Claude Whatham

James Herriot is a vet in Yorkshire, England, during the 1930s. He is assigned to the practice of Siegfried Farnon, who—together with his mischievous brother Tristan—already have a successful business. James undergoes a variety of adventures during his work, which are just as often caused by the characters of the county, including the Farnon brothers, as the animals in his care.

American computer whiz Luke Williams meets elderly Lavinia Fullerton on a London-bound train. She reveals she's discovered the identity of a serial killer in her village and is going to report it to Scotland Yard. When she is murdered after disembarking the train, Williams vows to pursue the case himself.

Britain, 1958. Restless at school and bored with his life, Jim leaves home to take a series of low-level jobs at a seaside amusement park, where he discovers a world of cheap sex and petty crime. But when that world comes to a shockingly brutal end, Jim returns home. As the local music scene explodes, Jim must decide between a life of adult responsibility or a new phenomenon called rock & roll.

William is a dashing and eccentric Scotsman whose charms rapidly overwhelm the sweet and naïve Ann, but she nearly as quickly begins to comprehend that her new beau is anything but a one-woman man. In addition to his two ex-wives, with whom he remains remarkably close, William exhibits a disturbing attraction for nearly any female who crosses his path -- Ann's friends among them.

A moody drama concerning the lonely but luxurious imprisonment of Napoleon Bonaparte on St Helena.

An English woman returns to her homeland after losing her fortune in America, and is stalked by a serial killer.

James Herriot is a vet in Yorkshire, England, during the 1930s. He is assigned to the practice of Siegfried Farnon, who—together with his mischievous brother Tristan—already have a successful business. James undergoes a variety of adventures during his work, which are just as often caused by the characters of the county, including the Farnon brothers, as the animals in his care.

American computer whiz Luke Williams meets elderly Lavinia Fullerton on a London-bound train. She reveals she's discovered the identity of a serial killer in her village and is going to report it to Scotland Yard. When she is murdered after disembarking the train, Williams vows to pursue the case himself.

Britain, 1958. Restless at school and bored with his life, Jim leaves home to take a series of low-level jobs at a seaside amusement park, where he discovers a world of cheap sex and petty crime. But when that world comes to a shockingly brutal end, Jim returns home. As the local music scene explodes, Jim must decide between a life of adult responsibility or a new phenomenon called rock & roll.

William is a dashing and eccentric Scotsman whose charms rapidly overwhelm the sweet and naïve Ann, but she nearly as quickly begins to comprehend that her new beau is anything but a one-woman man. In addition to his two ex-wives, with whom he remains remarkably close, William exhibits a disturbing attraction for nearly any female who crosses his path -- Ann's friends among them.

A moody drama concerning the lonely but luxurious imprisonment of Napoleon Bonaparte on St Helena.

An English woman returns to her homeland after losing her fortune in America, and is stalked by a serial killer.

Disraeli is a British four part serial about the great statesman and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Benjamin Disraeli.

An enchanting tale of childhood in a sleepy Cotswold village during and immediately after the First World War.

Winsome art critic Peter visits married artists Gilberto and Vera in Brazil for Christmas. Gilberto and Peter are more than friends though, and jealous romantic entanglements ensue when it becomes apparent that Gilberto’s marriage is not over just yet.

John Mortimer's play about the tangled love life of an East London pub landlord. A woman fighting to save her marriage needs help from friends, but is her husband's best friend the right ally? Pip and Bob, both married, are a couple of ordinary working-class blokes in an ordinary London suburb. It's just that they have also been gay lovers for years.

On holiday with their mother in the Lake District in 1929 four children are allowed to sail over to the nearby island in their boat Swallow and set up camp for a few days. They soon realise this has been the territory of two other girls who sail the Amazon, and the scene is set for serious rivalry.

Adapted from the play by the British playwright Arthur Wing Pinero, as part of BBC Play of the Month. It depicts the vicissitudes of a reformed philanderer attempting to embark on monogamy.

Hoodwink is based on the true story of an Australian con artist who briefly won the hearts of the media (if not the authorities). John Hargreaves stars as a criminal serving time in a New South Wales prison. He's not partial to the physical labor required of the convicts, so he hits upon a labor-saving plan. Hargreaves pretends to be totally blind, thus lightening his work load....and carries off the hoax for years.

