In 1958, A Taste of Honey burst onto the British stage. Written by the teenage Sheila Delaney, it tackled taboos with an ease and a humour that made audiences sit up and take notice. Playing truant to see the film version in 1961, Peter Egan is perfectly placed to discuss this landmark of British theatre. He tells us what it is about the play that made it stand out and how he was cast in the 1984 BBC version - the director remembering Peter's working-class roots despite his constantly being asked to play ‘lords and poets and kings’. He discusses the background to the play, John Osborne opening the door to a new kind of drama with Look Back in Anger, and the huge influence the iconic director Joan Littlewood had on the piece. But mostly, he reminds us why the play remains so powerful and still has such relevance today.
Source: BBC 4
Peter Egan Remembers A Taste Of Honey
In 1958, A Taste of Honey burst onto the British stage. Written by the teenage Sheila Delaney, it tackled taboos with an ease and a humour that made audiences sit up and take no ...
06-09-2026
BBC 4
Dame Maureen Lipman Remembers Absurd Person Singular
Maureen Lipman looks back on the filming of Alan Ayckbourn's Absurd Person Singular, recalling the joy of working alongside an exceptional cast at the very top of their game, wh ...
30-08-2026
BBC 4
Simon Sebag Montefiore Remembers Rome: A History Of The Eternal City
Describing himself as both ‘tourist and historian,’ bestselling author Simon Sebag Montefiore was perfectly placed to present a series of programmes on iconic cities ...
19-08-2026
BBC 4
Lady Antonia Fraser Remembers The Birthday Party
It was at a 1975 production of his play The Birthday Party that Harold Pinter first met Lady Antonia Fraser and changed both their lives with the single phrase: 'Must you go?' W ...
09-08-2026
BBC 4
Sally Magnusson Remembers Mastermind
Broadcaster and writer Sally Magnusson takes her seat in the original, imposing Mastermind chair, and shares memories of her father Magnus's time as the host of one of British t ...
03-08-2026
BBC 4
Bill Paterson Remembers The Cheviot, The Stag And The Black, Black Oil
Actor Bill Paterson looks back on one of the earliest roles of his career, in the 1974 boundary-breaking television adaptation of John McGrath's play The Cheviot, the Stag and t ...
02-08-2026
BBC 4
Monty Don Remembers Geoff Hamilton
Described as ‘the nation’s head gardener', Geoff Hamilton combined vast horticultural knowledge with an ease at TV presenting that made everything he did look natura ...
01-08-2026
BBC 4
Mackenzie Crook And Martin Freeman Remember… The Office
It’s been more than 15 years since Gareth and Tim from The Office – aka Mackenzie Crook and Martin Freeman – last laid eyes on each other, but the groundbreaki ...
08-07-2026
BBC 4
Peter Flannery Remembers Our Friends In The North
Writer Peter Flannery looks back on his experiences creating the acclaimed 1996 drama Our Friends in the North. \n\nFollowing the lives of four friends from Newcastle over a per ...
24-06-2026
BBC 4
Midge Ure Remembers… The Prince’s Trust Rock Gala 1986
Midge Ure looks back at the 1986 Prince’s Trust Rock Concert, organised to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the charity. As musical director for the event, he is perfect ...
20-06-2026
BBC 4
Mackenzie Crook And Martin Freeman Remember… The Office
It’s been more than 15 years since Gareth and Tim from The Office – aka Mackenzie Crook and Martin Freeman – last laid eyes on each other, but the groundbreaki ...
08-07-2026
BBC 4
Jimmy Mcgovern Remembers… Common
Screenwriter Jimmy McGovern remembers his 2014 drama Common, which explores the concept and consequences of the law of joint association through the story of a fictional murder ...
07-05-2025
BBC 4
Simon Sebag Montefiore Remembers Rome: A History Of The Eternal City
Describing himself as both ‘tourist and historian,’ bestselling author Simon Sebag Montefiore was perfectly placed to present a series of programmes on iconic cities ...
19-08-2026
BBC 4
Dame Maureen Lipman Remembers Absurd Person Singular
Maureen Lipman looks back on the filming of Alan Ayckbourn's Absurd Person Singular, recalling the joy of working alongside an exceptional cast at the very top of their game, wh ...
30-08-2026
BBC 4
Michael Aspel Remembers The War Game
TV presenter Michael Aspel looks back on one of the BBC’s most controversial programmes of the 1960s, The War Game. Directed by Peter Watkins, with Michael providing some ...
30-07-2025
BBC 4
Nicholas Shakespeare Remembers Mario Vargas Llosa
Described as one of the finest writers of his generation, Mario Vargas Llosa was at the forefront of South American fiction that made its mark in the mid-20th century. Mining ev ...
14-07-2025
BBC 4
Adrian Lester Remembers Company
Actor Adrian Lester looks back on the 1996 Donmar Warehouse production of Stephen Sondheim's musical Company. \n\nFirst performed over 50 years ago, Company still has the power ...
30-03-2025
BBC 4
Jasper Carrott Remembers
Comedy hero Jasper Carrott marks hitting his 80th year with a look back over the unique career that has seen him gracing our screens for the past five decades. \n\nHaving starte ...
19-08-2025
BBC 4
Sally Magnusson Remembers Mastermind
Broadcaster and writer Sally Magnusson takes her seat in the original, imposing Mastermind chair, and shares memories of her father Magnus's time as the host of one of British t ...
03-08-2026
BBC 4
Derek Jacobi Remembers Breaking The Code
Sir Derek Jacobi looks back on Breaking the Code, the acclaimed 1997 drama that saw him tackling the role of Alan Turing, the mathematical genius who cracked the Enigma code and ...
18-02-2026
BBC 4