#Richard Briers

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Hamlet (1996)

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Video Killed the Radio Star

If you don't already feel sufficiently alienated from the culture of your generation, consider getting into old time radio. It's pretty easy to do: Radio was mainstream media from the 1930s well into the 1950s, and it hung on for quite a while after it started losing ground to television. There's a huge amount of programming in various genres, and a surprising amount of it survives; there was a cottage industry in OTR cassettes and CDs for many years, a lot of shows can be found in MP3 format without much effort, and some of it pops up regularly on streaming platforms.

The easiest way to get into it is if you're already got a fondness for some older Hollywood star: If they were a movie star between 1930 and 1960, there's a good chance they guest-starred in various radio shows, and they might even have had their own show for a while. For instance, do you like Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall? Around 1950, they had their own syndicated radio adventure series, BOLD VENTURE, which was essentially an extended riff on their characters in the 1944 film version of TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT. Orson Welles, of course, was a big radio star, playing the lead on THE SHADOW in 1937–38 and then bringing his Mercury Theatre company to a number of different one-hour and half-hour radio series. Vincent Price starred for several seasons as Leslie Charteris's Simon Templar on THE SAINT. And almost everyone who was anyone showed up now and again on SUSPENSE or LUX RADIO THEATRE (which produced all-star one-hour adaptations of popular movies). If you're a Superman or Sherlock Holmes fan, the radio versions of those characters are a must — Holmes was a perennial presence on English-language radio for decades.

If you want something more modern, the British kept producing generally high-quality radio dramas in surprising volume until relatively recently, including a range of both adaptations and originals. Unlike American radio, the survival rate for older British programs from the '40s and '50s is poor, but the BBC has continued periodically airing its better material from the '70s through the '00s, a lot of which has been offered on cassette and CD. For instance, there were excellent BBC radio series dramatizing the Wodehouse Jeeves and Wooster stories (with Michael Hordern and Richard Briers); Dorothy L. Sayers' Lord Peter Wimsey series (with Ian Carmichael); and Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot mysteries (with John Moffat), along with standalone plays on programs like SATURDAY-NIGHT THEATRE. The big limitation with British radio dramas is that the number of British radio actors who can do convincing American accents is not high (and is definitely lower than the number who mistakenly think they can), and the availability of American actors who know how to act for radio is clearly even more limited, which can become a grating problem when dramatizing American material.

One of the reasons that listening to older (and/or British) radio shows will contribute to your cultural alienation is that it will make a lot of modern dramatic podcast series and audio dramatizations excruciating, because it will reveal to you how bad a lot of modern audio dramatists and performers are at this once commonplace art. (If you are or are contemplating doing a dramatic podcast or audio drama, please, for the love of dog, make a close study of radio shows created before you were born, and diversify enough to recognize the mediocrity of hacks like Dirk Maggs, who's been stinking up audio drama on two continents for four decades now.)

[movies-to-add-to-your-tbw]

Title: Peter Pan

Rating: PG

Director: P.J. Hogan

Cast: Jason Isaacs, Jeremy Sumpter, Rachel Hurd-Wood, Lynn Redgrave, Richard Briers, Olivia Williams, Geoffrey Palmer, Harry Newell, Freddie Popplewell, Ludivine Sagnier, Mathew Waters, George MacKay, Harry Eden, Patrick Hurd-Wood, Bill Kerr

Release year: 2003

Genres: fantasy, adventure

Blurb: In stifling Edwardian London, Wendy Darling mesmerises her brothers every night with bedtime tales of swordplay, swashbuckling, and the fearsome Captain Hook...but the children become the heroes of an even greater story when Peter Pan flies into their nursery one night and leads them over moonlit rooftops, through a galaxy of stars, and to the lush jungles of Neverland.

[missanthropicprinciple]

Terry-Thomas and Richard Briers in A Matter of Who

[mostlybritishactors]

Richard Briers

[kwebtv]

All in Good Faith - ITV - December 30, 1985 - May 30, 1988

Sitcom (18 Episodes - 1 Short)

Running Time: 30 minutes

Stars:

Richard Briers as The Reverend Philip Lambe

Barbara Ferris as Emma Lambe (series 1 and 2)

Susan Jameson as Emma Lambe (series 3)

Lydia Smith as Miranda Lambe (series 1 and 2)

James Campbell as Peter Lambe (series 1 and 2)

James Cossins as Major Andrews (series 1)

Robert Bridges as Wilf (series 1)

Frank Middlemass as Desmond Frank (series 2 and 3)

