Mother of Men

Summary

1959 BBC Television production of the comedy Mother of Men by Ada G. Abbott, from the BBC’s television studio in Scotland. The play was originally set in England but this has been changed to the west coast of Scotland.

Theatre play

Mother of Men by Ada G. Abbott [more information]

Play synopsis

A comedy in which a mother, who is fiercely proud of her three sons and of her husband who drowned while fishing many years ago, works hard to pair off the sons, one of whom has got his girlfriend pregnant. The play was set in England, although the 1959 BBC Television production changed this to the west coast of Scotland.

Production history

First performed at the Comedy Theatre, London on 12 September 1946. Published by Samuel French in 1947.

Date of transmission

Thursday 4 June 1959

Time

8.45-10.00pm

Channel

BBC Television

Production company

BBC

Credits

Producer

Pharic Maclaren

Playwright

Ada G. Abbott

Designer

Robert Macgowan

Cast

Tom Conti	David Macdonald
Jean Faulds	Susan Macrae
Helena Gloag	Betty Macdonald
Gwynneth Guthrie	Rose Petrie
John MacKenzie	Malcolm Macdonald
Toni McGettigan	Jessie Macrae
William Simpson	Iain Macdonald
Aileen Wilson	Fiona Macneil
John Young	Duncan Cameron

Additional details

Extant status

No archival copy is known to exist.

Play tags

comedy; marriage; Scotland, as theme or setting

Print sources

Title

Mother of Men: Strategic Setting in Scotland (Newspaper review)

Reference

The Times, 5 June 1959, p. 4

Title

Radio Times, 29 May 1959 (Magazine)

Linking notes

listing, p. 19