| An Inspector calls by J.B Preistley | |
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| Written by | J. B. Priestley |
| Date premiered | 1945 |
| Place premiered | Moscow, Russia |
| Original language | English |
| Subject | A mysterious inspector interrogates a wealthy English family about their responsibility for the death of a young working class factory girl.[1] |
| Genre | Drama |
| Setting | The Birling's home in Brumley, England; 1912 |
| IBDB profile | |
An Inspector Calls is a play written by English dramatist J. B. Priestley, first performed in 1945 (in Russia) and 1946 (in the UK). It is considered to be one of Priestley's best known works for the stage and one of the classics of mid-20th century English theatre. The play's success and reputation has been boosted in recent years by a successful revival by English director Stephen Daldry for the National Theatre in 1992.[2]
The play is a three-act drama, which takes place on a single night in 1912,[3] and focuses on the prosperous middle-class Birling family, who live in a comfortable home in Brumley, "an industrial city in the north Midlands".[3] The family is visited by a man calling himself Inspector Goole, who questions the family about the suicide of a young working-class woman, Eva Smith (also known as Daisy Renton). Over the course of the evening, the entire family, under interrogation by Goole, are revealed to have been responsible for the young woman's exploitation, abandonment and social ruin, effectively leading to her death. Long considered part of the repertory of classic “drawing room” theatre, the play has also been hailed as a scathing critique of the hypocrises of Victorian/Edwardian English society and as an expression of Priestley’s Socialist political principles. The play was studied in English secondary schools for many years as one of the prescribed texts for the English Literature GCSE examination. An Inspector Calls is still part of the syllabus for GCSE in some secondary schools.
Contents |
Plot
The play opens with an evening dinner party at the Birling's comfortable home in suburban London in 1912, just prior to the outbreak of World War I. Arthur Birling, a wealthy mill owner and well-regarded local politician, and his family are celebrating the engagement of their daughter Sheila to Gerald Croft, the son of Sir George Croft of Croft's Ltd, a competitor of Birling's company. Also in attendance is Eric Birling, Sheila's younger brother, who is revealed to have a drinking problem, which is discreetly ignored. After dinner, Arthur makes a speech to Gerald and Eric about the importance of self-reliance - that a man must "make his own way" and always protect his own interests first. Arthur also tells Gerald in confidence that he (Arthur) is being considered for a knighthood, and encourages Gerald to make this known to the Croft family.
The party is interrupted by the Birling's servant announcing the arrival of a man who calls himself Inspector Goole, who explains that he must speak with the family concerning the death of a young woman at the local infimary earlier that day. Goole explains that the young woman, named Eva Smith, killed herself by drinking disinfectant, eventually dying a few hours later after suffering excruciating pain. Goole intimates that Eva left behind a diary naming certain names, including members of the Birling family, and that it is his duty to question the family and understand their involvement in Eva's life and death.
Arthur, Eric and Gerald all initially claim to have no knowledge of the woman. Goole produces a photograph of Eva that he shows to Arthur, who acknowledges that Eva was a worker in one of his mills, describing her as pretty with fair hair and grey eyes. Arthur eventually admits that he dismissed her 18 months ago after her involvement in an abortive workers' strike to demand higher wages, but denies any further knowledge of her or any responsibility for her death. Sheila enters the room, and despite Arthur's attempts to dissuade her, she is drawn into the discussion. Sheila is initially dismissive of the story, but after some prompting from Goole, she admits that she also recognises Eva, giving the same physical description as her father gave. Sheila confesses that Eva had once served her in a department store about a year before, while Sheila was buying a dress that she knew did not suit her. Sheila explains that she thought Eva was silently mocking her, and she later insisted that Eva was fired or else Sheila would ensure the Birling's patronage was removed from the store. Sheila admits that Eva's behaviour had been blameless and that the firing was motivated solely by her own jealousy and spite towards a pretty working-class woman. Sheila's revelation causes friction with Gerald - Sheila is guilt-ridden and willing to accept blame for her and her father's responsibility in Eva's downfall, whereas Gerald attempts to comfort her and absolve them of wrongdoing.
