In his seminal study of early British television drama Jason Jacobs emphasises the importance of the concept of ‘intimacy’, during the period from the beginning of regular BBC television broadcasts in 1936 to the arrival of competition in 1955. This article focuses upon the role of special effects in breaking free from the restrictions of the studio, showing that effects were not only of use in expanding the temporal and spatial scope of television drama, but were also considered to be of interest to the audience as a way of exploring the new medium, receiving coverage in the popular press.
Note that many of the periodical articles used here came from the BBC's collection of press clippings held at the BBC Written Archives Centre. As complete pages are not held, page numbers are often absent and are noted as 'n.p.’.
2.
Anon. 1937. ‘From Alexandra Palace: 1936–37’. Radio Times, 24 December, 28.
3.
Anon. 1938. ‘Miniature Drama: The Strange Magic of Television’. The Times, 17 January, n.p.
4.
Anon. 1948a. ‘Did You Ever Watch a Ghost Talking?’. Sunday Graphic and Sunday News, 21 November, n.p.
Anon. 1950. ‘My Teleview’. The Star, 15 November, n.p.
7.
Anon. 1951. ‘Helping the Scene Designer’. Radio Times, 29 June.
8.
Anon. 1952. ‘The Future of British Broadcasting’. Radio Times, 23 May, 2.
9.
BarrRobert. 1949. The Time Machine Camera Script, held at the BBC Written Archives Centre.
10.
BBC PAB, Programmes as Broadcast records held at the BBC Written Archives Centre.
11.
Below the Surface: A Naval Play.1937. BBC.
12.
Blithe Spirit.1948. BBC.
13.
BriggsAsa. 1985. The BBC: The First Fifty Years.Oxford: Oxford University Press.
14.
BussellJan. 1952. The Art of Television.London: Faber & Faber.
15.
ButcherCyril. 1950. ‘Television’. The Sketch, 6 December, 569.
16.
CaughieJohn. 1991. ‘Before the Golden Age: Early Television Drama’. In Popular Television in Britain: Studies in Cultural History, edited by CornerJohn, 22–41. London: British Film Institute.
17.
Condemned to be Shot.1939. BBC.
18.
CookeLez. 2013. Style in British Television Drama.Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
19.
CrossJohn Keir. 1950. The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr Hyde.BBC WAC: Camera Script.
20.
DarlingtonW. A.1938. ‘A Televised Play: Ingenious Adaptation of “Doctor Knock”’. The Daily Telegraph, 14 January, n.p.
21.
From Alexandra Palace: 1936–37.1937. BBC.
22.
Gentle People, The.1949. BBC.
23.
Hansard. 1936, BRITISH BROADCASTING CORPORATION. HC Deb 29 April vol 311 cc955-1040 (Hansard, Commons).
24.
Here's Howard.1951. BBC.
25.
Holiday in Berlin.1952. BBC.
26.
HunterAlan. 1952. ‘British Television’. Radio Times, 12 December, 5–6.
27.
JacobsJason. 2000. The Intimate Screen: Early British Television Drama.Oxford: Oxford University Press.
28.
JohnstonDerek. 2009. ‘Experimental Moments: R.U.R. and the Birth of British Television Science Fiction’. Science Fiction Film and Television2 (2): 251–68.
29.
Listener Research Section. 1937. BBC WAC, LR/1: Viewers and the Television Service: A Report of an Investigation of Viewers' Opinions in January 1937, 5 February.
30.
Nineteen Eighty-Four.1954. BBC.
31.
NordenDenisHarperSybil and GilbertNorma (eds). 1985. Coming to You Live! Behind-the-screen Memories of Forties and Fifties Television.London: Methuen.
32.
Once in a Lifetime.1937. BBC.
33.
O'SullivanTim.. 2007. ‘Researching the Viewing Culture: Television and the Home, 1946–60’. In Re-Viewing Television History: Critical Issues in Television Historiography, edited by WheatleyHelen, 159–69. London: I.B. Tauris.
34.
Passing Show, The.1948–53. BBC.
35.
PudneyJohn, 1948. ‘What Television Does To Us’. John Bull, 6 March, 8–11.
36.
Quatermass Experiment, The.1953. BBC.
37.
R.U.R.1938. BBC.
38.
Scanner, The.1949. ‘Talk of the Week’. Radio Times, 14 January, 24.
39.
SilveyRobert. 1952, ‘Viewers, Viewing and Leisure’. BBC QuarterlyVII (1): 31–40.
40.
Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, The.1950. BBC.
41.
Television Comes to London.1936. BBC.
42.
Television Expert. 1947. ‘Save Television from the Monopoly’. Daily Worker, 6 February, n.p.
43.
Time Machine, The.1949. BBC.
44.
Tristan and Isolde.1938. BBC.
45.
Turnaround.1937. BBC.
46.
TurnerW. J.1938. ‘Televised Opera’. New Statesman and Nation, 5 February, n.p.
47.
TyrrellGerard. 1952. ‘Some Notes on Playwriting for TV’. Writer, June, 8–11.
48.
WrenchA. G.1949. ‘Viewers Are Saying’. Radio Times, 4 February, 25.
