Prisoner: the early years [DVD]

Episode number 1 of Series “Prisoner [Cell block H]”.
166 (dirs. Rod Hardy, Juliana Focht, prod. Philip East, wri. Alistair Sharp): Top Dog Bea Smith (Val Lehman) leads 6 of her fellow prisoners through an escape tunnel during a pantomime. Terror mounts when the tunnel collapses; there will be fatalities. There’s disgruntlement amongst prison staff regarding work conditions. “287” (dir: John McRae, prod. Ian Bradley, wri. John Mortimore): Enter “The Freak” (Maggie Kirkpatrick) with her trademark leather gloves in tow. Christine (Amanda Muggleton) is arrested while breaching parole, Lizzie (Sheila Florance) has a hangover and the search is on for a secret distillery in the prison. Burns (Collette Mann) plays bookie. “327” (dir. Juliana Focht, prod. John McRae, wri. Anne Lucas): The Freak uses intimidation when searching for her lost diaries. A deliberately lit fire finds The Freak and Smith trapped togther in the cells. The women are relocated to a men’s prison due to fire damage. “400” (dir. Mark DeFriest, prod. Lex Van Os, wri. Ian Smith): Hazel assists Jude to suicide and has to deal with the legal consequences of her actions. With assistance from The Freak, there’s moves for a new Top Dog following Smith’s abrupt departure. Cast includes Elspeth Ballantyne, Judith McGrath, Betty Bobbitt, Val Lehman, Amanda Muggleton and Jane Clifton. Introduced by Peter McTighe. PLEASE NOTE: date recorded is copyright year and usually preceeds the screening year.