Sybil enters the room and after a comic exchange with Inspector Goole (reminiscent of Lady Bracknell's interview scene with Jack Worthing in Wilde's play The Importance of Being Earnest), Goole continues his interrogation, revealing that Eva was known by another name, Daisy Renton. Gerald starts at the mention of this name, though initially admits nothing. Sheila immediately becomes suspicious and, together with Goole, force Gerald to admit that he met a woman called Daisy the year before in a hotel bar frequented by prostitutes and had later given her money and arranged to see her again. Gerald describes her as pretty, but as lonely and destitute and in need of help, which he initially wanted to give her. Sheila guesses that Gerald and Daisy were lovers, citing a period in her relationship with Gerald the year before where he was distant and didn't "go near her". Goole reveals that Gerald had installed Eva as his mistress in a friend's flat for several months, giving her money and promising to take care of her, before ending the relationship and requesting that she move out. Arthur and Sibyl are horrified, but Sheila acknowledges the truth of Gerald's nature, and commends him for speaking truthfully and for at least trying to help the young woman. Gerald, ashamed and distraught, excuses himself. Sensing that he may not return, Sheila returns the engagement ring he gave her earlier in the evening, signaling that their engagement is over.
Goole's attention turns to Sybil, whom he identifies as the head of a women's charitable organisation where Eva/Daisy turned to for help only two weeks before. Despite Sibyl's haughty and defensive responses, Sibyl eventually admits that Eva/Daisy had appeared before the charity's committee, pregnant and destitute and asking for financial aid and advice. Sybil self righteously declares that she convinced the other committee members not to support Eva/Daisy's application, based on her own suspicions that Eva/Daisy was lying about her past - Sybil dismisses a story told by Eva/Daisy that the father of her child had offered to give her money, but that she didn't accept it because it was stolen. Despite vigorous cross-examination from Goole, Sybil denies any wrongdoing for failing to help Eva, and declares that the blame should lie with the father of Eva/Daisy's unborn child. Sensing what is to come, Sheila begs her mother not to continue, but Goole plays his final card. Gerald returns and Eric enters the room, and after brief questioning from Goole, Eric breaks down and admits that he met Eva/Daisy and drunkenly forced her into having sex with him despite her saying no (though not explicit in the script, it is suggested that Eric raped her). Eric also admits that he stole £50 from his father's business to pay Eva off when she became pregnant, but that she refused the payment on the basis that it was stolen money. At this point, Arthur and Sybil break down, and the family dissolves into screaming arguments.
Goole commands the family to "settle things afterwards", and accuses them all of contributing to Eva/Daisy's death. He finishes with a final, damning speech, reminding the Birlings (and the audience) that they live in a single society, that their actions have consequences and that they are all responsible for one another. "One Eva Smith has gone," he says, "but there are millions and millions and millions of Evas ... and John Smiths still left with us", before leaving the scene.
After Goole’s departure, the family descends into a violent argument. Eric and Sheila, both tormented by their own guilt and horrified by what they see as the family's collective responsibility for Eva's death, demand that their parents face the truth. Sheila, in particular, begs her parents to accept the consequences of their actions. Arthur and Sybil turn on their children, accusing them of disloyalty, and telling Sheila in particular to shut up and stay silent. Eric goes to attack his mother and is punched and knocked down by Arthur, before Gerald intercedes, improvising a defence. Gerald points out that it is not clear whether Goole really is a policeman, and that there is no evidence presented that there really was a dead girl. Gerald also points out that none of the family know that they have all had dealings with the same woman, since Goole only showed the photograph of Eva/Daisy to each of them one at a time. Gerald posits that each of the Birlings could have been dealing with a different woman, and that Goole's unifying theory of a single death caused by the whole family cannot be supported. Despite Eric pointing out that the woman he had sex with and the woman appearing before Sibyl's charity committee must the same woman, because of the woman's knowledge of the stolen money, Gerald convinces the family that they cannot be held accountable. At Gerald's suggestion, Arthur makes a call to the local police station, and discovers that there is no Inspector Goole. Gerald places a second call to the local infirmary, revealing that there is no dead woman and no recent cases of suicide. The elder Birlings and Gerald celebrate, to Sheila and Eric's disgust. Arthur dismisses the evening's events as "moonshine" and "bluffing", chastising himself and the family for revealing their secrets and confessing guilt so prematurely, and assumes that Goole was planted by a local rival to try and discredit his business and reputation.
