Wednesday 30 April 2014

SMALL SCREEN THEME TIME (Part 4 of 12)


Like some crazy TV balloon being pumped full of theme tunes, this latest blog series is growing and growing. Fear not though, it's all under control and there's no danger of the whole shebang exploding in some catalysmic event: I've filled in all the Risk Management forms and marked out all the danger areas with appropriate warning notices. And there's just so much fascinating material emerging both from the research I've been doing and the feedback that's been coming through: sufficient material to ensure at least a dozen parts to this blog and possibly, it may yet creep up to more than that. Who knows, it might even get commissioned and end up on the TV itself.

This time, I continue the look at the past 60 years of television theme tunes here in the UK: I've been focusing on three key programme genres - Drama, Sport and Comedy - and in this fourth episode, we continue our look at Historical and Western dramas. We've reached the 1980s, a time when ITV fought back against the BBC monopoly on historical drama - and a time when the Western had almost faded away into the ether. Taking that as our platform, I'll then leap off in next week's episode to the changes and developments that have taken us through to the present day.

To bring yourself up to date, here are the first three episodes:


So, remote at the ready, a video cassette installed - and away we go.

DRAMA: HISTORICAL & WESTERNS - 1980s Onwards


Was "American Movie Classics"
- now produces its own
drama
The last thirty years have not only seen the expansion and fragmentation of TV services - many more channels, less shared viewing - but they've also been witness to a huge increase in the number of drama shows. Today, we have a real mix of formats: one-off series, recurring series and ongoing series. We have a multitude of platforms that we can view them on - and our viewing habits are changing as we binge through 13 or more episodes of a show in one go courtesy of streaming services such as Netflix. But, has the quality of the dramas themselves - and the theme music used - changed for the better? There is more money around and in many ways, you get what you pay for. Network TV in the USA is still quite prudish about nudity and language - and yet, over on the new specialist networks like AMC and Starz, pretty much anything goes. 

TV dramas galore
Streamed to you when you want them
So, as the focus of this blog is music, I have a large task in front of me to do real justice to the huge variety of historical drama that's been screened since 1980. (It's a pattern that will be repeated in future episodes when I look at Science Fiction & Fantasy dramas - and then again when we get to comedy programming). Clearly, an endless blog of progarmme titles and pictures might prove a little challenging for you, dear reader, as much as it would be to me - but I have done the research and drawn together some thematic strands which will illustrate the changes we've seen in the past 34 years. To cater for this wider range of programming - and just for the next three weeks - I've adopted a slightly different format to the episode design. I'm sure you'll let me know if it all works.

 The 1980s - in some ways - is the decade that ITV fought back against the BBC, a time when they discovered that sumptuous programming would bring in the viewers and keep the advertisers happy. In many ways, the BBC almost shot itself in the foot with its first big drama of the decade: this was a ten-part version of The Borgias, co-produced with Italian network RAI and featuring overseas locations and excellent cinematography. But, the scripting, the acting and the almost (unintentionally) comic nudity did little to endear it to the critics. Set in 15th century Italy it starred Adolfo Celi as the head of the Borgia clan, a clan who had many secrets and intrigues along the way before he ended up as Pope Alexander VI. The nail in the coffin - if one was needed was ITV's screening of its new series at the same time: Brideshead Revisited. Based on the famed Evelyn Waugh novel and set at the tail-end of the Second World War, everything that was wrong with The Borgias was right in this production. A stellar cast, a top quality script, superb locations - and huge critical success: Granada - the producers - won a slew of awards as a result and the scene was set for ITV to be seen as the home for television drama.    
The Borgias
BBC/RAI co-production (1981)
Expensive - and not a success 
Brideshead Revisited
Granada TV (1981)
How a classic novel should be translated to the small
screen - and award-winning too.


















Jewell In The Crown
Granada TV (1984)
As if to underline this, a second Granada production - 1984's The Jewell In The Crown - also enjoyed much success and critical acclaim. Set at the tail end of the British Raj in India and filmed on location, its thirteen episodes provided a broad sweep of the decline of the Raj and the movement towards independence for what was to become the world's largest democracy. Based on the Raj Quartet novels of Paul Scott, it too won plenty of awards and is fondly remembered all these years later.  

  • Theme Tune:  Not currently available

The Flame Trees Of Thika
Euston Films for Thames TV (1981)
Not to be outdone, Thames TV's drama unit Euston Films produced an acclaimed version of the 1959 Elspeth Huxley novel The Flame Trees Of Thika, a drama set in East Africa just before The First World War in 1913. Filmed on location in Kenya and Uganda, this seven-part story looked the business and was nominated for three BAFTAS in 1982. It starred Hayley Mills, Holly Aird and Ben Cross.







