Within These Walls: Coming Home (ITV 21 Mar 1975, with Rosalind Elliot)

In Coming Home the group therapy sessions for the drug addicts in Stone Park is now a year old and has been very successful, the problems for the inmates though start when they are released. Olive Reardon, a prison who was heavily addicted to drugs on her arrival leaves completely clean, within weeks though she has fallen off the wagon and is back in Stone Park.

Faye decides to set up a completely new self contained drug unit completely separate from the rest of the prison. She also allows former members of the therapy unit to visit whenever they want. It’s obviously a concept fraught with opportunities for disaster but Faye is convinced that it will have a beneficial effect. It soon becomes obvious that indeed the unit is working but when Faye decides to allow acclimatisation days out Olive Reardon using it as an opportunity to escape.

As it happens Olive’s escape (she is very quickly discovered) is merely an attempt to extend her stay in the drugs unit which has become something of a family to her.

More points to think about, especially the issue of what happens to someone with a former drug dependency once they leave the prison system especially if they don’t have a support network. There is a strong script from Terence Feely and a strong performance from Rosalind Elliot as Olive.

Sally Raymond who plays guitar strumming Toomey sings a nicely melancholic “within these walls” song over the end credits too.

classic quote
“And you suddenly realise that all these hard faced people can do it anyway. Have always done it. Think nothing of it. So what’s so special about you, when you realise that you’re on your own and you’ve got to make a go of it on your own. Only you’re another year older and you’re still the same person that didn’t make it the first time.”

production details
UK / ITV – London Weekend Television / 1×50 minute episode / Broadcast Friday 21 March 1975 at 9.00pm

Writer: Terence Feely / Production Design: Rodney Cammish / Director: Philip Casson

Series: Within These Walls Season 2 Episode 11

cast
Googie Withers as Faye Boswell
Mona Bruce as Mrs Armitage
Jerome Willis as Charles Radley
Denys Hawthorne as Dr Mayes
Janet Lees Price as Janet Harker
Elaine Ballie as Lorna Fraser
Jenny Short as Stacey
Liz Edmiston as Mona
Rosalind Elliot as Olive
Louisa Martin as Billie
Sally Raymond as Toomey
Bernard G. High as Ambulance man
Annie Irving as Thora Hayes
Helen Francois as Buena Sang
Patricia Macrae as Officer Norris
Dennis Burgess as Sir Charles
Vivienne McKee as Janice Pardoe