"The Forsyte Saga" (1967) TV mini-series

Writer:

Lennox Phillips (adaptation)

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

7 January 1967 (UK)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

The Forsyte family is shown in Victorian respectability as they gather to meet June's fiance, the architect Philip Bosinney...

Plot Keywords:

TV Mini-Series | Family Saga | Based On Novel | Character Name In Title

Awards:

Won Primetime Emmy. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Eric Porter	...	Soames Forsyte (26 episodes, 1967)
Margaret Tyzack	...	Winifred Dartie (23 episodes, 1967)
Nyree Dawn Porter	...	Irene Forsyte née Heron (19 episodes, 1967)
June Barry	...	June Forsyte (16 episodes, 1967)
Kenneth More	...	'Young Jolyon' Forsyte (15 episodes, 1967)
Maggie Jones	...	Smither (14 episodes, 1967)
Susan Hampshire	...	Fleur Mont née Forsyte (14 episodes, 1967)
Nicholas Pennell	...	Michael Mont (14 episodes, 1967)
John Welsh	...	James Forsyte (12 episodes, 1967)
John Barcroft	...	George Forsyte (11 episodes, 1967)
Suzanne Neve	...	Holly Dartie née Forsyte (11 episodes, 1967)

Runtime:

50 min (26 episodes)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Certification:

Singapore:PG

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

Donald Wilson gave up his position as Head of BBC Serials in 1965 so that he could concentrate all his efforts on making this serial.

Quotes:

Jolyon 'Jo' Forsyte: I'm not a true Forsyte. I'm a bit of a mongrel. I put the ha'pennies on my cheques, not take them off.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Cult of...: Poldark (#2.3)" (2008)

The Best Dramatic Series in Television History

This is one of the most influential series-and one of the best-ever made. It's the film that inspired the creation of PBS's "Masterpiece Theatre" and the birth of the U.S. mini-series and for it's almost 24 hours it's utterly spellbinding.

The series is adapted from six novels and three short stories by John Galsworthy about the Forsyte family of upwardly mobile Britishers in the late 19th-early 20th century, focussing in particular on the "Man of Property," Soames Forsyte (Eric Porter), who mistakes possession for love until he finally has a child, the spoiled yet totally captivating Fleur (Susan Hampshire). The adaptation is mostly faithful, though it opens with three episodes not in the original novels but dramatizing their backstory. In addition, Soames's first wife, Irene (the utterly amazing Nyree Dawn Porter), is more of a presence in the final chapters than she was in the later books.

If you ever get a chance to see this series (I don't think it's availabe on video at present), jump at it. The story is epic in scope yet quite moving on the personal level as Galsworthy traces the tortuous relationships of this large Victorian family in a manner that would make most soap opera writers green with envy.