard Rossiter Isabel Dean Moira Redmond Ronald Hines |
Repeated as a Play for Today 17 June 1971. | missing |
25 February 1970 | The Boy Who Wanted Peace | George Friel | Pharic MacLaren | Laurance Ruddick Roddy McMillan Joseph Brady Irene Sunters |
From BBC Scotland | Yes | |
4 March 1970 | The Cellar and the Almond Tree | David Mercer | Graeme McDonald | Alan Bridges | Celia Johnson Peter Vaughan Sydney Tafler Patsy Byrne Bernard Kay Jon Rollason Godfrey James Valentino Musetti |
Colour. Repeated as a Play for Today 10 June 1971, on BBC2 13 December 1980 and on BBC1 14 July 1988. | Yes |
11 March 1970 | The Year of the Sex Olympics | Nigel Kneale | Ronald Travers | Michael Elliott | Leonard Rossiter Suzanne Neve Tony Vogel Vickery Turner Brian Cox George Murcell Martin Potter Patricia Maynard Derek Fowlds Wolfe Morris |
Colour. Repeat of 29 July 1968 Theatre 625 on BBC2. Repeated again 22 May 2003. | Yes (16mm b&w print) |
18 March 1970 | No Trams to Lime Street | Alun Owen | Harry Moore | Piers Haggard | Rosemary Nicols Glyn Owen Anthony May Paul Greenwood Elian Wyn Artro Morris Julia Hand Gerard Hely George Giles |
Colour. Repeated as a Play for Today 11 March 1971. | Yes (16mm b&w print) |
25 March 1970 | To See How Far It Is: 1: Murphy's Law | Alan Plater | Michael Bakewell | Roderick Graham | Norman Rodway Nigel Davenport Philip Bond John Bryans Donald Gee Rhoda Lewis Arthur Cox Arnold Ridley |
Colour. Repeat of 1 January 1968 Theatre 625 on BBC2. | Yes (16mm b&w print) |
1 April 1970 | To See How Far It Is: 2: The Curse of the Donkins | Gilchrist Calder | Nigel Davenport Norman Rodway Stephanie Bidmead Fiona Walker John Bryans Jill Melford Patricia Maynard Tony Blackburn Judith Chalmers Stephen Jack |
Colour. Repeat of 8 January 1968 Theatre 625 on BBC2. | Yes (16mm b&w print) | ||
8 April 1970 | To See How Far It Is: 3: To See How Far It Is | Naomi Capon | Nigel Davenport Norman Rodway Geoffrey Bayldon Peter Stephens |
Colour. Repeat of 15 January 1968 Theatre 625 on BBC2. | Yes (16mm b&w print) | ||
15 April 1970 | Wine of India | Nigel Kneale | Graeme McDonald | Gilchrist Calder | Annette Crosbie Brian Blessed John Standing Rosemary Nicols Catherine Lacey Ian Ogilvy Reg Whitehead |
Colour | missing |
22 April 1970 | Sovereign's Company | Don Shaw | Irene Shubik | Alan Clarke | Roland Culver Gareth Forwood James Cosmo David Rowlands Raymond Adamson Norman Mitchell Moray Watson John Nettleton |
Colour. Repeated as a Play for Today 15 April 1971. | Yes |
29 April 1970 | Party Games | Hugh Whitemore | Michael Bakewell | Roderick Graham | Frederick Jaeger Eileen Atkins Derek Smith John Nettleton Nancie Jackson Roger Mutton Paul Angelis Ray Armstrong Roy Pearce Joby Blanshard |
Colour. Repeat of 11 March 1968 Theatre 625 on BBC2. | missing |
13 May 1970 | Emma's Time | David Mercer | Graeme McDonald | Alan Bridges | Michele Dotrice Andrew Keir Robert Kelvin Peter Vaughan Ian Holm John Sharp Kay Dotrice |
Colour | Yes |
20 May 1970 | Chariot of Fire | Tony Parker | Irene Shubik | James Ferman | Rosemary Leach Jimmy Gardner Charles Tingwell Stephen Yardley George Selway Frank Mills Michael Turner |
Colour. Repeated as a Play for Today 1 July 1971. | Yes |
27 May 1970 | Wind versus Polygamy | Obi Egbuna | Michael Bakewell | Naomi Capon | Earl Cameron Gordon Jackson Charles Hyatt Clifton Jones Rudolph Walker Elroy Josephs |
Colour. Repeat of 15 July 1968 Theatre 625 on BBC2. Repeated also 1 April 1971 as a Play for Today. | missing |
The Wednesday Play on DVD
[edit]- Alice (written by Dennis Potter; directed by Gareth Davies), as an extra on the DVD of Jonathan Miller's 1966 Alice in Wonderland
- Cathy Come Home (written by Jeremy Sandford; directed by Kenneth Loach)
- The End of Arthur's Marriage (written by Christopher Logue; directed by Kenneth Loach)
- In Two Minds (written by David Mercer; directed by Kenneth Loach)
- The Nigel Barton Plays: Stand Up, Nigel Barton and Vote, Vote, Vote for Nigel Barton (written by Dennis Potter; directed by Gareth Davies)
- The Big Flame (written by Jim Allen; directed by Kenneth Loach)
- The War Game (written and directed by Peter Watkins)
- 3 Clear Sundays (written by James O'Connor; directed by Kenneth Loach)
- Up the Junction (written by Nell Dunn; directed by Kenneth Loach)
- The Golden Vision (written by Neville Smith and Gordon Honeycombe; directed by Kenneth Loach)
- The Vortex (written by Noël Coward; directed by Philip Dudley), in the Noël Coward Collection, BBCDVD2566
- The Year of the Sex Olympics (written by Nigel Kneale, directed by Michael Elliott), DVD released by the BFI
- The Last Train through the Harecastle Tunnel (written by Peter Terson, directed by Alan Clarke), in the 'Alan Clarke at the BBC' box set from the BFI.
