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==Cast==
==Cast==
*[[Don Crosby]] as Hugh Pakenham
*[[Don Crosby]] as Hugh Pakenham
*[[Joe Jenkins (dancer)|Joe Jenkins]] as Hank Christians
*[[Joe Jenkins (dancer)|Joe Jenkins]] as Hank Christians, an American serviceman
*Douglas Kelly as Shaun O'Donnell
*Douglas Kelly as Shaun O'Donnell
*Barbara Brandon as Mrs O'Donnell
*Barbara Brandon as Mrs O'Donnell
*Fay Kelton as Valerie Hollis
*[[Fay Kelton]] as Valerie Hollis, a young English girl
*Keith Hudson as Tom Jarrow
*Keith Hudson as Tom Jarrow, a bank clerk
*Syd Conabere as Dr Wincot
*[[Syd Conabere]] as Dr Wincot
*Kenrick Hudson as Commander Ridgwell
*Kenrick Hudson as Commander Ridgwell
*James Lynch as Petty Officer Marks
*James Lynch as Petty Officer Marks
Line 52: Line 52:
==Productions==
==Productions==
[[File:End_Begins_newspaper_ad.png|thumb|right|Ad from ''The Age'' 22 Mar 1961]]
[[File:End_Begins_newspaper_ad.png|thumb|right|Ad from ''The Age'' 22 Mar 1961]]
It was based on a British TV play by [[Ray Rigby (screenwriter)|Ray Rigby]] which had been filmed in 1956 in a production starring [[Earl Cameron]].<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1173488/?ref_=nm_flmg_wr_12 1956 TV production] at [[IMDb]]</ref> Rigby later became well known for writing ''The Hill''. His play was later adapted for Australian radio in 1964.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131746074 |title=2CA |newspaper=[[The Canberra Times]] |volume=38, |issue=10,784 |location=Australian Capital Territory, Australia |date=29 February 1964 |accessdate=10 September 2020 |page=16 |via=National Library of Australia}} </ref>
It was based on a British TV play by [[Ray Rigby (screenwriter)|Ray Rigby]], who wrote it in collaboration with his wife Jean when working as a booking clerk at Victoria station. He submitted it to the BBC and they filmed it in 1956 in a production starring [[Earl Cameron]].<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1173488/?ref_=nm_flmg_wr_12 1956 TV production] at [[IMDb]]</ref> <ref name="times"/> Rigby later became well known for writing ''The Hill''. His play was later adapted for Australian radio in 1964.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131746074 |title=2CA |newspaper=[[The Canberra Times]] |volume=38, |issue=10,784 |location=Australian Capital Territory, Australia |date=29 February 1964 |accessdate=10 September 2020 |page=16 |via=National Library of Australia}} </ref>


The production was filmed in Melbourne. It was William Sterling's first production after returning to Australia following a trip overseas. The set was created by Douglas Smith who did the designs for ''Stormy Petrel''.<ref name="two"/>
The production was filmed in Melbourne. It was William Sterling's first production after returning to Australia following a trip overseas. Sterling said prior to broadcast:
<blockquote>This is perhaps the most controversial play the ABC has attempted on television. There are a number of dramatic developments that which are not comfortable, easy-way-out solutions of many of the moral and political problems of everyday life. The author's treatment is adult in every sense. This is the type of play television handles best. In fact, this is the first play in a long time that has made such a dramatic comment on contemporary affairs.<ref name="times">{{cite magazine|magazine=TV Times|title=The world in ruins|pgae=4|ate=10 August 1961}}</ref></blockquote>
The set was created by Douglas Smith who did the designs for ''Stormy Petrel''.<ref name="two"/>


The cast included Joe Jenkins, a black American actor and dancer who came to Australia with the Katherine Dunham Dance Company and decided to stay.<ref name="age"/> He was one of the few black actors to play a lead role in Australia at that time.
The cast included Joe Jenkins, a black American actor and dancer who came to Australia with the Katherine Dunham Dance Company and decided to stay.<ref name="age"/> He was one of the few black actors to play a lead role in Australia at that time.

