BBC Remembers... (2022)

Michael Jayston played George Smiley’s right-hand man Peter Guillam in the BBC’s acclaimed 1979 adaptation of John le Carré’s classic spy tale. As part of the BBC’s Centenary of Drama, and over four decades on, Michael now looks back on the experience, recalling what it was like working on what is still considered one of the best television series ever made, and how he held his own acting alongside one of the finest acting talents of the 20th century, the great Sir Alec Guinness.

Double Oscar winner Glenda Jackson remembers the role that brought her back to television after the huge success she had found on the big screen – Queen Elizabeth I in the BBC’s acclaimed six-part 1971 series Elizabeth R. Here, Glenda recalls how she came to have huge admiration for the real-life Elizabeth, discovering so much more about her life and loves as she prepared to take on the role. She also describes the challenges faced when making an epic drama, and the struggles with costumes, make-up and wigs that eventually saw her having her own head shaved for the sake of ease and accuracy.

Actor Duncan Preston introduces Victoria Wood's comedy drama about two ill-matched sisters.

Stephen Poliakoff introduces his drama about an unexpected pact between two women.

Gyles Brandreth remembers the comedy and musical duo Hinge and Bracket.

Alan Bennett remembers his 1983 television drama, based on the true story of a chance meeting in Moscow between actress Coral Browne and British defector Guy Burgess.

Zoë Wanamaker remembers the 1982 BBC adaptation of Bertolt Brecht’s first play, Baal, in which she appeared with David Bowie.

It’s now 50 years since we first met and fell for accident-prone Frank Spencer and his long-suffering wife Betty in the very first episode of Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em. In all that time, actors Michael Crawford and Michele Dotrice have never sat down together to discuss the programme - until now. Here, we find them reunited and looking back on one of Britain’s most-loved sitcoms, and the parts they both played in its creation. They reveal how they came to be cast, what it was like to film the series, celebrated stunts and all, the impact the show’s phenomenal success had on their lives and careers, and the point at which they knew it was time to stop. It’s a conversation glowing with Michael and Michele’s affection for the series and for each other, and fans should find it as enjoyable as its stars clearly have done.

Novelist William Boyd looks back on his long friendship with fellow writer Martin Amis, who died in May 2023 at the age of 73. Boyd’s focus is on what many consider to be Martin’s most successful work, 1984’s Money, which introduced readers to the hedonistic would-be film-maker John Self. The character would be portrayed by actor Nick Frost in the BBC’s dramatisation of the novel in 2010, and here Boyd also discusses the challenges of screen adaptation generally, and why bringing Amis’s work to the small screen was always going to be particularly challenging.

Sir Derek Jacobi remembers the landmark 1976 TV series I, Claudius.

Award-winning documentary maker Michael Cockerell is a master of the political profile, with a reputation for uncovering the human side of the men and women of Westminster and for really getting under the skin of the great, the good and the not-so-good who have governed postwar Britain. Here, Michael looks back on one of the most challenging encounters of his long career and recounts what it was like dealing with former Conservative prime minister Edward Heath, the man who took us into the European Union but wanted us all to keep very much out of his private life.

Contains some upsetting scenes. When the BBC’s long-running Silent Witness first combined doctors, DNA and detective work back in 1996, nobody could have known that the show that changed the way death was examined in a crime drama would itself be alive and thriving well over 25 years later. Fundamental to that longevity was Amanda Burton, whose portrayal of the show’s original lead character Dr Sam Ryan helped establish the early success of the series. Here, Amanda takes a scalpel to the show’s early days, remembers what it was like playing Sam for eight years and shares her thoughts on how and why Silent Witness became the television institution that it remains today.

