Black and Blue (TV series)

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Black and Blue
Title screenshot from episode one
GenreDrama
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes6
Production
ProducerMark Shivas
Running time60 minutes
Original release
NetworkBBC 2
Release14 August (1973-08-14) –
18 September 1973 (1973-09-18)

Black and Blue is a BBC TV comedy-drama series, first broadcast in 1973. Its overall title refers to the black and blue humour of the episodes.

The show consisted of 6 television plays of 50–60 minutes duration, each being separate and self-contained from the others, the only connection between them being the two types of humour.

The first episode was broadcast on 14 August 1973,[1] with the last episode airing on 18 September 1973. The episode "Secrets" was wiped,[2] only surviving because a domestic videotape copy was made from the mastertape by its producer, Mark Shivas.

Episodes[edit]

No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
1"Secrets"James Cellan JonesMichael Palin and Terry Jones14 August 1973 (1973-08-14)[3]

Three employees working at a chocolate factory accidentally fall into a vat of chocolate for the company's 'Secrets' assortment. When sales start to soar, it turns out that British consumers have a taste for cannibalism.

2"The Middle-of-the-Road
Roadshow for All the Family"
Mark CullinghamPhilip Mackie21 August 1973 (1973-08-21)[4]

A Wardour Street movie tycoon accidentally hires the wrong script-writer to pen a film about the life of Queen Anne and pays him £500,000, and now has to figure out how to get the money back.

3"High Kampf"Michael AptedHugh Leonard28 August 1973 (1973-08-28)[5]

When a wealthy member of a family lays dying in his bed, a bunch of unscrupulous relatives show up and circle him like a pack of vultures waiting for him to die.

4"Rust"Waris HusseinJulien Mitchell4 September 1973 (1973-09-04)[6]

When a flu pandemic sweeps over the country and threatens to wipe out civilization, a drug concocted by a British pharmaceutical company might just be the answer, but alas, it does have a side-effect: it renders people impotent.

5"Soap Opera in Stockwell"Tim AspinallMichael O'Neill and Jeremy Seabrook11 September 1973 (1973-09-11)[7]

When a possible and accidental baby-snatching occurs in front of a launderette, all hell breaks loose. In this episode, all the women over 35 are played by men.

6"Glorious Miles"Ian MacNaughtonHenry Livings18 September 1973 (1973-09-18)[8]

A millionaire decides to hire a butler just so he can impress his friends, but the butler thinks he has been hired for a much deadlier and sinister purpose.

References[edit]

  1. ^ Hollman, Ken (14 August 1973). "Hard To Swallow?". TV Preview. Liverpool Daily Post. p. 2.
  2. ^ "Black And Blue Series 1, Episode 1 - Secrets". British Comedy Guide.
  3. ^ "Black & Blue - Ep1 - Secrets". BBC Two. 1973.
  4. ^ Hollman, Ken (21 August 1973). "The Wardour Street Blues". Liverpool Daily Post. p. 2.
  5. ^ "Vulture Heirs". Viewing Highlights. Derby Evening Telegraph. 28 August 1973. p. 4.
  6. ^ "Black and Blue". Television and Radio Entertainment. Liverpool Echo. 4 September 1973. p. 2.
  7. ^ "BBC TV 2". Television and Radio. Burton Mail. 11 September 1973. p. 8.
  8. ^ "BBC TV 2". Burton Mail. 18 September 1973. p. 8.

External links[edit]