Author Archives: Billy Smart

Harold Pinter at ITV

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Although primarily remembered as a theatrical writer, Harold Pinter’s early dramas reached a greater audience through Britain’s recently launched commercial television network, ITV. Between 1960 and 1966, ITV viewers enjoyed eight plays by Pinter, all broadcast in evening prime time, a full-length production of The Birthday Party (1960) followed by versions of The Dumb Waiter, The Room (both 1961) and The Caretaker (1966). In addition, ITV premiered four original Pinter … Continue reading →

Pinter at the BBC: What the Censor Sees.

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The long-awaited BFI DVD collection, Pinter at the BBC, is released today. Over five discs, the anthology includes 10 versions of Pinter plays made by the BBC between 1965-88. As all ten are new to any home video format, the release increases the amount of Pinter UK television material publicly available by 500%. In addition to the plays, the collection also includes a wealth of supplementary material – four of … Continue reading →

Booking open for ‘Pinter on Film, Television and Radio’ conferences at University of Reading and British Library (19-20 September 2018)

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[This is a post for the 2018 conference. For the 2019 conference in Leeds, please click here] Booking is now open for our two day ‘Pinter on Film, Television and Radio’ conference, held at the University of Reading on Wednesday September 19 and the British Library on Thursday September 20. Each day has a particular focus. ‘Pinter on Screen’ at Reading deals with Pinter’s work on film and television, while … Continue reading →

‘A jolly jumble of theatrical cliches’: 1958 ‘Cherwell’ review of ‘The Birthday Party’

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Elkan Presman’s 1958 review of the original production of The Birthday Party in the Oxford University student newspaper Cherwell is one of the very earliest Pinter reviews to have been published, and has not been reproduced in its entirity since. A striking aspect of the review is the impression that it gives the reader of how (some of) its original audience might have registered the play – functioning through “a … Continue reading →

Harold Pinter on DVD and Blu-ray: A Guide

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When looking for DVD or Blu-ray copies of Harold Pinter’s work on screen, a simple rule generally applies – if it was made for television it is unlikely to have been commercially released, whereas if it was a film it almost certainly has (but it might well now be deleted). This article is intended to serve as a simple guide to what has been made available and (where it applies) … Continue reading →