Casanova (1971 TV serial)
Encyclopedia
Casanova is a British television
drama serial, written by television playwright Dennis Potter
. Directed by Mark Cullingham and John Glenister
, the serial was made by the BBC
and screened on the BBC2
network in November and December 1971. It is loosely based on Italian
adventurer Giacomo Casanova
's Histoire de ma vie
(Story of My Life; 1780–92). It was Dennis Potter's first television serial, having previously written single plays for the BBC's The Wednesday Play
and Play for Today
series. Frank Finlay
starred in the title role and was nominated for the best actor award at the 1972 BAFTA ceremony.
": the most notorious of Venetian
gaols. Brutalised by Lorenzo the gaoler and devoid of hope under the harsh prison regime, Casanova's mind wanders back to his past loves and adventures. He finds himself haunted by the memory of Christina, a simple country girl he gave to another rather than marry her himself.
, and reflects on his seduction of three daughters at a house in Grenoble
.
newspaper. Potter had been after a subject for his first drama serial and found in Casanova a suitable figure to continue the themes of sex, memory and redemption that had influenced much of his previous work.
When writing the serial Potter decided not to read the story of Casanova's adventures, choosing instead to work from a list containing the names of Casanova's lovers and specific events from his life. Potter intended to explore the reason why Casanova was "driven" to have had so many sexual encounters. As a result, Potter's Casanova is far different from other interpretations of the character; he suffers from tristitia post-coitum (literally, the sadness after sex) and considers his reliance on women for sexual satisfaction a weakness. The serial includes a number of events that depart from established facts about Casanova.
by BBC Worldwide
in 2004, as part of The Dennis Potter Collection, a range of Potter's work released that year.
British television
Public television broadcasting started in the United Kingdom in 1936, and now has a collection of free and subscription services over a variety of distribution media, through which there are over 480 channelsTaking the base Sky EPG TV Channels. A breakdown is impossible due to a) the number of...
drama serial, written by television playwright Dennis Potter
Dennis Potter
Dennis Christopher George Potter was an English dramatist, best known for The Singing Detective. His widely acclaimed television dramas mixed fantasy and reality, the personal and the social. He was particularly fond of using themes and images from popular culture.-Biography:Dennis Potter was born...
. Directed by Mark Cullingham and John Glenister
John Glenister
John Glenister is a British television director. His credits include Rumpole of the Bailey, Play For Today and Dennis Potter's 1971 biopic of Casanova, A Touch of Frost, Hetty Wainthropp Investigates and A Bit of a Do.He is the father of actors Philip Glenister and Robert Glenister.-External links:...
, the serial was made by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and screened on the BBC2
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
network in November and December 1971. It is loosely based on Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
adventurer Giacomo Casanova
Giacomo Casanova
Giacomo Girolamo Casanova de Seingalt was an Italian adventurer and author from the Republic of Venice. His autobiography, Histoire de ma vie , is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of the customs and norms of European social life during the 18th century...
's Histoire de ma vie
Histoire de ma vie
Histoire de ma vie is both the memoir and autobiography of Giacomo Casanova, a famous 18th century Italian adventurer...
(Story of My Life; 1780–92). It was Dennis Potter's first television serial, having previously written single plays for the BBC's The Wednesday Play
The Wednesday Play
The Wednesday Play was an anthology series of British television plays which ran on BBC1 from October 1964 to May 1970. Every week's play was usually written for television, although adaptations from other sources also featured...
and Play for Today
Play for Today
Play for Today is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage plays and novels, were transmitted...
series. Frank Finlay
Frank Finlay
Francis Finlay, CBE is an English stage, film and television actor.-Personal life:Finlay was born in Farnworth, Lancashire, the son of Margaret and Josiah Finlay, a butcher. A devout Catholic, he belongs to the British Catholic Stage Guild. He was educated at St...
starred in the title role and was nominated for the best actor award at the 1972 BAFTA ceremony.
Episode one: "Steed in the Stable"
After being arrested and charged with "foul atheism" and fornication, Casanova is sentenced to five years imprisonment at "The LeadsPiombi
Piombi is a former prison in the Doge's Palace in Venice. The name of the prison refers to its position directly under the roof of the palace, which was covered with slabs of lead...
": the most notorious of Venetian
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
gaols. Brutalised by Lorenzo the gaoler and devoid of hope under the harsh prison regime, Casanova's mind wanders back to his past loves and adventures. He finds himself haunted by the memory of Christina, a simple country girl he gave to another rather than marry her himself.
