The Intruder (TV series)

The Intruder is a British drama series made by Granada Television for the ITV network and was broadcast on Sundays from 2 January to 20 February 1972. There were eight episodes made, all of them running 25 minutes.

The Intruder
StarringJames Bate
Milton Johns
Sheila Ruskin
No. of series1
No. of episodes8
Production
ProducerGranada Television
Running time25 minutes per episode
Release
Original networkITV
Original release2 January (1972-01-02) –
20 February 1972 (1972-02-20)

The series was based on the children's book of this same name by John Rowe Townsend, published in 1970.[1] The novel was well received, and won numerous awards, it was adapted for television in 1971,[2] before being shown on television the following year. The series was shot on location, predominantly in the Cumbrian village of Ravenglass with some scenes filmed in Manchester and Anglesey.[3]

Plot

The life of Arnold Haithwaite (James Bate) a sixteen-year-old English boy begins to change when an overbearing and sinister one-eyed stranger called Sonny (Milton Johns) arrives in the small seaside village of Skirlston, claiming to be the real Arnold Haithwaite.

Episodes

This episode guide features information which appears on the ITN Source website (http://www.itnsource.com/)

Episode One: The Stranger (broadcast: 2 Jan 1972)

Synopsis: Young Arnold Haithwaite's happy and uneventful life is turned around by a stranger called Sonny, claiming that he is the real Arnold Haithwaite. Arnold also meets two newcomers to his sleepy village, a 17-year-old girl and her younger brother Peter.[4]

Episode Two: Jane[5] (broadcast: 9 Jan 1972)

Episode Three: Norma (broadcast: 16 Jan 1972)

Episode Four: Miss Binns (broadcast: 23 Jan 1972)

Episode Five: Peter (broadcast: 30 Jan 1972)

Note: The character of Peter was played by musician, songwriter, composer, producer and actor Simon Fisher Turner.[6]

Episode Six: Jane Again[7] (broadcast: 6 Feb 1972)

Episode Seven: Mavis (broadcast: 13 Feb 1972)

Synopsis: Arnold discovers the secret of his identity, whilst the villainous Sonny finds the opposition getting tougher.[8]

Note: This episode features an early television appearance from Lynne Perrie, who plays Mavis.

Episode Eight: Me (broadcast: 20 Feb 1972)

Acclaim

When first broadcast, The Intruder won the top award as Britain's best TV show for children, and was repeated on Malaysia television in 1980.[9] In 1973, Peter Plummer, who worked as a writer on the show won a BAFTA TV award for his contribution to the series.[10] Speaking about the first episode in 2011 which had been released on DVD, Les Anderson wrote online: "Shot entirely on location on film this is not only atmospheric but also really creepy and unsettling. I look forward to seeing more."[11]

Commercial release

In 2010 Network included the first episode The Stranger as part of their DVD compilation Look-Back on 70s Telly - Issue 3.[12] They then released the complete series on Blu-ray in October 2022.[13]

References
  1. Townsend, J.R. (2001). The Intruder. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780192750563. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  2. "Error - debate.org/reference". debate.org. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  3. Pixley, Andrew (2022) The Intruder - booklet included with the blu-ray release of the series by Network
  4. "THE INTRUDER (THE STRANGER)". itnsource.com. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  5. "The Intruder (TV Series 1972) - IMDb". IMDb.
  6. http://acme.highpoint.edu/~whood/sftacting.html>
  7. "The Intruder (TV Series 1972) - IMDb". IMDb.
  8. "THE INTRUDER (MAVIS)". itnsource.com. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  9. "New Straits Times - Google News Archive Search". Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  10. "The Intruder - Awards - IMDb". imdb.com. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  11. Les Anderson, The Digital Fix. "Film @ The Digital Fix - Look-Back on '70s Telly - Issue 3". film.thedigitalfix.com. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  12. http://networkonair.com/shop/1264-look-back-on-70s-telly-issue-3.html Archived 2013-11-09 at the Wayback Machine>
  13. "Network ON AIR > Intruder". networkonair.com. Archived from the original on 14 April 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
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