A Rather English Marriage
Encyclopedia
A Rather English Marriage is a novel
by Angela Lambert
, first published in 1992, and later adapted for television
by Andrew Davies
for the BBC
.
in 1998 and later released on DVD, was directed by Paul Seed. It stars Tom Courtenay
as Roy and Albert Finney
as Reggie, and stays close to the plot of the book until the ending, when the two old men end up staying together. The adaptation also starred Joanna Lumley
as Liz, Ursula Howells
as Reggie's wife, Mary, and Jeremy Clyde
as Reggie's nephew.
The film won the BAFTA Awards
for Best Actor
(Tom Courtenay), Best Editing, Best Original Television Music and Best Single Drama. It also received nominations for Best Actor (Albert Finney), Best Actress (Joanna Lumley) and Best Sound.
The film also received the Peabody Award
and the Royal Television Society
Award for Best Single Drama.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Angela Lambert
Angela Lambert
Angela Lambert was a British journalist, art critic and author, best known for the novel A Rather English Marriage.Born as Angela Maria Helps to a civil servant and a German-born housewife...
, first published in 1992, and later adapted for television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
by Andrew Davies
Andrew Davies (writer)
Andrew Wynford Davies is a British author and screenwriter. He was made a Fellow of BAFTA in 2002.-Education and early career:...
for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
.
Plot summary
The book's plot concerns two retired men who are thrown together following the deaths of their wives in the same hospital. Both have served in the armed forces, one, Reggie, being a former officer, the other, Roy, an ex-NCO. The perceived class differences lead to Roy moving in with Reggie and being treated as an unpaid servant. The reader's sympathies are with Roy as he remains humble and faithful to his purpose until Reggie becomes too domineering. Roy re-marries, and Reggie, whose attempt to seduce a younger widow, Liz, has ended in failure, is left alone.Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
The television adaptation, first screened on the BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in 1998 and later released on DVD, was directed by Paul Seed. It stars Tom Courtenay
Tom Courtenay
Sir Thomas Daniel "Tom" Courtenay is an English actor who came to prominence in the early 1960s with a succession of films including The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner , Billy Liar , and Dr. Zhivago . Since the mid-1960s he has been known primarily for his work in the theatre...
as Roy and Albert Finney
Albert Finney
Albert Finney is an English actor. He achieved prominence in films in the early 1960s, and has maintained a successful career in theatre, film and television....
as Reggie, and stays close to the plot of the book until the ending, when the two old men end up staying together. The adaptation also starred Joanna Lumley
Joanna Lumley
Joanna Lamond Lumley, OBE, FRGS is a British actress, voice-over artist, former-model and author, best known for her roles in British television series Absolutely Fabulous portraying Edina Monsoon's best friend, Patsy Stone, as well as parts in The New Avengers, Sapphire & Steel, and Sensitive...
as Liz, Ursula Howells
Ursula Howells
Ursula Howells was an English actress whose elegant presence kept her much in demand for roles in film and television....
as Reggie's wife, Mary, and Jeremy Clyde
Jeremy Clyde
Michael Thomas Jeremy Clyde is an English actor and musician. The son of Lady Elizabeth Wellesley, he made his first public appearance as a pageboy at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom in 1953...
as Reggie's nephew.
The film won the BAFTA Awards
British Academy Television Awards
The British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . They have been awarded annually since 1954, and are analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States.-Background:...
for Best Actor
British Academy Television Awards 1999
The 1999 British Academy Television Awards were held on 9 May at the Grosvenor House Hotel in Park Lane, London.-Winners:*Best Actor**Winner: Tom Courtenay — A Rather English Marriage...
(Tom Courtenay), Best Editing, Best Original Television Music and Best Single Drama. It also received nominations for Best Actor (Albert Finney), Best Actress (Joanna Lumley) and Best Sound.
The film also received the Peabody Award
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations and individuals. In 1939, the National Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement in radio broadcasting...
and the Royal Television Society
Royal Television Society
The Royal Television Society is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present and future. It is the oldest television society in the world...
Award for Best Single Drama.