T. P. McKenna as Oscar Randolph (series 2)

John Woodvine as Oscar Randolph (series 3)

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In the Bleak Midwinter (A Midwinter's Tale) (1995) Kenneth Branagh

December 10th 2023

[ellie88-blog-blog]

“Peter Pan” is the Perfect Child’s Fantasy

“Peter Pan” has always been one of my favorite stories. I’ve seen many renditions and was filled with joys when the 2010’s saw a boom in Peter Pan films and limited shows, some better than others, but I loved them, nonetheless. This is no exception to the 2003 “Peter Pan” film, made Released 50 years after the Disney animated film. This is a family adventure, fantasy extravaganza. It’s hard to…

[corikane]

Much Ado About Everything

Much Ado About Nothing (1993) by Kenneth Branagh This is where it all began for me: this movie made me love Shakespeare – and Branagh as a director. While there’s a lot of water under that latter bridge, my love for Shakespeare remains. And I think that Branagh did the same thing for many people with this masterpiece and one of my all-time favorite movies. What’s it about? Don Pedro of Arragon…

[perfettamentechic]

17 febbraio … ricordiamo …

17 febbraio … ricordiamo … #semprevivineiricordi #nomidaricordare #personaggiimportanti #perfettamentechic

2024: Franco Venturini, regista, attore e sceneggiatore italiano. Figlio d’arte: il nonno Domenico fu un commediografo e dantista, così come il bisnonno, Domenico Venturini. Nel 1989, in collaborazione con l’attrice Federica De Vita, fondò l’Università dello Spettacolo di Roma. Nel 2007, sempre insieme a Federica De Vita a cui si aggiunsero Chiara Conti e il fratello Maurizio Venturini, fondò nei…

[pluralzalpha]

Silly But It's Fun - - The Good Life Christmas Special | Television Heaven

[therealmrpositive]

Macabre Month 7 Part XI: Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994)

In today's review, I find that sculpting the perfect man is a lot harder than first thought. As I attempt a #positive review of the 1994 adaptation of Mary Shelly's Frankenstein #RobertDeNiro #KennethBranagh #RoryJennings #TomHulce #HelenaBonhamCarter

Sometimes, a great idea is all you need, a single spark to ignite greatness. Sometimes, it doesn’t even have to be your own idea; sometimes, it doesn’t even have to be good. Sometimes, it can just seem like a good idea, like creating the perfect man. In 1994, the next Universal monster got their origins told, in great gothic detail of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Kenneth Branagh directs and also…

[yestolerancepro]

Just the Job revisiting the Employment Game A Tolerance project extra blog

Introduction

Hello this month of August marks 25 years since me and a group of friends worked on a disability awareness film simply called Tolerance. This article is the first in a special series of blogs to celebrate that milestone.

As part of the 25 birthday celebrations I think its only fair that we revisit The Employment game

So why have I included The Employment game in Tolerance Project history ? Well firstly it shares a number of ideas and themes with the former (1) It treats a serious subject with a degree a humour which should make you smile and think at the same time. (2) it uses TV and film themes as part of its soundtrack.

The Employment Game uses the now classic theme from the Rhubarb and Custard cartoon series, The Tolerance Film took this idea further and in the course of its short 25min run time you can hear  themes from Star Wars, the Good the Bad the Ugly, Officer and a Gentlemen and a few others.

Lastly they both feature a person trying their hardest to get there dream job and succeeding in the end.

It is also part of the Tolerance film history that when the idea of the Tolerance film was first talked about, as co-ordinator of the group, I felt it was important to have some idea about what goes into film making, in order that when we did the real thing some months later, So I wouldn’t be completely lost on location or in a studio set. So I enrolled myself on a Film and TV-making course at Beaumont Street studios and as part of the course, we had to produce a short film – the Employment Game was born. 

The Employment Game was made in about in about 1998 The film runs for just under 10 mins and was directed by me with a script written by myself Rob Martin and Steve Walker it was shot inside Beaumont Street studios with very little set no budget and was shot and completed in just 2 days.

Why was The Employment Game created ?

The Employment Game was created as a result of my frustration at struggling to find a permanent job something which still annoys me to this day, especially as not much has changed sadly. Because people see my wheelchair first and me second, I kept being offered training courses, instead of chances of work, and consequently, I have a CV as long as long as your arm.

This is something which Robert himself complains about bitterly in the finished Tolerance film. Like Robert in the Tolerance film the character in the Employment Game has to deal with a man who is not very sympathetic to his wanting paid employment, and will give him every excuse why he will not employ him in his firm.

