The Browning Version

Summary

1949 BBC live studio production of Terence Rattigan’s drama The Browning Version, ‘Performed by the Phoenix Theatre Company’ (Radio Times, 27 May 1949).

Theatre play

The Browning Version by Terence Rattigan (1911-1977) [more information]

Play synopsis

The play is about the last few days in the career of Andrew Crocker-Harris, an ageing classics teacher at a British public school. The man’s academic life is fading away following illness and he feels that he has become obsolete.

Production history

First performed on 8 September 1948 at the Phoenix Theatre, London, in a joint performance with Rattigan’s Harlequinade. Wikipedia tells us that: ‘It was subsequently made into two film versions, and at least four made-for-television versions. The original 1951 film version, starring Michael Redgrave as Crocker-Harris, won two awards at the Cannes Film Festival, one for Rattigan’s screenplay, the other for Redgrave’s performance. It was remade in 1994, starring Albert Finney, Michael Gambon, Greta Scacchi, Matthew Modine, Julian Sands and young Ben Silverstone. A British television version was made in 1955, starring Peter Cushing as Crocker-Harris. John Frankenheimer directed John Gielgud in a 1959 television version for CBS. In 1960, Maurice Evans repeated his Broadway role for CBC television under the sponsorship of Ford of Canada in their Startime series. Another made-for-TV version in 1985 starred Ian Holm as the main character for the BBC’ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Browning_Version_%28play%29).

Date of transmission

Monday 30 May 1949

Time

9.15-10.15pm

Channel

BBC Television

Production company

BBC

Theatre company

Phoenix Theatre, London

Credits

Presented for Television by

Campbell Logan

Playwright

Terence Rattigan (1911-1977)

Cast

Henryetta Edwards	Mrs Gilbert
Mary Ellis	Millie Crocker-Harris
Barry Jones	Andrew Crocker-Harris
Patrick Jordan	Peter Gilbert
Owen Reynolds	Dr Frobisher
Hector Ross	Frank Hunter
Peter Scott	John Taplow

Additional details

Origination

Live from studio

Vision original

Monochrome

Extant status

No archival copy is known to exist.

Play tags

ageing; schools, as theme or setting

Print sources

Title

Radio Times, 27 May 1949 (Magazine)

Linking notes

listing, p. 30; article by Lionel Hale, ‘Can Television Add Anything?', p. 29