To Serve Them All My Days
BBC (1980/1981)
The BBC - of course - did produce other worthy dramas in the early 80s and three quite different approaches were taken for a clutch of shows which debuted in 1981. Whilst the finance might not have been as generous as ITV - which had been seeing something of a big resurgence in advertising income - they were every bit as inventive and interesting. The BBC - funded by the licence fee - has to cater for all tastes, and this can lead to some niche dramas that don't get wide approval - and yet, they do bring in the viewers. First up was an adaptation of a 1972 historical novel by R L Delderfield To Serve Them All My Days, set in a boys' public school and starring John Duttine as a wounded WW1 officer who turns up at the school as its new history teacher. The Headmaster, wonderfully played by Frank Middlemass had his time cut out keeping his aged staff on side with this new, youing upstart. It ran for two series and in its own way, was evocative of its chosen era.




Nanny
BBC (1981)
Next up was a 1930s drama called Nanny, set in London and starring Wendy Craig as a divorced woman who, having no income, becomes the nanny (of the title) to a well-to-do family. It was all quite gentle stuff, but it ran for three series and again, depicted its era well and concluded during the early years of World War II. It hasn't been shown since first broadcast, although there was a video release some years ago.






  • Theme Tune: Not currently available

Tenko
BBC (1981 - 1985)
The final one is perhaps the best remembered: Tenko. Another drama with a wartime theme, only this one was a grim tale of a group of British women in a Japanese Prisoner Of War camp in 1942. They had been captured following the fall of Singapore and the series nicely contrasted their former privileged existence with the tough - and sometimes barbaric - treatment they received in the camp. It ran for three series - and a reunion special - and starred such fine actresses as Stephanie Cole, Stephanie Beacham and Louise Jameson.





Overseas interlopers during this period were Shogun, made by ABC and filmed on location in Japan and set there in the early 17th century; North & South (ABC), a drama in  three tranches (1985/1986/1994) which was set against the back-drop of the American Civil War in the 1860s and The Thorn Birds (also ABC), starring Richard Chamberlain and set on a 1920s sheep station out in Australia. These were all examples of the mini-series genre, a handful of shows, often stripped across consecutive nights when broadcast in the USA and created with decent budgets and location filming.


Shogun
ABC (1980)







North & South
ABC (1985 - 1994)
The Thorn Birds
ABC (1983)




















The UK saw its fourth TV channel - Channel 4 - launch in 1982, although their first major historical drama didn't launch until 1983. This was a joint enterprise with RTE in Ireland - The Irish RM, a series starring Peter Bowles as a Resident Magistrate in early 20th century West Ireland when it was still part of the United Kingdom. It was a gentle comedy drama that ran to three series, coming to an end in 1985. During its run, two other distinctive series arrived - one on the BBC and one on ITV. The BBC production was a version of the 1935 children's fantasy novel The Box Of Delights by John Masefield: it starred one-time Doctor Who Patrick Troughton and ran for six episodes in late 1984. Over on ITV, a series which would run for a little bit longer than that - and a series based on an even more famous set of literary works: this was The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes starring Jeremy Brett in the title role. A special "Baker Street" set was built at Granada TV studios in Manchester - and of the 60 Holmes stories written by Arthur Conan-Doyle, 42 of them were adapted for the series and many fans view it as the definitive TV representation of the famous sleuth. 

The Irish RM
(Channel 4 - 1983 - 1985)



















The Box Of Delights
BBC (1984)





Jeremy Brett as the titular sleuth
The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes
Granada TV (1984 - 1994)
Amongst other mid-80s offerings, the BBC returned to tried and trusted "classic" adaptations with a trio of Dickens' novels: Dombey & Son in 1983 - and then in 1985, Bleak House. This latter work ran to eight episodes, and had an all-star cast with Diana Rigg, T.P.McKenna, Peter Vaughan and Denholm Eliott. That same year also saw The Pickwick Papers - not quite as packed with stars, but at twelve episodes and a suitably quirky signature tune by Carl Davis to match the style of the novel, it too was very well received. ITV ran with a couple of its own dramas, both a little light-hearted and both good ratings winners for the channel. It launched Shine On Harvey Moon in 1982, a comedy drama starring Kenneth Cranham as a recently de-mobbed RAF pilot who has to adjust to a very changed world back at home. Written by Lawrence Marks and Marcus Gran (who would later create Birds Of A Feather and Goodnight Sweetheart) and produced by Central TV, it ran to 41 episodes across five years. The theme music was Shine On Harvest Moon, first written back in the early 1900s by Nora Bayes and Jack Norworth. It came to an end in 1985. Meanwhile in 1983, Granada TV had launched Brass. This comedy drama was set in the 1930s and pretty effectively parodied a number of the worthy costume dramas of earlier years - particularly Hard Times. It starred Timothy West (who had appeared in Hard Times) as the head of a wealthy dynastic family (The Hardacres) and Barbara Ewing as the rebellious head of a poor, working class family who worked in a factory owned by West's character. It ran to 31 episodes across three years. 


