The Midnight Sun

Summary

1961 Granada Television production for ITV of The Midnight Sun, an English translation of the play by Claude Spaak.

Theatre play

The Midnight Sun by Claude Spaak (1904-1990) [more information]

Play synopsis

'One man has to make a life-or-death decision. For five men are sentenced to death. Only one can be reprieved. The decision is which one shall live - and which four shall die’ (TV Times, 7 April 1961, p. 29). The man making the decision is Lieutenant Fulda, an officer of the German army. The men - Professor Helmaar, internationally known for his work in cancer research,and four compatriots who were helping him - were caught escaping to Sweden.

Production history

The TV Times of 7 April 1961 describes this play as ‘a stage success from Paris’ (p. 11).

Date of transmission

Tuesday 11 April 1961

Time

9.35-11.05pm

Series

Play of the Week

Channel

ITV

Production company

Granada Television (1956-)

Credits

Director

Julian Amyes

Playwright

Claude Spaak (1904-1990)

Adapted for Television by

John Glennon

Translator

Patricia Moyes

Designer

William Brodie

Cast

Brenda Dunrich	Mrs Borje
Margaretta D’Arcy	Anna Vaeroe
Violet Farebrother	Maria Holberg
Harold Goldblatt	Professor Helmaar
Norman Johns	Lieutenant Kunkel
Dudley Jones	Borje
Olga Lindo	Maria Brevik
David McCallum	Lieutenant Fulda
Frederick Peisley	Ivar Brevik
Richard Shaw	Sergeant Vogt
Edward Woodward	Colonel Batenfeld
Susannah York	Eva Sinding

Additional details

Extant status

No archival copy is known to exist.

Play tags

execution; Germany, as theme or setting; Second World War, as theme or setting; wartime, as theme or setting

Print sources

Title

TV Times, 7 April 1961 (Magazine)

Linking notes

article, p. 11; listing, p. 29