Two TV Plays by Vaclav Havel, one called 'Audience', and one called 'Private View'.

Series "Polyvinyl 33 1/3", was created three years ago, aims to bring together all their broadcasting those whose hobby of collecting plates showed different approaches and attitudes toward, compared to today, when there is a huge variety of sound .  Given the fact that today's young people do not even know what a single plate, what is the album, and what a record player, the show itself is the story of more than a hundred previous participants in this series had an opportunity to become familiar with the basic concepts of Hi-Fi technology and the development of sound records on 78 rpm to latest mp3 editions.

One pill, and you're floating on air. A different one, and you're full of lead. Married, mortgaged, broke, a love-affair gone sour - which drug can help Alec?

In the snooker room at a genteel gentleman's club, the mood darkens when adultery becomes the subject of conversation.

Buddy is an aspiring teenager who is a very good musician and has pressure to go further than his Dad's teddy boy rocker days...

The wife of a British army officer discovers his affair with a Polish countess in Germany circa 1918.

Can I Help You? is a 28-minute British short film released in 1981, directed by Claude Whatham and written by the celebrated author and playwright John Bowen. The film primarily stars veteran British actors Freddie Jones and Miriam Karlin. It is an obscure but well-regarded piece of British television drama from that era, exploring character-driven stories in a conversational, theatrical format typical of John Bowen's work

John Fothergill, aesthete and scholar, becomes the proprietor of the Spread Eagle, in Thame, Oxfordshire, with the intent of turning it into the most celebrated Inn in England, catering to the brightest lights in London's literati.

An adaptation directed by Claude Whatham for the BBC's Theatre 625 slot. Essentially a recording of John Barton's acclaimed Royal Shakespeare Company production starring Catherine Lacey (the Countess), Ian Richardson (Bertram), Lynn Farleigh (Helen), Clive Swift (Parolles) and Sebastian Shaw (the King), it was broadcast on 3 June 1968.

'Caesar and Claretta' dramatises the last few hours in the lives of Benito Mussolini (El Duce, played by Robert Hardy) and his mistress Claretta (played by Helen Mirren).

A domineering, reclusive and ostentatiously pious widow in a small Spanish town keeps such close watch on her daughters that they are unable to have normal social lives. However, the eldest is allowed to become engaged to an unprincipled young man, primarily for the financial advantages it will bring the mother, Bernarda. Jealousy and envy ensues among the other daughters.

Barry Reckord adapted his stage play for TV and his brother Lloyd plays the central character – a Jamaican new to London. When he begins a relationship with a white woman, he finds himself in conflict with his mother, who has great expectations for him. The very early intimate portrayal of this interracial relationship broke new ground, and is believed to feature one of the world's first examples of an interracial kiss on TV.

Follows a PE teacher, whose attempt to impress the need for self-control on his pupils verges on the sadistic.

Set in 1923, a British author named Marie Stopes is having quite the tumultuous life until one day she attempts to sue Dr. Halliday Sutherland for libel, since she thinks he criticized her birth control clinic. A lawyer named Patrick Hastings comes to represent Stopes, and judge Ernest Charles comes to represented Dr. Halliday Sutherland.

Friends arrange a dinner party to introduce two single friends, Rita and Piers, neither of whom are particularly keen.

When Mr Coleman was alive he found it hard to talk to his son. Since his death he finds it strangely easier.

Simon attempts to convince his mistress, Monica, to leave her husband by staging a suicide, but a stranger arrives, aiding in the staged act.

A social satire in which advertisers realise that having a blind beggar as the public face of charities would help make them seem more appealing to donors. 

Michael Frayn play part of TV series The Wednesday Play.

Raymond Burr and James Burke take a whimsical look at 200 years of inventions from the cotton gin to the computer. Included are commentaries, animation, song by and dance routines and on-location segments.

Michael Frayn play part of TV series The Wednesday Play.

Play about a student, taken from his point of view, and his reactions to the pressures and vacuums of student life.

Play by Arthur Hopcraft about Christmas in a Northern town, and the relationship within a family.

Part of BFI collection "They Stand Ready."