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BBC Play of the Month

1965 – 1983Show16 seasons128 episodes

Drama
61
DecentGoodWatch score
IMDb7.0
61
DecentGoodWatch score
IMDb7.0

Summary

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.

Good for

  • Date night
  • Family movie night
  • Friends night

Where to watch

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Not for scares, adrenaline or laughs.

Shows with

BBC Play of the Month episodes

16 seasons · 128 episodes

  1. S1 E1 Luther, 7.9
  2. S1 E2 A Passage to India, 7.6
  3. S1 E3 The Joel Brand Story, 8.0
  4. S1 E4 Gordon of Khartoum, 9.7
  5. S1 E5 Where Angels Fear to Tread, 9.2
  6. S1 E6 Lee Oswald: Assassin, 7.8
  7. S1 E7 Make Me an Offer, 7.3
  8. S1 E8 Death of a Salesman, 7.3
  9. S1 E9 The Devil's Eggshell, 8.7
  1. S2 E1 Defection! The Case of Colonel Petrov, 7.7
  2. S2 E2 Days to Come, 7.9
  3. S2 E3 Corridors of Power, 9.7
  4. S2 E4 The Making of Jericho, 8.6
  5. S2 E5 The Cabinet Papers, 7.0
  1. S3 E1 Girls in Uniform, 6.8
  2. S3 E2 The Moon and Sixpence, 9.3
  3. S3 E3 Romeo and Juliet, 8.4
  4. S3 E4 The Parachute, 7.1
  5. S3 E5 Cyrano de Bergerac, 9.6
  6. S3 E6 Ghosts, 8.1
  7. S3 E7 The Corn Is Green, 7.2
  8. S3 E8 The Tempest, 7.8
  9. S3 E9 The Old Ladies, 6.5
  10. S3 E10 Man and Superman, 6.3
  11. S3 E11 Hay Fever, 7.0
  1. S4 E1 St. Joan, 9.5
  2. S4 E2 The Male Animal, 3.0
  3. S4 E3 The Seagull, 7.6
  4. S4 E4 Waters of the Moon, 9.4
  5. S4 E5 Mary Queen of Scots, 8.0
  6. S4 E6 Maigret at Bay, 7.9
  7. S4 E7 Relatively Speaking, 8.4
  8. S4 E8 Julius Caesar, 7.9
  9. S4 E9 An Ideal Husband, 7.8
  1. S5 E1 The Heiress, 8.2
  2. S5 E2 Charley's Aunt, 6.9
  3. S5 E3 The Marquise, 8.0
  4. S5 E4 The Three Sisters, 7.3
  5. S5 E5 In Good King Charles's Golden Days, 9.1
  6. S5 E6 Separate Tables, 8.0
  7. S5 E7 Howards End, 9.5
  8. S5 E8 The Rivals, 8.3
  1. S6 E1 Macbeth, 6.2
  2. S6 E2 Ross, 7.8
  3. S6 E3 Uncle Vanya, 7.3
  4. S6 E4 Five Finger Exercise, 6.8
  5. S6 E5 Act of Betrayal, 7.8
  6. S6 E6 Candida, 9.3
  7. S6 E7 The Wild Duck, 7.3
  8. S6 E8 Don Juan in Hell, 9.4
  9. S6 E9 Platonov, 6.6
  1. S7 E1 A Midsummer Night's Dream, 7.7
  2. S7 E2 Rasputin, 8.7
  3. S7 E3 Tartuffe, 8.4
  4. S7 E4 The Cherry Orchard, 8.8
  5. S7 E5 Summer and Smoke, 6.7
  6. S7 E6 Stephen D, 6.7
  7. S7 E7 The Merchant of Venice, 7.4
  8. S7 E8 Lady Windermere's Fan, 8.2
  9. S7 E9 Trelawny of the Wells, 9.2
  1. S8 E1 The Millionairess, 7.3
  2. S8 E2 Hedda Gabler, 8.2
  3. S8 E3 King Oedipus, 8.1
  4. S8 E4 The Magistrate, 8.1
  5. S8 E5 The Adventures of Don Quixote, 7.5
  6. S8 E6 Candide, 7.6
  7. S8 E7 A Room with a View, 4.1
  8. S8 E8 Caucasian Chalk Circle, 8.4
  1. S9 E1 The Love-Girl and the Innocent, 6.5
  2. S9 E2 The Common, 7.7
  3. S9 E3 The Recruiting Officer, 7.8
  4. S9 E4 Pygmalion, 7.3
  5. S9 E5 The Changeling, 7.4
  6. S9 E6 The Importance of Being Earnest, 8.8
  7. S9 E7 The Deep Blue Sea, 8.6
  8. S9 E8 The Skin Game, 8.6
  1. S10 E1 The Linden Tree, 9.5
  2. S10 E2 Electra, 9.1
  3. S10 E3 The Wood Demon, 7.4
  4. S10 E4 Robinson Crusoe, 7.4
  5. S10 E5 The Apple Cart, 6.8
  6. S10 E6 The School for Scandal, 9.5
  7. S10 E7 King Lear, 7.8
  8. S10 E8 Strife, 8.2
  1. S11 E1 Chips with Everything, 7.9
  2. S11 E2 The Little Minister, 6.7
  3. S11 E3 Love's Labour's Lost, 8.5
  4. S11 E4 When We Are Married, 8.0
  5. S11 E5 Trilby, 8.5
  6. S11 E6 Loyalties, 7.6
  7. S11 E7 Chester Mystery Cycle, 6.8
  8. S11 E8 French Without Tears, 6.8
  1. S12 E1 The Picture of Dorian Gray, 7.2
  2. S12 E2 London Assurance, 8.0
  3. S12 E3 Look Back in Anger, 9.2
  4. S12 E4 The Winslow Boy, 8.0
  5. S12 E5 The Country Wife, 7.1
  6. S12 E6 The Ambassadors, 7.6
  7. S12 E7 Heartbreak House, 6.7
  1. S13 E1 You Never Can Tell, 7.7
  2. S13 E2 Waste, 5.6
  3. S13 E3 Flint, 4.9
  4. S13 E4 The Seagull, 7.6
  5. S13 E5 The Sea, 9.3
  6. S13 E6 The Beaux Stratagem, 9.2
  7. S13 E7 Danton's Death, 7.0
  1. S14 E1 Kean, 7.8
  2. S14 E2 Marya, 7.9
  3. S14 E3 The Voysey Inheritance, 8.3
  4. S14 E4 Hello and Goodbye, 7.0
  5. S14 E5 The Wings of the Dove, 6.8
  6. S14 E6 Design for Living, 7.1
  1. S15 E1 I Have Been Here Before, 8.5
  2. S15 E2 On Approval, 8.9
  3. S15 E3 Little Eyolf, 7.1
  4. S15 E4 The Critic, 7.8
  5. S15 E5 The White Guard, 8.8
  1. S16 E1 Dangerous Corner, 6.8
  2. S16 E2 The Gay Lord Quex, 7.1
  3. S16 E3 Infidelities, 6.8

