A Russian blockbuster for R4

[Guest]

Well, well, well. It seems the first signs of Gwyneth 'internationalist' Williams' new reign* are appearing, and also perhaps a confirmation that R4 has been smarting over the 'not enough long/substantial drama' accusations. In the 3rd week of September, all R4 drama strands (with the exception of The Archers, of course!) will be dedicated to an 8-hour version of Vasily Grossman's Life And Fate, starring Kenneth Branagh. There will also be a bunch of supporting programmes and events. Details here.

Russ

* Eagle-eyed readers of the BBC Press Release will not miss the connection of the surrounding events with the current location of R4 ex-Controller, Mark Damazer. His fingers are well in this pie!

[Russ]

Ah, I woz right (ENTP!!). The BBC blog has confirmed that this one is Damazer through and through!

Russ

[french frank]

Didn't the 90-minute dramas begin to appear two or three years back, in Damazer's time?

[Russ]

Didn't the 90-minute dramas begin to appear two or three years back, in Damazer's time?

The last regular default 90-minute drama slot on R4 was Saturday Night Theatre, begun in 1943 and ending in 1996, the year in which James Boyle took over as Controller of R4. There have of course been a number of 90-minuter productions in the Saturday afternoon slot (150-minutes for each of the His Dark Materials three episodes), and many of these predate the Damazer era.

The R4 adaptation of Life and Fate will manifest itself as a set of quasi-standalone dramas, 'stripped' across the week in the various R4 drama slots - most will therefore be 45-minuters. ('Stripped' being R4 schedulers' favoured word at the moment.) I asked the BBC Press Office about the actual schedule for the adaptation, but I got a "we're-out-of-the-office go and make love elsewhere" reply because I wasn't a journalist. So I don't know yet whether there will be a Saturday afternoon 90-minuter as part of the package.

Russ

[my thanks to Nigel Deacon and Paul for supplying some of the above details]

[aeolium]

I haven't read the novel, though all credit to R4 for mounting such an ambitious project. The nearest comparable enterprise was I think the late 1990s R3 (?) serialisation of Bulgakov's Master and Margerita, with the excellent and much-lamented Daniel Massey. I'm not generally that keen on dramatisations of novels, but that is partly because the adaptations are usually much too compressed. At least with 8 hours allocated for this adaptation, this shouldn't be a weakness of L&F.

[french frank]

So I don't know yet whether there will be a Saturday afternoon 90-minuter as part of the package.

The press release says the broadcast 'takes over every drama strand* on Radio 4 [...]
*The Archers will be broadcast at the usual time'.

(Ah, yes, James Boyle, the Dark Controller, as a result of whose efforts I quietly gave up listening to R4 never to return. I did think, though, that in Damazer's last couple of years the 90-minute slots were reappearing from time to time.)

[Forget It (U2079353)]

The nearest comparable enterprise was I think the late 1990s R3 (?) serialisation of Bulgakov's Master and Margerita, with the excellent and much-lamented Daniel Massey. I'm not generally that keen on dramatisations of novels, but that is partly because the adaptations are usually much too compressed. At least with 8 hours allocated for this adaptation, this shouldn't be a weakness of L&F.

I recently heard a recording of the Master and Margarita 1993 - Coproduction World-Service/Radio 4 - 4 part serialisation (each about 1 hour).
IMHO it was an excellent dramatisation (Brian Wright) and the actors (Daniel Massey, Michael Maloney, Geraldine James, Nigel Anthony) were on great form

[aeolium]

Thanks for that correction, Forget It. I think I taped it when it was first on and listened to it a few years later (or perhaps it was repeated). All credit to R4 for putting it on - it was as you say an excellent dramatisation of a novel that is very difficult to adapt for radio.