Spring and Port Wine [extract]

Summary

This Rediffusion presentation for ITV of a 25-minute extract from Bill Naughton’s play Spring and Port Wine was an outside broadcast from the Apollo Theatre, London. Introductory and closing material for this extract, which was presented in the series In the West End Tonight, was written by the playwright and spoken by Albert Finney.

Theatre play

Spring and Port Wine by Bill Naughton (1910-1992) [more information]

Play synopsis

About family stresses in a patriarchal northern household. Rafe Crompton rules the family with a rod of iron. Two of his children have left home to get away from him. His wife Daisy pawns his best coat to get money to give to one of the children who is leaving. When he finds out Daisy is so afraid of him that she tries to kill herself. Source: http://www.doollee.com/PlaywrightsN/naughton-bill.html#25502.

Production history

'Spring and Port Wine [...] began life under the title My Flesh, My Blood as a BBC Radio play, broadcast on 17 August 1957 in the Saturday Night Theatre strand. By April 1958 a BBC TV version had been broadcast and in October 1959 a stage adaptation was presented at the Bolton Hippodrome. Retitled Spring and Port Wine, the play was first produced in Birmingham prior to opening at London’s Mermaid Theatre in November 1965’ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spring_and_Port_Wine).

Date of transmission

Wednesday 2 February 1966

Time

9.10-9.40pm

Series

In the West End Tonight

Channel

ITV

Production company

Rediffusion (1964-68)

Credits

Television Production by

Jim Pople

Theatre Director

Allan Davis

Playwright

Bill Naughton (1910-1992)

Designer

Hutchinson Scott

Introduced by

Albert Finney

Cast

John Alderton	Harold Crompton
Jan Carey	Hilda Crompton
Ruth Dunning	Daisy Crompton
Melvyn Hayes	Wilfred Crompton
Alfred Marks	Rafe Crompton
Raymond Mort	Arthur
Jennifer Wilson	Florence Crompton

Additional details

Notes

Spring and Port Wine (1967; a revision of his earlier play My Flesh, My Blood; also published as Keep It in the Family; filmed 1970).

Extant status

No archival copy is known to exist.

Play tags

generational relations or conflict; north of England, as theme or setting

Print sources

Title

In the West End Tonight (Archive file)

Archive

BFI Reuben Library [more information]

Address

BFI Southbank, Belvedere Road
South Bank
London
SE1 8XT
UK

Email

Use the contact form at http://www.bfi.org.uk/form/contact-bfi-library

Website

http://www.bfi.org.uk/education-research/bfi-reuben-library/visiting-bfi-reuben-library

Access

The BFI Library is open from 10.30am to 7.00pm, Tuesday to Saturday. Access to special collections material is by appointment.

Reference

Special Collections, Associated-Rediffusion Television papers, file reference ART/668

Notes

This file contains document for the transmission of extracts from a theatre production of Spring and Port Wine.

Title

TV Times, 27 January 1966 (Magazine)

Linking notes

listing on p. 38