Sam is a television drama series written by John Finch and produced by Granada Television between 1973 and 1975 for broadcast on ITV. Finch also created and wrote A Family at War for Granada.
| Sam | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Drama, Family |
| Written by | John Finch |
| Directed by | Colin Cant Les Chatfield Bill Podmore Roland Joffé |
| Starring | Mark McManus Kevin Moreton Barbara Ewing Ray Smith John Price Frank Mills Alethea Charlton Michael Goodliffe James Hazeldine Maggie Jones Dorothy White Jennifer Hilary Cherith Mellor Jan Harvey Ivor Roberts Alan David Stephanie Turner Simon Rouse Veronica Roberts Peter Duncan Windsor Davies Jim Norton Carol Drinkwater |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 39 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Michael Cox |
| Production locations | Yorkshire Gin Pit Village, Astley Lancashire |
| Production company | Granada Television |
| Original release | |
| Network | ITV |
| Release | 12 June 1973 – 25 August 1975 |
The series is based on fact, with Sam as a boy growing up in Featherstone. It was initially set in the coalfields of Yorkshire in the inter-war period but eventually progressed to the modern (then) era. Interior scenes were recorded at Granada's studios in Manchester, while many of the exterior scenes were filmed in Lancashire. For example, the railway station used for filming was Garswood, near Wigan. Local dialect is used, e.g. top-at-knob referring to North Featherstone. The series was made in a video/film hybrid format, which was common at the time.
Episodes edit
| Series | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | |||
| 1 | 13 | 12 June 1973 | 4 September 1973 | |
| 2 | 13 | 16 May 1974 | 8 August 1974 | |
| 3 | 13 | 2 June 1975 | 25 August 1975 | |
Series 1 (1973) edit
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "A Way of Life" | Michael Cox | John Finch | 12 June 1973 | |
| Sam and his mother arrive in Skellerton and try to settle in with their relatives. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Poor Law" | Colin Cant | John Finch | 19 June 1973 | |
| The Labour Exchange is looking for Sam's mother. Sam is taken on a tour of the local pit by his grandfather. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Leaving Home" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 26 June 1973 | |
| Sam is bullied at school. Sam's mother starts a new relationship with Alan. Sam doesn't like this and runs away. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "For Ever and Ever and Ever and Ever" | Bill Podmore | Unknown | 3 July 1973 | |
| Sam is found. | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "A Day to Remember" | Colin Cant, Les Chatfield | John Finch | 10 July 1973 | |
| Sam is taken on a day out to the seaside. | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "The Cost of Living" | Richard Doubleday | John Finch | 17 July 1973 | |
| Sam's mother and new partner set up a family home. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "Out of the Blue" | Colin Cant | John Finch | 24 July 1973 | |
| Sam's family come under pressure from the disapproving locals. | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "United We Stand" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 31 July 1973 | |
| Sam discovers a book written by his father. The pit workers are given notice. | ||||||
| 9 | 9 | "The Beginning of Winter" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 7 August 1973 | |
| Sam's mother falls pregnant. Sam's father sends a letter asking for money to be sent to him so that he can come home from Canada. | ||||||
| 10 | 10 | "Where the Heart Is" | Colin Cant | John Finch | 14 August 1973 | |
| Dora passes away in hospital giving birth to a son, Leslie. Alan, devastated, decides to go south to look for work, leaving his mother to care for the baby. Sam's uncle George goes with him. | ||||||
| 11 | 11 | "Home from Home" | Richard Doubleday, Alan Grint | John Finch | 21 August 1973 | |
| Frank is worried about Sam's education and his grandfather wants to send him to a charity boarding school. Alan and George are disillusioned in the south and George returns home. | ||||||
| 12 | 12 | "No Going Back" | Bill Gilmour, Bill Podmore | John Finch | 28 August 1973 | |
| Sam is at boarding school, hating it and longing to go home, but can't, because of a diphtheria outbreak in Skellerton. After a fight at the school, he runs away and walks the fifty miles home. | ||||||
| 13 | 13 | "Breadwinners" | Colin Cant | John Finch | 4 September 1973 | |
| Sam's grandfather Toby sets up a garment factory in the old chapel, providing work for the women of Skellerton, leaving the men at home. Sam finally goes down the pit with his grandfather. | ||||||
Series 2 (1974) edit
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | 1 | "A New World" | Baz Taylor | John Finch | 16 May 1974 |
| 15 | 2 | "Legacy" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 23 May 1974 |
| 16 | 3 | "Shape Yourself Round It" | Baz Taylor | John Finch | 30 May 1974 |
| 17 | 4 | "Under a Cloud" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 6 June 1974 |
| 18 | 5 | "Head and Heart" | Alan Grint | John Finch | 13 June 1974 |
| 19 | 6 | "Stay Single and Live Forever" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 20 June 1974 |
| 20 | 7 | "Credit" | Roland Joffé | John Finch | 27 June 1974 |
| 21 | 8 | "Sins of the Fathers" | Alan Grint | John Finch | 4 July 1974 |
| 22 | 9 | "The World as It Is" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 11 July 1974 |
| 23 | 10 | "Land" | Roland Joffé | John Finch | 18 July 1974 |
| 24 | 11 | "Half a Loaf" | Quentin Lawrence | John Finch | 25 July 1974 |
| 25 | 12 | "Two Steps Forward, One Step Back" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 1 August 1974 |
| 26 | 13 | "Moving On" | Roland Joffé | John Finch | 8 August 1974 |
Series 3 (1975) edit
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | 1 | "God Sent Sunday" | Michael Cox | John Finch | 2 June 1975 |
| 28 | 2 | "In the Midst of Plenty" | Quentin Lawrence | John Finch | 9 June 1975 |
| 29 | 3 | "Compensation" | Quentin Lawrence | John Finch | 16 June 1975 |
| 30 | 4 | "Bonfire Night" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 23 June 1975 |
| 31 | 5 | "The Difference Between Us" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 30 June 1975 |
| 32 | 6 | "What You Care Is What You Do" | Brian Mills | John Finch | 7 July 1975 |
| 33 | 7 | "Gains and Losses" | Brian Mills | John Finch | 14 July 1975 |
| 34 | 8 | "The Honest Generation" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 21 July 1975 |
| 35 | 9 | "Opting Out" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 28 July 1975 |
| 36 | 10 | "Home Thoughts from Abroad" | Les Chatfield | John Finch | 4 August 1975 |
| 37 | 11 | "The Next Line" | Stephen Butcher | John Finch | 11 August 1975 |
| 38 | 12 | "Proposals" | Stephen Butcher | John Finch | 18 August 1975 |
| 39 | 13 | "Ends and Means" | Roland Joffé | John Finch | 25 August 1975 |
Video and DVD release edit
All three series were issued by Acorn Media UK in 2003.
