Another Sunday and Sweet F.A.

Last updated

"Another Sunday and Sweet F.A."
ITV Sunday Night Theatre episode
Episode no.Series 4
Episode 12
Directed by Michael Apted
Written by Jack Rosenthal
Original air date9 January 1972 (1972-01-09)

"Another Sunday and Sweet F.A." is a television play written by Jack Rosenthal and directed by Michael Apted for Granada Television and which was first broadcast on 9 January 1972 in the ITV Sunday Night Theatre strand. It stars David Swift, Freddie Fletcher and Gordon McGrase. It also features Anne Kirkbride, who as a result of her performance was cast in Coronation Street in the role of Deirdre Barlow. [1]

Contents

The play won the TV Critics' Circle Best Play of the Year Award. [2] [3]

Plot

Eric Armistead (David Swift) is a Sunday league association football referee. Rosenthal explained that for him "life is an Immorality Play. Right never triumphs over wrong. Good never vanquishes evil. No one knows the meaning of 'fairness'. Which is why he's a Sunday morning referee – hoping that in his own small way, in a foreign field that's forever Manchester, he and his whistle might change the world." [2] He referees a match between Sunday league teams Parker Street Depot XI and Co-Op Albion XI, but the game is ugly and violent, and it ends with the referee, driven to exasperation by the players, heading the ball into the net for the winning goal.[ citation needed ]

Cast

Critical reaction

At the time of broadcast, Chris Dunkley in The Times was critical calling it "not a bad play" that "failed continually to live up to a feeling of promise, and a hint of something better to come". However, Dunkley praised Swift's performance in what was "an unusual part for any actor". [4]

Later appraisals have been more favourable. Peter Sharkey in 2005 called it "possibly the greatest dramatic portrayal of football ever seen on our screens", praising details like players arriving clutching cigarettes and the goalkeeper arguing with his girlfriend as he leans against the posts, as well as the atmosphere of alcohol and bad pitches. [5]

The BFI website says "Not much happens ... but the accumulation of detail exudes authenticity." [2] Leslie Halliwell in his Teleguide (1979) calls it an "amusing north-country comedy". [6]

It is held in high esteem by specialist sports writers. Frank Keating called it a "classic" of sport-themed drama. [7] Peter Seddon of The Times included in his list of ten classic football dramas. [8]

DVD

It was included in the 2006 DVD box set Jack Rosenthal at ITV. [9]

Related Research Articles

<i>Coronation Street</i> British TV soap opera (1960–)

Coronation Street is a British television soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced street in the fictional Weatherfield, a town based on inner-city Salford, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ken Barlow</span> Fictional character from Coronation Street

Kenneth "Ken" Barlow is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, played by William Roache. He was created by Tony Warren as one of Coronation Street's original characters and December 2020 marked Ken's 60th anniversary onscreen. He debuted in the soap's first episode on 9 December 1960. Having appeared in the role continuously since that date, Roache is the longest-serving actor in a televised soap opera, and was honoured at the 2010 Guinness World Records ceremony for the achievement, having surpassed actor Don Hastings from the American soap opera As the World Turns, who previously held this title. Roache stated in 2010 that he had no plans to leave the role and would remain in Coronation Street for as long as the producers would have him. In November 2020, Roache was again presented with the Guinness World Record for the longest-serving TV soap star in the world for his six decades in Coronation Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anne Kirkbride</span> English actress (1954–2015)

Anne Kirkbride was an English actress, best known for her long-running role as Deirdre Barlow in the ITV soap Coronation Street, which she played for 42 years from 1972 to 2014. For this role, she posthumously received the Outstanding Achievement Award at the 2015 British Soap Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deirdre Barlow</span> Fictional character from the British soap opera Coronation Street

Deirdre Barlow is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, played by Anne Kirkbride. She made her first screen appearance during the episode broadcast on 20 November 1972. Her final appearance was on 8 October 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Bloomer</span> English footballer and manager (1874–1938)

StephenBloomer was an England international footballer and manager who played for Derby County – becoming their record goalscorer – and Middlesbrough. The anthem "Steve Bloomer's Watchin'" is played at every Derby home game and there is a bust of him at the Pride Park Stadium. He is also listed in the Football League 100 Legends and English Football Hall of Fame.

