For Maddie with Love

For Maddie with Love is a 1980 British television drama serial dealing with Maddie's discovery that she has a brain tumour and only a few months to live.

For Maddie with Love
GenreSoap opera
Written byDouglas Watkinson
Directed byDennis Vance
StarringNyree Dawn Porter
Ian Hendry
Theme music composerStephen Francis
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes48
Production
Executive producerDavid Reid
ProducerDennis Vance
Running time30 minutes
Production companyATV
Release
Original networkITV
Original releaseMay 1, 1980 (1980-05-01)

This 48-part (30 minute) daytime serial whcih was in fact live acting was written by Douglas Watkinson was made by ATV and shown on British television beginning in May 1980. Maddie was played by Nyree Dawn Porter [1] and her husband Malcolm by Ian Hendry.[2] Maddie dies during the series, with the subsequent episodes dealing with the family's loss. The series ran over two years from 1980 to 1981 and was published as a novel in 1980 by NEL books. (ATV lost their licence to broadcast in 1981.) It has never been repeated or remade.

Unusually the setting for the drama looked more like that of a theatre piece. Partial sets were used with only the furniture and background items strictly needed for each scene. (Typical was the conservatory which consisted of a few cane chairs, plants, some dividers and Malcolm's painting of Maddie.) It was given a daytime afternoon slot, one for which it was expected to get a mainly female based following. However, as it was never shown during peak viewing times it did not become as well known as it might.

Synopsis

Maddie starts to realise that her body is not functioning normally. Although she tries to hide it, eventually her son sees her fall and insists she sees a doctor. She is diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour. This is the start of the family's journey with Maddie until she eventually dies. The story centres on the interplay between Maddie and her husband Malcolm, examining the illusive and sometimes surreal nature of their relationship. At the same time family problems keep putting demands on Maddie's time and energy. Her daughter Gilly (Sheridan Fitzgerald) is pregnant after having had a miscarriage. Her two sons have the normal but pressing mix of young men's problems. Gordon is the cool solicitor and Neil her youngest at university. We see the family first descend into chaos and then learn to pull together for Maddie's sake. Malcolm cannot accept Maddie's death until one day his children are once again gathered around the dining table and she is not there.

Cast

Book

Published in April 1980 by NEL Books and New English Library. The book was adapted from the television screenplays by Sheila Yegar. The book covers the whole story from when Maddie first suspects that she is ill, through telling her family to her final death. (232 Pages)

References
  1. Nyree Dawn Porter
  2. Ian Hendry
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