''Rain on the Roof'' is a television drama by

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 ...

, broadcast by

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

on 26 October 1980. It is the second in a loosely connected trilogy of plays exploring language and betrayal, produced for

London Weekend Television London Weekend Television (LWT) (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00 pm from 1968 unt ...

by the independent company Potter and producer

Kenith Trodd Kenith Trodd (born 1936, in Southampton) is a British television producer best known for his professional association with television playwright Dennis Potter. Early life The son of a crane driver, Trodd was raised in the Christian fundamentalist ...

established after a break in the playwright's relationship with the BBC. A psycho-sexual thriller, the drama is an example of the visitation motif: a key theme in Potter's work. The title of the play is taken from the 1932

Al Bowlly Albert Allick Bowlly (7 January 1898 – 17 April 1941) was a Mozambican-born South African– British vocalist and jazz guitarist, who was popular during the 1930s in Britain. He recorded more than 1,000 songs. His most popular songs includ ...

song of the same name.

Synopsis

Janet and John are a frustrated middle class couple; John is an

advertising copy Copywriting is the act or occupation of writing text for the purpose of advertising or other forms of marketing. The product, called copy or sales copy, is written content that aims to increase brand awareness and ultimately persuade a person or ...

writer while Janet is a bored housewife with a (well founded) suspicion that her husband is having an affair with his business partner's wife Emma after observing them together at their disastrous New Year's Eve party. The following morning, after her husband has gone to work, she is visited by Billy, an illiterate local youth to whom she once gave reading and writing lessons. Billy's abusive father has recently died, and contact with a

Jehovah's Witness Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ev ...

has led him to seek solace in religion. Billy hopes that by resuming his lessons he may one day read the Bible. Janet, eager to redress the balance in her broken marriage, makes a move on Billy after he has an adverse reaction to the

anti-depressant Antidepressants are a class of medication used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, chronic pain conditions, and to help manage addictions. Common side-effects of antidepressants include dry mouth, weight gain, dizziness, heada ...

s he has been taking. When John returns home he discovers a naked Billy in the living room, lying under a blanket with a half-dressed Janet. John slaps her. That night, Janet and John have John's business partner Martin and his wife Emma round for dinner: Janet insists Billy join them. As John and Emma's affair is revealed to an unsurprised Malcolm and Janet argues with her husband, who throws curry in her lap. Billy flees to the greenhouse at the bottom of the garden where, unknown to the couple, he has been living for the last few days since walking out on his bereaved mother. After Martin and Emma leave, Janet and John continue to argue. Janet takes a bath while her husband drowns his miseries with a bottle of wine. Meanwhile, Billy takes a shard of glass that fell from the greenhouse roof that morning, returns to the house and knocks on the door; when John answers, Billy stabs him through the throat. Janet rushes downstairs and is confronted by Billy, consumed by rage and jealousy, who declares her "wicked" and her husband "no better than an animal". In an attempt to pacify him, a fearful Janet sits Billy down in the study to resume their lessons. As Janet tries to rein in her sobs, Billy notes "They be funny things, words".

Principal cast

Cheryl Campbell Cheryl Campbell (born 22 May 1949) is an English actor of stage, film and television. She starred opposite Bob Hoskins in the 1978 BBC drama '' Pennies From Heaven'', before going on to win the 1980 BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for ''Testamen ...

as Janet *

Malcolm Stoddard Malcolm Stoddard (born 20 July 1948) is a British actor who has appeared in films and television. Early life He attended the all-male grammar school Chichester High School For Boys. Career His TV credits include ''The Voyage of Charles Darwin'' ...

as John *

Ewan Stewart Andrew Ewan Stewart (born 26 August 1957) is a Scottish film, television and stage actor. Early life Stewart was born in Glasgow, and is the son of the late Scottish entertainer Andy Stewart. His mother Sheila lives in Arbroath, Scotland. St ...

as Billy *

Michael Culver Michael Culver (born 16 June 1938) is an English actor. He was born in Hampstead, London, the son of actor Roland Culver and casting director Daphne Rye. He was educated at Gresham's School. Actor Culver's aunt, father, mother and brother a ...

as Martin * Madeline Hinde as Emma

Production

''Rain on the Roof'' was the second play in a proposed series of nine dramas produced by Potter and

's own production company Pennies From Heaven Ltd. to be broadcast on

between 1980 and 1981. Commissioned by

Michael Grade Michael Ian Grade, Baron Grade of Yarmouth, (born 8 March 1943) is an English television executive and businessman. He has held a number of senior roles in television, including controller of BBC1 (1984–1986), chief executive of Channel 4 ( ...

and distributed through

, six of the plays would be written by Potter while the remaining three were to be shared between Jim Allen and an undisclosed writer. In the event, budget cuts and scheduling problems led to only three plays being produced: ''

Blade on the Feather ''Blade on the Feather'' is a television drama by Dennis Potter, broadcast by ITV on 19 October 1980 as the first in a loosely connected trilogy of plays exploring language and betrayal. A pastiche of the John Le Carré spy thriller and trans ...

'', ''Rain on the Roof'' and ''

Cream in My Coffee ''Cream in My Coffee'' is a television drama by Dennis Potter, broadcast on ITV on 2 November 1980 as the last in a loosely connected trilogy of plays exploring language and betrayal. A juxtaposition between youth and old age, the play combines ...

''. All three dramas were shot on 16mm film stock and featured extensive location work.

Sources

Humphrey Carpenter Humphrey William Bouverie Carpenter (29 April 1946 – 4 January 2005) was an English biographer, writer, and radio broadcaster. He is known especially for his biographies of J. R. R. Tolkien and other members of the literary society the Inkli ...

, ''Dennis Potter: A Biography''; 1998 *Graham Fuller (Ed.), ''Potter on Potter''; 1993 *W. Stephen Gilbert, ''Fight & Kick & Bite: The Life and Work of Dennis Potter''; 1995 {{DEFAULTSORT:Rain on the Roof 1980 television films 1980 films 1980 television plays British television plays Films scored by George Fenton Films directed by Alan Bridges ITV (TV network) original programming Television shows written by Dennis Potter London Weekend Television shows