''Emergency – Ward 9'' is a

Dennis Potter Dennis Christopher George Potter (17 May 1935 – 7 June 1994) was an English television dramatist, screenwriter and journalist. He is best known for his BBC television serials '' Pennies from Heaven'' (1978), ''The Singing Detective'' (198 ...

television play first broadcast on

BBC1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

in the ''

Thirty-Minute Theatre ''Thirty-Minute Theatre'' was a British anthology drama series of short plays shown on BBC Television between 1965 and 1973, which was used in part at least as a training ground for new writers, on account of its short running length, and which t ...

'' series on 11 April 1966. Potter had praised the storylines and sense of urgency of the ITV hospital soap ''

Emergency – Ward 10 ''Emergency Ward 10'' is a British medical soap opera series shown on ITV between 1957 and 1967. Like ''The Grove Family'', a series shown by the BBC between 1954 and 1957, ''Emergency Ward 10'' is considered to be one of British television's ...

'' in his television reviews for the '' Daily Herald''. He was inspired to write a play that connected his experiences in a

National Health National Health were an English progressive rock band associated with the Canterbury scene. Founded in 1975, the band featured members of keyboardist Dave Stewart (keyboardist), Dave Stewart's band Hatfield and the North and Alan Gowen's band ...

hospital with events depicted in the series. Potter's script specifies an "

Alf Garnett Alfred Edward "Alf" Garnett is a fictional character from the British sitcom '' Till Death Us Do Part'' and its follow-on and spin-off series '' Till Death...'' and ''In Sickness and in Health''. He also appeared in the chat show ''The Thoughts ...

-type" character who suddenly finds himself sharing a ward with a black man. The play was controversial for its unflinching depiction of institutionalised racism but was critically applauded. The play was repeated eighteen months after its first transmission. For many years, a recording was thought not to have survived, but a recording of the play resurfaced and was screened at the BFI's Missing Believed Wiped event in December 2011.John Wyve
"Potter play preserved"
, Illuminations website (blog), 24 October 2011

References

1966 television plays BBC television dramas Television shows written by Dennis Potter {{1960s-play-stub