The Classic TV Archive - UK taped/live Drama Anthology series

 

N.E.T. PLAYHOUSE
 

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N.E.T. Playhouse

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Anthology Drama

Various Plays enacted in these specials presentations.

 

BBC series

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###### N.E.T. Playhouse ######

###### Season 1 1966-67 ######

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N.E.T. Playhouse: UNMAN, WITTERING AND ZIGO
18Sep1966
Directed by Donald McWhinnie
Written by Cedric Messina
cast:
Peter Blythe ........ John Ebony
John Sharpe ......... Cary Farthingale
Tamara Hinchco ...... Nadia
Peter Howell ........ Headmaster
Noel Davis .......... Winstanley
Norman Wynne ........ Inspector
Synopsis:
John Ebony, an idealistic young teacher, finds that his pupils have

made up their rules. They have also threatened him with the same punishment

meted out to his predecessor - death. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: VICTORIA REGINA: AUTUMN

04Nov1966 US airdate

1964 UK airdate

Directed by Stuart Latham
Adapted by Peter Wildeblood
Play by Laurence Housman
Cast:
Patricia Routledge .. Queen Victoria
Joachim Hansen ...... Prince Albert
Max Adrian .......... Benjamin Disraeli
Geoffrey Dunn ....... Archbishop of Canterbury
Nicholas Courtney ... Tudor
Marianne Deeming .... Duchess of Kent
Cyril Luckham ....... Lord Melbourne
Miles Malleson ...... Conyngham

Synopsis:

Third of four parts, Prime Minister Disraeli clashes with the Queen.

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: NAKED ISLAND (90min)
25Nov1966 (rerun 25Jun70)
Cast:
John Breslin ........ Oscar
Alan White .......... Mum
Lewis Fiander ....... Ken
Ray Barrett ......... Jacko
Barry Lowe .......... Robbie
Burt Kwouk .......... Yamomoto
James Bolam ......... Magpie
Synopsis:
This prisoner-of-war drama is set in the closing days of World War II.
In Japanese-held Singapore, five Australian POWs listen to radio reports

of the Allies' advance toward the island. As the days pass and a Japanese

surrender appears imminent, the POWs situation becomes unbearable: they're caught

between rumors of mass execution and the dangers of attempting an escape. [RF]
*Note: Produced by the BBC for NET Playhouse this highly acclaimed

 drama was rerun June 25, 1970 and was based on the novel by Russell Braddon,

 who himself was a POW in a Singapore prison.

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: MISALLIANCE
02May1967
Based on George Bernard Shaw's play
Cast:
Richard Dysart ...... Tarleton
Guy Spaull .......... Lord Summerhays
Jacqueline Coslow ... Hypatia Tarleton
Carol Teitel
Synopsis:
A farce about love and the misunderstandings between family members.

Visitors at the country home of a manufacturer find their lives changed

 by the sudden appearance of an outspoken Polish aviatrix.  (2hrs) [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: BATTLE OF CULLODEN
05May1967
Synopsis:
This documentary-drama re-creates the Battle of Culloden (1746)

 - the last battle fought on British soil. (75min) [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: ORPHEUS IN THE UNDERWORLD
12May1967
cast:
June Bronhill ....... Eurydice
Jor Weaving ......... Pluto
Kevin Miller ........ Orpheus
Synopsis:
Britian's Sadler's Wells Opera Company performs this adaptation of Offenbach's

Orpheus in the Underworld. Offenbach's satiric treatment of the ancient

Greek myth turns the lovers Orpheus and Eurydice into a bored couple,

glad to be rid of each other. (1hr 45min) [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: Title Unknown
19May1967
cast:
Peter Ustinov
Dudley Moore
Anthony Hopkins
Bernard Keefe
Synopsis:
Playwright-actor-director Peter Ustinov offers satiric improvisation on musical themes.

