"You in Your Small Corner" is a British television play shown in the ''

Play of the Week Play of the Week may refer to: *''ITV Play of the Week'', British TV anthology series broadcast from 1956 to 1966 *''The Play of the Week'', American TV anthology series broadcast from 1959 to 1961 See also *''Play of the Month ''Play of the M ...

'' series on the Independent Television (ITV) on 5 June 1962. It was formerly believed to include the first televised interracial kiss on British television until the rediscovery of an earlier interracial kiss featuring the same male actor in an ITV broadcast of '' Hot Summer Night'' on 1 February 1959. The performance, broadcast live as part of the ''ITV Play of the Week'' series, was commissioned and produced by Granada Television, one of ITV's regional contractors. It was an adaptation of a stage play of the same name by Jamaican-born

Barry Reckord Barrington John Reckord (19 November 1926 – 20 December 2011), known as Barry Reckord, was a Jamaican playwright, one of the earliest Caribbean writers to make a contribution to theatre in Britain. His brother was the actor and director Lloyd ...

and was directed by

Claude Whatham Claude Whatham (7 December 1927 in Manchester – 4 January 2008 in Anglesey) was an English film and TV director mainly known for his work on dramas. Early life In 1940, Whatham, a teenage evacuee art student, had been commissioned to paint f ...

. The plot involves Dave, a young, intellectual,

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Com ...

Jamaican man (played by

Lloyd Reckord Lloyd Reckord (26 May 1929 – 8 July 2015) was a Jamaican actor, film maker, and stage director who lived in England for some years. Reckord appeared in 1958 in a West End production of '' Hot Summer Night'', which as an ITV adaptation broadc ...

; the writer's brother), who becomes involved with Terry, a white,

working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colo ...

woman (

Elizabeth MacLennan Elizabeth Margaret Ross MacLennan (16 March 1938 – 23 June 2015) was a Scottish actress, writer and radical popular theatre practitioner. Early life Elizabeth MacLennan was born in Glasgow, Scotland, daughter of Sir Hector MacLennan and Is ...

) while living with his aunt in the Brixton district of London, en route to studying at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

. A post-coital scene, showing the characters getting out of bed and getting dressed, was also featured. Unseen for over 50 years, a recording of the broadcast was rediscovered in the

British Film Institute 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 (United Kingdom), National Lot ...

's archive in 2015.

Other kisses

The screening predated a better known interracial kiss on British television, on ''

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 1964, and the first US interracial television kiss, on '' Star Trek'' in 1968, each of which feature black women and white men.

Stage version

"You in Your Small Corner" was Reckord's second play and had been performed at the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a non-commercial West End theatre in Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England ...

, then transferred to the New Arts Theatre. It was based in part on the author's own experiences as a Cambridge undergraduate in the 1950s. It was omitted from the 2010 book ''For the Reckord: A Collection of Three Plays by Barry Reckord'', as a copy of the script could not be found in time for its publication. The title of the play is the penultimate line of each verse of the 1868 children's hymn, '' Jesus Bids Us Shine'' by Susan Bogert Warner. The play should not be confused with works of the same title, by Eileen Corderoy (1968) or John Naismith (1987).

References

{{Reflist

External links

Set sketches
by

Motley Theatre Design Group Motley was the name of the theatre design firm made up of three English designers: sisters Margaret (known as "Percy," 1904–2000) and Sophie Harris (1900–1966) and Elizabeth Montgomery (1902–1993). Career The name ''Motley'', according t ...

Motley Collection of Theatre & Costume Design
1962 television plays 1962 in the United Kingdom ITV television dramas Race relations in the United Kingdom Films about interracial romance Black-and-white British television shows ITV Play of the Week