8.4 /10 1 Votes
Original language(s) English Producer(s) John McRae Number of episodes 5 | 8.3/10 IMDb Country of origin UK No. of episodes 5 First episode date 14 November 1971 Director Gareth Davies Networks BBC, BBC One | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Starring Anthony MurphyIain CuthbertsonSimon Fisher TurnerRichard Morant Similar Jane Eyre (1983 TV serial), Vanity Fair (1967 TV serial), Jane Eyre (1983 TV serial) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tom Brown's Schooldays is a 1971 television serial adaptation of the Thomas Hughes novel Tom Brown's Schooldays.
It was originally screened on the BBC1 Sunday afternoon slot, which often showed serialisations of classics aimed at a family audience. It made some free adaptations to Hughes's novel, creating the role of Flashman's father, and writing new sub-plots about Flashman and Arnold. It also included some scenes of bullying and corporal punishment which may have been strong stuff for family viewing. "Clean-up TV" campaigner Mary Whitehouse claimed that the programme broke the BBC's guidelines on the depiction of sadistic violence.
The series was later shown on Masterpiece Theatre in the USA. Both the programme and Anthony Murphy's lead performance won Emmy Awards.