Pianist Anthony Hopkins, and British Satirists Dudley Moore and Bernard Keefe appear in

Ustinov's caricatures of typical Russian, American, German and English composers. (60mins) [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: ACQUIT OR HANG!
02Jun1967
Cast:
John Hurt ........... Heywood
Michael Beint ....... Morrison
Roy Patrick ......... Burkitt
Peter Jeffrey ....... Muspratt
Kim Peacock ......... Byrn
William Marlowe ..... Millward
Synopsis:
A British drama based on the court-martial of 10 HMS Bounty

mutineers in 1792. Accused. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: VICTORIAN SOCIETY
07Jul1967
cast:
Barrie Ingham ........ Sidney Daryl
Geoffrey Bayldon ..... Mr. Chodd
Charles Kay .......... John Chodd
Synopsis:
Comedy about a wealthy businessman who persuades a penniless

young aristocrat to introduce his son into society. [RF]

 

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####### N.E.T. Playhouse ########

####### Season 2 1967-68 ########

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N.E.T. Playhouse: THE SUCCESSOR
29Dec1967
cast:
Rupert Davies ...... Cardinal of Bologna
Cyril Luckham ...... Cardinal Dean
Alan Wheatley ...... Cardinal of Palermo
Peter Copley ....... Cardinal Ricci
Synopsis:
The successor dramatizes a papal election. This critically acclaimed play probes into the

deliberations of the College of Cardinals, exploring the problems, pressures and

personalities of the church leaders and their high office. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: YES IS FOR A VERY YOUNG MAN

30Dec1967

play by Gertrude Stein

cast:

Lisa Richards ...... Denise

Burr de Benning .... Ferdinand

Paul Benedict ...... Henri

Synopsis:

During the Nazi occupation of France, members of a rural family in Savoy are torn

between duty to France and a desire for personal revenge. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: AUTO STOP

05Jan1968 (rebroadcast 08Aug69)
Script by Alan Seymour
Directed by Brian Parker
cast:
David Hemmings ..... Henry
John Trigger ....... Aryan
Delphi Lawrence .... Federika
David Lander ....... Ernie
Gino Melvazzi ...... Pietro
Janice Dinnen ...... Moya
Katherine Schofield .. Karin
Bettine le Beau .... Maria
Catherine Griller .. Rosaleen
Synopsis 1:
This drama of a young man's summer odyssey in search of maturity and worldly

experience. Henry, a callow English youth, is rejected by Federika, the older and

 more sophisticated  woman he has fallen in love with. She says, in effect,

come back when you've grown up. Wounded but still hopeful, Henry decides to

grow up by experiencing Europe, and he embarks on a hitchhiker's journey

across the Continent in a determined quest for manhood. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
Henry's hitchhiking journey across the Continent, a trek that includes romantic interludes,

a "Dolce Vita" party in Rome and an encounter with a Neo-Nazi, all part of his growing up. [RF]
Produced by the BBC (1hr 15 min)

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: "INFANCY" AND "CHILDHOOD"
07Jan1968
cast of "Infancy":
Tony Hendra
Nic Ullet
cast of "Childhood":
Frances Sternhagen
George Rose
Julie Herrod
Synopsis:
Two critically acclaimed, one-act dramas by Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Thornton Wilder.

 Both works deal with the lack of communication between children and their parents. (60 mins) [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: NEXT TIME I'LL SING TO YOU
16Jan1968
cast:
Nigel McKeand ....... Meff
Patrick Horgan ...... Dust
Robert Casper ....... Hermit
Synopsis:
This drama about the loneliness of man focuses on an English hermit

who secluded himself for 36 years. (2hrs) [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: MID-CHANNEL
25Jan1968
cast:
Bernard Archard
Pauline Jameson
Synopsis:
English playwright Sir Arthur Wing Pinero's drama about the destruction

of a 14 year old marriage. (1hr 15mins) [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: DUBLIN 1.
02Feb1968
cast:
Donal Donnelly
Martin Dempsey
Synopsis:
James Joyce short stories from his "Dubliners" collection,

are dramatized by Ireland's Abbey Players. (1hr 15mins) [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: SUCCESSOR

09Feb1968

cast:

Alan Wheatley .......... Cardinal of Palermo

Jonathan Burns ............ Father Bianchi

Peter Copley ......... Cardinal Ricci

Synopsis:

This play focuses on the deliberations of a convention

 of Catholic cardinals as they elect a new pope. (1hr 10 mins) [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: THE 39TH WITNESS

23Feb1968

cast:

James Sweenie ...... Murderer

Alan North ......... Brent

Tom Lignon ......... Goldman

Synopsis:

On March 13, 1964 Kitty Genovese was brutally murdered on a New York City street.

