Our Day Out
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| Our Day Out | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Pedr James |
| Produced by | Pedr James |
| Written by | Willy Russell or Willie Russell |
| Starring | Jean Heywood Alun Armstrong Elizabeth Estensen Lennox Greaves Robert Gillespie George Malpas Jill Richards Iona Banks Peter Tilbury |
| Release date(s) | 1977[1] |
| Running time | 70 minutes |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Our Day Out is a made-for-TV film about deprived children from Liverpool, United Kingdom. It was written by Willy Russell and first aired in December 1977[1].
The play centers around a school trip to Conwy Castle in Wales. Mrs. Kay teaches a remedial class for illiterate children, called "Progress Class." The whole class, along with Digga and Reilly (they are the class bullies and are slightly older and used to be in the progress class) are taken on a coach trip. Although planned originally as a trip to the castle, they also end up going to the zoo, beach and fairgrounds. Mrs. Kay and her helpers, Susan and Colin, are all very kindly, but have little hope for the children. Mr. Briggs (apparently the Deputy Headteacher) is a stark contrast to Mrs. Kay, thinking that the children are spoilt and that they don't work hard enough.
The story is partly a celebration of the highs and lows of growing up, being teenagers and free from school. But by the end it becomes darker and unexpected. These no-hopers from the Liverpool backstreets are reminded of their depressing current situation and even bleaker future leading to the stark realiziation that a day out is about as much as they can expect.
[edit] Origins and Development
The play "Our Day Out" was commissioned by the BBC and first broadcast in December 1977[1] as part of the BBC's Play of the Week series. Due to popular demand, it was shown again in February 1978 as part of the BBC's Play For Today series, and was also re-broadcast in 1979.
Willy Russell had taught at Dingle Vale School, one of the locations used in the film, and called on his experiences of school trips - as a teacher and as a child - when writing the screenplay, which he finished in five days. The film was shot on 16mm film by a first-time director in three weeks, and features a largely untrained cast.
The original television version was developed into a musical for the stage with songs by Willy Russell, Chris Mellor, and Bob Eaton. This production — directed by Bob Eaton — was first performed at the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool in 1983.
In 1996, Willy Russell working with Bob Eaton and director Glen Walford revised the stage musical, writing new songs, adding new elements to the text, and overhauling the entire show. This version was performed at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry, and was the next step in the process of making "Our Day Out" into the full-blown musical that Willy Russell hopes it will eventually become.
[edit] External links
- Our Day Out at the Internet Movie Database
- Willy Russell's Our Day Out website
- The Mausoleum Club Play For Today information
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c Date Confusion: The Willy Russell website gives the date of the original film as 1976, stating that it was repeated six weeks later as part of the Play For Today series. However, the repeat date is documented as 7th February 1978, and the Play of the Week series in which the film was originally shown did not begin until September 1977, so a first broadcast in December 1977 seems more likely.
