Episode guide: 1981

BEYOND THE PALE (6 Jan 1981)

wr. Les Blair (story Jon Amiel and Les Blair)
pr. John Norton
dr. Les Blair

THE MUSCLE MARKET (13 Jan 1981)

wr. Alan Bleasdale
pr. Michael Wearing
dr. Alan Dossor

A BRUSH WITH MR PORTER ON THE ROAD TO EL DORADO (20 Jan 1981)

wr. Don Haworth
pr. Michael Wearing
dr. Baz Taylor

THE CAUSE (3 Feb 1981)

wr. Derek Lister
pr. Terry Coles
dr. Barry Davis

BELOVED ENEMY (10 Feb 1981)

wr. David Leland (book Charles Levinson)
pr. Keith Williams
dr. Alan Clarke Essay by David Rolinson; Alan Clarke section.
Beloved Enemy was released on DVD and blu ray by the BFI in 2016 (as part of Alan Clarke at the BBC)

THE KAMIKAZE GROUND STAFF REUNION DINNER (17 Feb 1981)

wr. Stewart Parker
pr. Neil Zeiger
dr. Baz Taylor

THE UNION (24 Feb 1981)

wr. Tony Perrin
pr. Innes Lloyd
dr. Ronald Wilson

SORRY (3 Mar 1981)

wr. Carol Bunyan
pr. John Norton
dr. Alistair Clark

THE GARLAND (10 Mar 1981)

Introduction by David Rolinson (for BFI Mediatheque) [no link possible – visit Mediatheque]
wr. H O Nazarath, Horace Ové
pr. Peter Ansorge
dr. Horace Ové

THE SIN BIN (17 Mar 1981)

wr. Tony Parker Essay by David Rolinson
pr. June Roberts
dr. John Gorrie

BEFORE WATER LILLIES (24 Mar 1981)

wr. Robert Marshall
pr. Chris Cherry
dr. Alan Charlesworth

BAVARIAN NIGHT (31 Mar 1981)

Introduction by David Rolinson (for BFI Mediatheque) [no link possible – visit Mediatheque]
wr. Andrew Davies Essay by David Rolinson (for Screenonline)
pr. Louis Marks
dr. Jack Gold

THE GOOD TIME GIRLS (7 Apr 1981)

wr. Alan Clews
pr. Pharic Maclaren
dr. Gareth Davies

BABY TALK (14 Apr 1981)

wr. Nigel Williams
pr. Anne Head
dr. Derek Lister

A TURN FOR THE WORSE (21 Apr 1981)

wr. John Bill
pr. John Norton
dr. Bill Hays

PSY-WARRIORS (12 May 1981)

Essay by David Rolinson (for Spaces of Television).
wr. David Leland
pr. June Roberts
dr. Alan Clarke Essay by David Rolinson; Alan Clarke section.
Psy-Warriors was released on DVD by the BFI in 2016 (as part of Alan Clarke at the BBC)

COUNTRY (20 Oct 1981)

Essay by John Williams (for Screenonline)
wr. Trevor Griffiths Essay by John Williams (for Screenonline)
pr. Ann Scott
dr. Richard Eyre
Country was most recently repeated in the UK on BBC Four on 12 September 2002 and 12 October 2020

LONDON IS DROWNING (27 Oct 1981)

wr. Graham Williams
pr. Chris Cherry
dr. Martyn Friend

A ROOM IN THE WINTER (3 Nov 1981)

wr. Rose Tremain
pr. June Roberts
dr. Jim Goddard

NO VISIBLE SCAR (17 Nov 1981)

wr. Rosemary Davies
pr. Innes Lloyd
dr. Moira Armstrong

IRIS IN THE TRAFFIC, RUBY IN THE RAIN (24 Nov 1981)

wr. Stewart Parker
pr. June Roberts
dr. John Bruce

PROTEST (1 Dec 1981)

wr. Vera Blackwell (play Vaclav Havel)
pr. Innes Lloyd
dr. Alistair Clark

UNITED KINGDOM (8 Dec 1981)

wr. Jim Allen
pr. Kenith Trodd
dr. Roland Joffe

PQ17 (15 Dec 1981)

wr. Roger Milner (book Captain Jack Broome)
pr. Innes Lloyd
dr. Frank Cox Essay by Oliver Wake

THE FACTORY (22 Dec 1981)

wr. David Hopkins
pr. Innes Lloyd
dr. Gerald Blake

Go to 1982.

The Muscle Market, Bavarian Night and Iris in the Traffic, Ruby in the Rain were available on BBC Store but it closed on 1 November 2017. Note that some titles that were previously available via BBC Store, and some others, are now available to buy on Amazon Prime in the UK.

For researchers interested in these plays and their archival status, we strongly recommend the BBC drama research guide available here from Kaleidoscope.

Updates:
6 Jun 2015: simplified layout; added producer credits; checked archival status; checked DVD availability; minor corrections.
10 July 2016: updated release information; added ‘go to’ link.
25 February 2017: checked latest BBC Store release information, adding The Muscle Market and Bavarian Night release information; tidied presentation of BBC Store information.
12 June 2018: replaced ‘Episodes’ with ‘Episode guide’; removed BBC Store release information from individual entries and noted its closure.
14 October 2020: added Amazon note.
16 October 2020: added link to Alan Clarke section; added Mediatheque cross-references; added Spaces of Television link.