Within These Walls: Getting Out (ITV 8 Nov 1975, with Renee Goddard)

In Getting Out newly arrived inmate Renate Schumacher doesn’t speak a word of English, she has received a six month sentence for shop lifting, She doesn’t understand how the system works so Faye arranges for another inmate, who also speaks German, to act as her interpreter.

However it soon becomes clear that Renee is not as straightforward as she seems to be, a chance remark from Faye leads to the discovery that she can actually speak English. She gives Faye something of a sob story about not wanting her parents in Germany to know she is in prison but Faye isn’t convinced. She gets in touch with Special Branch and it’s discovered that Renee is in fact Helga and a terrorist whose fellow cell members are plotting to break out of Stone Park. Mrs Armitage and Liz Clarke have another of their regular arguments about how things should be done at Stone Park.

Meanwhile Liz Clarke has to try and find somewhere for Mrs Weeks to live when her sentence finishes in a couple of weeks. She is struggling but Faye hits upon the idea of asking Mrs Dobing to take her in. Mrs Dobing (who was previously seen in the episode Tea on St Pancras Station) and her husband had taken in many prisoners over the years. However following the death of Mr Dobing, Mrs Dobing had stopped and was going through something of a lonely patch herself. Faye persuades her to visit Mrs Weeks in prison and of course the pair are very well matched with Mrs Dobing inviting Mrs Weeks to stay with her on her release.

There is also something of a minor subplot with Mrs Armitage’s daughter Ellen getting quite friendly with Faye’s son Paul – the pair share some of the same courses at university. Paul is studying to be a probation officer and Ellen has decided on a career in Welfare (although by the end of the episode she has decided to switch back to nursing.)

production details
UK / ITV – London Weekend Television / 1×50 minute episode / Broadcast Saturday 8 November 1975

Writer: David Butler / Production Design: Bryan Bagge / Director: Bill Bain

Series: Within These Walls Season 3 Episode 10

cast
Googie Withers as Faye Boswell
Denys Hawthorne as Dr Mayes
Mona Bruce as Mrs Armitage
Jerome Willis as Charles Radley
Raymond Adamson as Bill Boswell
Beth Harris as Miss Clarke
Elaine Wells as Officer Spencer
Hazel Clyne as Marian Collins
Renee Goddard as Renate Schumacher
Natalie Kent as Beanie Dixon
Betty Romaine as Mrs Weeks
Joan-Ann Maynard as Avice
Jumoke Debayo as Officer Carto
Sabina Michael as Hannah Wise
Charles Morgan as Ted Armitage
Suzan Cameron as Ellen Armitage
Crispin Gillbard as Paul Boswell
Elsie Randolph as Mrs Dobing
John Rhys-Davies as Inspector Jay