The first of season two of Australian Playhouse.
Premise
In the 1890s a young woman, Edith Hackett, is engaged to a man named Edward. Edith lives with her parents; Mr Hackett is senile and Mrs Hackett is mean to Edith telling her that she "is no catch".
Edward comes to visit Edith and the Hacketts.
Cast
- Judith Fisher as Edith Hackett
- Neva Carr Glynn as Mrs Hackett
- Alexander Archdale as Mr Hackett
- Leonard Bullen as Edward
- Moray Powell as Dr Munro
- Bob Haddow as Sam, the household servant who likes Edith romantically
- Elizabeth Pusey as Rosie
Production
It was written by Gwenda Painter and directed by John Croyston. I don't know a lot about Painter - in 1980 a book she wrote on paddle steamers was published. She may have been from Adelaide.
David Goddard had "spiked" ten episodes from the previous season.
According to ABC records it was filmed on 15 April 1967.
Judith Fisher (1935-1995) died quite young - her IMBD is here. She was born in Australia, went to England in 1956 to study at RADA and returned to Australia in 1964.
Crew
Film sound - John Heath. Editor - Arthur Southgate. Photography - Lloyd Shiels, John Seale. Studio sound - Allen Boxsell. Studio vision mixer - Christopher Lansdowne. Camera - Robert Thompson, Jeff brown, Bernard Cannon, Richard Bond. Technical production - John Garton. Lighting - Ray Huggett. Design - Desmonde Downing. Producer and director - John Croyston.
Reception
The Sunday Sydney Morning Herald said it was "beautifully mounted, superbly cast and was a production that could hold its own anywhere. The play itself was no great shakes."
The Sydney Morning Herald called it "a stock tale but a competent one."
The Age gave it a mediocre review saying "it didn't have the touches to persuade a viewer this series was going to be madly exciting."
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| TV Week 17 June 1967 |
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| The Age 19 June 1967 p 6 |
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| Canberra Times 24 July 1966 p 13 |
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| The Age TV Guide 8 June 1967 |
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| The Age 12 June 1967 p 6 |
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| SMH 30 July 1967 p 44 |
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| The Age 8 June 1967 TV Guide |
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| SMH 23 July 1967 p 82 |
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| SMH TV guide 24 July 1967 |
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| SMH 25 July 1967 p 12 |
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| The Age TV Guide 6 June 1967 |
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| SMH 11 June 1967 p 74 |
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| TV Times Qld July 1967 |
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Touch of Gold (1967) by Gwenda Painter
This was episode two of the second season of Australian Playhouse. Apparently, the budget for this season was greater than the first, and certainly the production values are high for this tale, which is set in a small town in the 1890s. It focuses on Edith (Judith Fisher), who lives on a rural property with her bitter mother (Neva Carry Glynn) and senile father (Alexander Archdale). Edith wants to marry the gawky Edward (Leonard Bullen, Pat Flower’s brother IRL incidentally) but Glynn wants her to marry the uncouth servant Sam (Bob Haddow) – and mum might get her way when it turns out Edward has a secret. John Croyston directed, and John Seale was one of the cameramen.
Touch of Gold isn’t bad, although it might have been more effective at one hour than thirty minutes – as drafted here, the story feels like it starts in act three, and subplots like that involving the young girl (Elizabeth Pusey) and a local doctor (Moray Powell) feel extraneous. The drama is at its best in the mother-daughter scenes, with Neva Carr Glynn and Judith Fisher doing excellent work. The script was by Gwenda Painter, a writer about whom I confess I know little. I think she came from Adelaide and wrote some historical books later on in life.
Gwenda Painter spent a little time in TV then vanished. Ron Harrison a bit longer before he vanished too. Pat Flower made a big impact, then she went. Colin Free a really, really big impact, then he went. Such is writing. But it was wonderful that all got the chance.
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