The Pickwick Papers with Nigel Stock as the eponymous
founder of The Pickwick Club.
BBC (1985)


Shine On Harvey Moon
Central (1982 - 1985)

Timothy West and Caroline Blakiston as the wealthy
Hardacre Family in Brass
(Granada - 1983-4/1990)


There are three more drama series that need to be looked at before the 1980s draws to a close. One is an original drama produced by the BBC whilst the other two - one each from the BBC and ITV - turned out to be iconic shows in more ways than one.

The District Nurse
BBC (19841987)
The first BBC offering was The District Nurse, a drama set in the industrial and mining areas of South Wales in the 1920s: pre-NHS and pre-war, Nerys Hughes (as the District Nurse) fought hard with limited resources to try and make the *lot* of the local people a better one. The odds were often against her and it proved to be popular, running to three series with 36 episodes through to 1987. The third and final series was relocated to a Welsh coastal town in the 1930s: the 12 episodes were expanded to an hour in length and The District Nurse was now working with a father and son medical practice. 

The District Nurse was created by Tony Holland and Julia Smith who would shortly move on to an even more "gritty" television enterprise: Eastenders.  





So: these iconic shows. Both were based on a series of crime novels by Agatha Christie - the BBC opted for adapting the works based on Miss Marple (in 1984) whilst ITV acquired the books based around the Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot (from 1989). Miss Marple took each of the books and produced twelve two-hour dramas from them. Marple - the octogenarian *detective* - was played by Joan Hickson who seemed to fit the role like a glove. Right from the start, the critics loved the series and the BBC sold the show to a wide range of countries around the world. The last show was broadcast in 1992, although a re-boot of the character starring Geraldine McEwan was launched in 2004 on ITV and we shall return to that later on. Poirot was altogether a more ambitious enterprise and was launched in 1989 by London Weekend Television. Poirot was played magnificently by David Suchet and it seems unbelievable, but some 70 episodes (many feature length) were made across the years, the last one only being aired as recently as 2013. By this time, the series was being produced by an independent company - Agatha Christie Productions - on behalf of the now unified ITV network.

The signature tunes were clearly aimed at the period in which the two series were set, the BBC Miss Marple theme being written by Ken Howard and almost a slowed down version of that used in All Creatures Great And Small. Poirot had a slightly more upbeat and mysterious theme by Christopher Gunning as probably befits the nature of the Belgian detective. 

Miss Marple - BBC (1984-1992)


David Suchet (left) as Poirot
LWT/Granada/Agatha Christie Productions (1989-2013)


And so, the scene is set for the fin de siecle, the final decade of the 20th century, the 1990s. With a gradual increase in the range of TV channels, the introduction of broadcast stereo sound and the adoption of the 16:9 ratio aspect on picture size (much more rectangular and better suited to more cinematic work), the technology was there to support the networks' creativity.

What would be the result?

Join me next week for the inside story.

Alan Dorey
7th May 2014














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Wednesday 23 April 2014

SMALL SCREEN THEME TIME (Part 3 of 12)


Welcome to the latest episode in this twelve-part overview of TV signature tunes across the past 60 years.

It's a massive subject, so I've homed in on three main types of programming: Drama, Sport and Comedy - and this week, we're back in the land of television drama. Last time around, we took an extensive look at police procedural and detective shows: this time, we take a look at shows set in the past and consider historical dramas and westerns. Whilst most of the examples used come from programming originated and broadcast here in the UK, it goes without saying that as far as westerns are concerned, they're all American productions. The focus is very much on the title music of the various shows and with appropriate You Tube clips supporting my notes and commentary, there is opportunity a-plenty for the memories to come flooding back. Or at the very least, to marvel at whether or not these tracks have stood the test of time. There's a lot to get through, so I've broken this episode down into two sections - the 1950s to 1970s (this week) and the 1980s to the present day (next week). 

 To bring yourself up to date, you can catch the first two episodes right here:

So whether you want to hitch up the wagons or head out for a spot of outlaw archery, you're tuned to the right channel.

DRAMA: HISTORICAL AND WESTERNS - 1950s and 1960s


These two genre types have much in common: they're both set in days gone by and although mostly fictional, have some grain of truth or reality buried within them. Historical veracity may not always be the uppermost thing on a director's mind, so particularly with the very early shows, we must allow both a degree of license and awareness of cultural mores as they existed when the shows were first broadcast. Certainly, many westerns would not find it quite so easy to be made today, even if it was a genre that had retained its popularity. Treatment of Native Americans - whether deliberate or unconscious - was often less than noble and old stereotyping generally rife.

