Crack-Up - BBC Saturday Night Theater - Alan Prior

Allan Prior was an English television scriptwriter and novelist, who wrote over 300 television episodes from the 1950s onwards.


He was founder-writer of influential police drama Z-Cars with Troy Kennedy Martin and wrote five of the first ten episodes and a total of 136 episodes for Z-Cars and spin-off series Softly, Softly. He also wrote several episodes of the 1970s science-fiction series Blake's 7.

He wrote more than thirty original plays for television, from episodes of Armchair Theatre to later works including The Charmer (1987) and A Perfect Hero (1991). In 1995 his radio play Führer was BBC Radio 4's flagship drama for its End of the War in Europe anniversary programmes.

Saturday Night Theatre was a long-running radio drama strand on BBC Radio 4. The strand showcased feature-length, middle-brow single plays on Saturday evenings for more than 50 years, having been launched in April 1943. The plays featured in the strand included stage plays, book adaptations and original dramatisations. For most of its history, programmes ran for 90 minutes and were largely entertainment-centred, such as thrillers, comedies and mysteries.

Saturday Night Theatre was noted as the major drama of the week on BBC Radio 4, until it was scrapped as a programme strand in 1996. Shorter plays continued to be broadcast on Radio 4 on Saturday evenings from 1996 until the relaunch of the channel's schedule in April 1998 by James Boyle, when single dramas were removed from the Saturday evening schedule. Since 1998, the main weekly play on the station has been The Saturday Play, a daytime programme that runs for 60–90 minutes.

There have since been campaigns to bring back Saturday Night Theatre, but in the context of BBC budget cuts, that have included the 2010 axing of Radio 4's Friday Play (established in 1998, when Saturday Night Theatre was abolished), any return looks unlikely. (Wikipedia)

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[RedcoatsReturn]

A part of BBC demise was the scrapping of these plays, in television and radio. A cornerstone of British drama and culture died with it 😔 My thanks to you for rescuing and publishing them again on Youtube where they can be appreciated again 😊👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👍👍

[scottgeorge]

It's easy to see why millions miss the 'old' BBC. Fortune has brought the internet where these gems can be found... Thank you ❤👍

[dominicankandie]

I knew it! I knew it! Half way through the program I summised who it was. This was indeed, another excellent listen. Thank you ❤

[graceperry]

For those who didn't enjoy this. You have to remember that the radio and ways of thinking were different in the 50s. I was there, a child. The equipment for recording also affected the quality, at that time it was limited so it affected the flow causing things to sound a bit more stilted.

[paulgardner]

It’s great to have these radio posts on YouTube. The BBC must have a ton of material which never gets to see the light of day. So much talent as well.

[martinej]

It was a great shame when they scrapped all the plays. I grew up listening to them with my Mum. Only to see them slowly disappearing. And what do we get in their place?? Rubbish normally. I guess we have seen a bit of a resurgence in 4extra. Thank you for keeping these alive.

[Alan-ssxp]

What wonderful voices the announcers have before the play starts. Another era.

[jillylloyd]

I am always to listen to an upload from Mr Chesterton. Thank you kindly sir on behalf of all your faithful subscribers

[lyndaa]

An absolutely brilliant drama from first to last. Many thanks 🙏

[Angela-cchd]

Well that was very interesting never thought it was going to end like that! Perfect example of mental health problems.

[clivefuller-hale]

Writer: Allan Prior
Produced by: William Glen-Doepel
Susannah Glossop: Joan Haythorne
Bob Glossop: Frank Mills
Carron: Frederick Treves
Tom Bradford: Bruce Beeby
Mary, the maid: Isabel Rennie
Morris: McKinley William Fox
Roberta Bradford: Jane Jordan Rogers

[davidarundel]

I trust that the BBC's vaults still contain most radio shows and didn't meet the same fate as early tapes of programs like the first series of Dr Who, and many others, all in the name of cost cutting : it should be noted that salary's were never cut for management - just everywhere and everyone else . It's lost history now, as some of those programs were inovative for the time in which they were made .
Namaste 🙏🤔👍, ❤️

[ericfry]

Thanks very much for this play.
Such a grand cast of actors..

[jordsupp]

A good production to cover a 2 hour journey with a few red herrings along the way. Thankyou.

[sidicniy]

When couples don’t share their thoughts, fears and feelings with each other they become strangers, instead of protecting they become unplanned voluntary instigator to each other destruction.

[petejames]

Gem from classic years of radio. Hundreds of radio dramas just sitting in BBC archive. Waste & a shame

[mellisande]

Fantastic play! Great story and beautifully executed piece of drama. Thank you🤗

[donwardell]

I have working in Radio since I was eleven. This play is superb, the plot, the interior collapse of the mentally ill, it's flawless. Thank you this it makes up for any time I may have wasted with routine dramas.. Settle down and really listen to the plot, the pacing, acting and delivery. Thank you and well done!

[louisbrugnoni]

I LOVE these! Caren the butler reminds me of Tim Conway on the Carol Burnett show when he played the senile butler. Lol

[pattersonparkin]

Great stuff, keep them coming, hi from a hot day in newzealand