''A Dead Secret'' is a 1957 play by
Rodney Ackland
Rodney Ackland (18 May 1908 in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex – 6 December 1991 in Richmond upon Thames, Surrey) was an English playwright, actor, theatre director and screenwriter.
Born as Norman Ackland Bernstein in Southend, Essex, to a Jewish fat ...
. It is a murder drama set in 1911
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
and is based on the
Seddon murder trial.
Plot
Insurance agent Frederick Dyson owns a house in London with his wife. Among the lodgers is a misery elderly woman, Miss Lummus, who hoards her money in the house. When she is murdered, Dyson is charged with the crime.
1959 British television version
A version aired 3 March 1959 as part of British television series ''
ITV Play of the Week
''Play of the Week'' is a 90-minute British television anthology series produced by a variety of companies including Granada Television, Associated-Rediffusion, ATV and Anglia Television.
Synopsis
From 1955 to 1967 approximately 500 episodes a ...
''. The adaptation was by
John McKeller. This version is believed to be lost.
1959 Australian television version
A television version aired 21 May 1959 on Australian broadcaster ABC. This version aired live in Melbourne, and was kinescoped for interstate broadcasts. It is not known if the kinescope still exists.
It was made when Australian drama was very rare. It starred Bryce Archer who was in the film ''
Smiley Gets a Gun
''Smiley Gets a Gun'' is a 1958 Australian comedy-drama film in CinemaScope directed by Anthony Kimmins and starring Sybil Thorndike and Chips Rafferty. It is the sequel to the 1956 film ''Smiley''.
Synopsis
A young boy named Smiley desperately ...
''.
Cast
*Bruce Archer as Alfie, Miss Lummus' adoptive son
*Kenneth Goodlett as Frederick Dyson
*Elizabeth Wing as Mrs Dyson
*Moira Carlicion as Miss Lummus
*Bettina Kauffman
*
Edward Howell
*
Campbell Copelin
Campbell Copelin (1901–1988) was an English actor, who moved to Australia in the 1920s and worked extensively in film, theatre, radio and television. He had a notable association with J.C. Williamson Ltd and frequently collaborated with F. W. ...
*Lewis Tegart
*Carol Armstrong
Reception
The TV critic for the ''Sydney Morning Herald'' thought that the "potential dramatic richness" of the play "was not fully exploited" because the director "had little time—or space—to create the atmosphere which can come much more easily to a stage director". However he did think the production "was, without any startling virtues, nevertheless a satisfactory piece of domestic entertainment.
1963 Australia radio version
A radio version aired 15 December 1963 on Melbourne Australia radio station LO.
1963 Australian television version
An Australian television version aired 1963 on ABC.
Cast
*
Ron Haddrick
Ronald Norman Haddrick (9 April 1929 – 11 February 2020) was an Australian actor, cricketer, narrator and presenter. In 2012, he received the Actors Equity Lifetime Achievement Award for his long and distinguished career in media, spanning s ...
as Frederick Dyson
* Marion Johns as Mrs Dyson
*
Lyndall Barbour
Lyndall Harvey Barbour (19 May 1916 – 10 October 1986) was an Australian actress, primarily of radio, although she also added stage and television work (both series and made-for-television movies) to her repertoire. Born in Egypt to Australian p ...
as dead woman
*
Thelma Scott
Thelma Marjorie Scott (17 June 1913 – 23 November 2006) was an Australian character actress whose six-decade career in theatre, radio, film and Australian made her one of her country's most recognisable and beloved personalities. Having st ...
as Henrietta Spicer
*
Walter Sullivan as Arthur Lovecraft QC
* Tom Farley as Dyson's Father
See also
*
References
External links
1959 ITV version on IMDb1959 ABC version on IMDb1963 ABC version on IMDbPhotographs of 1959 TV production
at National Archives of Australia
The National Archives of Australia (NAA), formerly known as the Commonwealth Archives Office and Australian Archives, is an Australian Government agency that serves as the national archives of the nation. It collects, preserves and encourages ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dead Secret
1957 plays
1959 television films
1959 films
1963 television films
1963 films
English-language television shows
Black-and-white Australian television shows
Australian live television shows
Australian Broadcasting Corporation original programming
1959 Australian television plays
1963 Australian television plays
British plays
Lost television episodes
1960s English-language films
1950s English-language films
Television plays directed by William Sterling