Kenneth William Farrington is a retired English actor. He first came to fame playing the role of Billy Walker, wayward son of publican Annie, in ITV's longest-running soap opera, Coronation Street. Following a brief period as a film actor, Farrington secured the role of power-hungry Tom King in Emmerdale. After the character's high-profile death in December 2006, Farrington largely retired from acting, although he has appeared in occasional TV roles since then.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blanche Hunt</span> Soap opera character

Blanche Hunt is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street. She was originally played by Patricia Cutts; however, the actress died by suicide after appearing in just two episodes in August 1974. Maggie Jones took over the role, playing Blanche in over 840 episodes from 1974 to her death in December 2009. The character subsequently died off screen in May 2010. Blanche was the mother of Deirdre Barlow, grandmother of Tracy Barlow and great-grandmother of Amy Barlow. Her storylines have revolved around her family life, various romances and her "acerbic tongue". The character's "gallows humour" has been well received by critics, and saw Jones win The British Soap Award for "Best Comedy Performance" in 2005 and 2008. Blanche has been described as "a true Coronation Street icon".

Mike Baldwin (<i>Coronation Street</i>) Fictional character from Coronation Street

Michael Vernon "Mike" Baldwin is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, portrayed by Johnny Briggs. He first appeared on 11 October 1976 and became one of the show's central characters until his final appearance on 7 April 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amy Barlow</span> Fictional character from Coronation Street

Amy Barlow is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, portrayed by Elle Mulvaney. She was born on screen during the episode broadcast on 9 February 2004. To date, the character has been portrayed by eight child actors; Holly Bowyer, Rebecca Pike, Louisa Morris, Rachel and Sarah Corker, Madison Hampson, Amber Chadwick and Elle Mulvaney, making her the most recast character in Coronation Street. Although Amy's surname has stayed Barlow, Chadwick was credited as Amy McDonald for three episodes from 2009 to 2010.

Chris Gascoyne is an English film, theatre and television actor. He is best known for his role as Peter Barlow in the soap opera Coronation Street. Making his first appearance in December 2000 during a live, 50 minute episode for the show's 40th anniversary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duggie Brown</span> English comedian and actor (1940–2022)

Duggie Brown was an English comedian and actor. He was the younger brother of actress and singer Lynne Perrie.

Jack Kirkbride was an English cartoonist, and father to Anne Kirkbride, the actress who played Deirdre Barlow in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street from 1972 to 2014.

The 2001–02 FA Cup was the 121st season of the world's oldest knockout football competition, the FA Cup. The competition was won by Arsenal with a 2–0 win against Chelsea, courtesy of goals from Ray Parlour and Freddie Ljungberg in the final 20 minutes of the game, completing a domestic Double for Arsenal.

The 1974–75 FA Cup was the 94th season of the world's oldest football cup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup. West Ham United won the competition, beating Second Division side Fulham 2–0 in the final at Wembley, London.

The 1973–74 FA Cup was the 93rd season of the world's oldest football cup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup. Liverpool won the competition for only the second time, beating Newcastle United 3–0 in the final at Wembley, London.

Coronation StreetLive is a live episode of the British soap opera Coronation Street which was broadcast on Friday 8 December 2000 as part of the show's 40th anniversary celebrations. The episode was an hour long and aired at 8:00pm. It aired one hour after a repeat of the first episode, and included an introduction by actor William Roache from the soap's outdoor set, where last-minute preparations for the live episode were under way. The episode was number 4945 in the series and was the first live edition to be broadcast since Episode 17, which aired on 3 February 1961. It was seen by 17 million viewers.

<i>The Comedy Man</i> 1964 British film by Alvin Rakoff

The Comedy Man is a 1964 British kitchen sink realism drama film directed by Alvin Rakoff and starring Kenneth More, Cecil Parker, Dennis Price and Billie Whitelaw. It depicts the life of a struggling actor in Swinging London.

Freddie Fletcher is an English actor best known for playing Jud, in Ken Loach's 1969 film Kes. He also appeared in the ITV series Fox.

References

  1. ↑ "Deirdre Barlow". Stv.tv. 17 December 2008. Archived from the original on 13 January 2014. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 "Another Sunday and Sweet F.A. (1972)". BFI Screenonline. Retrieved 24 April 2013.
  3. ↑ "Jack Rosenthal | Tv Greats | A Television Heaven Biography". Televisionheaven.co.uk. Archived from the original on 15 October 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  4. ↑ Chris Dunkley "Another Sunday and", The Times (London, England), 10 January 1972; p. 8; Issue 58371.
  5. ↑ "Putting on their Sunday worst", Sharkey, Peter, South Wales Evening Post , 21 October 2005, section Sport, p. 48
  6. ↑ Leslie Halliwell Halliwell's Teleguide, 1979, p. 12
  7. ↑ Frank Keating (15 November 2006). "Sixty-six and all that". The Spectator . Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  8. ↑ "Box to box", Peter Seddon, The Times , 10 November 2001
  9. ↑ "Out this week DVDs", The Sunday Telegraph , 18 June 2006, Nexis. Web. Date accessed: 2013/04/24.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.