Wanted - a Good Home
Encyclopedia
Wanted - a Good Home is the fifth episode of the fifth and final series of the period drama
Upstairs, Downstairs
. It first aired on 5 October 1975 on ITV
.
. John Hawkesworth
, who wrote this episode, based some of the events seen in Wanted - a Good Home on his own childhood, Hawkesworth having had a governess
himself.
. After asking Virginia, Rose buys Alice a small dog, called "Thimble", for Alice to keep her company after William leaves.
Shortly William leaves, Richard and Virginia go to France
. Miss Treadwell, the governess, believes she is in charge in their absence, and annoys the other servants by taking tea
in the Morning Room. The servants are dismayed when she puts Alice on a bread and water diet as a punishment for her behaviour. Jennifer Chivers, a friend, joins Alice for her lessons with Miss Treadwell. When Thimble chews Miss Treadwell's shoe, she orders the dog to be presented to her the following morning so she can have it put down. However, the servants hide Thimble in Edward and Daisy's flat above the garage, and tells Miss Treadwell and Alice that it has gone "missing". It reappears moments after Richard and Virginia return home.
When Richard and Virginia return home, she immediately complains about the behaviour of the other servants. However, immediately Virginia dismisses Miss Treadwell and gives her four weeks wages instead of notice. It is then decided that Alice will go to a day school, something that Alice is very happy about.
Period piece
-Setting:In the performing arts, a period piece is a work set in a particular era. This informal term covers all countries, all periods and all genres...
Upstairs, Downstairs
Upstairs, Downstairs
Upstairs, Downstairs is a British drama television series originally produced by London Weekend Television and revived by the BBC. It ran on ITV in 68 episodes divided into five series from 1971 to 1975, and a sixth series shown on the BBC on three consecutive nights, 26–28 December 2010.Set in a...
. It first aired on 5 October 1975 on ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
.
Background
Wanted - a Good Home was recorded in the studio on 6 and 7 March 1975, with the location footage having been filmed on 26 February in Eaton Place in BelgraviaBelgravia
Belgravia is a district of central London in the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Noted for its immensely expensive residential properties, it is one of the wealthiest districts in the world...
. John Hawkesworth
John Hawkesworth (producer)
John Hawkesworth was an English television and film producer and writer best known for his work on the period drama Upstairs, Downstairs.-Early life:...
, who wrote this episode, based some of the events seen in Wanted - a Good Home on his own childhood, Hawkesworth having had a governess
Governess
A governess is a girl or woman employed to teach and train children in a private household. In contrast to a nanny or a babysitter, she concentrates on teaching children, not on meeting their physical needs...
himself.
Cast
- Angela BaddeleyAngela BaddeleyAngela Baddeley, CBE , born Madeline Angela Clinton-Baddeley, was an English actress best remembered for her role as Mrs Bridges in the period drama Upstairs, Downstairs...
- Mrs Bridges - Gordon JacksonGordon Jackson (actor)Gordon Cameron Jackson, OBE was a Scottish Emmy Award-winning actor best remembered for his roles as the butler Angus Hudson in Upstairs, Downstairs and George Cowley, the head of CI5, in The Professionals....
- HudsonAngus HudsonAngus Hudson was a fictional character in the ITV drama Upstairs, Downstairs, portrayed by actor Gordon Jackson from 1971 until 1975.-Biography:... - Jean MarshJean MarshJean Lyndsey Torren Marsh is an English actress, occasional screenwriter, and co-creator of the television series Upstairs, Downstairs and The House of Eliott....
- Rose - Hannah GordonHannah GordonHannah Cambell Grant Gordon is a Scottish actress who is well known in the United Kingdom for her television work, including Upstairs, Downstairs, Telford's Change, My Wife Next Door, Joint Account and an appearance in the final episode of One Foot in the Grave.-Early life:Gordon was born in...
- Virginia Bellamy - David LangtonDavid LangtonDavid Muir Langton was a British actor who is best remembered for playing Richard Bellamy in the period drama Upstairs, Downstairs.-Early years:...
- Richard Bellamy - Shirley CainShirley CainShirley Cain is a British television actress.Her television appearances include Upstairs Downstairs , Malice Aforethought , Pride and Prejudice , Dombey and Son , The Pickwick Papers , Harem , The Bill...
- Miss Treadwell - Jenny TomasinJenny TomasinJenny Tomasin is an English actress best known for her roles in Upstairs, Downstairs and Emmerdale.-Career:Tomasin became well known in the early 1970s when she joined the cast of Upstairs, Downstairs as kitchen maid Ruby. She stayed with the series until the end in 1975, appearing in 41 episodes...
- Ruby - Peter Forest - Bert
- Jacqueline TongJacqueline TongJacqueline Tong is an English actress who is best known for playing Daisy Barnes in the period drama Upstairs, Downstairs from 1973 to 1975. In 1975, she was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in the Primetime Emmy Awards.-Early life:Tong was born in Bristol,...
- Daisy - Gareth HuntGareth HuntAlan Leonard Hunt was an English actor, known as Gareth Hunt, best remembered for playing the footman Frederick Norton in Upstairs, Downstairs and Mike Gambit in The New Avengers.-Early life:...
- Frederick - Anne Yarker - Alice Hamilton
- Jonathan Seely - William Hamilton
- Tracey ChildsTracey ChildsTracey Childs is an English actress, best known for playing Lynne Howard in the 1980s drama series Howards' Way. More recently, she has appeared in Born and Bred as Linda Cosgrove and as Patty Cornwell in Hollyoaks....
- Jennifer Chivers - Danvers - Thimble
Plot
It is spring 1922 and William, who is now eight years old, is off to a boarding preparatory schoolPreparatory school (UK)
In English language usage in the former British Empire, the present-day Commonwealth, a preparatory school is an independent school preparing children up to the age of eleven or thirteen for entry into fee-paying, secondary independent schools, some of which are known as public schools...
. After asking Virginia, Rose buys Alice a small dog, called "Thimble", for Alice to keep her company after William leaves.
Shortly William leaves, Richard and Virginia go to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Miss Treadwell, the governess, believes she is in charge in their absence, and annoys the other servants by taking tea
Tea (meal)
Tea can refer to any of several different meals or mealtimes, depending on a country's customs and its history of drinking tea. However, in those countries where the term's use is common, the influences are generally those of the former British Empire...
in the Morning Room. The servants are dismayed when she puts Alice on a bread and water diet as a punishment for her behaviour. Jennifer Chivers, a friend, joins Alice for her lessons with Miss Treadwell. When Thimble chews Miss Treadwell's shoe, she orders the dog to be presented to her the following morning so she can have it put down. However, the servants hide Thimble in Edward and Daisy's flat above the garage, and tells Miss Treadwell and Alice that it has gone "missing". It reappears moments after Richard and Virginia return home.
When Richard and Virginia return home, she immediately complains about the behaviour of the other servants. However, immediately Virginia dismisses Miss Treadwell and gives her four weeks wages instead of notice. It is then decided that Alice will go to a day school, something that Alice is very happy about.