Tom Brown's Schooldays (TV serial)
| Tom Brown's Schooldays | |
|---|---|
| Written by |
Thomas Hughes (novel) Anthony Stevens (writer) |
| Directed by | Gareth Davies |
| Starring |
Anthony Murphy Iain Cuthbertson Simon Fisher Turner Richard Morant |
| Country of origin | UK |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of episodes | 5 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | John McRae |
| Running time | 225 min |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC1 |
| Original release | 14 November 1971 (UK) |
Tom Brown's Schooldays is a 1971 television serial adaptation of the Thomas Hughes novel Tom Brown's Schooldays.
It was originally screened on the BBC1 Sunday afternoon slot, which often showed serialisations of classics aimed at a family audience. It made some free adaptations to Hughes's novel, creating the role of Flashman's father, and writing new sub-plots about Flashman and Arnold. [1] It also included some scenes of bullying and corporal punishment which may have been strong stuff for family viewing. "Clean-up TV" campaigner Mary Whitehouse claimed that the programme broke the BBC's guidelines on the depiction of sadistic violence.[2]
The series was later shown on Masterpiece Theatre in the USA. Both the programme and Anthony Murphy's lead performance won Emmy Awards.
Cast
- Anthony Murphy as Tom Brown
- Iain Cuthbertson as Dr. Thomas Arnold
- Louise Jameson as Mary Arnold
- Simon Fisher Turner as Harry "Scud" East
- Richard Morant as Flashman
- Gerald Flood as Sir Richard Flashman
- Richard Gibson as Sunning
- Christopher Guard as Darcy
- Daniel Hill as Harry
- John Hug as Druce
- Robin Langford as Martin
- John Paul as Mr. Brown
References
- ↑ See Katheryn Hugehes's article on Hughes' novel in The Guardian http://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/sep/20/booksforchildrenandteenagers.
- ↑ Charles Gillies "Mrs Whitehouse, Casanova, and Tom Brown's Schooldays", Glasgow Herald, 8 December 1971, p.8