Description
by Trevor Griffiths
This latest volume in the Trevor Griffiths series contains all eleven episodes of the celebrated 1976 Thames TV series Bill Brand, which was the fictional account of a young left-wing Labour MP entering Parliament for the first time and attempting to influence the policies of his largely right-wing Labour government.
The series was conceived on election night in 1974, written and produced over the following two years and transmitted in 1976. This was a time of great political and industrial unrest in Britain; it produced the first minority government (under Harold Wilson) since 1931, and Bill Brand was watched with extreme interest by both the political classes and the wider population. At times it seemed almost uncannily prophetic; and many of the issues it dealt with remain of great contemporary relevance.
The series starred Jack Shepherd as Bill Brand, Arthur Lowe as the Prime Minister, Alan Badel, Peter Howell, Lynne Farleigh, Cherie Lunghi and many other distinguished actors.
Bill Brand has never been shown again, nor is it at present available commercially on dvd. This book is therefore a unique record of a unique television event.
‘ … tells us more about Parliament, constituency politics and the Labour Party than the combined writings of most of the Westminster drama critics who masquerade as political commentators.’
New Statesman
‘The most remarkable serial ever seen on the box.’
Sunday Times
Reviews
Bill Brand; It is the People who Create … – lipstick socialist
Trevor Griffiths, Bill Brand and Political Television Drama – Tony Williams in The November 3rd Club
A representative of the People – Romy Clark in
Red Pepper, Feb 2010
Working Class Hero – John Wyver
Tribune – Keith Richmond