The play ends suddenly with a telephone call, taken by Arthur, who reports that the body of a young woman has been taken to the infirmary, with a suspected case of suicide caused by drinking disinfectant, and that the local police are on their way to the Birling's house to question them. The true identity of Goole and his knowledge of Eva/Daisy and the family is never explained, but it is clear that all the family's confessions over the course of the evening are true, and that they will be disgraced publicly when news of their involvement in her death is revealed.
Cast of Characters
Arthur Birling
Arthur Birling is a "heavy-looking, rather portentous man in his middle fifties", husband of Sybil and father of Sheila and Eric Birling. He represents the capitalist ruling class and the head of a patriarchial family structure, and is arguably the main subject of Priestley's social critique. Dominant, arrogant and morally blind, he is insistent throughout about his lack of responsibility for Eva/Daisy's death and quotes his economic justification for firing her as being the importance of keeping his labour costs low and quelling dissent, which he says is standard business practice. Although he is authoritative and has risen to a position of economic and social prominence, he reveals his lower social rank to that of his wife, when he compliments the cook right at the start of the play, and by his continual need to assert his social importance. (His status as an alderman and former Lord Mayor of Brumley is repeated several times in the play, with increasing comic effect). He appears pleased at the economic and social cache brought by his daughter's engagement to Gerald Croft, and resents Goole's intrusion on the family. He remains unaffected by the details of Eva/Daisy's death, and his own concerns appear to be retaining his social standing, avoiding public embarrassment by the leaking of a scandal, and insisting that Eric accounts for and repays the stolen company money.
Sybil Birling
Sybil Birling is the wife of Arthur and mother of Sheila and Eric Birling. She assumes a social and moral superiority over Goole, whose questioning style she frequently refers to as "impertinent" and "offensive". Like her husband, she refuses to accept responsibility for the death of Eva/Daisy, and seems more concerned with maintaining the family's reputation. She fearlessly expresses her prejudices against working class women like Eva/Daisy, who she accuses of being immoral, dishonest and greedy. She is revealed as a moral hypocrite, condemning Eva/Daisy for being pregnant but being willing to forgive her own son for having pre-marital sex and being the father of an illegitimate child.
Sheila Birling
The Birlings' older child, described as “a very pretty girl in her mid-twenties, very pleased with life and rather excited" about her engagement to Gerald. She starts out as a playful, self-centred girl who loves attention, and initially appears callous and uncaring about Eva/Daisy’s death. Throughout the play, she becomes the most sympathetic family member, showing remorse and guilt on hearing the news of her part in the girl's downfall, and encouraging the family (mostly unsuccessfully) to accept responsibility for their part in Eva/Daisy’s death. She is revealed to not be as naïve as originally thought, revealing her suspicions about her fiancee’s infidelity. Despite continual criticism from her father, she becomes more rebellious toward her parents, supporting her brother against them and assisting Goole in his interrogations. By the end of the play, she represents the younger generation's protests against the morality of the older generation and seems the most responsive to Goole’s Socialist views about moral responsibility towards others.
Eric Birling
Eric Birling is the son of Arthur Birling and Sybil Birling. Eric is revealed to have had sexual contact with Eva Smith and made her pregnant as well as stolen some money from his dad's business to support Eva (although she refuses the money once she knows it is stolen). Eric is revealed to be an alcoholic in the play. When the Inspector is revealed to be a fake, he and Sheila are the only two who still feel guilty over Eva's death.