Cast

24 of 697 · most episodes first

Crew

Directors
John Gorrie, Cedric Messina, Rudolph Cartier
Written by
George Bernard Shaw, Terence Rattigan, Oscar Wilde
Produced by
Cedric Messina, Louis Marks, David E. Jones
Music by
George Fenton, Trevor Duncan

Everyone

Pick a department, or search for a name or a job (“editor”, “stunt”).

Facts

October 19, 1965 · September 12, 1983 · Ended

First aired
October 19, 1965
Last aired
September 12, 1983
Status
Ended
Length
16 seasons · 128 episodes
Genres
Drama
Original language
English
Made in
United Kingdom
Available in
1 country

Q&A

6 questions, like "Where can I stream BBC Play of the Month?"

Questions about BBC Play of the Month

Quick answers from GoodWatch data.

Where can I stream BBC Play of the Month?

fuboTV

In the United States, BBC Play of the Month streams on fuboTV.

Is BBC Play of the Month worth watching?

61
DecentGoodWatch score

Opinions are mixed, with a GoodWatch score of 61 (IMDb 7).

Which season of BBC Play of the Month is best?

Seasons 2 and 15, with an IMDb average of 8.2. Season 16 is the weakest at 6.9. The highest-rated episode is Gordon of Khartoum (season 1, episode 4) at 9.7, and the lowest is The Male Animal (season 4, episode 2) at 3.0.

Is BBC Play of the Month okay for kids?

Yes: the viewing guide lists it for family nights.

How long does it take to watch BBC Play of the Month?

192 h

About 192 hours: 128 episodes in 16 seasons of about 90 minutes each, aired from 1965 to 1983.

Is BBC Play of the Month plot-driven or character-driven?

CharactersPlot

Mostly character-driven: it leans on dialogue centrality (10 of 10) and character depth (8 of 10) more than on its plot.