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Sydney Newman: Difference between revisions
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Moving to Britain in 1958, he worked first with the Associated British Corporation (ABC) before moving across to the [[BBC]] in 1962, holding the role of [[Head of Drama]] with both organisations. During this phase of his career, he was responsible for initiating two hugely popular fantasy series, ''[[The Avengers]]'' (for ABC) and ''[[Doctor Who]]'' (for BBC), as well as overseeing the production of groundbreaking social realist drama series such as ''[[Armchair Theatre]]'' and ''The Wednesday Play''. | Moving to Britain in 1958, he worked first with the Associated British Corporation (ABC) before moving across to the [[BBC]] in 1962, holding the role of [[Head of Drama]] with both organisations. During this phase of his career, he was responsible for initiating two hugely popular fantasy series, ''[[The Avengers]]'' (for ABC) and ''[[Doctor Who]]'' (for BBC), as well as overseeing the production of groundbreaking social realist drama series such as ''[[Armchair Theatre]]'' and ''The Wednesday Play''. | ||
It was during a 1958 broadcast of ''Armchair Theatre'' that Newman was involved in an infamous incident when actor {{w|Gareth Jones (actor)|Gareth Jones}}, a lead actor in | It was during a 1958 broadcast of ''Armchair Theatre'' that Newman was involved in an infamous incident when actor {{w|Gareth Jones (actor)|Gareth Jones}}, a lead actor in that week's play, which was titled "{{w|Underground (1958 TV play)|Underground}}", suddenly collapsed and died from a heart attack backstage in make-up between scenes of the live telecast. (By a spooky coincidence, Jones's character was to have died in the same way later in the play.) The play continued through improvisation, i.e. with the other actors ad-libbing around Jones's part, with Newman reportedly advising the director to treat the production "like a football match". | ||
The website of the Museum of Broadcast Communications describes Newman as "the most significant agent in the development of British television drama." Shortly after his death, his obituary in ''The Guardian'' newspaper declared that "For ten brief but glorious years, Sydney Newman ... was the most important impresario in Britain ... His death marks not just the end of an era but the laying to rest of a whole philosophy of popular art." | The website of the Museum of Broadcast Communications describes Newman as "the most significant agent in the development of British television drama." Shortly after his death, his obituary in ''The Guardian'' newspaper declared that "For ten brief but glorious years, Sydney Newman ... was the most important impresario in Britain ... His death marks not just the end of an era but the laying to rest of a whole philosophy of popular art." | ||