Gerald Croft
The son of Sir George Croft of Croft's Ltd, a competitor of Birling & Co, he is at the Birling residence to celebrate his recent engagement to Sheila Birling. Gerald is revealed to have secretly known Eva/Daisy and installed her as his mistress, becoming"the most important person in her life", before ending the relationship. After the revelation of his affair, he is not blamed as heavily as the other characters – Sheila commends him for his honesty and for initially showing Eva/Daisy compassion, even though he is shown as cowardly and thoughtless for taking advantage of a vulnerable woman and then abandoning her. Gerald’s manipulative and amoral nature reveals itself when he proposes a defence for the Birlings to avoid responsibility for Eva/Daisy’s killing, siding with Arthur and Sibyl to Sheila’s horror. Gerald initiates the theory that Goole is not a police inspector, that the family may not all be referring to the same woman and that there may not be a body, though he is ultimately proven wrong by the play’s final plot development.
Inspector Goole
A mysterious interrogator who introduces himself as a police inspector, claiming that he has seen the dead body of Eva/Daisy earlier that day after her slow and painful suicide by poisoning, and that he has “a duty” to investigate the Birlings’ responsibility for her death. He makes a brief reference to a diary left by Eva/Daisy although this is never seen or explicitly referred to. Throughout the play, it is suggested that Goole knows everything about Eva/Daisy’s life and the Birlings’ involvement in her death, and is interrogating the family solely to reveal their guilt rather than to discover unknown information. Both during and after his interrogation of the family, the Birlings query whether he is actually a real inspector, and a phone call made by Arthur to the local police station reveals that there is no Inspector Goole in the local police force. Many critics and audiences have interpreted Goole’s role as an “avenging angel” or a supernatural being because of his unexplained foreknowledge of events, his prophetic final speech in which he says that humanity will learn its lesson in (sic.) “fire and torment” (suggesting a Catholic religious vision of final judgment and condemnation to Hell for sin), and even because of his name which plays on the word “ghoul” (meaning “ghost”). It is suggested in the final scene that Goole’s interrogation of the family will foreshadow a further interrogation to follow by the “real” police force, and that Goole’s purpose has been to warn the family in advance and encourage them to accept responsibility and repent for their bad behaviour. Some critics have drawn parallels between Goole’s character and the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future in Charles Dickens’ story A Christmas Carol who torment Ebenezer Scrooge and encourage him to change his miserly ways. However, unlike Dickens’ story, only Sheila appears to understand Goole’s moral guidance, and the family are left at the end of the play on the brink of public scandal and ruin.
Eva Smith/Daisy Renton
The unseen working class woman who Goole claims has committed suicide whilst pregnant with Eric Birling's baby, and who has been mistreated by each member of the Birling family and by Gerald Croft. Through reports from other characters, she is described as “pretty” with soft brown hair and big dark eyes, and it is explained that she has no family and must work for her living. Her beauty is commented on by all the characters, though it appears to work against her. Her beauty attracts her to both Gerald and Eric, who each take advantage of her poverty and sexually exploit her. Sheila comments disparagingly that Eva looked prettier in a dress than she did, and seems threatened by Eva’s beauty, confessing that if Eva had been plain she would have been unlikely to have had her fired. It is also suggested that Eva/Daisy is morally principled, as she refuses to accept stolen money from Eric, despite her dire financial situation. Eva/Daisy appears to be a victim of her class, and is judged by the (female) characters for not acting appropriately for her class. Sheila imagines that Eva laughed at her and did not act respectfully towards her and so “punishes” her by having her fired. Sibyl also criticizes Eva for appearing proud and putting on airs and graces, and for being “impertinent” rather than being meek and grateful to her social superiors. The audience is invited to dwell on Eva/Daisy’s vulnerability and her suffering at the hands of an exploitative employer, her sexual abuse at the hands of two men, her powerlessness caused by her gender, class and poverty, and her victimization on the basis of a sexual double standard.
Criticism & Interpretation
Highly successful after its first and subsequent London productions, the play is now considered one of Priestley’s greatest works, and has been subject to a variety of critical interpretations.
