Pyre for Private James is a 1966 episode of The Wednesday Play for British television.
| "Pyre for Private James" | |
|---|---|
| The Wednesday Play episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 24 |
| Directed by | Gilchrist Calder |
| Teleplay by | Simon Raven |
| Production code | BBC |
| Original air date | November 30, 1966 |
| Running time | 43 mins |
Premise
editMajor Andrew Carlyle faces a court martial for murder after shooting to death Private Trevor James during a jungle patrol.
It is revealed Carlyle was an obsessed man who killed his injured driver.
Cast
edit- Basil Henson as Major Andrew Carlyle
- Percy Herbert as Colour Sergeant David Mackison
- Dudley Sutton as Corporal Tom Oates
- David Conville as Captain Jeremy Dilston
- Grant Taylor as Colonel Lloyd Beacher, Prosecuting Officer
- John Bailey as Humphrey Wiles, Counsel for Defence
- William Fox as Judge Advocate
- Basil Dignam as President of Court Martial
- Nick Tate as Private Trevor James
Production
editIt was one of Nick Tate's first appearances after arriving in Britain.[1]
Reception
editThe Guardian said "all the episodes introduced in the telling of the story were handled with a strong sense of the dramatic."[2]
The Leicester Mercury critic thought "the dramatic climax never came" although he enjoyed the acting and handling.[3]
The Daily Mirror called it "slow moving but often dramatically sure".[4]
The Observer thought "nearly everybody was hamming it up in the jungle scenes."[5]
References
edit- ^ "TV Topics". Grimsby Evening Telegraph. 11 November 1966. p. 11.
- ^ Crozier, Mary (1 December 1966). "A Pyre for Private James". The Guardian. p. 7.
- ^ "Compelling play - but where was the big climax?". Leicester Mercury. 1 December 1966. p. 9.
- ^ "Last night's TV". Daily Mirror. 1 December 1966. p. 16.
- ^ "Jungle ham". The Observer. 4 December 1966. p. 24.
External links
edit
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