The Falklands Play is a dramatic account of the political events leading up to, and including, the 1982 Falklands War. The play was written by Ian Curteis, an experienced writer who had started his television career in drama, but had increasingly come to specialise in dramatic reconstructions of history. It was originally commissioned by the BBC in 1983, for production and broadcast in 1986, but was subsequently shelved by Controller of BBC One Michael Grade due to its alleged pro-Margaret Thatcher stance and jingoistic tone. This prompted a press furore over media bias and censorship.The play was not staged until 2002, when it was broadcast in separate adaptations on BBC Television and Radio.
The Falklands Play (2002) is a war, drama and tv movie film directed by Michael Samuels, released on April 10, 2002 with a runtime of 1h 30m. It stars Patricia Hodge, John Standing, Michael Cochrane and James Fox. Viewers rate it 7.0 out of 10 across 8 ratings.
Patricia Hodge
as Rt. Hon Margaret Thatcher (Prime Minister)
John Standing
as Rt Hon William Whitelaw CH MC MP (Home Secretary)
Michael Cochrane
as Rt Hon Nicholas Ridley MP (Financial Secretary to the Treasury)
James Fox
as Rt Hon Peter, 6th Baron Carrington KCMG MC (Foreign Secretary)
Colin Stinton
as Alexander Haig (US Secretary of State)
Anthony Calf
as Robin Fearn (Head of Falkland Islands Department, Foreign Office)
Jeremy Child
as Rt Hon Francis Pym MC MP (Foreign Secretary)
Richard Cordery
as Tom Enders
Robert Hardy
as Sir Anthony Parsons
John Woodvine
as Adm. of the Fleet Sir Terence Lewin
Rupert Vansittart
as Sir Robert Armstrong (Cabinet Secretary)
Jonathan Coy
as Richard Luce MP (Minister of State, Foreign Office)
Directed by Michael Samuels, written by Ian Curteis, produced by Jeremy Howe.
Average viewer score of 7.0/10 from 8 ratings.
Recently, there have been a spate of singularly poor dramas about historical figures from the British Isles - "Mary, Queen of Scots" (2018), "Robert, the Bruce" (2019) being two of the least agreeable - but this takes that low benchmark and throws it under the bus (or chariot). Anyone expecting a battle-fest featuring this famously brave and courageous Queen leading loads of people in woad fighting off the fearsome…
Reviewed on September 3, 2023
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The Falklands Play (2002) is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Prime Video with Ads. Streaming availability is checked against JustWatch data and can change by region.
The main cast of The Falklands Play (2002) includes Patricia Hodge, John Standing, Michael Cochrane, James Fox and Colin Stinton. The film was directed by Michael Samuels. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
The Falklands Play was released on April 10, 2002 and runs for 1h 30m.
The Falklands Play (2002) holds an average rating of 7.0 out of 10 from 8 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy war, drama and tv movie films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
