{"product_id":"9781839027932","title":"Play for Today A History of a Democratic Television Drama","description":"\u003ch1\u003ePlay for Today\u003c\/h1\u003e\u003ch2\u003eA History of a Democratic Television Drama\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003ch3\u003eTom May\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cb\u003ePerforming Arts \/ Film \/ General\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003ePlay for Today\u003c\/i\u003e was the BBC's groundbreaking television anthology drama series, epitomising entertainment, social commitment and artistic and intellectual ambition. More than three hundred original television plays and adaptations of stage plays and novels were transmitted to the British public between 1970 and 1984, including legendary dramas such like Robin Redbreast (1970), \u003ci\u003eEdna, The Inebriate Woman\u003c\/i\u003e (1971), \u003ci\u003ePenda's Fen\u003c\/i\u003e (1974), and the 'lost' \u003ci\u003eIn the Beautiful Caribbean\u003c\/i\u003e (1972) – the only Play for Today with an all-Black cast, for which no video copy exists. Over 200 writers were involved, among them Stephen Frears, Dennis Potter, Mike Leigh and Ken Loach.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis book is the first ever sustained and over-arching history of the iconic television strand, which provided a public-service of human-centric drama to large and varied audiences. Inside, Tom May rediscovers a prestigious phenomenon, analysing its aesthetics and style, its reception by viewers and critics and its trailblazing representations of change in British society, national and regional identity, ethnicity, sexuality, gender and class. He argues that its variety –  with programmes spanning social realism and experimentalism – makes it a direct forerunner of \u003ci\u003eTrainspotting\u003c\/i\u003e (1996), \u003ci\u003eThis Is England\u003c\/i\u003e (2006) and\u003ci\u003e Small Axe\u003c\/i\u003e (2020). Including detailed case-studies and many oral and written interviews with significant Play for Today actors, writers, composers, producers and directors, including Alison Steadman, Stephen Poliakoff and Alan Bennett, alongside crucial input from overlooked behind-the-camera figures like Jenny Brewer and Jacmel Dent, this book introduces \u003ci\u003ePlay for Today\u003c\/i\u003e to a new generation.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003eTom May is Associate Lecturer in Film and Media studies at Northumbria University, UK. His publications have appeared in \u003ci\u003eJournal of British Cinema and Television and Critical Studies in Television\u003c\/i\u003e. He has also written for \u003ci\u003eThe Oxonian Review\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Conversation\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Wire\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eNew Statesman\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ctable\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePublication Date: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e01 April 2027\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePublisher: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBloomsbury Academic\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eImprint: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBritish Film Institute\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eISBN-13: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e9781839027932\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eFormat: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePaperback softback\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePage Count: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e304\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eWeight (oz): \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e16.0\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e","brand":"Bloomsbury Academic","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51331312353420,"sku":"9781839027932","price":33.26,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0710\/9545\/1788\/files\/getimage_d5d27f46-7b0a-49e1-83a1-f994987ac9f7.jpg?v=1783595833","url":"https:\/\/lateknightbooks.com\/products\/9781839027932","provider":"Late Knight Books and Services, LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}