As for historical dramas, many of them were based on novels, themselves written in somewhat less enlightened times, although it's fair to say that the more recent examples of the genre do tend to have writers and adapters who are fully aware of potential issues. That aside, there have been a good number of superb productions and some memorable signature themes. Let's also bear in mind that (certainly) in the UK, early TV dramas were often shot "as live" so there was little opportunity to correct mistakes or improve scenes - as those who have watched early episode of (say) Doctor Who can testify. Let's go back to the early days of the BBC and the post-Coronation world of the mid 1950s: what dramatic presentations were there to entertain and educate us?

 The answer, sadly, is that other than some contemporary drama - which we'll look at in a future episode (Quatermass, for example), the BBC output tended to be worthy adaptations of classic novels by such as Charles Dickens. Few have survived in the archives - and thus signature tune access is nigh on impossible. As we've seen in previous episodes, it was the coming of ITV which brought a sense of refreshment to the airwaves. ITV was a network of independent regional stations that started coming on air in 1955, although it was several years before all parts of the UK had this second television service. The ITV companies had contracted a number of independent film-makers to produce new shows for them - and historical drama seemed to be very much the in-thing. The first and most fondly remembered was probably The Adventures Of Robin Hood, first broadcast in 1955 and running to an eventual 143 episodes through to 1959. The show starred Richard Greene as the outlaw hero and its thanks to the constant repeats of the show throughout the 1960s that the theme music has become so well known. Written by Dick James - who would later go on to form his own record label and sign such as Elton john to it - it's one of those tunes that is instantly recognisable (and in the 1970s, subject to parody by such as Monty Python). 
The Adventures Of Robin Hood
(ITV  1955-1959)
The Buccaneers
(ITV - 1956-1957)















A year later, a sea-based adventure drama appeared - this was The Buccaneers and in its 39 episodes across 1956 and 1957, it was known for providing early TV appearances for fine actors such as Robert Shaw. Although aimed at a younger market, it was a popular show and its theme music clearly owes a debt to Robin Hood. As ITV stations continued to open, further historical dramas appeared such as Sir Lancelot (1956/1957), Ivanhoe (1958/1959 and starring Roger Moors in his first TV role) and The Count Of Monte Christo (1956/1957). A final burst of "classic" historical drama came in 1958 with The Adventures Of William Tell: it ran for 39 episodes and once again had a memorable - if derivative - signature tune composed by Albert Elms and Sydney Kay. 
The Adventures Of William Tell.
Complete with apple and
crossbow bolt.
(ITV - 1958)

The 1960s proved to be an altogether different sort of decade. The ITV historicals started to look a bit passe, a bit too like the serials from Saturday Morning Pictures and whilst they continued to receive repeat showings, the new decade demanded a new approach. Drama began to adopt a more contemporary and gritty feel to its programming, although there were still some interesting historical shows coming through. The BBC seemed more galvanised in the early 60s - even creating a drama that would enable its heroes to experience all sorts of historical events: this was Doctor Who - but as it involves time travel, we'll explore it in a later episose when we come to look at science fiction and fantasy.

There was one final pass at a series based on a classic book that we do need to consider; it was a French series, only ran to 13 episodes and was shown both in the USA and here in the UK: the BBC were the UK broadcaster and as the vocal soundtrack was almost completely overdubbed anyway, it was simple to swap the French version for an English one. The show? The Adventures Of Robinson Crusoe - and a show that despite its short run, was destined to be repeated many, many times to come and thus allowing its theme music to be absorbed into the UK consciousness.
Robinson Crusoe (BBC - 1965)
Dr Finlay's Casebook
(BBC - 1962 - 1971)
  

















A BBC drama that ran throughout the 1960s harked back to the 1920s and 1930s and rural GP practice in the fictional Scottish town of Tannochbrae. Based on the novels by A. J Cronin, this was the highly successful Dr Finlay's Casebook which starred Bill Simpson as the eponymous doctor. The BBC TV series ran to 191 episodes, coming to an end in 1971 - and during its run, a number of them were re-recorded by the original actors for radio broadcast too. The theme music - by Trevor Duncan - was  a catchy tune that evoked a era gone by.