Episode two: "One at a Time"
Casanove receives a new cellmate in the form of Schalon, a corrupt insurance brokerInsurance broker
An insurance broker finds sources for contracts of insurance on behalf of their customers. The three largest insurance brokers in the world, by revenue, are Aon, Marsh & McLennan, and Willis Group Holdings.-Purpose of insurance brokers:...
, and reflects on his seduction of three daughters at a house in Grenoble
Grenoble
Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...
.
Cast
- Giacomo Casanova — Frank FinlayFrank FinlayFrancis Finlay, CBE is an English stage, film and television actor.-Personal life:Finlay was born in Farnworth, Lancashire, the son of Margaret and Josiah Finlay, a butcher. A devout Catholic, he belongs to the British Catholic Stage Guild. He was educated at St...
- Lorenzo — Norman RossingtonNorman RossingtonNorman Rossington was an English actor best remembered for his roles in The Army Game, the Carry On films and the Beatles film A Hard Day's Night.-Early life:...
- Christina — Zienia MertonZienia MertonZienia Merton is a British actress born in Burma. Her mother was Burmese, and her father half English, half French. She was raised in Singapore, Borneo, Portugal, and England....
- Senator Bragadin — Geoffrey Wincott
- Valenglart — Victor Baring
- Dr Bellotti — Basil Clarke
- Arlecchino — Tim Thomas
- Anne Roman-Coupier — Ania MarsonAnia MarsonAnia Marson , in Gdynia, is an English and Polish Actress.-Biography:She was trained at the famed Corona Stage Academy and began her career in 1963 in the famous series Dixon of Dock Green, then in 1960, in other series like The Troubleshooters in 1968 and "Detective" in 1969...
- Schalon — Patrick NewellPatrick NewellPatrick David Newell was a British actor known for his large size. It is reputed he gained weight as a deliberate attempt to boost his career, marking him out for some niche roles...
- Genoveffa — Lyn Yeldham
- Rose — Julia Cornelius
- Manon — Brigid Erin Bates
- Anna — Caroline DowdeswellCaroline DowdeswellCaroline Dowdeswell is a former English television actress.She attended theatre school from age 12 and joined the Bromley Rep at 17. Her television career includes appearances in Crossroads, Softly, Softly, Z-Cars, Dad's Army in the recurring role of Janet King, On The Buses and Man About The House...
- Helena — Elaine DonnellyElaine DonnellyElaine Donnelly is a British actress, born in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.-Career:Donnelly started her career in 1969 and appeared in several small British dramas...
- Pantalone — Hugh Portnow
- Circospetto — Christopher HancockChristopher HancockChristopher Hancock was a British television and theatre actor. He was born in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, England. His brother is actor Stephen Hancock. He and his brother trained at the Old Vic theatre school...
- Columbina — Rown Wylie
- Nun — Gillian Brown
- Feldkirchner — Graham CrowdenGraham CrowdenClement Graham Crowden was a Scottish actor. He was best known for his many appearances in television comedy dramas and films, often playing eccentric 'offbeat' scientist, teacher and doctor characters.-Early life:...
- Dr Rasp — John RinghamJohn RinghamJohn Henry Ringham was a British character actor of both television and stage who appeared in over a hundred screen appearances in a wide variety of roles....
- Father Balbi — Roger HammondRoger Hammond (actor)Roger Hammond is an English character actor who has appeared in many films and television series.Hammond attended Cambridge University, and appeared extensively in their drama program, alongside actors such as Ian McKellen, Derek Jacobi, and John Wood. Following that, he attended the Royal Academy...
- Carlo — Igo Silic
Production
In 1966, William R. Trask published the first of his 12 volume translation of Casanova's memoirs while Potter was working as a book reviewer for The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
newspaper. Potter had been after a subject for his first drama serial and found in Casanova a suitable figure to continue the themes of sex, memory and redemption that had influenced much of his previous work.
When writing the serial Potter decided not to read the story of Casanova's adventures, choosing instead to work from a list containing the names of Casanova's lovers and specific events from his life. Potter intended to explore the reason why Casanova was "driven" to have had so many sexual encounters. As a result, Potter's Casanova is far different from other interpretations of the character; he suffers from tristitia post-coitum (literally, the sadness after sex) and considers his reliance on women for sexual satisfaction a weakness. The serial includes a number of events that depart from established facts about Casanova.
DVD release
Casanova was released on DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
by BBC Worldwide
BBC Worldwide
BBC Worldwide Limited is the wholly owned commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation, formed out of a restructuring of its predecessor BBC Enterprises in 1995. In the year to 31 March 2010 it made a profit of £145m on a turnover of £1.074bn. The company had made a profit of £106m...
in 2004, as part of The Dennis Potter Collection, a range of Potter's work released that year.