Acclaimed political profiler Michael Cockerell tells the story behind his encounter with one of the grand dames of Westminster, the formidable Labour MP Barbara Castle. A female icon of the left, Castle stood out from the herd thanks to her unique charisma, steely nature and her ability to leave members of the opposition, let alone the opposite sex, completely tongue-tied. In her conversations with Michael she speaks openly about the two great love affairs of her life, and the man she was currently keeping an intimidating watch over, the newly elected Labour leader Tony Blair.

Line of Duty writer Jed Mercurio looks back on the first drama he wrote and the start of his extraordinary journey from junior doctor to award-winning TV showrunner. The acclaimed 1994 series 'Cardiac Arrest' featured a cast of then unknown actors, including future Friends star Helen Baxendale, and captured the realities of life working on a hospital ward in 90s Britain. Jed recalls what motivated him to become more than just a series advisor to the point where he ended up taking over script-writer duties; the controversy around the series that saw even the then Health Secretary getting involved, and the real-life stresses he's experienced as a doctor that made their way into the scripts.

Political interviewer Michael Cockerell introduces his acclaimed profile of Roy Jenkins, the man who, as home secretary in the 1960s, helped transform British society by changing laws on homosexuality, abortion and hanging. As Michael explains, his research for the original documentary would confirm rumours of Jenkins’s extra-marital affairs, and he reveals how ‘Woy’ responded when asked on camera to confirm the details of his colourful love-life.

David Tennant looks back on the role he time-travelled into after leaving the Tardis, playing Hamlet in Greg Doran’s award-winning 2008 production for the Royal Shakespeare Company. David’s portrayal was described at the time as ‘athletic, and immensely engaging’, full of ‘vigour and wild humour’ and ‘the best great Dane in years’. Here, he talks about his approach to the part, performing opposite Patrick Stewart, who played the role of Claudius, and the reaction he got when the production became a hit with BBC audiences when it was screened on Boxing Day 2009.

Dame Janet Suzman looks back on her role as Joan of Arc in the BBC adaptations of Shakespeare’s Wars of the Roses. Under the direction of John Barton and Peter Hall at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Janet delivered a highly acclaimed performance, and here she recalls the challenges she faced playing a figure as iconic as Joan. She explains how these groundbreaking productions brought a modern relevance to conflict between the Houses of York and Lancaster and shares memories of working with fellow cast members, including Donald Sinden and the great Peggy Ashcroft.

Gregory Doran, former artistic director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, looks back on the challenges he faced bringing together a cast of acclaimed actors and even members of the royal family for his 2016 live BBC extravaganza marking 400 years since the death of William Shakespeare. Gregory explains how he managed to pull off the project and recalls the journey that transformed early ideas into to a huge popular success that resonated with critics and television viewers alike. He also shares his memories of working with the likes of David Tennant, Catherine Tate and a host of acclaimed Shakespeareans, and explains why he thinks the Bard remains so relevant even today.

Actor Simon Russell Beale looks back on the The Hollow Crown, the BBC’s 2012 adaptations of the most vital of Shakespeare’s history plays: Richard II, Henry IV Part 1, Henry IV Part 2 and Henry V. Bringing together a stellar cast that includes Ben Whishaw, Jeremy Irons, Judi Dench, Hugh Bonneville and Sophie Okonedo, The Hollow Crown drew huge praise from critics, and Simon’s acclaimed performance in the role of Falstaff ultimately earned him a Bafta award for Best Supporting Actor. Here, Simon shares his behind-the-scenes insights into how the production came together, his memories of working with his fellow actors and the challenge of bringing Shakespeare to life for a 21st-century television audience.

Actors Damian Lewis and Matthew Macfayden and director Peter Kosminsky reunite to look back on 1999’s BBC drama Warriors and the roles that first set Lewis and Macfayden on the road to international success. The acclaimed series examined the role of British soldiers working as UN peacekeepers in Bosnia, confronting the moral realities of war and the horrors of ethnic cleansing. Damian, Matthew and Peter share the stories behind the making of the programme, from casting process to location filming, and how cast and crew let off steam to help deal with the harrowing storylines. They also discuss the critical response, how the series stands up today and why, for all three of them, Warriors remains a career highlight even over two decades later.