It was during this decade that the BBC started to gain its reputation as the producer of big costume drama - and they didn't come much bigger than the 1967 adaptation of John Galsworthy's series of novels concerning a well-to-do nineteenth century family: The Forsyte Saga. The series ran to 26 episodes and, despite being one of the last big dramas no to be filmed in colour, it clearly had money spent on it and also gave TV screen time to an array of classic actors such as Eric Porter, Nyree Dawn Porter, Susan Hampshire and Kenneth More.The theme music was by Eric Coates.
The Forsyte Saga (BBC - 1967)


The Flashing Blade
ORTF (1967)
Mention was made earlier of the French TV re-telling of Robinson Crusoe and one of the more odd (and often pleasing) features of children's TV drama in the 1960s was the import of a number of short European series. Most had new signature themes and credits applied in an effort to anglicise them, but from this blog's viewpoint, there were some interesting historical dramas that cropped up. The Flashing Blade was one such, a French programme from 1967, originally made as four 75 minute-long episodes which were re-edited into twelve near half-hour episodes by the BBC. The show was set in the early seventeenth century during the War Of The Mantuan Succession between France and Spain: the story-line involved the exploits of a French spy attempting to save a French garrison who under siege from the Spanish. It was filmed in colour and had an English theme tune by "The Musketeers".   




Much of the remaining historical drama output in the 1960s tended to be short adaptations (such as the BBC's 1966 version of Charles Dickens' David Copperfield) or one-off dramas in various strands such as Armchair Theatre. The coming of colour television increasingly from 1967 made a real difference and several major programmes were commissioned and went into production. 

 The 1970s - just a round the corner - proved to be a popular decade for looking back, but before we get there - we need to turn our attention across the seas to the other strand in this section - The Western. 
TV Westerns - How many theme tunes do you know?

The Western was quite probably the most popular genre drama on television in the 1950s and 1960s. Mostly set in what was quaintly called "The Wild West", they told tales of the pioneering spirit of days gone by. Several hundred shows were produced - some memorable, many forgettable - and in listening to their signature tunes, a few common tropes emerge. Cinematic sound, open spaces, horns and strings, stirring tunes - and (it must be said) many that sounded almost interchangeable.

 Here in the UK, Westerns were even more of an escapist exercise than they were at home in the USA: it's fortunate for our purposes that only a relatively small number of the shows made it to air over here, thus making the signature song selection a lot easier. Let's go back to the black and white days of the late 1950s.
Maverick (ABC 1957-1962)
James Garner turns into Roger Moore
The western genre was big in the cinema - be it through weekly serials or feature-length productions, but as TV set ownership began to increase after the launch of ITV, small-screen shows became very popular. An early and progressive series was Maverick starring James Garner as the eponymous anti-hero, a cardsharp who travelled the old west, playing poker and getting involved in all manner of adventures: elements of humour peppered the show. Launched by ABC in 1957, it ran through to 1962 and- for its final couple of seasons, Garner was replaced by Roger Moore before he transmogrified into The Saint.
Wagon Train (NBC - 1957-1865)
Another influential show - so influential, in fact, that it later inspired Gene Rodenberry to use it as a basis for Star Trek (!) was Wagon Train, a series launched by NBC also in 1957. It was based on the 1950 movie Wagon Master and depicts the trials and tribulations of a wagon train as it heads from Missourri to California. The format allowed different locations and stories each week during its 284 episodes across 8 seasons - and it was this journey with a tight-knit band of people that the aforementioned Gene Rodenberry took and transported out into the far future aboard the starship Enterprise.



Two other shows which started in the 1950s also had some things in common with each other: both only ran for a single season; both were aimed at a younger market; both were very popular here in the UK. They were Champion The Wonder Horse (1955/6) and Casey Jones (1957/8) - oh - an they also had highly distinctive theme tune which I;m sure that readers of a Certain Age will recall very well indeed.
Casey Jones (1957/58)
 
Champion The Wonder Horse (1955/6)
(Known as The Adventures Of Champion in
 its home territory)













Gunsmoke (1955-1975)
The longest running prime-time
drama of the 20th Century in the USA 
635 Episodes
There were three Western shows that dominated TV screens in the UK throughout the 1960s: one actually started in 1955 and ran right through to the mid-70s, one started in 1959 and the other launched in 1962. The shows - Gunsmoke, Bonanza and The Virginian respectively - each had strong cast ensembles and that, together with strong story lines and regular *refreshment* with guest stars and new characters all helped to ensure their longevity. Gunsmoke - under several name variations - ran for a massive 635 episodes and starred James Arness as Marshall Matt Dillon of Dodge City. It holds the record for the longest-running prime-time TV drama in US television history. 
Bonanza (1959-1973)
Bonanza wasn't far behind in the longevity stakes, it's fourteen year run from 1959 taking in 430 episodes. Of all the shows screened in the UK, there's an argument that says that this was the most memorable - a striking signature theme, several strong and memorable characters and an unforgettable opening sequence featuring a map of Virginia City bursting into flames.




