Series synopsis
The Wednesday Play is a British drama television series that premiered on BBC One on September 30, 1964. It ended on May 27, 1970. It was created by Sydney Newman. It stars Guy Middleton, Joseph Fürst, Philip Latham and John Lee.
An anthology series of television plays which aired on BBC1 from October 1964 to May 1970. The plays were usually written for television, although adaptations from other sources also featured.
Premise
An anthology series of television plays which aired on BBC1 from October 1964 to May 1970. The plays were usually written for television, although adaptations from other sources also featured.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Guy Middleton
- Joseph Fürst as Gen. Fritz Fromm
- Philip Latham
- John Lee as First Lt. Werner von Haeften
- Richard Caldicot
- John Abineri as Colonel
- John Brandon as Sergeant Musso
- Barry Humphries
Supporting cast
- John Carson as Col. Claus Schenk Count von Stauffenberg
- Charles Lloyd Pack as Gen. Erich Hoepner
- Lionel Stander as General Burroughs
- Trisha Noble as Francoise Clouet
- Hal Galili as Private First Class O'Brien
- Joss Ackland as Cornelius
- Judy Parfitt as Dorothy Gorbet
- Sheila Burrell as Liz
- Diane Keen as Judy
- David Ellison as Photographer
- Ann Morrish as Mary
- Barrie Ingham as Colin
Guest cast
- Guy Middleton
- Joseph Fürst as Gen. Fritz Fromm
- Philip Latham
- John Lee as First Lt. Werner von Haeften
- Richard Caldicot
- John Abineri as Colonel
- John Brandon as Sergeant Musso
- Barry Humphries
- John Carson as Col. Claus Schenk Count von Stauffenberg
- Charles Lloyd Pack as Gen. Erich Hoepner
- Lionel Stander as General Burroughs
- Trisha Noble as Francoise Clouet
Episodes
This series spans 9 seasons with 207 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 34 | September 30, 1964 | May 20, 1971 |
| Season 2 | 37 | October 6, 1965 | June 22, 1966 |
| Season 3 | 31 | September 21, 1966 | May 10, 1967 |
| Season 4 | 25 | October 11, 1967 | May 8, 1968 |
| Season 5 | 27 | August 21, 1968 | April 30, 1969 |
| Season 6 | 34 | August 6, 1969 | May 27, 1970 |
| Season 7 | 1 | ||
| Season 8 | 16 | ||
| Season 9 | 2 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Catch As Catch Can Based on the play "La foire d'empoigne" by Jean Anouilh. |
September 30, 1964 |
| 2 |
A Crack in the Ice A soldier named Postnikov rescues a drowning man. |
October 28, 1964 |
| 3 |
In Camera Three people find themselves sharing a room with no way out. As they talk, the nature of the room and how they came to be there is gradually revealed. |
November 4, 1964 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The War Game | October 6, 1965 |
| 2 |
Alice In this look at Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-1898), aka Lewis Carroll, Potter mixed biographical drama with a psychological profile to explore the roots of Dodgson's creativity. Dodgson tells stories to ten-year-old Alice Liddell, leading to recreations of scenes adapted from ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND (1865), designed to resemble the original Sir John Tenniel illustrations. |
October 13, 1965 |
| 3 |
The Girl Who Loved Robots Night club girl Victory Ducann is found murdered, the main suspect is an astronaut, but police are prevented from approaching him as he is due to fly off to the Moon. |
October 20, 1965 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Photo Finish Eighty years old, Sam, a famous writer, looks back on his life and tempestuous marriage, and meets himself at the ages of sixty, forty and twenty. |
September 21, 1966 |
| 2 |
A Hero of our Time A young Russian embarks on an affair as a relief from boredom but so brings about his doom. |
September 28, 1966 |
| 3 | The Frighteners | October 12, 1966 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Sleeping Dog A black barman upsets a colonial Governor who has just retired and returned to England. He locks the barman in the cellar and treats him like an animal. |
October 11, 1967 |
| 2 |
Wanted: Single Gentleman The world of two simple-minded men living with a woman is disrupted by a new lodger. |
October 18, 1967 |
| 3 |
A Black Candle for Mrs. Gogarty Mrs. Gogarty agrees to pay off a stranger's debt to a loan-shark, on condition that he marry her. |
October 25, 1967 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Mrs Lawrence Will Look After It When an elderly woman is hospitalised, the truth behind her illegal adoption of 14 children is revealed. |
August 21, 1968 |
| 2 |
Spoiled A schoolmaster invites a nineteen-year-old student to stay with him and his wife to cram for imminent exams. |
August 28, 1968 |
| 3 |
The Gorge A teenage boy reluctantly accompanies his ghastly family on a coarse bank-holiday day out to local beauty spot and tourist trap, the Cheddar Gorge. |
September 4, 1968 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Parachute | August 6, 1969 |
| 2 | Pitchi Poi | September 24, 1969 |
| 3 |
The Last Train through Harecastle Tunnel A shy clerk suffers from his colleagues petty office politics and contemptuous treatment of him, but this weekend, as a deeply involved train spotter, the closing of an old tunnel is his big adventure. On the way up, he encounters a well off couple with a daughter that hates them, and an Army Sergeant whose men hate him. The hotel he stays at is run by a fellow railway enthusiast, with a gay son that hates him, and he meets a famous signal designer with a daughter that hates him. |
October 1, 1969 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 99 | To Be Deleted |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | To Be Deleted | |
| 2 | To Be Deleted | |
| 3 | To Be Deleted |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | To Be Deleted | |
| 20 |
To Be Deleted To Be Deleted |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | BBC One |
|---|---|
| First aired | September 30, 1964 |
| Last aired | May 27, 1970 |
| Runtime | 75 minutes |
| Status | ended |