"The Glorious Dead" is the eighth episode of the fourth series of the

period drama A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films, and swas ...

'' Upstairs, Downstairs''. It was first broadcast on 2 November 1974 on ITV.

Background

"The Glorious Dead" was filmed on 11 and 12 July 1974. While

Elizabeth Jane Howard Elizabeth Jane Howard, Lady Amis (26 March 1923 – 2 January 2014), was an English novelist, author of 12 novels including the best-selling series ''The'' ''Cazalet Chronicles''. Early life Howard's parents were timber-merchant Major David L ...

was credited as the writer, the script editor

Alfred Shaughnessy Alfred James Shaughnessy (19 May 1916 – 2 November 2005) was an English scriptwriter, film director and producer best known for being the script editor of '' Upstairs, Downstairs''. Early life Alfred Shaughnessy was born in London, his father, ...

largely rewrote Howard's script. The episode was set in 1916.

Cast

Angela Baddeley Madeleine Angela Clinton-Baddeley, CBE (4 July 1904 – 22 February 1976) was an English stage and television actress, best-remembered for her role as household cook Mrs. Bridges in the period drama '' Upstairs, Downstairs''. Her stage career ...

- Mrs Bridges * Gordon Jackson - Hudson *

Jean Marsh Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jea ...

Rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

Meg Wynn Owen Margaret Wright ( Shuttleworth, 8 November 1939 – June 2022), better known as Meg Wynn Owen, was a British actress known for her role as Hazel Bellamy in '' Upstairs, Downstairs''. She also appeared in ''Gosford Park'', ''Love Actually, Pride ...

Hazel Bellamy Hazel Patricia Bellamy (née Forrest; circa 1883–1918), is a fictional character in the British television series, '' Upstairs, Downstairs''. She was portrayed by Meg Wynn Owen. On 15 April 1912 Richard hires Hazel Forrest to type the biograp ...

* Simon Williams - James Bellamy *

Jacqueline Tong Jacqueline Tong (born 21 May 1951) is an English actress. She is best known for playing Daisy Peel in the television series '' Upstairs, Downstairs'' (1973–1975), for which she was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Contin ...

- Daisy *

Eileen Way Eileen Mabel Elizabeth Way (2 September 1911 – 16 June 1994) was a British actress who appeared in film and television roles in a career dating back to the 1930s. She trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art from the age of 16. She was i ...

- Madame Francini *Helena McCarthy - Mrs Speedwell *Graham Leaman - Mr Price

Plot

Rose gets a letter from Gregory's company commander telling her that her fiancé Gregory has been killed at

Fromelles Fromelles () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. it had a population of 1,041; its inhabitants are called ''Fromellois''. It is located about to the west of Lille. First World War The village of Fromelles was captured by a ...

, having been shot by a sniper while returning from morning patrol. Mrs Bridges comforts Rose and tells her how when she was a kitchen maid over 30 years ago, she fell for a groom called Frederick, who later died of a fever in Sudan while he was acting as a batman. Mrs Bridges then advises that Rose goes to see a spiritualist called Madame Francini, which Rose does; but when ''

Waltzing Matilda "Waltzing Matilda" is a song developed in the Australian style of poetry and folk music called a bush ballad. It has been described as the country's "unofficial national anthem". The title was Australian slang for travelling on foot (waltzing) ...

'' plays during the

séance A séance or seance (; ) is an attempt to communicate with spirits. The word ''séance'' comes from the French word for "session", from the Old French ''seoir'', "to sit". In French, the word's meaning is quite general: one may, for example, spea ...

, she breaks down and runs out of the house. James is awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

and comes home on leave. Just before James arrives home, Hazel reads in the

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as p ...

that Lt. Jack Dyson MC has been killed in an aerial battle, but she immediately has to comfort Rose when she comes back from Madame Francini's. Then James arrives home and Hazel has to hide her grief. A changed and depressed James tells Hazel all about the

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

and his latest experiences at the ongoing Battle of the Somme, how he has now lost all faith and belief in the war that he once enthusiastically supported, but that he will continue on with his duties as a soldier. James gives Hazel an account of the war that he has written that he wants published if he is killed. Meanwhile, James speaks to Rose, puts on a strong British soldier personality, and tells Rose how proud she should be of Gregory and herself and that they are heroes of history. Later, when James opens a drawer he sees letters from Jack Dyson and a photo of him, but he closes the drawer and says nothing.

Reception

In '' The Evening News'', Richard Afton wrote that the programme was "running downhill fast". He said that "The Glorious Dead", "with its sordid intrigues, mumbo-jumbo sense and long, philosophical speeches was a bore".

Footnotes

References

Richard Marson Richard Marson (born c.1967) is an English writer, television producer and director, best known as a former editor-in-chief of the BBC's children's television programme ''Blue Peter''. In September 2007, Marson was sacked from his post for makin ...

, "Inside UpDown - The Story of Upstairs, Downstairs",

Kaleidoscope Publishing Kaleidoscope Publishing is a publishing house founded by Richard Down and Chris Perry, and based in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1988 and exists to promote the appreciation of British television, including classic and cult programming. No ...

, 2005
Updown.org.uk
- ''Upstairs, Downstairs'' Fansite {{DEFAULTSORT:Glorious Dead, The Upstairs, Downstairs series 4 episodes 1974 British television episodes Fiction set in 1916