After the new wave of social realist theatre in the 1950s and 1960s, the play fell out of fashion, and was dismissed as an example of outdated bourgeois "drawing room" dramas, and became a staple of regional repertory theatre. Following several successful revivals (including Stephen Daldry's 1992 production for the National Theatre), the play was “rediscovered” and hailed as a damning social critique of capitalism and middle-class hypocrisy in the manner of the social realist dramas of Shaw and Ibsen. It has been read as a parable about the destruction of Victorian social values and the disintegration of pre-World War I English society, and Goole’s final speech has been interpreted variously as a quasi-Christian vision of hell and judgment, and as a Socialist party manifesto.
The struggle between the embattled patriarch Arthur Birling and Inspector Goole has been interpreted by many critics as a symbolic confrontation between capitalism and socialism, and arguably demonstrates Priestley's Socialist political critique of the selfishness and moral hypocrisy of middle-class capitalist society. While no single member of the Birling family is solely responsible for Eva's death, together they function as a hermetic class system who exploit and neglected vulnerable women, with each example of exploitation leading collectively to Eva's social exclusion, despair and suicide. The play also arguably functions as a critique of Victorian-era notions of middle-class philanthropy towards the poor, which is based on presumptions of the charity-givers' social superiority and severe moral judgment towards the "deserving poor". The romantic idea of gentlemanly chivalry towards "fallen women" is also debunked as being based on male lust and sexual exploitation of the weak by the powerful. In Goole’s final speech, Eva Smith is referred to as a representative for millions of other vulnerable working class people, and can be read as a call to action for English society to take more responsibility for working class people, pre-figuring the development of the post World War II Welfare State.
Productions
An Inspector Calls was first performed in 1945 in two Moscow theatres, as an appropriate venue in England could not be found. (Critics have speculated that the play's themes were considered too negative and critical for wartime British audiences). The play had its first English production in 1946 at the New Theatre in London with Ralph Richardson as Inspector Goole, Harry Andrews as Gerald Croft, Margaret Leighton as Sheila Birling, Julian Mitchell as Arthur Birling, Marian Spencer as Sybil Birling and Alec Guinness as Eric Birling.
The first Broadway production opened at the Booth Theatre on 21 October 1947 and ran until 10 January 1948. The production was staged by Cedric Hardwicke.
The play was produced and performed at the Ferdowsi Theatre (pictures[4]) in Iran in late 1940s based on the translation by Bozorg Alavi.
Tom Baker played Inspector Goole in a 1987 production directed by Peter Dews and designed by Daphne Dare that opened at the Theatr Clwyd on 14 April then transferred to London's Westminster Theatre on 13 May 1987. The cast included Pauline Jameson as Sybil Birling, Peter Baldwin as Arthur Birling, Charlotte Attenborough as Sheila Birling, Simon Shepherd as Gerald Croft and Adam Godley as Eric Birling.
1992 Royal National Theatre revival
The play was successfully revived by English director Stephen Daldry for the National Theatre's Lyttelton Theatre on 11 September 1992 and later transferred to the Aldwych Theatre on 25 August 1993 and then to the Garrick Theatre on 24 October 1995. The original production featured Kenneth Cranham as Inspector Goole (later played by Barry Foster and Philip Whitchurch), Richard Pasco as Arthur Birling (later played by Julian Glover, Edward Peel and William Gaunt), Barbara Leigh Hunt as Sybil Birling (later played by Judy Parfitt, Margaret Tyzack and Marjorie Yates), Diana Kent as Sheila Birling (later played by Sylvestra Le Touzel) and Louis Hillyer as Gerald Croft. Daldrey's production was transferred to Broadway in 1994, where it ran at New York City's Royale Theatre from 27 April to 28 May 1995. Kenneth Cranham recreated his role as Inspector Goole with Philip Bosco as Arthur Birling and Rosemary Harris (later Siân Phillips) as Sybil Birling. It won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Play.