The man in question in the Employment Game is played by Rob Martin who plays a Mr Grosenberg like character, who in the Employment Game is minus the squeaky voice. I would bump into Rob again when making the Tolerance film when he was hired to provide the Behind The Scenes photographs  for the production

So What are my memories of The Employment Game?

For the most part they are good and happy ones I am glad it turned it so well it was certainly a good training exercise for when I made the Tolerance film some time later. It was a lot of fun to make watching it again recently you can see that that Myself and Rob Martin are having a laugh doing it . It was very hard keeping a straight face at times I can see myself cracking up.

One of the things I remember about the Employment game is that I was planning to do something else With a Scifi theme Quite rightly the teacher of my class steered me towards doing something easier So I came up with the Employment Game idea instead.

Before filming even got started myself and Rob with the other members of the class nicked a camera and did a short pilot of of my ideas.

Watching the film again I note there are 3 script writers myself Rob Martin and Steve Walker. The reason for this was simple, I originally wrote the script myself but about 2 days before filming the script that I worked hard on went walkies So the three of us had to sit down and do an emergency rewrite.

 I don’t think there was much of a script to speak of in fact I think most of it is ad libbed a lot of Rob Martins lines certainly are his comments about the Spice girls and you wouldn’t get the jobs anyway sound is if they come off the top of his head there was also a nice out take from me about the Spice girls that hit the cutting room floor I won’t go into details but The Employment Game was certainly the happier of my 2 filming experiences.

The Themes of The Employment Game/ Borrowing a theme from a Children’s classic

After 2 days of filming the Employment Game was then edited by me at Beaumont street studios the only hitch we had was deciding what music to use for the opening and closing titles as with the Tolerance film my CD collection came to the rescue.

After a short search I decided it was down to 2 pieces of music the Gallery theme used on the programme Vision On, a show aimed at the deaf community that was presented by Pat Keysell and Tony Hart which ran on the BBC for 12 series between 6th March 1964 to 11 May 1976.

To learn more about Vision On which just so happens to be celebrating its 60th birthday this year click here Vision On at 60 – celebrating a creative powerhouse that inspired a generation | Radio Times

The music was part of my Childhood as it was also used on the Tony Hart series Take Hart 1977-1983 if you don’t know what I am talking about. You can find the music on You Tube by looking for it under its proper title called Left Bank two written by Wayne Hill and recorded by the Noveltones for De Wolfe music or click here.

After listening to it featured on rough mix of the film I decided it didn’t work. because it was too long and it didn’t suit the comedic tone of the film. so I decided to go with my second choice the theme from Roobarb and Custard.

You can watch the opening titles by clicking here

For those who have not seen the show it was an animated series created by Grange Calveley and originally shown on BBC1 just before the evening news. Each cartoon, written by Calveley and directed by Bob Godfrey, was about five minutes long. Thirty episodes were made, and the show was first shown on 21 October 1974. The theme is that of the friendly rivalry between Roobarb, a green dog with an overactive imagination, and Custard, the mischievous laconic pink cat from next door.

The narration of the series was provided by the actor Richard Briers

Photo Captions

Beaumont street studios where the Employment game was shot it closed its doors for the last time in 2010

 Me in the job Centre set one of the writers Steve walker is sat next to me in the blue shirt

Rob Martin as the not very helpful Job centre employee

A 20 year old me I play a version of myself in the film not much of a stretch really

Me and my Electric Chair providing the title sequence

Vision on with Pat Keysell and Tony Hart

Roobarb and Custard

 Richard Briers.

Special Thanks to Ian Medley for rescuing the film from VHS

To help the Tolerance Project you can read about us or give us a small donation by clicking on the following link

 or follow us on Twitter @tolerancepro

[movies-to-add-to-your-tbw]

Title: Hamlet

Rating: PG-13

Director: Kenneth Branagh

Cast: Kenneth Branagh, Derek Jacobi, Kate Winslet, Julie Christie, Richard Briers, Nicholas Farrell, Rufus Sewell, Reece Dinsdale, Timothy Spall, Michael Maloney, Robin Williams, Gérard Depardieu, Jack Lemmon, Ian McElhinney, Ray Fearon, Billy Crystal

Release year: 1996

Genres: drama

Blurb: Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, returns home to find his father murdered and his mother now marrying the murderer...his uncle. Meanwhile, war is brewing.

[missanthropicprinciple]

Terry-Thomas and then newcomer Richard Briers in A Matter of WHO (1961)