Play for Today
Series 5
197422 episodes
Episode 1
Leeds--United!
Oct 31, 19741h 15m
About a strike in a textile factory, based on a true story
Episode 2
Baby Love
Nov 7, 19741h 15m
After the stillbirth of her illegitimate baby, a woman steals a baby at random and is sentenced to 9 months in prison.
Episode 3
Back of Beyond
Nov 14, 19741h 15m
Olwen lives in a tumbledown farm up in the mountains - a lonely widow, virtually a recluse. Her only human contact is with the occasional shopkeeper and young Rachel, who delivers her papers. For Rachel, her visits to Olwen are half adventure, half honest friendship. But they also mean a time to 'put aside childish things.'
Episode 4
The Bevellers
Nov 21, 19741h 15m
The first (and last) day at work of a young apprentice in a bevelling shop at a Glasgow glass factory
Episode 5
Taking Leave
Nov 28, 19741h 15m
"Well, I hope I won'be seeing you come home in that uniform much more. Six years - that's long enough out of any man's life." Mike's time is nearly up. The army gives him a weekend pass so he's home from Ulster to decide whether to sign on again. His parents want him to stay but he's wondering whether the family's own flare-ups aren't a bit too like the Troubles he has left behind.
Episode 6
Fugitive
Dec 5, 19741h 15m
After 18 years as a friar, Peter is no longer sure of his vocation. It is a happy life, maybe too much so, and now he has met Clare. Will his doubts run away with him? Runaway friars are officially "fugitives" who must be persuaded back to their order.
Episode 7
Eleanor
Dec 12, 19741h 15m
Eleanor is unable to communicate her inner thoughts as she's bullied at school and virtually ignored by her parents. With a mundane working existence awaiting her, she desires a chance at another life - but at what cost?
Episode 8
Gangsters
Jan 9, 19751h 15m
A story exploring the Birmingham underworld
Episode 9
The After Dinner Game
Jan 16, 19751h 15m
Vice-Chancellor Bartley Humbolt has problems. His young university is almost bankrupt, his wife is threatening to leave him, his protége professor from industry is threatening to overshadow him, and his prestigious professor of history is threatening to resign. But Bartley is a born manipulator. And when he gives a dinner party, he has something very special in mind - for afters.
Episode 10
Breath
Jan 23, 19751h 15m
A story about an asthma sufferer
Episode 11
The Death of a Young, Young Man
Jan 30, 19751h 15m
Three young students suspended from school face various problems.
Episode 12
Sunset Across the Bay
Feb 20, 19751h 15m
A elderly couple become disillusioned when they retire to their favorite holiday resort.
Episode 13
Funny Farm
Feb 27, 19751h 15m
One day in the life a nurse in a mental hospital
Episode 14
Goodbye
Mar 6, 19751h 15m
"All I said was the gramophone's too loud." Tony and Zoe Lyle 's silly row starts like any other, but Tony finds that Zoe means it this time. She's walking out and he's got a week to save a marriage that he hasn't looked at in 18 years, and with it all the trappings of a good life in Maida Vale.
Episode 15
Just Another Saturday
Mar 13, 19751h 15m
A young man participating in the Orange Parade in Glasgow becomes disillusioned with the pageant when he discovers its unpleasant and violent history and witnesses the participants' attacks on Catholics.
Episode 16
A Child of Hope
Apr 24, 19751h 15m
Thirty-seven men from the disputed territory of South West Africa are on trial for their lives in Pretoria, 1,000 miles from their home. They are to be tried under South Africa's Terrorism Act despite the UN ruling that South Africa must abandon its "illegal administration" of their country.
Episode 17
The Saturday Party
May 1, 19751h 15m
When a stockbroker loses his job, he decides to throw a party.
Episode 18
Wednesday Love
May 8, 19751h 15m
Two women, looking for amusement on their afternoons off, visit a drinking club.
Episode 19
The Dandelion Clock
May 15, 19751h 15m
In Belfast, a girl awaits the return of her missing father.
Episode 20
Brassneck
May 22, 19751h 15m
England, 1945-75: Builder Alfred Bagley makes a fortune, with a little help from his friends.
Episode 21
The Floater
May 29, 19751h 15m
A comedy about the law - seen from the inside. All formality and procedure on the surface but not quite so convincing when you see the works.
Episode 22
By Common Consent
Jun 5, 19751h 15m
Political fantasy about a fascist regime