Ophelia

Synopsis

Eighth in a series of short dramatic recitals in which well-known actresses perform extracts from Shakespeare’s plays. With Fay Compton as Ophelia in extracts from Hamlet II i, III i, and IV v.

Series

Shakespeare’s Heroines

Language

English

Country

Great Britain

Medium

Radio

Transmission details

20 Jun 1926 at 17:30 (Channel: BBC)

Duration

20 mins

Availability

No recording available

Credits

Writer

William Shakespeare

Cast

Ion Swinley	Hamlet
Gilbert Heron	Claudius
Dorothy Freshwater	Gertrude
Ivor Barnard	Polonius
Fay Compton	Ophelia
Eric Messiter	Gentleman
Eric Messiter	Horatio
Lawrence Anderson	Laertes

Additional Details

Production type

Other

Plays

Hamlet

Subjects

Drama

Keywords

Shakespeare, William (1564-1616); women

Notes

Notes

This series is not to be confused with the BBC London schools’ talk series of the same name. In order to avoid confusion, the title "Shakespeare’s Heroines" is here catalogued as series title only.

General

Shakespeare’s Heroines is also the title of the first book published by the BBC in September 1926 in conjunction with the series. A copy is held in the BBC Written Archives Centre, Caversham Park, Reading.

Reviews

In a Radio Times article encouraging listeners both to buy the book that accompanies the series and to participate in the ‘Shakespeare Heroines Competition’, Herbert Farjeon claims that the series was "enjoyed by the most numerous audiences who ever attended the same Shakespearean performance anywhere in the world" ('A Book of Heroines’, 3 September 1926, p. 414).

Production Company

Name

BBC

Notes

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)