TV series
A BBC television anthology series featuring productions of classic and contemporary stage plays usually broadcast on BBC1. Each production featured a different work, often using prominent British stage actors in the leading roles. The series was transmitted from October 1965 to September 1983.
Availability
Checked Jul 22, 2026
BBC Play of the Month premiered October 19, 1965. We don't have a confirmed streaming, rental or purchase option yet.
A BBC television anthology series featuring productions of classic and contemporary stage plays usually broadcast on BBC1. Each production featured a different work, often using prominent British stage actors in the leading roles. The series was transmitted from October 1965 to September 1983.
Choose an episode, then use the watch options above for the show.
Episode 1
A dentist falls in love and a family accidentally meet the father they have never known.
Directed by James Cellan JonesWritten by George Bernard ShawGuest stars Robert Powell, Kika Markham, Cyril Cusack, Kate Nicholls, Richard Everett, Judy Parfitt, Patrick Magee, Ernest Clark
Episode 2
Centres around ambitious independent politician Henry Trebell, his plans for a bill to disestablish the Church of England, and his fall from grace and suicide after his affair with a married woman who dies following a botched abortion.
Directed by Don TaylorWritten by Harley Granville-BarkerGuest stars Alan Rowe, Michael Cashman, Hannah Gordon, Robert Lang, Liam O'Callaghan, Stephen Murray, Paul Daneman, Joyce Carey
Episode 3
Ossian Flint is an elderly Anglican vicar whose way of life has long been the cause of scandal. He has had as little respect for the seventh commandment during nearly half a century of married life as he has had faith since his ordination. The winter of his life is transformed by his encounter with Dixie, a simple young Irish hirl, unmarried and pregnant, late of Holloway prison.
Directed by Peter WoodWritten by David MercerGuest stars John Le Mesurier, Julie Covington, Peter Bowles, Dandy Nichols, Philip Stone, Beryl Reid, John Bailey, Desmond McNamara
Episode 4
A group of friends and relations gather at a country estate to see the first performance of an experimental play written and staged by the young man of the house, Konstantin, an aspiring writer who dreams of bringing new forms to the theatre.
Directed by Michael Lindsay-HoggWritten by Ronald HingleyGuest stars Zoe Caldwell, Stephen Rea, Alan Webb, Julia Schofield, Allan Surtees, Pauline Delaney, Georgina Hale, Michael Gambon
Episode 5
In 1907, after a tempestuous storm claims the life of a well-known and loved member of the community, the reactions of the villagers are explored, as well as the attempts by two young lovers to break away from the constraints of the hierarchical, and sometimes irrational, society.
Directed by Jane HowellWritten by Edward BondGuest stars Roger Davidson, Mark Dignam, Victor Spinetti, Philip Joseph, Antony Brown, Peter Schofield, Philip Jackson, Judy Campbell
Episode 6
Two gentlemen have fallen on hard times, so they plan to travel through small towns, entrap young heiresses, steal their money and move on, but romance gets in the way.
Directed by David Hugh JonesWritten by George FarquharGuest stars Tom Conti, Ian Ogilvy, David Waller, Julie Peasgood, Brenda Bruce, Zoë Wanamaker, Carol MacReady, Malcolm Terris
Episode 7
Georges Danton, a leader of the French Revolution, created the office of the Revolutionary Tribunal as a strong arm for the Revolutionary Government. Within months, he knew this power was a terrible mistake and fought to have it ended with tragic consequences.
Directed by Alan ClarkeWritten by Alan Clarke, Stuart GriffithsGuest stars Norman Rodway, Ian Richardson, Michael Hughes, Anthony Higgins, Shane Briant, James Aubrey, Michael Pennington, Roger Sloman
Episode information updated Jul 24, 2026
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BBC OneUnited Kingdom
BBCUnited Kingdom