| Bouquet of Barbed Wire (1976) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Drama |
| Written by | Andrea Newman |
| Starring | Frank Finlay Susan Penhaligon |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Language(s) | English |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Rex Firkin |
| Producer(s) | Tony Wharmby |
| Production company(s) | London Weekend Television |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | ITV |
| First shown in | 1976 |
| Bouquet of Barbed Wire (2010) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Drama |
| Written by | Guy Andrews |
| Starring | Trevor Eve Hermione Norris |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Language(s) | English |
| Production company(s) | Mammoth Screen |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | ITV (ITV1/UTV) (also ITV1 HD) |
| First shown in | 2010 |
Bouquet of Barbed Wire is a British television series based on a 1969 novel by Andrea Newman. The series – whose title comes from an incident that occurred to Newman and her mother while on a walk – was made by London Weekend Television for ITV in 1976.[1] A new adaptation of the novel was made in 2010.
Contents |
The story follows the middle-class Manson family over one hot summer as it is torn apart by the manipulative daughter, Prue (Susan Penhaligon), who, having just begun at university, becomes pregnant and marries an American, Gavin Sorensen (James Aubrey). Prue's father, Peter (Frank Finlay), cannot contain his jealousy and obsessive love for his daughter. For his part, Gavin is focused on seducing Prue's mother Cassie (Sheila Allen), who obliges as a relief from Peter.
The series was considered highly risqué for the time, but was a considerable success. The critic Clive James wrote "by the end, everybody had been to bed with everybody else except the baby."[2]
A sequel, Another Bouquet, was made in 1977 and was written for television before being published as a novel. Both Bouquet of Barbed Wire and Another Bouquet are available on DVD.
| Character | Actor |
|---|---|
| Peter Manson | Frank Finlay |
| Prue Manson/Sorenson | Susan Penhaligon |
| Gavin Sorenson | James Aubrey |
| Cassie Manson | Sheila Allen |
| Sarah Francis | Deborah Grant |
The novel was adapted again in 2010 for ITV by Mammoth Screen,[3] as a three-part series broadcast by ITV on 7–20 September 2010. Adapted by Guy Andrews and directed by Ashley Pearce, it starred Trevor Eve as Peter Manson, Hermione Norris as Cassie Manson, Tom Riley as Gavin Sorenson and Imogen Poots as Prue Sorenson.
The 2010 adaptation made some changes to the story in the novel and 1976 version. Prue is now a sixth form student and Gavin is her Yorkshire-born English teacher, rather than an American PhD student. The first episode was watched by 5.98 million viewers, and received positive reviews,[4][5][6][7] It was released on DVD on 20September 2010.
| Character | Actor |
|---|---|
| Peter Manson | Trevor Eve |
| Prue Manson/Sorenson | Imogen Poots |
| Gavin Sorenson | Tom Riley |
| Cassie Manson | Hermione Norris |
| Sarah Francis | Jemima Rooper |