Dvd/150: ALAN BENNETT AT THE BBC (Stephen Frears/Malcolm Mowbray/Giles Foster/John Schlesinger/Richard Eyre/Stuart Burge/Udayan Prasad/Jonathan Stedall, 1972/1994, tv)

A wonderful collection of Alan Bennett's BBC television work including A DAY OUT, SUNSET ACROSS THE BAY, A VISIT FROM MISS PROTHERO, OUR WINNIE, A WOMAN OF NO IMPORTANCE, AN ENGLISHMAN ABROAD, THE INSURANCE MAN, DINNER AT NOON, 102 BOULEVARD HAUSSMANN, A QUESTION OF ATTRIBUTION and PORTRAIT OR BUST.

A 1911 bicycle club's Sunday jaunt; an old couple finding unhappiness in retirement; a retired office worker visited by a boorish ex-colleague; a retarded woman visiting a cemetery with her mother and aunt; an office busybody chattering to the grave; actress Coral Browne meeting spy Guy Burgess in 1958 Moscow; stories from the lives of Kafka and Proust; Sir Anthony Blunt is revealed as a spy, these stories are accompanied by two documentaries of Bennett reflecting on hotels and art galleries.

Among a wide array of acting excellence Patricia Routledge, Coral Browne, Alan Bates, James Fox and Prunella Scales shine.

Shelf or charity shop? Shelf definitely....

Dvd/150: SUNDAY BLOODY SUNDAY (John Schlesinger, 1971)

After finally seeing this, only 43 years late, I wondered why it is not more acclaimed.  Is it because the subject matter is so uncomfortably personal?

Maybe it is under-rated due to the varying quality of Schlesinger's later films but it has a particular power.  It is certainly a film of it's time - 1970s autumnal London - but it also has a timeless quality despite the clunky telephones and televisions.

Dr Daniel Hirsh and divorcée Alex Greville have never met but know of each other through mutual friends but, more importantly, they know of each other through a young artist Bob Elkins who is a lover to them both.

Both are careful to allow Bob his space but over the course of a week, they realise how they are both bound to lose him.

Unflinching performances from Glenda Jackson and Peter Finch shine as does Penelope Gilliat's adult, perceptive script.

Shelf or charity shop? A resolute shelf-filler *nb* demoted to the plastic box of dvds