Screen One is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and distributed by BBC Worldwide, that was transmitted on BBC One from 1989 to 1998.[1] A total of six series were broadcast, incorporating sixty individual films, several of which were broadcast as stand-alone specials. The series was born following the demise of the BBC's Play for Today, which ran from 1970 to 1984. Producer Kenith Trodd was asked to formulate a new series of one-off television dramas, the result of which was Screen Two, which began broadcasting on BBC2 in 1985. However, while Play for Today's style had often been a largely studio-based form of theatre on television, Screen Two was shot entirely on film. Three of the episodes ("The Accountant", "News Hounds" and "A Question of Attribution") won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Single Drama.

Screen One
GenreDrama
Written byVarious
Directed byVarious
StarringVarious
Composers
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series7
No. of episodes60 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
  • Richard Broke
  • Margaret Matheston et al.
Producers
CinematographyJohn McGlashan et al.
EditorKen Pearce et al.
Running time90 minutes (approx.)
Production companyBBC
Original release
NetworkBBC1
Release10 September 1989 (1989-09-10) –
15 February 1998 (1998-02-15)

In 1989, the series was adapted for more mainstream audiences on BBC1, and Screen One was born to follow the lead taken by Channel 4, whose many television films had later been released in cinemas. Screen One attracted many names familiar to television and film audiences, including the likes of Peggy Ashcroft, Alfred Molina, Sean Bean, David Thewlis, Ray Winstone, Alan Bates, Judi Dench, James Fox, Keith Allen, Bob Peck, Alun Armstrong, Marina Sirtis, David Jason, Brenda Blethyn, James Bolam, Adrian Edmondson, Alison Steadman, Timothy West, Clive Russell, Janet McTeer and Michael Murphy. Several actors also made their on-screen debuts during the series, including Keira Knightley in the fifth series episode Royal Celebration. By 1993, the prevailing mood within the BBC was to move away from single dramas and concentrate production on series and serials, and as such, a reduced six-episode series, broadcast in 1994, was to be the last full-length series of Screen One, although a further eight one-off specials followed, with the final episode being broadcast on 15 February 1998.

Transmissions

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SeriesEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
18 (7 + 1 Special)10 September 1989 (1989-09-10)27 December 1989 (1989-12-27)
210 (8 + 2 Specials)2 September 1990 (1990-09-02)1 January 1991 (1991-01-01)
310 (8 + 2 Specials)20 June 1991 (1991-06-20)1 January 1992 (1992-01-01)
49 (8 + 1 Special)6 September 1992 (1992-09-06)31 October 1992 (1992-10-31)
585 September 1993 (1993-09-05)24 October 1993 (1993-10-24)
67 (6 + 1 Special)6 February 1994 (1994-02-06)16 October 1994 (1994-10-16)
78 (8 Specials)20 January 1995 (1995-01-20)15 February 1998 (1998-02-15)

Episodes

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Series 1 (1989)

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Episode Title Written by Directed by Original airdate
1 "One Way Out"Mick FordRobert Young10 September 1989 (1989-09-10)
2 "Nineteen 96"G. F. NewmanKarl Francis17 September 1989 (1989-09-17)
3 "The Accountant"Geoffrey CaseLes Blair24 September 1989 (1989-09-24)
4 "Home Run"Andy ArmitageNicholas Renton1 October 1989 (1989-10-01)
5 "She's Been Away"Stephen PoliakoffPeter Hall8 October 1989 (1989-10-08)
6 "The Mountain and the Molehill"David ReidMoira Armstrong15 October 1989 (1989-10-15)
7 "Blore M.P."Robin ChapmanRobert Young22 October 1989 (1989-10-22)
8 "Ball-Trap on the Cote Sauvage"Andrew DaviesJack Gold27 December 1989 (1989-12-27)

Series 2 (1990—1991)

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Episode Title Written by Directed by Original airdate
1 "News Hounds"Les BlairLes Blair2 September 1990 (1990-09-02)
2 "Frankenstein's Baby"Emma TennantRobert Bierman9 September 1990 (1990-09-09)
3 "The Police"Arthur EllisIan Knox16 September 1990 (1990-09-16)
Starring Oliver Ford Davies, Derek Martin, Arbel Jones and Paul Collins
4 "Sweet Nothing"Vincent O'ConnellTony Smith23 September 1990 (1990-09-23)
5 "Can You Hear Me Thinking?"Monty Haltrecht & Beverley MarcusChristopher Morahan30 September 1990 (1990-09-30)

Starring Judi Dench, Michael Williams, Richard Henders, Charmian May, Pik-Sen Lim, Cyril Shaps, Sally Bretton and Christopher Burgess

  • Released on DVD on 5 November 2007 as part of The Judi Dench Collection.[2]
6 "One Last Chance"Andrew KazamiaGabrielle Beaumont7 October 1990 (1990-10-07)
7 "Sticky Wickets"Fletcher WatkinsDewi Humphreys14 October 1990 (1990-10-14)
8 "Survival of the Fittest"Julian MitchellMartyn Friend21 October 1990 (1990-10-21)
9 "Dark City"David LanChris Curling11 December 1990 (1990-12-11)

Special.

