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So desperate was I in the 1980s to see anything by Ayckbourn, that I drove the 2 hours to Washington DC (staying with friends for the weekend) so I could see this film there. I emerged sadder but wiser. About the only positive thing I could point to was the cast (many of them familiar to me), but there was only so much they could do to help, and it wasn't enough. I understand your advice to "find a stage production to attend instead," but how am I to follow it? 🙂 You said in the previous that it's one of the most frequently produced of his plays, but I can't believe that that's true in the US -- at least I've never seen an announcement of a production anywhere around here, and I try to keep my eyes open. I still retain hope, but it's been a lot of years now....

Thanks so much for this, Simon! I understand an author's preference for his "neglected" offspring (it comes up in my opera research too), but The Norman Conquests remains a stupendous achievement. Now that we're used to AA pulling off tours de force like this, we're apt to forget that nobody had attempted such a thing before.

The one time I managed to get to Scarborough (10 days in the UK, summer of 2007), I was delighted to see the theatre's production (directed by the author) of Relatively Speaking. I would have been happy to see any of his plays there, but this one was a special treat. I was familiar with it from reading and from the TV production as shown on PBS, and I know that the nuances of speech and behavior and class are all-important in this story (nobody ever blurts out what they mean, or bluntly asks the other person what they mean), and they're the sort of thing that even dedicated, conscientious American actors find hard to capture convincingly. At some point in the afternoon, I'm afraid we would just take a deep breath and ask, "I'm sorry -- just who are you?" Which would make the play fall apart. (That same summer, I saw How the Other Half Loves in Bath. So I definitely got my Ayckbourn fix!)

Congratulations to the prolific Mr. Dixon! I'm delighted to have had a chance to speak with him briefly after a performance of A Brief History of Women (and thereby also mention how good he'd been in Time of My LIfe 4 years earlier).

Thank you so much for this! This Ayckbourn fan (in Delaware, US) has managed to see, as far as I can count it, 28 of his plays (counting filmed versions, which in some cases is a stretch), several more than once. But never Just Between Ourselves; surprisingly :), theaters around here don't seem eager to produce it. But I hope to encounter it some day. If I can manage to see two productions of Intimate Exchanges (one of them in 4 distinct branches), anything is possible. In addition to this channel, I want to celebrate your work on the Ayckbourn website, surely the best author website around. I've consulted it often.

Is the 1989 adaptation of Relatively Speaking available anywhere (inside or outside the UK)?

Classic play. Just brilliant !

Very enjoyable. :)

When I was a small kid I lived in Scarborough for two years, between 1974 and 1976. I remember going to Saturday pantomimes at Theatre in the Round, which I seem to remember was attached to Scarborough library.

Did I see Michael Gambon in a play (at the National?) when he was in a tent? It was an Ayckbourn, I'm sure. I remember it as the funniest thing I have ever seen on a stage. I'd love to see it again?

Thank you!

thank you SM for highlighting The Norman Conquests' 50th anniversary

Our group has performed all three through the years the most recent being Round and Round the Garden and we are about to embark on a production of Absent Friends later this year - Ayckbourn is truly a master

We saw Virtual Reality at Harrogate Theatre.

Definitely confirm the Palace Theatre Paignton audience enjoyed every minute of a very polished performance of Relatively Speaking last night🤣

✨💛✨

I saw the tom conti TV version a few years back and was really impressed, What a stellar cast. Also what a clever name.

So glad my Alan Ayckbourn search turned up Simon Murgatroyd's 'Spotlight' presentation. Relatively Speaking is back at the seaside in Devon and I'll definitely be in the audience on 22 February 2023.

Lovely film :)

Loved the tour and the super comedy you added. Methinks I should re-read Haunting Julia and maybe one or two more 😁

I knew supernatural literature extremely well and consider HAUNTING JULIA a bona fide masterpiece. I just wish others in the field were aware of it.

So much fabulous! Great insight, fantastic!

Wow, what a find !!! Well done :)

As always, fascinating and intriguing!

Well done!

Superb !!! Thank you...

I will certainly be watching this space for details of the 2023 premieres. Thank you for this tantalizing update!

Would you not include Confusions and Roundelay...?

Looking forward to Unseen Murgatroyd, chronicling the unpublished and unwritten books by Simon! :)

Ayckbourn didn't need to knock the film-critics were more than happy to oblige. While the movie was certainly a fiasco, Simon's breakdown of its creation and failure is both riveting and fascinating. Considering the travesty Winner fashioned from a great play, and the bitter taste it clearly left in AA's mouth, it's bewildering to consider that "The Revengers' Comedies" was allowed to be adapted into a film only a decade later!

Fantastic insight! Really nice perspective check!

Interesting!

Thank you for this exciting update, and please let us know when your scarf gets its own podcast.

Enlightening and intriguing! Very well written and performed, Simon. Looking forward to part three!

Tardis?! Yes please! Can I use it to be on time for my birthday well wishing?

Wonderful!

Great stuff!

Amazingly detailed and absolutely fascinating! The story behind the play is every bit as intriguing as the play itself. Great scarf, too!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Excellent

I want to go. All of it. I could bring Kendal mint cake to the later events. It sounds wonderful! 💛

Thank you.

:)

It wasn’t just my introduction to Ayckbourn, but my introduction to Richard Briers, Penelope Keith, Tom Conti, etc. When I watch Penelope Wilton on Downton Abbey, I am always thinking about how much I loved her as Annie. I wish there could be similar TV productions of the Damsels trilogy and House & Garden. Actually, there should be a series called Ayckbourn Theatre, where audiences could see the full gamut of the AA oeuvre. Simon, thank you for this revealing and fascinating expose into my all-time favorite television broadcast. The entire cast was absolutely perfect. I am even slowly getting used to your obsession with scarves!

Wonderful Stuff! You might well have been describing me as one of the many Americans who got their first taste of Ayckbourn from this memorable television trilogy. I have to say that I think Conti was well cast as Norman. He brings a bit of Casanova (through his Italian heritage) to the role that I can't image Tom Courtenay offering. I can understand one woman being in love with Courtenay's Norman, but not three! That sexy mane of hair! An 'old English Sheepdog' indeed! Also, although Alan's plays are primarily creatures of the stage, through this and the subsequent streaming of THE GIRL NEXT DOOR, there is a case to be made for the probing lens of the camera. It allows us to fully appreciate the nuanced work of the actor, which, no matter how intimate the venue, is bound to be less impactful on a stage, where attention is naturally selective. Also, at least in the round, someone's back is generally to someone at some point. This lovely spotlight makes me want to break out my VHS tapes and watch all over again! THANKS!

So cool!!! Is "All Lies" a pun (allies)?

You are getting so good at this! Next stop BBC?

Fantastic!

I love how “Paribanou” was not recognized by the computer as a legitimate word, and consequently brandished with a red underline! 😂😂

Exciting news!! Thank you for the update.

I knew a lot of this, but even the most minute new details are delicious! I hope you do (at least) a trilogy on Norman.