Revision as of 10:47, 25 September 2020

The End Begins
File:The End Begins Cast Photo.png
Joe Jenkins, Fay Kelton, 1961 cast photo
Genrescience fiction
Written byRay Rigby
Directed byWilliam Sterling
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
Production
Running time75 mins[1]
Production companyABC
Original release
NetworkABC
Release22 March 1961 (Melbourne, live)[2]
14 June 1961 (Sydney, taped)[3][4]

The End Begins is a 1961 Australian television play shot in ABC's Melbourne studios. Like many early Australian TV plays it was based on an overseas script. It was a rare Australian TV play with a science fiction theme.[5]

Plot

On an island off the west coast of Great Britain, a group of survivors of World War Three struggle to continue living. Hugh Packenham foresaw the oncoming conflict and fled to the island. His only neighbours are fisherman Shaun O'Donnell and his wife Barbara. Then other survivors seek refuge, including an African American sailor, and conflicts develop[6][7]

Cast

  • Don Crosby as Hugh Pakenham
  • Joe Jenkins as Hank Christians, an American serviceman
  • Douglas Kelly as Shaun O'Donnell
  • Barbara Brandon as Mrs O'Donnell
  • Fay Kelton as Valerie Hollis, a young English girl
  • Keith Hudson as Tom Jarrow, a bank clerk
  • Syd Conabere as Dr Wincot
  • Kenrick Hudson as Commander Ridgwell
  • James Lynch as Petty Officer Marks
  • David Mitchell as Seaman Wells
  • Edward Brayshaw as Smithers
  • Elizabeth Goodman as woman

Productions

File:End Begins newspaper ad.png
Ad from The Age 22 Mar 1961

It was based on a British TV play by Ray Rigby, who wrote it in collaboration with his wife Jean when working as a booking clerk at Victoria station. He submitted it to the BBC and they filmed it in 1956 in a production starring Earl Cameron.[8] [9] Rigby later became well known for writing The Hill. His play was later adapted for Australian radio in 1964.[10]

The production was filmed in Melbourne. It was William Sterling's first production after returning to Australia following a trip overseas. Sterling said prior to broadcast:

This is perhaps the most controversial play the ABC has attempted on television. There are a number of dramatic developments that which are not comfortable, easy-way-out solutions of many of the moral and political problems of everyday life. The author's treatment is adult in every sense. This is the type of play television handles best. In fact, this is the first play in a long time that has made such a dramatic comment on contemporary affairs.[9]

The set was created by Douglas Smith who did the designs for Stormy Petrel.[6]

The cast included Joe Jenkins, a black American actor and dancer who came to Australia with the Katherine Dunham Dance Company and decided to stay.[2] He was one of the few black actors to play a lead role in Australia at that time. [11]

Reception

The Sydney Morning Herald said it "had the merit of exploratory camera work" and called it "quite imaginative".[12]

References

  1. ^ "TV Guide". The Age. 16 March 1961. p. 33.
  2. ^ a b "Survival Drama". The Age. 16 March 1961. p. 12.
  3. ^ "Atomic War Survivors". Sydney Morning Herald. 12 June 1961. p. 15.
  4. ^ "Television". Sydney Morning Herald. 14 June 1961. p. 13.
  5. ^ Vagg, Stephen (18 February 2019). "60 Australian TV Plays of the 1950s & '60s". Filmink.
  6. ^ a b "Drama Assesses Human Valies". The Age. 16 March 1991. p. 13.
  7. ^ "TV Guide". The Age. 16 March 1961. p. 33.
  8. ^ 1956 TV production at IMDb
  9. ^ a b "The world in ruins". TV Times. {{cite magazine}}: Unknown parameter |ate= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |pgae= ignored (help)
  10. ^ "2CA". The Canberra Times. Vol. 38, , no. 10, 784. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 29 February 1964. p. 16. Retrieved 10 September 2020 – via National Library of Australia.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  11. ^ Vagg, Stephen (25 May 2020). "The A to Z of Non-White Aussie Movies and TV in White Australia". Filmink.
  12. ^ "Drama of Atomic War Survivors on TV". Sydney Morning Herald. 15 June 1961. p. 7.

External links