Jump to content

Play of the Week (TV series)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Play of the Week
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
Original release
NetworkITV
Release1955 (1955) –
1967 (1967)

Play of the Week is a 90-minute British television anthology series produced for the ITV network by a variety of companies including Granada Television, Associated-Rediffusion, ATV and Anglia Television.

Synopsis

[edit]

Approximately 500 episodes aired on ITV from 1955 to 1967. The first production was Ten Minute Alibi, produced by Associated-Rediffusion on 14 May 1956[1] while the earliest to survive is There Was a Young Lady, broadcast live on 23 July 1956 and simultaneously telerecorded on film.[2]

The first production not to be transmitted live was Henrik Ibsen's The Wild Duck[3] which was also film recorded. The first to be pre-recorded on videotape was Mary Broome, a Granada production broadcast on 3 September 1958.[4] Subsequently, only one play was transmitted live, Associated-Rediffusion's Search Party on 26 July 1960.[5] The recording of The Liberty Man, a Granada production broadcast on 1 October 1958, contains the original advertisements during the first commercial break.[6] The Violent Years was networked from Anglia on its opening night, 27 October 1959, and exists at the University of East Anglia.[7]

The series included You in Your Small Corner by Barry Reckord, first broadcast in June 1962, which was an early taboo breaking drama depicting lovers from white and black backgrounds kissing.[8] This also survives.[9]

Other productions included:

Directors

[edit]

Among its directors were Tony Richardson, Peter Wood, Peter Brook, Vivian Matalon, and Desmond Davis.

Stars

[edit]

Notable guest stars included Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Peter O'Toole, Laurence Olivier, Vivien Leigh, Peggy Ashcroft, Maggie Smith, Julie Christie, Alan Bates, Judi Dench, Deborah Kerr, Paul Scofield, Laurence Harvey, Glenda Jackson, Susannah York, Leslie Caron, Richard Harris, Edith Evans, James Mason, Claire Bloom, David McCallum, Donald Sutherland, John Gielgud, Oliver Reed, Mel Ferrer, Diana Rigg, Marius Goring, Felicia Montealegre Bernstein, Margaret Whiting and Peter Sallis[24]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2652
  2. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2652
  3. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2654
  4. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2660
  5. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2670
  6. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2661
  7. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2666
  8. ^ Liarou, Eleni (2003–2014). "You in Your Small Corner (1962)". BFI Screenonline. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
  9. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2677
  10. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2653
  11. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2656
  12. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2657
  13. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2658
  14. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2661
  15. ^ "vivandlarry.com/cinema-archive/tv-appearances/the-skin-of-our-teeth-starring-vivien-leigh" vivandlarry.com. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  16. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2663
  17. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2667
  18. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2668
  19. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2668
  20. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2674
  21. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2678
  22. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2684
  23. ^ Kaleidoscope, p. 2689
  24. ^ "ITV Play of the Week (1955-1974)".
  • Kaleidoscope, The Kaleidoscope British Independent Television Drama Research Guide, 1955-2010
[edit]