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274 pages

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John McGrath's plays are compulsory reading and viewing for students of drama, film and television courses in many University and Further Education departments and yet despite recognition of the central importance of McGrath's work, very little has been written about him. This is the first full-length study of his work.

This book illuminates the importance of John McGrath's role in the development of theatre, film and television in the last four decades of the twentieth century. Through play and script-writing, through directing, producing and co-ordinating work, and through his critical, political and philosophical reflections, McGrath exerted a powerful influence over developments and innovations in all three art forms.

The contributors include film and television directors, actors, designers, writers, university researchers and journalists, many of whom worked with McGrath. Questions of day-to-day working practice are addressed alongside broader political and aesthetic concerns, and the question of McGrath's relationship to and influence on the arts in Scotland receives careful consideration.

List of Illustrations

Notes on Contributors

Acknowledgements

Foreword by Richard Eyre

Introduction by David Bradby and Susanna Capon

Part One: Culture and the Socialist Vision

1. Theatre,Theory and Politics: The Contribution of John McGrath, Maria DiCenzo

Part Two: Early Work

2. Get Out and Get On: Events While Guarding the Bofors Gun, Peter Thomson

3. A Life Outside: John McGrath and the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool, Ros Merkin

4. 'Serjeant Musgrave Dances to a Different Tune': John McGrath's Adaptation of John Arden's Serjeant Musgrave's Dance, John Bull

5. Finding the Right Places, Finding the Right Audiences: Topicality and Entertainment in the Work of England, Nadine Holdsworth

Part Three: John McGrath and Scotland

6. Border Warranty: John McGrath and Scotland, Randall Stevenson

7. Celtic Centres, the Fringes and John McGrath, Ian Brown

8. Bursting through the hoop and dancing on the edge of the seediness': Five Scottish Playwrights Talk about John McGrath, Ian Brown

Part Four: Case Studies

9. The Television Adaptation of The Cheviot, the Stag and the Black, Black Oil, Robin Nelson

10. A Practical Realism: McGrath, Brecht, Lukacs and Blood Red Roses, Stephen Lacey

11. A Good Night In: The Long Roads, Robert Dawson-Scott

12. Three One-Woman Epics: The Political Performer, Olga Taxidou

Part Five: Working with John

13. Working with John-Interviews by Susanna Capon:

Pamela Howard

Bill Paterson

Troy Kennedy Martin

Jack Gold

John Bett

Jenny Tiramani

Elizabeth MacLennan

Works by John McGrath

Notes

Index

Sujets

Literary Criticism

Theater

Película fotográfica

Theatre

John McGrath

General officer

20th century

Television

General

Drama

Performance

Film

Informations

Publié par	University of Exeter Press
Date de parution	02 mars 2015
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9780859899130
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	2 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,1300€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

