The Chief 1872-1881 (26 Sep. 1978)
"Disraeli" The Chief 1872-1881 (original title)

Disreali leads Britain as Prime minister and favorite of the Queen as he protects British interests in the Suez Canal and the Balkans.

Director:

Claude Whatham

Writer:

David Butler

Stars:

Ian McShane, Rosemary Leach, Brewster Mason

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Ian McShane	...	Benjamin Disraeli
Rosemary Leach	...	Queen Victoria
Brewster Mason	...	Prince Bismarck
David de Keyser	...	Baron de Rothschild
David Wood	...	Lord Derby
John Gregg	...	Lord Salisbury
Renée Asherson	...	Lady Bradford
Frances Bennett	...	Lady Chesterfield
John Carlisle	...	W.E. Gladstone
Jeremy Clyde	...	Lord John Manners
Brendan Barry	...	Sir Stafford Northcote
Patrick Drury	...	Montagu Curry
Peter Hughes	...	Philip Rose
Peter Miles	...	Lord Henry Lennox
Trevor T. Smith	...	Count Schouvaloff

Storyline

With the death of his beloved Mary Anne, Disraeli is forced to relocate to town and live in a hotel - the house they had shared for 30 years was willed to her by her first husband, but only for her lifetime - but he soon finds himself leading the Conservatives in a general election that they own in a landslide. He finally gets to implement many of the policies that he has cherished include new laws on housing, employment, unions and voting rights. The British government buys a major stake in the Suez Canal heeding advise he had once been given that if not bought, it would eventually have to be taken in war. Late in his career he finally accepts that he no longer has the energy to continue the battles of the House of Commons and accepts the Queen's often-made offer of a peerage. He continues to go against the grain supporting the Turks as a buffer against the expansionist Russians when almost the entirety of Europe felt the need to restrain the non-Christian hordes, eventually ...

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Plot Keywords:

suez canal | peerage | house of commons | election | house of lords | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Details

Release Date:

26 September 1978 (UK)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Associated Television (ATV), Granada Television, Independent Television (ITV)

Did You Know?

Quotes

Benjamin Disraeli: One thing I have learned from Russia - you gain nothing from them by conciliation and concession.

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Connections

Version of Disraeli (1929)

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Soundtracks

"God Save Our Queen"
(uncredited)
Traditional British national anthem
Played by Prussian military band

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