''The Lady from the Sea'' is a 1961 drama one-off presented on Australian broadcaster

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

. An adaptation of 1888 play by Norwegian playwright

Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...

, it went for 75 minutes and was telecast live on 4 October 1961 in Melbourne, and was recorded for showing in Sydney (it is not known if it was also shown on ABC's stations in Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth). Per a search of their website, the National Archives may hold a copy, with running time listed as 1:23:12. Australian TV drama was relatively rare at the time.

Plot

A young woman, Eldsa, is married but still carries a torch for a former lover, who she believes is drowned. The husband believes another man was also his wife's former lover. A young consumptive man seems to be interested in the wife, but actually wants her daughter. The former lover emerges from the sea.

Cast

*Lynne Flanagan as Eldsa * Edward Howell as Dr Wangel *

Carole Potter Carole Potter was an Australian actor best known for her work in the early days of Australian television. She was born in England and moved to Australia in 1957. Her TV debut was made when she was 15 in ''The Governess''. She married director Wil ...

as Bolette *Eva Freitag as Hilde *Roland Redshaw as Arnholm *David Mitchell as Lyngstrand * Wynn Roberts as the stranger *

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. ...

as Ballested *Nancy Cato *

Edward Brayshaw Edward John Brayshaw (18 October 1933 – 28 December 1990) was an Australian actor who worked in Australia and England. Australian career He was a Melbourne-based actor in the 1950s and 1960s and often appeared on television and stage. He lef ...

Production

The play had been performed on Australian radio in February 1959. It was the first TV production for Lynne Flanagan and 14 year old Eva Freitag.

Reception

The ''Australian Woman's Weekly'' TV critic said "The whole thing really had to be seen to be believed. There was so much talk of the sea, people drowning, so much trick photography that didn't come off, that I ended up feeling like a sea creature myself."

References

External links

* 1961 television films 1961 films Australian television films Australian Broadcasting Corporation original programming Australian English-language television shows Black-and-white Australian television shows Australian live television shows Films based on works by Henrik Ibsen Films directed by William Sterling (director) {{Australia-tv-film-stub