"The Forsyte Saga" (1967) TV mini-series

User Rating:

8.9/10   

Director:

James Cellan Jones

Writer:

Lennox Phillips (adaptation)

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

7 January 1967 (UK)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

The Forsyte family is shown in Victorian respectability as they gather to meet June's fiance, the architect Philip Bosinney...

Plot Keywords:

TV Mini-Series | Family Saga | Based On Novel | Character Name In Title

Awards:

Won Primetime Emmy. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Eric Porter	...	Soames Forsyte (26 episodes, 1967)
Margaret Tyzack	...	Winifred Dartie (23 episodes, 1967)
Nyree Dawn Porter	...	Irene Forsyte née Heron (19 episodes, 1967)
June Barry	...	June Forsyte (16 episodes, 1967)
Kenneth More	...	'Young Jolyon' Forsyte (15 episodes, 1967)
Maggie Jones	...	Smither (14 episodes, 1967)
Susan Hampshire	...	Fleur Mont née Forsyte (14 episodes, 1967)
Nicholas Pennell	...	Michael Mont (14 episodes, 1967)
John Welsh	...	James Forsyte (12 episodes, 1967)
John Barcroft	...	George Forsyte (11 episodes, 1967)
Suzanne Neve	...	Holly Dartie née Forsyte (11 episodes, 1967)

Runtime:

50 min (26 episodes)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Certification:

Singapore:PG

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

The end credits say, "Music: Marcus Dods", but he only conducted the 'Eric Coates' (non-original) theme music.

Quotes:

Jolyon 'Jo' Forsyte: I'm not a true Forsyte. I'm a bit of a mongrel. I put the ha'pennies on my cheques, not take them off.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Creation of the Daleks (2006) (V)

A landmark that's now hard to find.

`The Forsyte Saga' was a landmark in the history of television, not just in the UK, but globally. It was apparently the first miniseries to be produced anywhere. It was produced in part to start up the BBC's highbrow BBC2 channel. It was the BBC's most ambitious and expensive series up to that time. It was also the BBC's last major production in black and white, although plenty of color publicity stills were shot for it and BBC2 was intended to inaugurate color television in Britain. The series was originally aired in early 1967 on BBC2, coinciding with the 100th anniversary of author John Galsworthy's birth. It was so popular that it was quickly repeated on the more popular BBC1 channel. The series' popularity was phenomenal. The entire country seemed to rearrange its collective schedule around the show and the streets were empty when it was on. In the following years, the BBC would produce a slew of other period piece miniseries such as `The Six Wives of Henry VIII' and `Elizabeth R.' Britain's commercial network, Independent Television (ITV), got into the act with works like `Upstairs, Downstairs.'

`The Forsyte Saga' was exported and had a major impact abroad. Networks in other countries were soon producing their own period miniseries. `The Forsyte Saga' was the first television series from a Western country to be shown in the Soviet Union.

`The Forsyte Saga' was first shown in the United States in 1969 on the National Educational Television (NET) network and was its first prime time hit. It was repeated on NET's successor, the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), which was soon importing and airing similar series under the `Masterpiece Theatre' banner. A few years later, the commercial networks (ABC, CBS, and NBC) were busy producing their own period miniseries like `Rich Man, Poor Man' and `Once An Eagle.'

`The Forsyte Saga' had a profound influence on the careers of its cast. It greatly boosted the fortunes of Eric Porter, Nyree Dawn Porter, and Margaret Tyzack, made Susan Hampshire the uncrowned queen of BBC2, and gave Michael York and Martin Jarvis their big breaks. The series gave Kenneth More his best role during the long and inexplicable twilight of his career. On the other hand, June Barry, Dalia Penn, and Nicholas Pennell all had prominent parts in the series, but were little seen in subsequent years.

In fact, the same can be said about the series itself. `The Forsyte Saga' hasn't been aired in the Washington, D.C., area in 20 or more years and is currently not available in this country on video or DVD. Its importance in television history is great and undisputed, but it's now spoken about more than seen.