The Barchester Chronicles is a 1982 British television serial produced by 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...

. It is an adaptation of Anthony Trollope

Anthony Trollope

Anthony Trollope was one of the most successful, prolific and respected English novelists of the Victorian era. Some of his best-loved works, collectively known as the Chronicles of Barsetshire, revolve around the imaginary county of Barsetshire...

's first two Barchester novels

Chronicles of Barsetshire

The Chronicles of Barsetshire is a series of six novels by the English author Anthony Trollope, set in the fictitious cathedral town of Barchester...

, The Warden

The Warden

The Warden is the first novel in Anthony Trollope's series known as the "Chronicles of Barsetshire", published in 1855. It was his fourth novel.-Synopsis:...

and Barchester Towers

Barchester Towers

Barchester Towers, published in 1857, is the second novel in Anthony Trollope's series known as the "Chronicles of Barsetshire". It is possibly Trollope's best known work...

, and was directed by David Giles. It was largely filmed in and around Peterborough Cathedral

Peterborough Cathedral

Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Andrew, whose statues look down from the...

, using locations such as the Deanery and Laurel Court.

The series starred Donald Pleasence

Donald Pleasence

Sir Donald Henry Pleasence, OBE, was a British actor who gained more than 200 screen credits during a career which spanned over four decades...

 as Mr Harding, Nigel Hawthorne

Nigel Hawthorne

Sir Nigel Barnard Hawthorne, CBE was an English actor, perhaps best remembered for his role as Sir Humphrey Appleby, the Permanent Secretary in the 1980s sitcom Yes Minister and the Cabinet Secretary in its sequel, Yes, Prime Minister. For this role he won four BAFTA Awards during the 1980s in the...

 as Archdeacon Grantly, Angela Pleasence

Angela Pleasence

Angela Pleasence is an English actress. She is the daughter of actor Donald Pleasence and his first wife, Miriam Raymond. The surname for both daughter and father has occasionally been miscredited as "Pleasance"...

 as Mrs Grantly, Cyril Luckham

Cyril Luckham

Cyril Luckham was a British film, television and theatre actor.Luckham played the White Guardian in the long running science fiction television series Doctor Who. He appeared in The Ribos Operation, the first serial in The Key to Time season, and Enlightenment...

 as Bishop Grantly, David Gwillim

David Gwillim

David Gwillim is an English actor, best known for playing Prince Hal in the BBC Television Shakespeare Henry IV, Part I and Henry IV, Part II and the title role in Henry V which were broadcast in 1979, and John Bold in The Barchester Chronicles broadcast in 1982.- Biography :Gwillim was born in...

 as John Bold, George Costigan

George Costigan

-Early life:Costigan was born in Portsmouth and grew up in Irlams o' th' Height and Weaste in Salford. He attended St. Augustine's C of E Primary School on Bolton Road in Pendlebury, then Wardley Grammar School on Mardale Avenue in Wardley near Swinton.-Career:...

 as Tom Towers, John Ringham

John Ringham

John Henry Ringham was a British character actor of both television and stage who appeared in over a hundred screen appearances in a wide variety of roles....

 as Finney, Barbara Flynn

Barbara Flynn

Barbara Flynn is an English actress. She first became known for her appearance in the ITV drama A Family at War, that followed the fortunes of a lower middle class family living in Liverpool from 1938 and through World War II.During the 1980s Flynn's acting skills led to her being cast in several...

 as Mary Bold, Janet Maw as Eleanor Harding, Clive Swift

Clive Swift

Clive Walter Swift is an English character comedy actor and songwriter. He is best known for his role as character Richard Bucket in the British television series Keeping Up Appearances. He is less known for his role as character Roy in the British television series The Old Guys...

 as Bishop Proudie, Geraldine McEwan

Geraldine McEwan

Geraldine McEwan is an English actor with a diverse history in theatre, film, and television. From 2004 to 2009 she appeared as Miss Marple, the Agatha Christie sleuth, for the series Marple.-Background:...

 as Mrs Proudie, Alan Rickman

Alan Rickman

Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman is an English actor and theatre director. He is a renowned stage actor in modern and classical productions and a former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company...

 as Obadiah Slope, Susan Hampshire

Susan Hampshire

Susan Hampshire, Lady Kulukundis, OBE is an English actress, best-known for her many television and film roles.-Early life:Susan Hampshire was born in Kensington, London, the youngest of four children. She had two sisters and one brother...

 as Signora Madeline Neroni, and 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 Miss Thorne.

The series is now available on DVD.

Awards

The series won a BAFTA

British Academy of Film and Television Arts

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...

award for Design (Chris Pemsel) in 1982, also being nominated for Drama Series/Serial (Jonathan Powell, David Giles), Costume Design (Juanita Waterson), Graphics (Stewart Austin), Make Up (Elizabeth Rowell), Sound Supervisor (Chick Anthony), Video Cameraman (Geoff Feld), and Video Lighting (Howard King).