FREEDOM’S PIONEER: John McGrath
John McGrath’s Work in Theatre,John McGrath’s Work in Theatre,
John McGrath’s Work in Theatre,
Film and TelevisionFilm and TelevisionFilm and Television
edited by DAVID BRADBY AND SUSANNA CAPON
from the Foreword by RICHARD EYRE
7:84 was founded on these beliefs: that ‘excellence’ is not‘ an objective conceit and that it doesn’t reside exclusively
in institutions such as the National Theatre or the Royal
Shakespeare Company; that the theatre establishment
has excluded the working-class audience and
workingclass culture; that all art (and all funding of art) is political;
that art can change the world; and that Margaret
Thatcher’s dictum that there was no such thing as society
was a heartless lie.
Freedom’s Pioneer defines the importance of John
McGrath’s role in the development of theatre, film and
television in the last four decades of the twentieth
century. Through play and script-writing, through
directing, producing and co-ordinating work, and
through his critical, political and philosophical
reflections, McGrath exerted a powerful influence over
developments and innovations in all three art forms. BRADBY
&
CAPON edited by
DAVID BRADBY AND
ISBN 0-85989-749-4
SUSANNA CAPON
foreword by
ISBN 0 85989 749 4 RICHARD EYRE
UNIVERSITY OF EXETER PRESS
9 780859 897495www.exeterpress.co.uk
FREEDOM’S PIONEER
FREEDOM’S PIONEER
‘FREEDOM’S PIONEER
John McGrath’s Work in Theatre, Film and Television
‘a gifted, passionate, dogged, sometimes intransigent, eloquent man,
who, as well as making us sit up and listen, always wanted—as he so
often said—to give us a good night out.’
‘[McGrath’s plays] combined high ideals, lack of pretension, artistic
integrity, political sincerity and commercial success.’
from Richard Eyre’s Foreword
Despite recognition of the central importance of John McGrath’s work,
very little has been written about him. This is the first full-length
study of his work and collects together contributions from film and
television directors, actors, designers, writers, university researchers
and journalists, many of whom worked with McGrath.
Contributors and interviewees
John Bett Ian Brown John Bull John Clifford Stewart Conn
Robert Dawson Scott Maria DiCenzo Richard Eyre Jack Gold
Stephen Greenhorn Nadine Holdsworth Pamela Howard Troy
Kennedy Martin Stephen Lacey Liz Lochhead Tom McGrath
Elizabeth MacLennan Ros Merkin Robin Nelson Bill Paterson
Randall Stevenson Olga Taxidou Peter Thomson Jenny Tiramani
Also published by University of Exeter Press: John McGrath—Plays for England
selected and introduced by Nadine Holdsworth.
David Bradby is Professor of Drama and Theatre Studies at Royal Holloway,
University of London. Susanna Capon has worked as a director for the BBC and
as an independent producer; she is now Senior Lecturer in Media Arts at Royal
Holloway, University of London.
Cover image: John McGrath, by kind permission of Elizabeth MacLennan.Exeter Performance Studies
Exeter Performance Studies aims to publish the best new scholarship from a
variety of sources, presenting established authors alongside innovative
work from new scholars. The list explores critically the relationship
between theatre and history, relating performance studies to broader
political, social and cultural contexts. It also includes titles which offer
access to previously unavailable material.
Series editors: Peter Thomson, Professor of Drama at the University of
Exeter; Graham Ley, Reader in Drama and Theory at the University
of Exeter; Steve Nicholson, Reader in Twentieth-Century Drama at the
University of Sheffield.
From Mimesis to Interculturalism: Readings of Theatrical Theory Before
and After ‘Modernism’
Graham Ley (1999)
British Theatre and the Red Peril: The Portrayal of Communism
1917–1945
Steve Nicholson (1999)
On Actors and Acting
Peter Thomson (2000)
Grand-Guignol: The French Theatre of Horror
Richard J. Hand and Michael Wilson (2002)
The Censorship of British Drama 1900–1968: Volume One 1900–1932
Steve Nicholson (2003)
John McGrath—Plays for England
Selected and introduced by Nadine Holdsworth (2005)
The Censorship of British Drama 1900–1968: Volume Two 1933–1952
Steve Nicholson (2005, forthcoming)
Also published by University of Exeter Press
Extraordinary Actors: Essays on Popular Performers
Studies in honour of Peter Thomson
edited by Jane Milling and Martin Banham (2004)Freedom’s Pioneer
John McGrath’s Work in Theatre, Film
and Television
edited by
David Bradby and Susanna CaponFirst published 2005 by
University of Exeter Press
Reed Hall, Streatham Drive
Exeter EX4 4QR
UK
www.exeterpress.co.uk
© David Bradby and Susanna Capon and the individual contributors 2005
The right of David Bradby, Susanna Capon and the individual contributors to be
identified as the authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance
with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available
from the British Library.
Hardback ISBN 0 85989 748 6