James Drury as The Virginian
(We never discovered his real name)
Finally, we have The Virginian, a show mentioned briefly in episode one of this current blog series. It starred James Drury as the eponymous foreman at Shiloh ranch and many episodes ran to 90 minutes  - a rarity in those days for prime time television. Supporting Drury was Doug McClure as Trampas and at various times, well-known actors such as Lee J Cobb, Charles Bronson, Harrison Ford and Stewart Grainger also had prominent roles. In its final year - 1973 - the series was re-titled Men From Shiloh and had a new theme tune composed by Ennio Morricone of spaghetti western fame.










DRAMA: HISTORICAL & WESTERNS - 1970s 


Into a new decade, the 1970s, a decade of oil crises, three-day weeks and much change on the television front. It was a decade that saw the last flowering of the western, a genre that gradually faded as the 1980s approached, the final coup-de grace being delivered by the cinematic success of Star Wars. Science Fiction and fantasy quickly became the new drama-de-jour on TV and we'll explore that in more detail signature-tune wise in a later episode. As for historical drama, the 1970s and 1980s proved to be a *golden age* of productions with both the BBC and ITV in an unofficial drama-race to produce the best and most sumptuous looking shows.

 It was the BBC who were first out of the blocks with two historical dramas based on key periods within the British monarchy: in January 1970 there were the half-dozen TV plays that told the story of The Six Wives Of Henry VIII - and these were followed up a year later by Elizabeth R. The Six Wives devoted an episode to each wife and starred Keith Michel as the king, cleverly being aged and becoming more cantankerous and difficult as the series progressed. It was also notable for much of the incidental music, a good stab at what music might have sounded like in the early 1500s - as played on historically correct instruments. Elizabeth R starred Glenda Jackson in a wonderful performance as Elizabeth I: it too saw six episodes, each running to 85 minutes. As the series continued the Tudor  dynasty from Henry VIII, several historical characters - and their actors - were to be seen again playing key roles in the early years of the Queen's reign. As for the signature tunes, both aimed at a simple evocation of their respective eras.
Keith Michel as Henry VII
(BBC - 1970)
Glenda Jackson as Elizabeth R
(BBC - 1971)



















The Onedin Line (BBC - 1971 - 1980)
The year of 1971 also saw the launch of a new BBC drama series, one that would run for almost ten years and one that had a highly distinctive theme tune. This was The Onedin Line, a drama based in Victorian Liverpool and telling the tale of Captain James Onedin and the shipping company that he and his family ran. It featured Peter Gilmore  as the captain and Anne Stallybrass as his sister Elizabeth and, it cannot be forgotten, another star was the sailiong ship itself, The Charlotte Rhodes which starred throughout the series until it was destroyed by fire in 1979. The theme tune - an extract from the "Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia" from the ballet Spartacus by Aram Katchaturian - was so popular that it was released as a single and it enjoyed a degree of chart success.
Upstairs Downstairs (LWT - 1971-1975)
The principle cast during a
World War I storyline

Meanwhile, over on ITV, London Weekend Television had been planning a popular new drama series that was to be set in the capital during the Edwardian era. It aimed to feature life below and above stairs in a well-to-do household on Eaton Square and as Upstairs, Downstairs, became a widely watched and widely regarded series. It ran to 65 episodes over five years and also led to a spin-off show (Thomas And Sarah) - and a sequel forty years later, this time produced by the BBC. It was a show that also gained much popularity in the USA on the PBS stations - and this was to become a trend for many future UK produced historical dramas. The theme tune - composed by Alexander Faris - is one of those that instantly tells you which show it is within the first few sweeping bars.


The notable - and blindingly obvious - feature of theme music for historical shows is that the nature of the era can be evoked quickly and easily by the style and feel of the tune. There's also a certain sense of geography too with regional and national musical genres being adapted to fit the signature tune requirement. Two good examples of this relate to dramas set in World War II - one at home in the UK and the other, in a German Prisoner Of War Camp. The domestic drama was Granada TV's A Family At War, launched in 1970 and running for 52 episodes through to 1972. It borrowed an appropriately British piece of classical music by Vaughan Williams that suggested (perhaps) better days and hope that things would turn out alright in the future. The series provided key roles for some excellent actors - Barbara Flynn, Patrick Troughton, John Nettles and Coral Atkins being just a few.

A Family At War
(Granada TV -1970-1972)


The other show - which is of course Colditz - tells altogether a different type of wartime story, the incarceration of a group of mainly British officers in an "escape-proof" POW camp high on a rock in the castle of the series' title. Produced by the BBC, it ran for two seasons between 1972 and 1974 and it too had a high-calibre cast - Bernard Hepton, David McCullum, Jack Hedley, Robert Wagner and Anthony Valentine - but as it depicted a grim and possibly hopeless cause, the theme music was suitable stirring and threatening, although there was a certain cinematic feel to it too, a felling that perhaps, it might turn out "okay in the end".