Thirty-eight of her neighbors either saw the attack or heard her screams - but not

one called the police. This fictionalized account of the homicide is a comment on man's

 responsibility - or lack of it - in contemporary society. (60 min) [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: DR. KNOCK

06Dec1968

A 1923 farce by French novelist-dramatist Jules Romains.

cast:

Leonard Rossiter .... Dr. Knock

John Le Mesurier .... Dr. Parpalaid

Renee Houston ....... Mme. Remy

Graham Armitage ..... M. Bernard

Robert Gillespie .... M. Mousquet

Synopsis:

The comedy centers on the resourceful Dr. Knock, who drums up business for his newly

acquired practice by turning everyone within reach into a hypochondriac. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: THE SEEKERS - THE IDEALISTS
03Aug1969
Cast:
Michael Bryant ...... Gerard
Patrick Allen ....... Edmonde
Synopsis:
Part 2 of a dramatic trilogy on man and his beliefs. Set during the turbulent days of

the French Revolution, the play examines a young officer's moral conflict. Captain Girard

is ordered to execute 200 political prisoners. But as an idealist, how can he square

his conscience with the decisions of the Republic and his duties as a loyal soldier. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF ENCORE

17Aug1969

Cast:

Audree Horton ....... Kasane

Gilbert Eastman ....... Yoemon

Joe Velez ...... Policeman

Synopsis:

Impressive dramatizations in sign-language and mime.

1. Bernard Bragg and Lou Fant (the troup's only hearing member teach children

to recite poetry with their hands.

2. On the Harmfulness of Tobacco

Chekhov's monologue by a man (Fant) whose convictions have faded

beneath his wife's dominance.

3. The Tale of Kasane, by Tsura Namboko. The Japanese kabuki play relates the tale

of an ill-fated couple whose love is destroyed by guilt. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: THE QUEEN AND THE WELSHMAN (90 min)
1969 (rerun 22Jul71)
BBC Production
Producer Cedric Messina
Directed by Basil Coleman
Written by Rosemary Anne Sisson
cast:
Dorothy Tutin ....... Catherine de Valois
Derek Godfrey ....... Sir Owen Tudor
Nicholas Selby ...... Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester
Gordon Whiting ...... John, Duke of Bedford
Llewellyn Rees ...... Henry Beaufort
Jeremy Brett ........ Villiers
Fiona Hartford ...... Margaret
Jack Wild ........... Edmund Tudor
Robert Russell ...... Hall
Jonathan Dennis ..... Queen's servant
Robert Bruce ........ Captain of Horse
Harry Littlewood .... Gaoler
Synopsis:
A 15th century love story of Catherine de Valois, widow of Henry V. The efforts

 to preserve the royal line of succession, lead Catherine into a tragic affair with

Welshman Owen Tudor - a union rooted in secrecy and menaced by betrayal. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: A PASSAGE TO INDIA
(rerun 31Jul70)
Produced by the BBC
Adapted for TV by John Maynard
Based on the Santha Rama Rau's 1962 Broadway play
Cast:
Sybil Thorndike ..... Mrs. Moore
Zia Mohyeddin ....... Dr. Aziz (re-creating his stage role)
Cyril Cusack ........ Fielding
Virginia McKenna .... Adela
Ishaq Bux ........... Qasim Ali
Michael Bates ....... Professor Godbole
Ronald Hines ........ Ronald
Synopsis:
Set in the 1920's the drama opens in India with the arrival of Mrs. Moore,

an Englishwoman who is visiting her son Ronald and his fiancee Adela. Interested

in learning about India, the two women become friendly with a young Indian doctor

- a casual breach of racial barrier that rapidly becomes a choking knot

of bigotry and shattered friendships. [RF]
*Note: The late E.M. Forster's memorable novel "A Passage to India" is the

source for this absorbing study of social barriers. "A Passage to India" is

considered to be Forster's masterpiece and attests to his gift for

characterization and subtlety in plot, wit and irony.