Daldry’s production (with set design by Ian McNeil) was notable for employing non-naturalistic staging, set design, lighting and musical composition, drawing heavily from Expressionism as well as cinematic styles of film noir and horror films. Advertisements for the production featured the Inspector, standing in half shadow lit by a street lamp, recalling the image of Max von Sydow in the film The Exorcist. Daldry and McNeil researched early productions of the play (including the Moscow premiere) that featured minimalist, non-naturalistic set and lighting design. McNeil's set “divides” the stage into three time zones, reflecting Priestley’s own presentation of multiple time zones in his other plays such as Time and the Conways. The set of the Birling’s house represents the time zone of the play in early 1912; the front of the stage, featuring warped floor boards, a red telephone box and street children listening to a wireless, represented London in middle of World War II, when Priestley wrote the play; and Goole’s final speech is delivered directly to the audience, with the house lights turned up so that the audience are visible, representing the present day.
The set of the Birling’s house is raised on stilts and built in non-realistic, almost cartoonish proportions – doors are deliberately low so that the actors have to stoop to walk in and out, and windows are high above door frames, through which characters sometimes pop out like dolls. The walls of the house open like a doll’s house, emphasising that the Birlings family live in a cloistered fantasy world. The house is raised above the stage on stilts, physically looking down on a cobblestoned area lit with a streetlamp.
Daldry’s production and staging placed considerable emphasis on the Birling house as a site of social exclusion, and places a number of additional characters on stage who represent those who are excluded from the Birling’s world. As the play begins, the Birlings are inside their house, visible only slightly through the windows. Our attention is drawn instead to the back of the house and the cobblestoned area, where three young children in WWII dress are scavenging through foodscraps thrown by Edna, the Birling’s elderly (and voiceless) maidservant. The children interact freely with Goole and Edna, but are only occasionally seen by the Birlings themselves, who inevitably become disturbed by their presence and look away or else ignore them. Edna appears to share a sense of complicity with Goole, inviting him closer to the house and smiling occasionally when the secrets of the family are revealed, but she makes no comment on the action.
Crucially, the Birlings must descend from the safety and opulence of their brightly lit Edwardian drawing room and into the dimly lit cobblestoned area to engage with Goole and confess their actions. Towards the end of the play, a crowd of men women and children appear en masse, as the Birlings are judged and accused by Goole. Though their presence is never explained, these silent nameless characters have been interpreted variously as being a Greek chorus, a jury or a lynch mob, all standing in silent judgment of the Birlings and representing the powerless working class masses that are excluded from and exploited by the Birling’s lives and working practices.
The dramatic conflict is heightened by film noir-inspired lighting and smoke, a dissonant string orchestra score that is reminiscent of movie scores for horror films (including Bernard Hermann’s scores for Alfred Hitchcock films), and the house itself, which acts as a character in the story, apparently reacting to the family’s crisis. After the revelations of Goole’s visit, the house is tipped forward and half-falls into a ravine in the stage floor, its contents shattering and exploding all over the stage, leaving the Birlings to walk through the wreckage of their home. When Gerald proposes that Goole’s interrogation has no basis in evidence and that there is no dead woman in the infirmary, the house moves up and rights itself, suggesting the revival of the family's fortunes and their ability to withdraw from the world again.
The dynamic staging was considered to be a radical break with previous UK stagings of the play (which usually adhered to a single realistically depicted Edwardian drawing room set and a static dialogue-based performance style) and emphasized the metaphorical elements of the “inspection” and the themes of social exclusion and class warfare. Many theatre critics in 1992 read the production as a critic of Thatcherite Conservative politics, with Goole’s final speech reading as a direct rebuttal of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s infamous statement “There is no such thing as society”.
Daldry’s production was widely praised for re-invigorating the play for a new generation of theatergoers, and for making the play involving and politically relevant for a modern audience. The production is often credited with single-handedly rediscovering Priestley’s works and “rescuing” him from the reputation of being obsolete and class-bound. The success of the production since 1992 has lead to a critical reappraisal of Priestley as a politically engaged playwright who offered a sustained critique of the hypocrisy of English society.