Colditz
(BBC - 1972-1974)
I Claudius (BBC - 1976)
Two 1970s dramas showed very different approaches to their identifying music, one being aimed at an adult audience an the other focused more on the younger viewer. The first was a series based on a novel by Robert Graves, a true landmark in TV drama - I Claudius. Covering the intrigue, politicking and ruthlessness of the Roman dynasty, it made a television name out of classical actor Derek Jacobi as the (initially) stuttering and naive Claudius - and he was supported in the 12 episodes by Sian Philips, Brian Blessed, George Baker and John Hurt. The music - by Wilfred Joseph - provided a low-key and genuinely creepy feeling that underpinned the dramatic storyline. The show has been lauded as one of the best BBC dramas ever made and watching it today, it stands up really well despite the fact that it was made on a small and very tight budget.




Arthur Of The Britons
(HTV - 1972-1973)
The second series - aimed at the younger viewer - was produced by ITV contractor, HTV: this was Arthur Of The Britons, an updated (and largely successful) attempt at bringing a contemporary and gritty feel to the legendary King Arthur. Set in the post-Roman world of Dark Ages Britain, Arthur is cast not as a strong and noble king, but a tough Celtic leader, one who wouldn't look out of place in a goth band and one who tries to forge alliances with all types of invaders. It ran for two seasons between 1972 and 1973 and whilst not historically accurate in terms of character, it certainly made up for it in production and story-telling. Oliver Tobias starred as Arthur and other leading actors included Brian Blessed (again) and Rupert Davis.

 The theme music - by Elmer Bernstein - drew influence from TV westerns, but still worked very well indeed.


The mid-late 70s seemed to be awash with historical drama: whether this was a reaction against the grim economic and political times or merely a trend building on audience popularity is difficult to say. Here are a few quick snapshots at some of the series that took us through to the turn of the 1980s, a decade in which much was to change. The BBC produced most of the dramas in question, although there were a small number of interesting ITV shows which deserved a wider audience and greater praise.
The Pallisers (BBC 1974)
In 1974, the BBC adapted a number of the political novels of Anthony Trollope as The Pallisers, a massive 25-part series which depicted the intrigue of government in the Victorian era: Philip Latham and Susan Hampshire had prominent roles as a titled couple and the theme music was by Herbert Chappell.






Next up, two more BBC dramas - this time both launched in 1976 and both destined to have decent runs in the episode stakes. The Duchess Of Duke Street, set in the first few years of the twentieth century, starred Gemma Jones as a "low born" humble servant who dreams of becoming a cook - and ends up becoming the owner of a high class London hotel. The second - set almost contemperaneously - was When The Boat Comes In, set in the (then) poverty stricken north-east of England and starring James Bolam as Jack Ford, a returning World War 1 veteran. Four series ran through to 1981. The two shows' theme tunes both created evocative sound-pictures of the era, one an upbeat 1920s number and the other, a traditional northern folk-song.   

The Duchess Of Duke Street
(BBC 1976-1977)
When The Boat Comes In
(BBC 1976-1981) 












The ITV offerings included a couple of royalty-based dramas and a very promising show about a Victorian cricket-playing amateur "cracksman". ATV produced the 1975 13-episode drama Edward VII starring Timothy West in the lead role. It also included Robert Hardy, Felicity Kendal and Annette Crosbie and was extremely well received - especially in the United States. Three years later - in 1978 - Thames TV moved forward a few years and dramatised the story of Edward & Mrs Simpson, a seven-part series that took us through the abdication crisis of 1937. Edward Fox and Cynthia Garris excelled in the title roles. Both had suitably regal pieces of theme music, albeit that for Edward & Mrs Simpson was somewhat tongue-in-cheek.. Sandwiched between the two was a single thirteen part series from Yorkshire TV based on the novels of E.W.Hornung that featured Raffles "The Gentleman Cracksman". Played in the TV version by Anthony Valentine, it was a shame it only ran for the that one season in 1977: I always thought that it had plenty of "legs" for future stories.
Edward VII
(ATV - 1975)
Edward & Mrs Simpson
(Thames - 1978)


Raffles
(Yorkshire TV- 1977)