Hugh Quarshie looks back on his highly praised interpretation of Othello in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2015 production, directed by Iqbal Khan. He considers the extra responsibility a black actor must take on with a role that for centuries was played only by white performers wearing make-up. He recalls how he made the decision to join the cast after years of turning the play down and examines the frequently asked question ‘Is Othello a racist play?’, drawing on his experiences playing the Moor of Venice for his own conclusion.

Dame Helen Mirren looks back on one of her earliest television roles, filmed before she’d become a household name and international star, playing Rosalind in the BBC’s 1978 production of the Shakespeare comedy As You Like It. She shares her thoughts on the potential that As You Like It’s playing with gender could have for today’s audiences, reflects on the quality of the roles Shakespeare wrote for women and explains why she thinks the Bard will be as significant in 100 years’ time as he is today.

Actress Margi Clarke looks back on the BBC’s popular 1980s comedy drama series Making Out, written by Debbie Horsfield. Acclaimed for being a celebration of working women in the north of England, the series followed the ups and downs of life on the factory floor at the fictional New Lyne Electrics building in Manchester. Margi returns to the hotel where the cast and crew stayed while filming, reveals a selection of behind-the-scenes stories and shares her memories of playing Queenie, the brassy blonde who took no nonsense from the bosses while taking everything she could get from the system.

In 1964, a young Steven Berkoff was cast in one of his earliest screen roles, as a junior player in Hamlet in Elsinore, a BBC co-production with Danish television. Shot in Denmark by director Philip Saville, it starred Christopher Plummer as Hamlet and Michael Caine, in his only Shakespeare role, as Horatio. Here, Berkoff shares his memories of the production and how he got involved, gives his verdict on how the film stands up today, and describes - as only he can - the excitement and inspiration he felt from watching Plummer and Caine at work.

Award-winning director and screenwriter Sir Richard Eyre looks back on his 2018 production of King Lear, which garnered huge critical acclaim upon its release and drew together a stellar cast that included Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson, Emily Watson, Jim Broadbent and the then up-and-coming talent of Florence Pugh. Eyre looks back on the challenges he faced when directing such a multitude of star names and the pressures that a screenwriter takes on when choosing to adapt one of the greatest stage plays of all time to the big screen.

Dame Siân Phillips looks back on Dylan Thomas’s Under Milk Wood and her own experiences with the various adaptions that have brought perhaps the world’s most celebrated ‘play for voices’ to cinema and television audiences. She recalls the BBC’s 2014 version that brought together a huge range of Welsh talent, including Tom Jones, Matthew Rhys, Charlotte Church, Michael Sheen and Katherine Jenkins. She also looks further back, sharing the story of her encounters with Dylan Thomas and her part in the 1972 film, which saw her working alongside the great Richard Burton, his wife Elizabeth Taylor and her then-husband Peter O’Toole.

The groundbreaking director, photographer and artist Sir Horace Ové, who died in 2023 aged 86, was best known for his unique work exploring Britain's black culture, using drama and documentary to examine a section of society that was largely overlooked by the mainstream media. The life and career of this true pioneer are remembered by his actor daughter Indra Ové, in a conversation that outlines his commitment to storytelling as seen in his acclaimed 1979 film A Hole in Babylon.

Ricky Tomlinson sits back in his chair and takes a fond look back at the much-loved comedy series The Royle Family, sharing his memories of playing head of the family Jim Royle and his experiences working with the show’s co-creator Caroline Aherne, who, as well as writing the show with co-star Craig Cash, also played Jim’s daughter Denise. Ricky talks about how a chance encounter helped him get the part of Jim, recounts what it was like filming some of the show’s most iconic moments, and tries to get the bottom of the origins of Jim’s famous, below-the-belt catchphrase.