Richard the Third, The Tragedy of
- Alternative title
- The Shakespeare Plays
- Synopsis
- Television production with Ron Cook in the title role.
- Series
- BBC Television Shakespeare
- Language
- English
- Country
- Great Britain; United States
- Medium
- Television
- Technical information
- Colour / Sound
- Recording date
- 31 Mar 1982
- Transmission details
- 23 Jan 1983 at 19:15 (Channel: BBC2)
- Duration
- 230 mins
Credits
- Director
- Jane Howell
- Producer
- Shaun Sutton
- Writer
- William Shakespeare
- Costume
- John Peacock
- Art Direction
- Oliver Bayldon
- Contributor
- David Snodin
- Cast
Additional Details
- Production type
- Television and Radio Drama
- Historical period
- Medieval
- Plays
- Richard III
- Subjects
- Drama
- Keywords
- drama in English; performances; Shakespeare, William (1564-1616); Doubling of roles
- Related items
- Richard III
- Richard III
Notes
- Notes
- The production is commercially available on DVD as part of the BBC TV SHAKESPEARE COLLECTION box set (see separate entry).
- History
- This production is part of the fifth season (producer: Shaun Sutton). It was recorded in seven days.
- Stills
- The set is based on a children’s playground and mirrors used for battle scenes. Director Jane Howell directed the entire minor tetralogy (the three parts of Henry VI plus King Richard III). All four productions have the same cast, set, and conceptual approach.
- Textual information
- Between 1978 and 1986 the BBC published individual scripts of the series. Each volume of The BBC TV Shakespeare, ed. Peter Alexander et al. (London: British Broadcasting Corporation) contains the full text of the play (the Peter Alexander edition) with accompanying notes on the scene breaks and cuts made in the production, as well as a glossary. A general introduction to the play by series literary advisor John Wilders is followed by an essay on the production of the play by Henry Fenwick. This is based on interviews with actors, directors, and designers.
- Reviews
- Susan Willis, The BBC Shakespeare Plays: Making the Televised Canon (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1991).
Neil Taylor, "Two Types of Television Shakespeare", Shakespeare Survey, Volume 39: Shakespeare on Film and Television (Cambridge, 1987), pp. 103-111.
Production Company
- Name
BBC
- Notes
- The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
- Name
Time-Life Films Inc
- Phone
- 0101 201 843 4545
- Address
- PO Box 644
NJ 07652
USA
Sponsor
- Name
Moviemail
- Web
- https://www.simplyhe.com/3000-moviemail External site opens in new window
- Phone
- 0844 848 2000
- Address
- Simply Home Entertainment
PO Box 7741
Ringwood
BH24 9FA
UK - Notes
- As of December 2016 the Moviemail web presence is incorporated within the Simply Media website
Distributor (Sale)
- Name
Trumedia Ltd
- Contact
- Bill Cotton
- sales@trumedia.co.uk
- Web
- https://trumedia.co.uk/ External site opens in new window
- Phone
- 01865 847837
- Fax
- 01865 847837
- Address
- 9 Meadow View
Kidlington
Kidlington
OX5 2XY - Notes
- Trumedia supplies video tapes and DVDs to UK schools, colleges and universities and is geared up to take official orders from educational institutions. The catalogue highlights programmes likely to be of use in the curriculum, but the company can supply any video in current UK distribution, as well as some deleted titles. Particularly strong in the areas of English literature and drama, as well as history, natural history, art & artists, and foreign language films.
How to cite this record
Shakespeare, "Richard the Third, The Tragedy of". https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/shakespeare/search/index.php/title/18328 (Accessed 14 Apr 2026)