Paperback ISBN 0 85989 749 4
Typeset in 10pt Plantin Light by
Kestrel Data, Exeter, Devon
Printed in Great Britain by
Antony Rowe Ltd, Chippenham, WiltshireCONTENTS
List of Illustrations vii
Notes on Contributors ix
Acknowledgements xii
Foreword by Richard Eyre xiii
Introduction by David Bradby and Susanna Capon xix
Part One—Culture and the Socialist Vision
1. Maria DiCenzo—Theatre, Theory and Politics: The Contribution
of John McGrath 3
Part Two—Early Work
2. Peter Thomson—Get Out and Get On: Events While Guarding
the Bofors Gun 17
3. Ros Merkin—A Life Outside 7:84: John McGrath and the
Everyman Theatre, Liverpool 25
4. John Bull—‘Serjeant Musgrave Dances to a Different Tune’: John
McGrath’s Adaptation of John Arden’s Serjeant Musgrave’s Dance 39
5. Nadine Holdsworth—Finding the Right Places, Finding the
Right Audiences: Topicality and Entertainment in the Work
of 7:84 England 55
Part Three—John McGrath and Scotland
6. Randall Stevenson—Border Warranty: John McGrath and
Scotland 73
7. Ian Brown—Celtic Centres, the Fringes and John McGrath 86
8. Ian Brown—‘Bursting through the hoop and dancing on the
edge of the seediness’: Five Scottish Playwrights Talk about
John McGrath 100
Part Four—Case Studies
9. Robin Nelson—The Television Adaptation of The Cheviot,
the Stag and the Black, Black Oil 11510. Stephen Lacey—A Practical Realism: McGrath, Brecht, Lukács
and Blood Red Roses 130
11. Robert Dawson Scott—A Good Night In: The Long Roads 144
12. Olga Taxidou—Three One-Woman Epics: The Political
Performer 156
Part Five—Working with John
13. Working with John—Interviews by Susanna Capon 173
Pamela Howard 173
Bill Paterson 177
Troy Kennedy Martin 185
Jack Gold 191
John Bett 196
Jenny Tiramani 206
Elizabeth MacLennan 210
Works by John McGrath 221
Notes 228
Index 246ILLUSTRATIONS
1. John McGrath at home in 1970 xiv
2. Elizabeth MacLennan and Robert Hamilton in Plugged in to
History.1974 31
3. 7:84 poster for Serjeant Musgave Dances On.1974 40
4. Robin Begg as William Wallace with Juliet Cadzow in
Border Warfare at the Tramway Theatre. 1989 77
5. Robin Begg and John Bett as Norman Knights ‘the planted
ruling class’ in Border Warfare at the Tramway Theatre. 1989 83
6. Billy Riddoch as James Watt in John Brown’s Body at the
Tramway Theatre. 1990 83
7. The Company in the Opening Song of The Cheviot,
The Stag and The Black, Black Oil at Dornie Village Hall. 1973 116
8a. Bessie McGuigan (Elizabeth MacLennan) and fellow
workers on the picket line. Blood Red Roses: Freeway Films
for Channel Four. 1983 133
8b. Celebrating the defeat of a multinational in East Kilbride.
Gregor Fischer, Elizabeth MacLennan, Myra McFadyean.
Blood Red Roses: Freeway Films for Channel Four. 1983 134
9. Elizabeth MacLennan as Meg MacEachan in The Last of
the MacEachans. Edinburgh Festival: Freeway Stage. 1996 164
10. Elizabeth MacLennan as Reynalda in Watching For Dolphins.
Edinburgh Festival and Tricycle Theatre: Freeway Stage.
1992 168
11. Filming of John Brown’s Body. Tramway Theatre: Freeway
Films/Wildcat Production for Channel Four. 174
12a. Bill Paterson and John Bett as Mungo and Lavinia McBungle
in The Game’s A Bogey. 7:84 tour. 1972 182
12b. Bill Paterson as John MacLean in The Game’s A Bogey.
7:84 tour. 1972 183
13a. John McGrath on location in North Wales directing
episode 6 of Z-Cars, which was written by him. 1962 187
13b. Frank Windsor and Brian Blessed being directed by
John McGrath in Z-Cars episode 6. 1962 18814. Troy Kennedy Martin, John McGrath and Elizabeth
MacLennan outside the court after the case was dismissed.
1962 189
15. 7:84 Scotland Company outside the church in Bowmore, Islay,
during the tour of The Cheviot, The Stag and The Black, Black
Oil. 1974 200
16a. John McGrath and Jenny Tiramani on the set of Reading
Rigoberta. Theatre Workshop Edinburgh. 1994 207
16b. The Company ‘crossing the Minch’ in The Catch. Set by
Jenny Tiramani. 7:84 Scotland. 1981 208
17. The Scottish Parliament of 1707 reconvenes in Border Warfare.
Freeway Films/Wildcat Production. 1989 211
18a. Elizabeth MacLennan as Chuck Eagleburger in The Baby
and the Bathwater. 1984 215
18b. Elizabeth MacLennan as George Orwell in The Baby and
the Bathwater. 1984 216NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS
David Bradby is Professor of Drama and Theatre Studies at Royal
Holloway, University of London. His books include Modern French
Drama 1940–1990, Beckett: Waiting for Godot, The Theater of Michel
Vinaver and (with Annie Sparks) Mise en Scène: French Theatre Now.He
has translated Lecoq’s The Moving Body and has translated and edited
plays by Michel Vinaver and Bernard-Marie Koltès. With Maria M.
Delgado, he edits the Contemporary Theatre Review and also co-edited
The Paris Jigsaw: Internationalism and the City’s Stages.
Ian Brown was Drama Director of the Arts Council of Great Britain
(1986–94) and Professor of Drama (1995–2002), Head of the
Department of Drama (1995–99) and Dean of Arts (1999–2002) at Qu