Edmund Barclay
Encyclopedia
Edmund Barclay was an English-Australian writer best known for his work in radio drama
. Radio historian Richard Lane called him "Australian radio's first great writer and, many would say, Australian radio's greatest playwright ever." He also wrote stage plays and film scripts including The Silence of Dean Maitland
(1934).
He was born in India to English parents, and was educated in England, where he worked as a journalist. He arrived in Australia in 1926 and wrote short stories, newspaper serials, articles and verse before moving into radio in the early 1930s. Among his most popular works were Khyber, a tale of the British Empire
on the North West Frontier, and As Ye Sow, a story of the European settlement of Australia. He wrote less in the 1940s and 1950s, partly due to ill health brought on by heavy drinking.
Radio drama
Radio drama is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance, broadcast on radio or published on audio media, such as tape or CD. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine the characters and story...
. Radio historian Richard Lane called him "Australian radio's first great writer and, many would say, Australian radio's greatest playwright ever." He also wrote stage plays and film scripts including The Silence of Dean Maitland
The Silence of Dean Maitland
-Synopsis:The plot concerns a clergyman, Cyril Maitland , living in a small seaside town, who impregnates the beautiful Alma Lee despite being engaged to another woman. When Alma's father Ben finds out about the pregnancy, he attacks Maitland and is killed in a fall...
(1934).
He was born in India to English parents, and was educated in England, where he worked as a journalist. He arrived in Australia in 1926 and wrote short stories, newspaper serials, articles and verse before moving into radio in the early 1930s. Among his most popular works were Khyber, a tale of the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
on the North West Frontier, and As Ye Sow, a story of the European settlement of Australia. He wrote less in the 1940s and 1950s, partly due to ill health brought on by heavy drinking.
Selected credits
- The Three MusketeersThe Three MusketeersThe Three Musketeers is a novel by Alexandre Dumas, first serialized in March–July 1844. Set in the 17th century, it recounts the adventures of a young man named d'Artagnan after he leaves home to travel to Paris, to join the Musketeers of the Guard...
(1934) - radio version of the famous story - Return of the Three Musketeers (1934) - radio play
- An Antarctic Epic : The Story of Captain Scott's Tragic Journey to the South Pole (1934) - radio play
- The Silence of Dean MaitlandThe Silence of Dean Maitland-Synopsis:The plot concerns a clergyman, Cyril Maitland , living in a small seaside town, who impregnates the beautiful Alma Lee despite being engaged to another woman. When Alma's father Ben finds out about the pregnancy, he attacks Maitland and is killed in a fall...
(1934) - co-screenplay - The Cedar TreeThe Cedar TreeThe Cedar Tree was an extremely popular television serial that ran from 1976-1979 on ITV in the United Kingdom.It involved the saga of the Bourne family, hailing from an aristocratic background, before the turn of the Second World War....
(1935) - book - Lawrence of Arabia (1935) - radio play
- Khyber (1935) - radio play - starred James RaglanJames Raglan-In Australia:Early in 1935 he was brought out to Australia with the Gabriel Toyne company by J. C. Williamson, playing Laburnum Grove and Michael Egan's The Dominant Sex. During this time he had appeared in the radio serials The Scarlet Pimpernel and Khyber by Edmund Barclay, in both series...
- A Cavalcade of Australian History (1935) - radio play
- Khyber and Beyond (1936) - radio play, sequel to Khyber
- Khyber (1936) - novel, based on his 1935 radio play
- Shanghai (1936) - radio play
- Dead or Alive (1936) - radio play
- Lovers and LuggersLovers and LuggersLovers and Luggers is a 1937 adventure melodrama about a pianist who goes to Thursday Island to retrieve a valuable pearl.-Production:The script was based on a novel by Gurney Slade which was set in Broome and adapted by Frank Harvey...
(1937) - co-screenplay - Shanghai (1937) - novel, based on his radio play
- Murder in the Silo (1937) - radio play
- Neath Southern Skies(1938) - radio play
- As Ye Sow : An Australian Saga (1937-38) - radio play
- Into the Light (1938) - radio play
- The Girl with the Tattered Glove (1938) - radio play
- Singapore Spy (1939) - radio play
- Valley of the Sky (1939) - radio play
- Madame Curie (1939) - radio play - starred Peter FinchPeter FinchPeter Finch was a British-born Australian actor. He is best remembered for his role as "crazed" television anchorman Howard Beale in the film Network, which earned him a posthumous Academy Award for Best Actor, his fifth Best Actor award from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, and a...
- With Wings as Eagles (1943) - radio play - he wrote with Joy Hollyer, with whom he formed a romantic relationship
- The Bolero Murder (1940s) - radio play
- The Man Who Liked Eclairs (1940s) - radio play
- The Fortunes of Richard MahonyThe Fortunes of Richard MahonyThe Fortunes of Richard Mahony is a three-part novel by Australian writer Henry Handel Richardson. It consists of Australia Felix , The Way Home , and Ultima Thule . It was collected in 1930 under the title by which it is now best known...
(1950) radio play, adapting the novel
External links
- Edmund Barclay at IMDB
- Edmund Barclay at Australian Dictionary of BiographyAustralian Dictionary of BiographyThe Australian Dictionary of Biography is a national, co-operative enterprise, founded and maintained by the Australian National University to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's history....
- Edmund Barclay at Trove
- Edmund Barclay Australian theatre credits at AusstageAusstageAusStage is an online database which records information about live performances in Australia. It provides records of productions from the beginnings of theatre in Australia up to today...
- Edmund Barclay at Austlit (subscription required)
- Edmund Barclay papers at State Library of New South WalesState Library of New South WalesThe State Library of New South Wales is a large public library owned by the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located in Macquarie Street, Sydney near Shakespeare Place...