''The Forsyte Saga'' is a 1967 BBC television adaptation of

John Galsworthy John Galsworthy (; 14 August 1867 – 31 January 1933) was an English novelist and playwright. Notable works include '' The Forsyte Saga'' (1906–1921) and its sequels, ''A Modern Comedy'' and ''End of the Chapter''. He won the Nobel Prize ...

's series of ''

The Forsyte Saga ''The Forsyte Saga'', first published under that title in 1922, is a series of three novels and two interludes published between 1906 and 1921 by the English author John Galsworthy, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature. They chronicle the vici ...

'' novels, and its sequel trilogy ''A Modern Comedy''. The series follows the fortunes of the

upper middle class In sociology, the upper middle class is the social group constituted by higher status members of the middle class. This is in contrast to the term ''lower middle class'', which is used for the group at the opposite end of the middle-class strat ...

Forsyte family, and stars

Eric Porter Eric Richard Porter (8 April 192815 May 1995) was an English actor of stage, film and television. Early life Porter was born in Shepherd's Bush, London, to bus conductor Richard John Porter and Phoebe Elizabeth (née Spall). His parents hope ...

as Soames,

Kenneth More Kenneth Gilbert More, CBE (20 September 1914 – 12 July 1982) was an English film and stage actor. Initially achieving fame in the comedy '' Genevieve'' (1953), he appeared in many roles as a carefree, happy-go-lucky gent. Films from this per ...

as Young Jolyon and

Nyree Dawn Porter Nyree Dawn Porter OBE (born Ngaire Dawn Porter; 22 January 1936 – 10 April 2001) was a New Zealand–British actress. Early life and career Porter was born in Napier, New Zealand in 1936. Her first professional work was touring with the N ...

as Irene. It was adapted for television and produced by Donald Wilson and was originally shown in twenty-six episodes on Saturday evenings between 7 January and 1 July 1967 on

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream a ...

, at a time when only a small proportion of the population had television sets able to receive the channel. It was therefore the Sunday night repeat run 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, ...

, starting on 8 September 1968, that secured the programme's success with 18 million tuning in for the final episode in 1969. It was shown in the United States on public television and broadcast all over the world, and became the first BBC television series to be sold to the Soviet Union.
The Forsyte Saga
'' at PBS

Masterpiece Theatre ''Masterpiece'' (formerly known as ''Masterpiece Theatre'') is a drama anthology television series produced by WGBH Boston. It premiered on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) on January 10, 1971. The series has presented numerous acclaimed Briti ...

, URL accessed 12 October 2009
The Forsyte Saga
'' at televisionheaven.co.uk, URL accessed 12 October 2009

Production

Donald Wilson initially intended to produce the series as a 15-part serial adapted by

Constance Cox Constance Cox (25 October 1912 – 8 July 1998) was a British script writer and playwright, born in Sutton, Surrey. Life and career Cox was born Constance Shaw in Sutton, Surrey, in 1912. She married Norman Cox, a fighter pilot, who was kille ...

in 1959. However,

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

held the rights to the novels, having adapted the first novel ''A Man of Property'' into '' That Forsyte Woman'' in 1949. After a distribution arrangement with MGM was reached in 1965, the series developed into a groundbreaking 26-part serial, depicting the fortunes of the Forsyte family between 1879 and 1926.
The Forsyte Saga
'' at

BFI The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

screenonline Screenonline is a website about the history of British film, television and social history as documented by film and television. The project has been developed by the British Film Institute and funded by a £1.2 million grant from the National Lo ...

, URL accessed 12 October 2009 ''The Forsyte Saga'' was the last major British drama serial to be made in

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

, even though the BBC was beginning to equip for full-time colour transmission. In an interview included on the DVD release, Wilson admits he would have loved to have shot the programme in colour, but delaying recording would have meant re-casting and he felt he had the perfect cast for the adaptation. The series was a gamble for the BBC, with a budget of £10,000 per episode. Although never credited, the music that opens and closes each episode is the first movement, "Halcyon Days", from the suite ''The Three Elizabeths'' written in the early 1940s by Eric Coates.

Plot

The series was adapted from the three novels and two interludes of John Galsworthy's ''Forsyte Saga'': ''The Man of Property'' (1906), ''Indian Summer of a Forsyte'' (1918), ''In Chancery'' (1920), ''Awakening'' (1920) and ''To Let'' (1921); and Galsworthy's later trilogy ''A Modern Comedy''.

