Monthly Archives: January 2011

Pete Postlethwaite in ‘Martin Chuzzlewit’

Copyright for these photos resides with the original photographer, no reproduction without permission.

John Greening who was the First Assistant Director on this mammoth Dickens adaptation comments that:

‘Pete was a force of nature – along with Keith Allen and Paul Schofield. Generous to a fault, he even offered to perform for free in my BBC drama directors course project. What a gent. I also got very drunk at his house once with designer Rob Hinds and production manager Alastair Duncan – but that’s another story…’

Pete Postlethwaite in Martin Chuzzlewit

‘A Box of Swan’ -photos by Willoughby Gullachsen

Adrian Dunbar (John)

Sandy Ratcliff, Pete Postlethwaite, Hilary Sesta, Adrian Dunbar

Photos by Willoughby Gullachsen, no reproduction without permission.

A Box of Swan was a ‘Debut on Two’ drama produced at Pebble Mill, transmitted on 9th Oct 1990 on BBC 2.  Alan David Price wrote the script, and  it was produced by Vicky Licorish and Philippa Giles, Diana Patrick was the director.

The BFI database describes the drama as a:

‘Play about a young man brought back to his roots by the death of his father, a road sweeper for 27 years. John moved to London to further his career as an architect, but his ambivalent feelings towards his family are brought to a head when he returns home for the funeral.’

http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/445934

The film starred Pete Postlethwaite as Tony, Adrian Dunbar as John, Hilary Sesta as Mother, Sandy Ratcliff as Patricia and Bryan Pringle as Father.

Thanks to Dave Bushell, who was the lighting director, for identifying the drama from the photos.  Dave remembers that there were six plays in all on ‘Debut on Two’, two filmed on location and four in Studio A. They were written by new writers with established actors. The locations for ‘Box of Swan’ included an Italian restaurant and a undertaker’s chapel-of-rest, in Bearwood, West Midlands.

The other ‘Debut on Two’ plays were  Kingdom Come, Widow of Vulnerability, The Wake, Breast is Best, and the Conversion of St Paul. They were a similar idea to the ‘Second City First’ series of studio dramas from the 1970s, which also featured new talent, and particularly new writers.

Pete Postlethwaite – photos by Willoughby Gullachsen

Photos by Willoughby Gullachsen, no reproductions without permission.

Since Pete Postlethwaite’s death was announced yesterday, I thought it would be fitting to post up a photo of him from a Pebble Mill drama production.  Pete Postlewthaite acted in several Pebble Mill productions including Martin Chuzzlewit, and the drama shown here.

Pete Postlethwaite was born in 1946 and died aged 64, after a long battle with cancer.

Unfortunately I don’t know which drama this photos is from – so if you can identify it, I’d be very grateful.  It looks to date from around the late 1980s.

Thanks

Vanessa

Pete Postlethwaite and others

Opening the new Pebble Mill Club

Phil Sidey & Keith Jones New Club Opening

When Pebble Mill was first built the bar was on the second floor of the building, at the back, overlooking the back field and the courtyard.  It was a hub of activity and socialising where almost everyone would congregate at lunchtime and after work.  It was probably the only place where all levels of production and crew would get together, and therefore it became a really productive place for bouncing off ideas and solving any production issues.

As the number of staff expanded, there was more pressure for office space.  In the early 1980s the new Club was built in the Pebble Mill grounds on the far side of the brook.  It was a single storey building with a kitchen, large and small bar-rooms, and administration offices.  There was a terrace to sit out on in the summer, as well as tennis courts and football fields.

Going to the bar at lunchtime was called ‘going over the bridge’, because of the little bridge across the brook to get to the Club.

The photo shows Phil Sidey, who was Head of the Building and President of the Club, and Keith Jones, Club Chairman, ringing a bell to officially open the new Club, circa 1982.

Thanks to Gail Herbert (subsequent Chair of the Club) for making the photo available.  Copyright resides with the original photographer.

Telly Addicts – photo from Ian Collins

Telly Addicts figure

Telly Addicts was a studio based game show presented by Noel Edmunds.  It was produced at Pebble Mill and recorded in Studio A.  Two teams, sat on sofas, were pitted against each other in a test of their TV knowledge.  The format mostly involved seeing clips of different TV shows and being asked questions afterwards.  The series began in 1985, with the final episode going out in 1998.  There were some celebrity specials (especially in the later years), but most of the early episodes involved families.  There were generally around 16 episodes a year.  The format changed a little over time.  The early years saw the winners of the previous week staying on and being challenged by a new family.  From 1987 there was a tournament style format involving 16 teams in 8 qualifying heats, the winners of which then went forward to quarter finals, then semi finals and concluding in a grand final.

There were a number of different producers and directors over the years.  Producers included Tim Manning, John G Smith, Richard Lewis and Helen Lott, and directors included Annette Martin, Nick Hurran and Sue Robinson.  John King was the executive producer.

Thanks to Ian Collins from Post Production for taking a photo of this Telly Addicts figure!