Daldry's production was revived in London at the Novello Theatre in September 2009 with a new cast, though retaining McNeil's original sets and staging. The Royal National Theatre also staged a successful revival of Priestley's Time and the Conways in 2009.
The production established Daldry's reputation as a leading stage director. Following the success of the production, Daldry became Artistic Director of the Royal Court Theatre in London from 1992-8, where he headed the theatre's £26 million development scheme. He went on to a successful career as a film director, winning international success and critical acclaim for his films Billy Elliot, The Hours and The Reader, all of which won him Academy Award nominations for best director.
Daldry's production was revived at the Novello Theatre in London for an eight-week run from September 25, 2009 (following previews from September 22nd) through November 14, 2009 and, according to Playbill.com, will transfer to Wyndham's Theatre on December 3rd for a run through March 20, 2010. Daldry returned to re-direct the production and casting includes Nicholas Woodeson returning to the role of Inspector Goole (he previously took over that role from Kenneth Cranham during the same production's Broadway run in 1994) and David Roper as Arthur Birling, Sandra Duncan as Sybil Birling, Marianne Oldham as Sheila Birling, Robin Whiting as Eric Birling, Timothy Watson as Gerald Croft and Diana Payne Myers as Edna.
Film, television and radio adaptations
Two films have been adapted from the play; a theatrical release and a television mini-series. Produced in the United Kingdom by Watergate Productions Ltd, the 1954 screenplay was adapted by Desmond Davis and directed by Guy Hamilton. Alastair Sim starred as Inspector Goole, renamed "Poole" for the film, with Jane Wenham as Eva Smith, Eileen Moore as Sheila Birling, Arthur Young as Arthur Birling, Brian Worth as Gerald Croft, Olga Lindo as Sybil Birling and Bryan Forbes as Eric Birling.
A three-part television mini-series was produced by BBC in 1982, directed by Michael Simpson. Bernard Hepton starred as Inspector Goole, and the cast included Sarah Berger as Sheila Birling, Nigel Davenport as Arthur Birling, Simon Ward as Gerald Croft, Margaret Tyzack as Sybil Birling and David Sibley as Eric Birling.
On 14 July 2007 BBC Radio 7 broadcast an adaptation by John Foley originally aired on the BBC World Service, starring Bob Peck as Inspector Goole, John Woodvine as Arthur Birling and Maggie Steed as Sybil Birling. The production was directed by Rosalyn Ward.
A full-cast unabridged audio adaptation and analysis was released on audio CD and MP3-CD in the United Kingdom by SmartPass in 2004 as part of their Audio Education Study Guides series. The guide to the play and analysis is Joan Walker
Awards and nominations
- Awards
- 1993 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Revival
- 1994 Drama Desk Award for Best Revival of a Play
- 1994 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play
References
- ^ Cousin, Geraldine (2007). "Past present: dramatisations of 'return'". Playing for Time. Manchester, England: Manchester University Press. p. 16. ISBN 978-0-7190-6197-4.
- ^ Stringer, Jenny (1996). The Oxford companion to twentieth-century literature in English. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. p. 330. ISBN 9780192122711.
- ^ a b Priestley, J. B. (1947). "Characters". An Inspector Calls: A Play in Three Acts (1992 ed.). London: Heinemann. p. xiv. ISBN 0435232827.
- ^ Theatre in Iran, 1944-53
- "English Literature: An Inspector Calls". GCSE Bitesize. BBC Schools Online. 2008. http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/dramainspectorcalls. Retrieved 2008-05-09.
- "J.B. Priestley". J.B. Priestley.com. 2008. http://www.jbpriestley.co.uk/bio.php. Retrieved 2008-10-05.
Further reading
- Priestley, J. B. (1947). An Inspector Calls: A Play in Three Acts (First edition ed.). London: Heinemann. OCLC 59564726.
External links
- An Inspector Calls at the Internet Broadway Database
- An Inspector Calls at the Internet Movie Database
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