A final couple of BBC shows in the late 1970s took very different approaches to providing a musical accompaniment to the past. One was a long-running series based on the semi-autobigraphical novels of a Yorkshire vet - the other, a sublime series starring Bob Hoskins as a 1930s sheet music seller. These were All Creatures Great And Small and Pennies From Heaven.
All Creatures Great And Small
(BBC 1978 - 1990)
The All Creatures novels - by James Herriot - had already seen a couple of big-screen versions before the BBC started broadcasting their adaptation in 1978. The chronology of the books was followed quite closely, the starting point being James Herriot's arrival in a Yorkshire Dales veterinary practice in the late 1930s. Over the course of 12 years and 90 episodes, the story unfolds through to the mid-1950s and starred Christopher Timothy as Herriott, Robert Hardy as his practice partner Siegfried Farnon and Carol Drinkwater (and later, Linda Bellingham) as Herriott's wife Helen. It was hugely popular - and the theme music certainly conjured up images of a simpler - and sometimes more difficult life - in the mid-20th century Yorkshire countryside.


Pennies From Heaven
Landmark Dennis Potter drama
(BBC - 1978) 
Pennies From Heaven was altogether a different prospect, a landmark series penned by Dennis Potter. It only ran to six episodes, but paved the way for future dramas from the playwright that used the dramatic conceit of a lead character (or characters) bursting into song at various points, but clearly and effectively miming to contemporary songs from the relevant era. For Bob Hoskins as music salesman Arthur Parker, this series was very much the moment when he became a much sought-after and admired actor. The theme music was a 1936 popular song written by Arthur Johnston and Johnny Burke, the version used being recorded a year later in 1937 by Arthur Tracy. 


I mentioned earlier on that as the 1970s progressed, the "western drama" gradually faded away. Several long-running westerns finished in that decade - Gunsmoke, The Virginian and Bonanza - but, there were still bursts of activity that saw a handful of interesting shows appear and we'll conclude this week with a look at how the landscape looked.
High Chaparral
(NBC - 1967-1971)
The first is - strictly speaking - a 1960s series having started in 1967: this is The High Chaparral and included here mainly because (in those days) many imported shows started their UK runs a year or so later than they had done back home. It ran for almost 100 episodes across four seasons and told the story of the eponymous ranch and the ranching family that ran it, headed up by "Big" John Cannon, played by Leif Erikson. The theme music was suitably stirring and pretty much interchangeable with any number of other westerns.




Alias Smith & Jones
"The most wanted outlaws in the west"
Ran for three seasons and survived the
death of Pete Duel who was replaced
for the final 17 episodes.
(ABC - 1971-1973)
Our first 1970s western series proper launched in 1971 and was an immediate hit, combining action, adventure and a little bit of humour in its set-up conceit. The show? Alias Smith & Jones starring Pete Duel and Ben Murphy as two on-the-run outlaws who seek an amnesty for any past misdemeanours from the territorial governor: he agrees, but insists that it be kept secret until it is *advantageous* to him for it to be made public. Needless to say, this leads to many story-lines where the duo appear to be on the verge of being captured, only to find a way to evade such a fate until the following week. The opening credits played this "deal" each week and the phrase "..until then, only you me and the governor will know about it - it'll be our secret" became the shows' watchword.   



One of the most unusual westerns of all time appeared on our screens in 1972. 
Kun Fu  (ABC - 1972 - 1975)

 This was Kung Fu, another ABC series and one that ran for four seasons and 63 episodes. It starred David Carradine as an orphan born to an American father in Tibet: he was taken into a local monastery and across several years, was trained as a marshall arts expert. In adulthood, he makes his way to the wild west, ostensibly in search of his long-lost half-brother and uses his spiritual training and kung fu skills to ensure he avoids serious trouble. It's a journey in more ways than one - and the regular use of flashbacks to his Tibetan training creates a somewhat mystical feel to the series. The theme tune combines a "western" theme mixed with eastern elements and then segues into a reprise of Carradine's training and departure for the USA. 



Barbary Coast
No chance of William Shatner beaming out
(ABC - 1975/6)
The final western we'll look at (other than occasional oddities that pop in later decades - and hence, in later episodes of this blog) is one that brought together an expert of the art, Doug McClure (from The Virginian) with no less than William Shatner, late of Star Trek. This was Barbary Coast, a single season thirteen episode show produced by ABC and perhaps a show that underlined the end of the western as TV had known it. The premise was a little like "Mission Impossible" set in the nineteenth century: the western feel to it was mainly the era and location (San Francisco), but the plot-lines involved battles against foreign spies and criminals.

 The theme tune wasn't quite sure what it was all about - humour? saloon brawls? Quite catchy though.




And so, that's where we'll leave this episode: it's a big old thing this look at Western and Historical drama theme tunes. We've covered the first half of our brief - and next week, we head into the 1980s and through to the present day. Buried in there we'll have all manner of shows, surround-sound TVs, high definition film and digital televisions.

Join me then.


Alan Dorey
25th April 2014    
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