An anthology series of four single dramas curated by the celebrated television writer Alan Bleasdale.
This series consists of four standalone teleplays. Self Catering follows a group of working-class friends, including characters played by Andrew Schofield and Jane Horrocks, whose holiday game of role-playing as their Hollywood heroes spirals into something much darker. Requiem Apache is a crime drama in which gangster Hamish (Alfred Molina) investigates the murder of his brother. Blood on the Dole is a stark social-realist piece about two brothers (Stephen Walters and Philip Dowd) and their desperate attempts to escape the cycle of unemployment. The final film, Pleasure, sees a young couple, Emma (Jennifer Ehle) and Charles (James Larkin), find their idyllic European road trip taking a sinister turn.
Alan Bleasdale Presents marked a significant moment in the celebrated writer’s career, shifting his role from author to that of producer and patron. The four films, made under the prestigious Film Four International banner, served as a platform for writers Andrew Cullen, Raymond Murtagh, Jim Morris, and Christopher Hood. While Bleasdale did not write the screenplays, his thematic fingerprints are evident in the selection: each story is a tough, character-driven piece concerned with social pressure and moral compromise. The productions are distinguished by their cinematic quality and formidable casts, which included established stars and emerging talent. The series reveals Bleasdale’s commitment to fostering a certain kind of raw, ambitious, and distinctly British television drama.
Broadcast: Channel 4, 4 Episodes, 4 October – 25 October 1994
Executive Producer: Alan Bleasdale
– Self Catering (4 October 1994) –
Written by: Andrew Cullen
Director: Robin Lefevre
Producer: David Jones
– Requiem Apache (11 October 1994) –
Written by: Raymond Murtagh
Director: David Jones
Producer: Pip Broughton
– Blood On The Dole (18 October 1994) –
Written by: Jim Morris
Producers: Alan Bleasdale, Keith Thompson
Director: Pip Broughton
– Pleasure (25 October 1994) –
Written by: Christopher Hood
Director: Ian Sharp
Producers: David Jones, Steve Hawes
Main Cast: Andrew Schofield (Clint Eastwood), Jane Horrocks (Marilyn Monroe), Alfred Molina (Hamish), Kenneth Cranham (Tony), Julie Walters (Mrs Capstan), Stephen Walters (Joey), Jennifer Ehle (Emma), James Larkin (Charles), Adrian Dunbar (Gustave)
