A pre-war stage play by Horton Giddy, produced twice for television by the BBC before and after the Second World War.
Horton Giddy’s stage play was first produced for television in 1939, with a cast featuring General Yagunin (Brefni O’Rorke), Colonel Ilyitch (Frank Thornton-Bassett), and Brunov (Erik Chitty). Following the interruption of the Second World War, the BBC remounted the play in 1946 with a new cast. In this second, live production, the roles were performed by D. A. Clarke Smith as the General, Laurier Lister as the Colonel, and Michael Kemble as Brunov.
This play is an instructive example of the ephemeral nature of early television drama. Produced live from Alexandra Palace on two separate occasions, with the war separating the broadcasts, both productions are now lost. The decision to remount the play in 1946 with an entirely new cast demonstrates the repertory model of the fledgling Television Service; the corporation frequently recycled scripts from its limited library. The complete absence of any recording of either production is typical of the pre-videotape era, when programmes transmitted live were rarely preserved, existing only in the memories of the few who saw them.
Broadcast: BBC, 12 May 1939, 16 May 1939 & 27 October 1946
Written by: Horton Giddy
Production by: Denis Johnston (1939), Ian Atkins (1946)
Main Cast: Brefni O’Rorke (General Yagunin, 1939), Frank Thornton-Bassett (Colonel Ilyitch, 1939), Erik Chitty (Brunov, 1939), George Wood (Orderly, 1939), D. A. Clarke Smith (General Yagunin, 1946), Laurier Lister (Colonel Ilyitch, 1946), Michael Kemble (Brunov, 1946), Gerald Campion (Orderly, 1946)