- Sovereign's Company (written by Don Shaw, directed by Alan Clarke), in the 'Alan Clarke at the BBC' box set from the BFI.
See also
[edit]- Armchair Theatre
- ITV Playhouse
- Play for Today
- Play for Tomorrow
- Screen One
- Screen Two
- Theatre 625
- Thirty-Minute Theatre
- Thursday Theatre
References
[edit]- ^ a b Oliver Wake, "Wednesday Play, The (1964–70)", BFI Screenonline.
- ^ Madeleine Macmurraugh-Kavanagh, "The BBC and the Birth of the Wednesday Play 1962-66" in Janet Thumim Small Screens, Big Ideas: Television in the 1950s, London: I.B. Tauris, 2000, pp. 149–64, 159.
- ^ a b Mark Duguid "Fable (1965)", BFI Screenonline.
- ^ Sergio Angelini, "Stand Up, Nigel Barton (1965)", BFI screenonline
- ^ Sergio Angelini, "Vote, Vote, Vote, for Nigel Barton (1965)", BFI screenonline
- ^ John R. Cook, Dennis Potter: a life on screen, Manchester: Manchester University Press, p. 333, n.3:5.
- ^ a b c d Irene Shubik, Play for Today: the evolution of television drama, Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2000 [1975], p. 46
- ^ a b Madeleine MacMurragh-Kavanagh and Stephen Lacey "Who Framed Theatre?: The 'Moment of Change' in British TV Drama" in New Theatre Quarterly, No.57, February 1999, p. 69.
- ^ Adam Benedick and Sydney Newman, Obituary: Peter Luke, The Independent, 26 January 1995.
- ^ "Winners 1949-2010" Archived 22 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Prix Italia official website.
- ^ a b Stephen Lacey, Tony Garnett, Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2002, p. 56.
- ^ Jacob Leigh, The Cinema of Ken Loach: Art in the Service of the People, London: Wallflower Press, 2002, p. 195.
- ^ Ros Cranston, "Up the Junction (1965)", BFI Screenonline.
- ^ Mark Duguid, "Cathy Come Home (1966)", BFI screenonline
- ^ Jason Deans and Maggie Brown, "Up the Junction's Tony Garnett reveals mother's backstreet abortion death", The Guardian, 28 April 2013.
- ^ a b Anthony Hayward "Cathy come home", The Independent, 3 November 2006.
- ^ Asa Briggs, The History of Broadcasting in the United Kingdom, Volume 5, Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 519.
- ^ Quoted by Stephen Lacey, Tony Garnett, Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2002, p. 57.
- ^ Graham Fuller, Loach on Loach, London: Faber, 1998, p. 15, cited in Samantha Lay, British Social Realism: From Documentary to Brit-Grit, London: Wallflower Press, 2002, p. 21.
- ^ Janet Moat, "In Two Minds (1967)", BFI Screenonline
- ^ Janet Moat, "Let's Murder Vivaldi (1968)", BFI Screenonline.
- ^ Sergio Angelini, "Son of Man (1969)", BFI Screenonline.
- ^ Roger Graef, "Out of the box", The Guardian, 15 February 2006.
- ^ "BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ "Collections Search | BFI | British Film Institute". collections-search.bfi.org.uk.
- ^ "TVBrain | Kaleidoscope | Lost shows | TV Archive | TV History". www.tvbrain.info.
- ^ The Programmes as Broadcast record held by the BBC Written Archives Centre reports "21:33 The Wednesday Play – Women in Crisis: With Love and Tears (repeat of telerecording 35/6T/23437 first transmitted in BBC2 at 20.05.10 on 27.09.1964). Produced by Cedric Messina."
Further reading
[edit]- Evans, Jeff. The Penguin TV Companion (1st edn). London: Penguin Books. 2001. ISBN 0-14-051467-8.
- Vahimagi, Tise. British Television: An Illustrated Guide. Oxford: Oxford University Press / British Film Institute. 1994. ISBN 0-19-818336-4.
External links
[edit]- The Wednesday Play site with history and individual episodes listed
- Encyclopedia of Television
- TV Cream website
- The Wednesday Play at BBC Online
- The Wednesday Play at IMDb
- 1964 British television series debuts
- 1970 British television series endings
- 1960s British drama television series
- 1970s British drama television series
- 1960s British anthology television series
- 1970s British anthology television series
- BBC television dramas
- Black-and-white British television shows
- British English-language television shows
- Lost BBC episodes
- BBC anthology television shows
- Social realism
- Wednesday
- Television series created by Sydney Newman
- The Wednesday Play