Series synopsis
BBC2 Play of the Week is a British drama comedy television series that premiered on BBC Two on September 21, 1977. It ended on May 16, 1979. It was created by Sarah Pia Anderson. It stars Malcolm McDowell, Eileen Atkins, Michael Jayston and Karen Dotrice.
An anthology of plays and novels adapted into feature length TV movies, broadcast on BBC2 from September 1977 to April 1979.
Premise
An anthology of plays and novels adapted into feature length TV movies, broadcast on BBC2 from September 1977 to April 1979.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Malcolm McDowell as Chandos
- Eileen Atkins as Vanity Fair
- Michael Jayston as Mansel
- Karen Dotrice as Jenny
- Sarah Badel as Virginia
- Richard Pearson as Father Below
- Philip Locke as Acorn
- Freda Jackson as Lafone
Supporting cast
- Ralph Arliss as Bell
- Simon Cadell as Candle
- Jonathan Lynn as Gaston
- Pat Gorman as Jean
- Derek Deadman as Luis
- Antony Scott as Mark
- Mark Chapman as Frank Jones
- Bernard Hill as Carson
- Peter Barkworth as Prof. Anderson
- Stephen Rea as Pavel Hollar
- Stefan Ceba as Sacha Hollar
- Graeme Eton as Frenchman
Guest cast
- Malcolm McDowell as Chandos
- Eileen Atkins as Vanity Fair
- Michael Jayston as Mansel
- Karen Dotrice as Jenny
- Sarah Badel as Virginia
- Richard Pearson as Father Below
- Philip Locke as Acorn
- Freda Jackson as Lafone
- Ralph Arliss as Bell
- Simon Cadell as Candle
- Jonathan Lynn as Gaston
- Pat Gorman as Jean
Episodes
This series spans 2 seasons with 38 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 23 | September 21, 1977 | May 24, 1978 |
| Season 2 | 15 | September 20, 1978 | May 16, 1979 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Professional Foul Professor Anderson attends a conference in Prague, but what he really wants to do is attend a football match. Then he meets a former student unexpectedly, and must consider putting his philosophical ideas into practice. |
September 21, 1977 |
| 2 |
Exiles In the 1920s, Michael Arlen was one of the most popular and acclaimed writers in the world, but he mysteriously stopped writing altogether. His son tries to work out why. |
September 28, 1977 |
| 3 |
Abie's Will A once-celebrated writer who has written nothing since the war, lies paralysed and dying as his family gathers at the family home. |
October 5, 1977 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Langrishe Go Down In the late 1930s, three reclusive middle-aged spinster sisters live on their run down family estate in Ireland. Otto Beck, a perpetual graduate student from Bavaria with a habit of making pompous declamations, rents the back lodge to work on his esoteric thesis. Imogen Langrishe, the least repressed of the sisters, begins an affair with Otto. Imogen takes the love affair seriously, but Otto just enjoys the cheap lodging and the comfort of Imogen. |
September 20, 1978 |
| 2 |
Fairies How could photographs, taken on a simple camera by two Yorkshire village girls, have momentous implications for man's understanding of the world? |
September 27, 1978 |
| 3 |
Fearless Frank The outrageous – and not entirely reliable – memoirs of Irish writer Frank Harris, sometime cowboy in the Old West, friend to the famous in the literary world, essayist and critic, and seducer of beautiful women. |
October 4, 1978 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | BBC Two |
|---|---|
| First aired | September 21, 1977 |
| Last aired | May 16, 1979 |
| Runtime | 100 minutes |
| Status | ended |