Movie Type: Psychological Drama, Unglamorized Spy Film
Themes: Living In Exile, Brief Encounters, Traitorous Spies/Double Agents
Main Cast: Alan Bates, Coral Browne, Charles Gray, Harold Innocent, Vernon Dobtcheff
Release Year: 1983
Country: UK
Run Time: 63 minutes
Plot
The BBC-produced An Englishman Abroad was first offered to American viewers October 27, 1984, as part of PBS' Great Performances series. Alan Bates stars as Guy Burgess, the infamous British diplomat who spied for the Russians in the 1950s. Alan Bennett's teleplay re-creates the 1958 chance meeting in Moscow between Burgess and English actress Coral Browne (playing herself). Though unrepentant concerning his traitorous activities, Burgess wistfully reveals to Ms. Browne that he longs to return to his native England. Mostly, he misses such niceties as British food, wine, conversation, gossip...and tailoring. An Englishman Abroad runs the gamut from cynicism to pathos in its all-too-brief 68 minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Judy Gridley - Tessa; Mark Wing-Davey - Hamlet; Peter Chelsom - Giles
Credit
Stuart Walker - Art Director, John Schlesinger - Director, George Fenton - Composer (Music Score), Nat Crosby - Cinematographer, Alan Bennett - Screenwriter
Filmed in Glasgow and Dundee in the early 1980s, the setting is Moscow in 1958, to which Burgess had fled following MI6 detection of his treason. Burgess meets Browne in a theatre dressing room and charms her. Later on she is invited to his Moscow flat to measure him for some clothes that he would like ordered from his London tailors.
The characterisation of Burgess by Alan Bates has been held in high acclaim. This is the story of a very English Englishman trying to ignore his homesickness for the country he has betrayed while also trying to cope with post-Stalinist Russian life and convince himself that it was all worthwhile.
Coral Browne stars as herself. The production was written by Alan Bennett and directed by John Schlesinger. Both Browne and Bates were winners of the BAFTA awards for acting for their roles in this production.
