Australian TV Plays: Dark Brown (24 June 1957)

What a title! It was based on a play by Philip Johnson, apparently. I haven't been able to find out much about him.

The fourth live drama from Melbourne. Aired Sydney 23 August 1957. Chris Muir directed.

The ABC liked this play - it was repeated in Melbourne in September 1957 and they re-shot it in Brisbane in 1963.

They gave it a bit of advertising for the Melbourne repeat. They must have been proud of the job they did.

Premise

In London in 1900, a young woman, Jenny, is married to Arthur Brown, a tobacconist. Arthur keeps going away to visit his aunt. Jenny's mother dislikes the mysterious Arthur and wishes her daughter had married Fred, who has since become engaged to Jenny's cousin Bella.

Bella and Fred visit the shop and Fred says he saw Arthur in town on a day when he was supposed to be with his aunt. Fred sees this upsets Jenny and backtracks. But then Arthur's aunt Mrs Persephelous visists wanting to see Arthur and reveals she hasn't seen Arthur for a while.

Jenny's concern grows when she sees Arthur has cut out articles about a murderer who was recently hung. Arthur comes home and Jenny worries that he wants to kill her. She reveals what he found out. Arthur confesses that he worked as a hangman, like his father. Jenny says she wont leave Arthur.

Cast

* Walter Brown as Arthur "Dark" Brown

* Agnes Dobson

* Laura James

* Roma Johnston

* Max Meldrum

* Margaret Cruikshank

* Lorna Forbes

Original play

I think the original play was published in 1946. According to the text it was written in 1945.

A complete copy of the play can be borrowed here.

Samuel French re published it in 2017. My thoughts on the play: not bad. Too many characters - do you need the mother and the assistant for exposition? And the cousin and the ex? And the ending feels anti climactic - "oh I'm a hangman. The end".

I don't think it was adapted for the BBC. It seems to have been popular with amateur societies, though.

Production

It was shot in Melbourne. Chris Muir directed.

The NAA have photos. Not online. See here.