Starring Sello Maake Ka-Ncube, Vusi Dibakwane and Thapelo Mafokeng
10 "Happy Feet"Michael BradwellMichael Bradwell1 January 1991 (1991-01-01)

Series 3 (1991—1992)

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Episode Title Written by Directed by Original airdate
1 "Skulduggery"Phil DavisPhil Davis20 June 1991 (1991-06-20)
2 "Hancock"William HumbleTony Smith1 September 1991 (1991-09-01)
3 "Tell Me That You Love Me"Adrian HodgesBruce MacDonald8 September 1991 (1991-09-08)
4 "Filipina Dreamgirls"Andrew DaviesLes Blair15 September 1991 (1991-09-15)
5 "Dancin' Thru the Dark"Willy RussellMike Ockrent22 September 1991 (1991-09-22)

Linda is out on her hen night, while her fiance is out on his stag night. Linda is having major doubts about getting married. When both groups arrive at a club, they find the band fronted by her ex-boyfriend—and the love of her life—Peter. Linda has to decide: does she stay and settle down, like her friends want her to, or does she chuck it all in and run away with Peter?

Starring Claire Hackett, Con O'Neill, Julia Deakin, Simon O'Brien and Mark Womack

6 "Ex"William HumblePaul Seed29 September 1991 (1991-09-29)
7 "Prince"Julie BurchillDavid Wheatley6 October 1991 (1991-10-06)
Starring Sean Bean, Janet McTeer, Celia Montague and Jackie McGuire
8 "Alive and Kicking"Al Hunter AshtonRobert Young13 October 1991 (1991-10-13)

Stevie "Smudger" Smith is a heroin dealer and an addict. His wife Marie is also an addict, and when their baby, Jason, is born he is addicted too. When Jason is taken into care, Marie leaves Smudger to get clean and win Jason back, with the help-of unorthodox drug counsellor Liam Kane. Stevie and Liam are soon at loggerheads as Stevie wants his wife and son back, but realises he can only do this if he also gets clean. In trouble with his old gang and his rivals, he does so, but has no interest in the conventional rehabilitation on offer. He decides to form a football team of recovering addicts, helped by his old coach, Earl.[5]

Starring Lenny Henry, Robbie Coltrane, Jane Horrocks, Paul Barber, Annabelle Apsion, Imogen Boorman, Geff Francis, Jillie Meers and Sakuntala Ramanee
9 "A Question of Attribution"Alan BennettJohn Schlesinger20 October 1991 (1991-10-20)

Starring James Fox, Prunella Scales, Geoffrey Palmer, David Calder, John Cater and Edward de Souza

  • Adapted from the Alan Bennett play. Won the 1992 BAFTA Award for Best Single Drama. Prunella Scales was also nominated for Best Actress. Released on DVD on 26 October 2009 as part of Alan Bennett at the BBC.[6]
10 "Adam Bede"Maggie WadeyGiles Foster1 January 1992 (1992-01-01)

Series 4 (1992)

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Episode Title Written by Directed by Original airdate
1 "A Very Polish Practice"Andrew DaviesDavid Tucker6 September 1992 (1992-09-06)

Starring Peter Davison, David Troughton, Joanna Kanska, Alfred Molina and Gertan Klauber

2 "Disaster at Valdez"Michael BakerPaul Seed13 September 1992 (1992-09-13)
3 "Born Kicking"Barry HinesMandie Fletcher20 September 1992 (1992-09-20)
4 "Black and Blue"G. F. NewmanDavid Hayman27 September 1992 (1992-09-27)
5 "Seconds Out"Lynda La PlanteBruce MacDonald4 October 1992 (1992-10-04)
6 "Running Late"Simon GrayUdayan Prasad11 October 1992 (1992-10-11)
7 "Losing Track"Roger EldridgeJim Lee18 October 1992 (1992-10-18)
8 "Trust Me"Tony SarchetTony Dow25 October 1992 (1992-10-25)
9 "Ghostwatch"Stephen VolkLesley Manning31 October 1992 (1992-10-31)

Special.

Starring Michael Parkinson, Sarah Greene, Mike Smith and Craig Charles

  • Released on DVD on 25 November 2002.[8]

Series 5 (1993)

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Episode Title Written by Directed by Original airdate
1 "Wide-Eyed and Legless"Deric Longden & Jack RosenthalRichard Loncraine5 September 1993 (1993-09-05)

Starring Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, Thora Hird and Moya Brady

  • Later released in cinemas. Retitled The Wedding Gift in America. Released on Region 1 DVD in 2011.[9]
2 "A Foreign Field"Roy ClarkeCharles Sturridge12 September 1993 (1993-09-12)

Starring Alec Guinness, Leo McKern, Geraldine Chaplin, Lauren Bacall, Jeanne Moreau and Dorothy Grumbar

  • Later released in cinemas. Released on DVD on 3 August 2008.[10]
3 "Down Among the Big Boys"Peter McDougallCharles Gormley19 September 1993 (1993-09-19)

Louie, the Glasgow detective son of a policeman, is about to marry the daughter of the accomplished robbery chief JoJo. Louie is placed in charge of investigating a mystery thief before his wedding. Jojo comes to realize that Louie is looking for him and wrestles with how to handle this.