Cast

The production featured a cast of well-known character actors, of whom the film star Kenneth More was the most famous name. *

Terence Alexander Terence Joseph Alexander (11 March 1923 – 28 May 2009) was an English film and television actor, best known for his role as Charlie Hungerford in the British TV drama ''Bergerac (TV series), Bergerac'', which ran for nine series on BBC One be ...

as Montague 'Monty' Dartie *John Barcroft as George Forsyte *June Barry as June Forsyte *

John Baskcomb John Baskcomb (7 February 1916 – 29 March 2000) was an English character actor who made numerous television and film appearances over a 35-year period. He was the son of the founder of the Bank of England Operatic and Dramatic Society and was ...

as Timothy Forsyte * John Bennett as Philip Bosinney *Jonathan Burn as Val Dartie *

Fay Compton Virginia Lilian Emmeline Compton-Mackenzie, (; 18 September 1894 – 12 December 1978), known professionally as Fay Compton, was an English actress. She appeared in several films, and made many broadcasts, but was best known for her stage per ...

as 'Aunt Ann' Forsyte *Karin Fernald as Anne Forsyte née Wilmot *

Susan Hampshire Susan Hampshire, Lady Kulukundis, (born 12 May 1937) is an English actress known for her many television and film roles. A three-time Emmy Award winner, she won for '' The Forsyte Saga'' in 1970, ''The First Churchills'' in 1969, and for ''Vani ...

as Fleur Mont née Forsyte * Ursula Howells as Frances Forsyte * Martin Jarvis as Jolyon 'Jon' Forsyte * Maggie Jones as Smither *

Cyril Luckham Cyril Alexander Garland Luckham (25 July 1907 – 8 February 1989) was an English film, television and theatre actor. He was the husband of stage and screen actress Violet Lamb. Career The son of a paymaster captain in the Royal Navy, Cyril Lu ...

as Sir Lawrence Mont *

as 'Young Jolyon' Forsyte *

Lana Morris Lana Morris, born Avril Maureen Anita Morris (11 March 1930 – 28 May 1998) was a British film, stage and television actress during the 1950s and 1960s. She played the role of Helene Hillmer in the 1967 BBC adaptation of ''The Forsyte Sag ...

as Helene Hillmer *

Suzanne Neve Suzanne may refer to: People * Suzanne (given name), a feminine given name (including a list of people with the name) * S. U. Zanne, pen name of August Vandekerkhove (1838–1923), Belgian writer and inventor * Suzanne, pen name of Renée Ménde ...

as Holly Dartie née Forsyte *

Nora Nicholson Nora Nicholson (7 December 1887 – 18 September 1973) was an English actress. Known for her portrayal of character roles, she achieved her greatest success in the later years of her career. She played in classics by Shakespeare and Chekhov and ...

as Aunt Juley Small *

Joseph O'Conor Joseph O'Conor (14 February 1916 – 21 January 2001) was an Irish actor and playwright. Early years O'Conor was born in DublinAlan Strachan ''The Independent'', 2 February 2001Stephen GilbertObituary ''The Guardian'', 25 January 2001 on ...

as 'Old Jolyon' Forsyte *Dalia Penn as Annette Forsyte née Lamotte *

Nicholas Pennell Nicholas Pennell (19 November 1938 – 22 February 1995) was an English actor who appeared frequently on film and television in the 1960s. He emigrated to Stratford, Ontario, Canada, where he became a stalwart of the Stratford Festival. Pennel ...

as Michael Mont * Robin Phillips as Wilfrid Desert *

as Soames Forsyte *

as Irene Forsyte née Heron *

Kynaston Reeves Philip Arthur Reeves (29 May 18935 December 1971), known professionally as Kynaston Reeves, was an English character actor who appeared in numerous films and many television plays and series. Early life Reeves was born in London on 29 May 1893 ...

as Nicholas Forsyte * Fanny Rowe as Emily Forsyte * Nora Swinburne as 'Aunt Hester' Forsyte *

Margaret Tyzack Margaret Maud Tyzack (9 September 193125 June 2011) was an English actress. Her television roles included '' The Forsyte Saga'' (1967) and '' I, Claudius'' (1976). She won the 1970 BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for the BBC serial ''The First ...

as Winifred Dartie * John Welsh as James Forsyte *Julia White as Coaker * George Woodbridge as Swithin Forsyte *

Michael York Michael York OBE (born Michael Hugh Johnson; 27 March 1942) is an English film, television and stage actor. After performing on-stage with the Royal National Theatre, he had a breakthrough in films by playing Tybalt in Franco Zeffirelli's ''Ro ...

as Jolyon 'Jolly' Forsyte *

Ian Trigger Ian Trigger (30 September 1938 – 6 January 2010) was a British actor of stage, film and television who had a successful career in the United States. A diminutive actor, Trigger's long career saw him working in the West End, on Broadway and ...

as Greenwater *

Ellen Pollock Ellen Pollock (29 June 1902 – 29 March 1997) was a British character actress who mainly appeared on stage in London's West End. She also appeared in several films and TV productions. A devotee of Bernard Shaw, she was president of the Shaw S ...