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: THE MAY FLY AND THE FROG (90min)
(rerun 06Aug70)
Produced by the BBC
Written by Jack Russell
Cast:
John Gielgud ........ Quantara
Felicity Kendal ..... the Girl
David Stoll ......... Mario
Isa Miranda ......... Mme. Roo
Jeremy Rowe ......... Tepich
Synopsis:
A frog is confronted by a May fly; the result is a brief, bitter-sweet encounter.

John Gielgud plays the frog, a middle-aged millionaire whose lonely life is penetrated

by a bold but sensitive young girl - the May fly. In London, Gabriel Quantara's Rolls-Royce

knocks over the May fly's motor scooter. Determined to be paid for the damage, she

 follows Quantara to his mansion, foils the devices designed to protect his privacy

and confronts the millionaire in his bath! [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: THE DUEL
(rerun 18Aug70)
Adaptation of Chekhov's short story
Cast:
John Wood ........... Laevsky
Katharine Blake ..... Nadia
Philip Madoc ........ Von Koren
Paul Rogers ......... Samolienko
John Brown .......... Boiko
John Harvey ......... Kirilin
John Quentin ........ Deacon
Barbara Ogilivia .... Maria
Jonathan Elsom ...... Atamov
Francis Attard ...... Kostia
Linda Harvey ........ Katia
Synopsis:
The story of a decaying love affair between a Russian civil servant

and a married woman in this tale of boredom and frustration. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: TALKING TO A STRANGER (90min)
(rerun 10Sep70)
Cast:
Maurice Denham ...... Father
Michael Bryant ...... Alan
Judi Dench .......... Terry
Margery Mason ....... Mother
Frederick Pyne ...... Father as a young man
Synopsis:
The second of a quartet of dramas that was nominated for an Emmy last year.
The plays tell of a family dissoulution over one weekend as seen by each member.
This episode is from the Father's perspective. [RF]

N.E.T. Playhouse: A SCENT OF FLOWERS
(rerun 15Oct70)
Produced & Directed by Melwyn Breen
Written by James Saunders (who won an International Emmy award in 1969)
Cast:
Martha Henry ........ Zoe
Jack Creley ......... Priest / Scrivens
Paul Harding ........ David
Gerald Parkes ....... Sid
Joseph Shaw ......... Uncle Edgar
Aileen Seaton ....... Agnes
Synopsis:
The drama centers on a devout Roman Catholic girl named Zoe, who

cannot resolve the conflict stemming from her love for a married man. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: JULIUS CAESAR (2hrs)
19Jun1971
Directed by Alan Bridges
Cast:
Frank Finlay ........ Brutus
Robert Stephens ..... Marc Antony
Edward Woodward ..... Cassius
Maurice Denham ...... Caesar
Anthony Bate ........ Casca
Synopsis:
The story one of political assassination - is timeless. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: Biography: FREDERICK DELIUS (1862-1934) (90 min)
(rerun 29Jun71)
Script by Eric Fenby & Ken Russell
Directed by Ken Russell
cast:
Max Adrian .......... Delius
Christopher Gable ... Fenby
Maureen Pryor ....... Jelka
David Collings ...... Grainger
Synopsis:
For the last 10 years of his life, composer Frederick Delius was paralyzed and blind.

Yet, during this period he composed some of his major works. Delius's

suffering and genius are etched by the narration of Eric Fenby,

an organist who devoted himself to the composer. [RF]

 

N.E.T. Playhouse: REMBRANDT (90 min)
(rerun 01Jul1971)
cast:
Richard Johnson ..... Rembrandt
Jill Bennett ........ Geertje
Terri Stevens ....... Hendrickje
Wilfrid Brambell .... Beggar Saul
Cyril Shaps ......... Menasseh
Derek Aylward ....... Cocq
David Cargill ....... Ludwick
Robin Stewart ....... Titus
Synopsis:
The portrait is etched in somber tones, focusing on his personal

and artistic frustrations following the death of his wife. [RF]
*Note A remake of Carl Zuckmayer's 1936 British film about the Dutch artist.
 

 

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######## N.E.T. Playhouse ########

############ the end ############

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