Nineteen Eighty-Four (TV programme)

Nineteen Eighty-Four was a British television adaptation of the novel of the same name by George Orwell, originally broadcast on BBC Television in the winter of 1954. The production proved to be hugely controversial, with questions asked in Parliament and many viewer complaints over its supposed subversive nature and horrific content. In a 2000 poll of industry experts conducted by the British Film Institute to determine the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes of the 20th century, Nineteen Eighty-Four was ranked in seventy-third position.

Legacy

Although it is extremely fortunate that even the second performance survives in the archives from an era when little television was preserved in such a manner, the play is well known only amongst archive television enthusiasts and science-fiction fans. It was twenty-three years before it received a repeat broadcast in 1977, and another proposed repeat run as part of the BBC's fiftieth anniversary of television celebrations in 1986 was overruled by the producers of the 1984 John Hurt/Richard Burton feature film adaptation, who felt that any exposure for earlier versions would affect income for their film. The BBC were however permitted to show the play again in 1994 on BBC Two, as a tribute to the recently deceased Cartier, and again in June 2003 on digital station BBC Four as part of the George Orwell centenary celebrations.

Related Topics:
Science-fiction - 1977 - 1986 - 1984 - John Hurt - Richard Burton - 1994 - BBC Two - June 2003 - BBC Four - George Orwell

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Kneale's adaptation was produced again by the BBC, with some modifications, in 1965. Starring David Buck, Joseph O'Conor, Jane Merrow and Cyril Shaps, this version was broadcast in BBC2's Theatre 625 anthology series as part of a season of Orwell adaptations sub-titled The World of George Orwell, on November 28 1965. Sadly however, this later production does not survive in the archives, although a trailer does exist, as does an edition of the discussion programme Late Night Line Up aired the previous evening, featuring Kneale as a guest and concentrating on the 1954 version. Also in 1965, a radio adaptation starring Patrick Troughton was transmitted on the BBC Home Service.

Related Topics:
1965 - David Buck - Joseph O'Conor - Jane Merrow - Cyril Shaps - BBC2 - Theatre 625 - November 28 - Radio - Patrick Troughton - BBC Home Service

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