as Madame Lamotte

Broadcast and reception

The series was originally shown over twenty-six episodes on Saturday evenings between 7 January and 1 July 1967 on BBC2, with each episode repeated the following Tuesday evening. This was originally intended to encourage viewers to switch over to

, which had launched in 1964. However, only a small proportion of the viewing public could receive the channel as it was broadcast on the then-new 625-line broadcasting system, which required a new TV set to receive, compared to the old 405-line system that BBC1 (and ITV) were broadcast on. It was when the series was later repeated on Sunday evenings on BBC1, starting on 8 September 1968, that the programme's success was secured with 18 million tuning in for the final episode in 1969. It is often quoted that both

publican In antiquity, publicans ( Greek τελώνης ''telōnēs'' (singular); Latin ''publicanus'' (singular); ''publicani'' (plural)) were public contractors, in whose official capacity they often supplied the Roman legions and military, managed th ...

s and

clergymen Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

in the United Kingdom complained that the Sunday night repeats were driving away customers and worshippers, respectively, and there are tales of Sunday

Evensong Evensong is a church service traditionally held near sunset focused on singing psalms and other biblical canticles. In origin, it is identical to the canonical hour of vespers. Old English speakers translated the Latin word as , which became ...

services being moved to prevent a clash with the broadcast.David Pickering''
The Forsyte Saga
'' at the

Museum of Broadcast Communications The Museum of Broadcast Communications (MBC) is an American museum, the stated mission of which is "to collect, preserve, and present historic and contemporary radio and television content as well as educate, inform and entertain through our arc ...

, URL accessed 12 October 2009 A retrospective on the series by when it was screened by the American PBS in the ''

'' slot comments:

Viewers remember the way the nation shut down each Sunday night for the event. Pubs closed early and the streets were deserted. The Church even rescheduled its evening worship services so that the immense audience could be ready for the start of the show at 7:25pm.

Following its success in Britain, the series was shown in the United States on

public television Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...

and broadcast all over the world, and became the first BBC television programme to be sold to the Soviet Union. The worldwide audience was estimated as something in the region of 160 million. The series won a

Royal Television Society The Royal Television Society (RTS) is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present, and future. It is the oldest television society in the world. It currently has fourteen r ...

Silver Medal and a BAFTA for Best Drama Series or Serial. Following its transmission in 1967 by

RTÉ (RTÉ) (; Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the national broadcaster of Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, whil ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

's public broadcaster, the BBC production won a

Jacob's Award The Jacob's Awards were instituted in December 1962 as the first Irish television awards. Later, they were expanded to include radio. The awards were named after their sponsor, W. & R. Jacob & Co. Ltd., a biscuit manufacturer, and recipients ...

at the annual presentation ceremony in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

. The series' success prompted companies to invest in similarly scaled drama serials, which resulted in programmes such as '' Upstairs, Downstairs'' and '' The Pallisers''. Writing after a new adaptation was produced by

Granada Television ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was its ...

in 2002, Sarah Crompton noted that even Galsworthy's novels paled in comparison to the television series, noting that the adaptation set a lasting precedent for television dramas:

Poor old Galsworthy may in his day have won the Nobel prize for literature, but now he is just a footnote in televisual history – the begetter of the most popular classic serial of all time. This is no exaggeration. One hundred million people in 26 countries ended up seeing Donald Wilson's version of the saga. It was not the first literary adaptation on TV, but it was longer and more ambitious than anything screened before, and it has come to represent every value and standard to which British TV has aspired ever since.Sarah Crompton,
Granada's grand undertaking
", ''
The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...
'', 27 March 2002

The series has been repeated several times on British television, with one run taking place on BBC1 from 9 January to 1 July 1970 and the final repeat being transmitted on twice-weekly weekday afternoons from 25 September 1974 to 19 December 1974. Episode 13 was repeated on BBC2 on 2 November 1986 as part of a series of programmes shown to mark the fiftieth anniversary of BBC Television. Its success and rebroadcasts has ensured that the full 26 episodes avoided

wiping Lost television broadcasts are mostly those early television programs which cannot be accounted for in studio archives (or in personal archives) usually because of deliberate destruction or neglect. Common reasons for loss A significant prop ...

from the archives, and all still exist as their 625-line

videotape Videotape is magnetic tape used for storing video and usually sound in addition. Information stored can be in the form of either an analog or digital signal. Videotape is used in both video tape recorders (VTRs) and, more commonly, videoca ...

masters. In 1992, the series was released in the UK on an 8-volume set of VHS videos, and on Region 2 DVD in 2004.

References

External links

* * * *
The Forsyte Saga
' at the