Suffer Little Children (ITV Comedy, Lee Montague)

In one off drama Suffer Little Children, written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson for the Saturday Night Theatre strand, there is a major crisis going on in the government but the Prime Minister (Lee Montague) is determined to hang on to his position of power.

Although the pair had written several full length film scripts by this stage, Suffer Little Children was their first full length TV play. Reviewing the play in The Stage (8 Jan 1970), John Lawrence felt that the lack of a studio audience harmed the play. Lawrence felt the play didn’t work but there were a few highlights “the production owes a great debt to John Le Mesurier whose underplaying of Henderson, the Foreign Secretary was never less than perfectly timed or executed.” He also singled out Josephine Tewson, who played the Prime Minister’s wife as “the only real person in the play.”

Series: Saturday Night Theatre Episode 46

Cast: Lee Montague as Prime Minister; John Le Mesurier as Henderson; Josephine Tewson as Gladys; Ivor Dean as Nelson; Brian Tully as President of Board of Trade; Dudley Jones as Griffith; Valerie Lush as Woman Member; Martin Wyldeck as Bleinkinsopp; Colin Vancao as Member of Opposition; George Hancock as Speaker; Ewan Roberts as Doctor; John McGregor as Television Announcer; Michael Burrell as Television Presenter; Edwin Apps as First Pseophologist; Graeme Garden as Second Psephologist; Fred McNaughton as Returning Officer; Gaynor Hodgson as Elsie

Writers: Ray Galton, Alan Simpson / Production Design: John Newton Clarke / Producer and Director: David Askey

UK / ITV – London Weekend Television / 1×50 minute episode / Broadcast Saturday 3 January 1970 at 10.15pm