Starring Douglas Henshall, Billy Connolly, John Murtagh, Ewan Stewart, Maggie Bell and Ashley Jensen

  • Released on DVD on 25 September 2006.[11]
4 "Royal Celebration"William HumbleFerdinand Fairfax26 September 1993 (1993-09-26)
Starring Kenneth Cranham, Minnie Driver, Rupert Graves, Leslie Phillips, Keira Knightley and Gordon Salkilld. This was Knightley's first screen appearance.
5 "Tender Loving Care"Lucy GannonDewi Humphreys3 October 1993 (1993-10-03)
6 "Money for Nothing"Tim FirthMike Ockrent10 October 1993 (1993-10-10)
7 "Wall of Silence"Maurice Gran & Laurence MarksPhilip Saville17 October 1993 (1993-10-17)
8 "The Bullion Boys"Jim HitchmoughChristopher Morahan24 October 1993 (1993-10-24)

The true story of how Britain's gold reserve was secretly transferred to Liverpool at the start of the Second World War.

Starring David Jason, Tim Pigott-Smith, Gorden Kaye, Brenda Blethyn, Geoffrey Hutchings and Paul Angelis

Series 6 (1994)

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Episode Title Written by Directed by Original airdate
1 "Bambino Mio"Colin WellandEdward Bennett6 February 1994 (1994-02-06)

Special.

Starring Julie Walters, Georges Corraface, John McArdle and Orlando Urdaneta

  • Released on VHS on 24 January 2000.[13]
2 "A Breed of Heroes"Charles WoodDiarmuid Lawrence4 September 1994 (1994-09-04)
3 "Pat and Margaret"Victoria WoodGavin Millar11 September 1994 (1994-09-11)

Starring Victoria Wood, Julie Walters, Celia Imrie, Don Henderson, Duncan Preston, Thora Hird, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Shirley Stelfox, Roger Brierley, Tenniel Evans and Charles Pemberton

  • Released on DVD on 21 May 2007.[14]
4 "Two Golden Balls"Maureen ChadwickAnya Camilleri18 September 1994 (1994-09-18)
5 "Meat"Daniel BoyleJohn Madden25 September 1994 (1994-09-25)
6 "Murder in Mind"Jenny DiskiRobert Bierman2 October 1994 (1994-10-02)
7 "Doggin' Around"Alan PlaterDesmond Davis16 October 1994 (1994-10-16)

Specials (1995–1998)

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Episode Title Written by Directed by Original airdate
1 "The Plant"Jonathan LewisJonathan Lewis20 January 1995 (1995-01-20)
2 "Trip Trap"Lucy GannonDanny Hiller9 March 1996 (1996-03-09)
Starring Kevin Whately, Stella Gonet, Sue Roderick and Helen Griffin
3 "Killing Me Softly"Rebecca FraynStephen Whittaker7 July 1996 (1996-07-07)
Starring Maggie O'Neill, Peter Howitt, Julian Kerridge and Annabelle Apsion
4 "Truth or Dare"TBAJohn Madden31 August 1996 (1996-08-31)
5 "Gobble"Ian Hislop & Nick NewmanJimmy Mulville15 February 1997 (1997-02-15)
6 "Deacon Brodie"Simon DonaldPhilip Saville8 March 1997 (1997-03-08)
7 "Hostile Waters"Troy Kennedy-MartinDavid Drury26 July 1997 (1997-07-26)

Starring Rutger Hauer, Martin Sheen, Max Von Sydow, Colm Feore and Michael Attwell

  • Released on VHS in 1998
8 "Our Boy"Tony GroundsDavid Evans15 February 1998 (1998-02-15)

References

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  1. ^ "Screen One". BBC. Retrieved 6 August 2019.
  2. ^ "The Judi Dench Collection". Amazon. 5 November 2007.
  3. ^ "BBC One – Screen One, Series 3, Hancock".
  4. ^ "Dancin' Thru the Dark". Amazon. 26 March 2012.
  5. ^ 2015 review by Mark Cunliffe at letterbox.com; retrieved 24 January 2018
  6. ^ "Alan Bennett at the BBC". Amazon. 26 October 2009.
  7. ^ "Adam Bede". Amazon.
  8. ^ "Ghostwatch". Amazon. 25 November 2002.
  9. ^ "The Wedding Gift". Amazon. 17 May 2011.
  10. ^ "A Foreign Field". Amazon. 3 March 2008.
  11. ^ "Down Among the Big Boys". Amazon. 25 September 2006.
  12. ^ "Martins at War – The Bullion boys". Martinsbank.co.uk. 22 May 1940. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
  13. ^ "Bambino Mio". Amazon. February 1999.
  14. ^ "Pat & Margaret". Amazon. 21 May 2007.
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