"Play for Today" Our Day Out (1978)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Pedr James

Writer:

Willy Russell (writer)

TV Series:

"Play for Today" (1970)

Original Air Date:

7 February 1978 (Season 8, Episode 16)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Male Female Relationship

Cast

Alun Armstrong	...	Mr. Briggs
Jean Heywood	...	Mrs. Kay
Elizabeth Estensen	...	Susan
Lennox Greaves	...	Colin
George Malpas	...	Lollipop Man Les
Robert Gillespie	...	Headmaster
Bill Moores	...	Coach Driver
Iona Banks	...	Café Owner Mrs. Roberts
Jill Richards	...	Café Assistant
Peter Tilbury	...	Zoo Keeper
Julie Jones	...	Carol
Stephen Caffrey	...	Reilly
Jacqueline Lucas	...	Linda Croxley
Robert Guy	...	Ronson
Phil Johnson	...	Andrews

Runtime:

70 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

Willy Russell also wrote a stage musical version of this play.

Quotes:

Mr. Briggs: Linda Croxley! If you don't behave you will spend the remaining time of visiting Corwy in the coach!
Linda: I don't care - I don't wanna see no crappy castle anyway

Not brilliant but natural and engaging

A coach load of school children from an inner-city Liverpool secondary school set out on a day trip to Wales with three members of staff as supervisions. At the last minute the sterner Mr Briggs joins his more relaxed colleagues on the coach, specifically to keep an eye on the doings of who he sees as his more "liberal" colleagues. A stop off at the zoo is only the first event to convince him that he is correct in his harsher approach to teaching but, as the day wears on, a clear split occurs in the staff and pupils where extremes are worn away and challenged.

For some reason this film was screened again recently as part of proving that Liverpool is a city of culture for 2008 (Really? By showing a 30 year old film?) and it gave me the chance to watch it. The film benefits from a real sense of reality and naturalism that means anyone with a memory of school trips will instantly recognise the characters within the staff and the pupils. This good start continues with a light-hearted but engaging clash between the various styles of teaching, not in an obvious or heavy-handed way but in a way that fits the "play for today" ideal. This will not please everyone though and I did look for it to become more cutting and insightful as it went on. It didn't get to where I would have liked but it was still interesting as a snapshot of a day out and different characters.

The acting is mostly good, in particular Armstrong as the stern teacher. Heywood and the other staff members have less to do in regards material but still turn in solid characters. The pupils also vary in material but each and every one of them manages to deliver what the material requires and it is these performances that really give the film a natural and engaging feel. The direction is good for what it is and makes the best of location, including the coach trip part itself. It is never brilliant and does feel like it didn't go anywhere but Our Day Out gets back on feeling natural and having an interesting clash of characters, even if the narrative doesn't ever get as clever or sharp as one would have liked – which I suppose is part of the series rather than a specific fault of this film.