Screening: Dennis Potter, 'Brimstone and Treacle '(1976)

Taking place as part of the public programmes for Hilary Lloyd Very High Frequency, this screening programme surveys key and rarely seen works by Dennis Potter.

The programme primarily focuses on Potter’s work for the BBC’s groundbreaking anthology drama series The Wednesday Play (1964–1970) and its successor Play for Today (1970–1984). Reflecting then-contemporary social and political contexts, these single-play formats became platforms for provocative storytelling that encompassed realism, satire and experimental drama. The series, which included Potter’s early semi-autobiographical works such as Stand Up, Nigel Barton (1965), helped launch his career, alongside directors such as Ken Loach and, later, Alan Clarke and Stephen Frears.

Two special marathon screenings showcase Dennis Potter’s most significant television serials. Pennies From Heaven (1978) marked Potter’s first major popular success and is recognised for transforming the possibilities of television drama. The Singing Detective (1986), widely regarded as his masterpiece, combines the themes and experimental structures of his earlier work to explore noir fantasy, childhood memory and musical interludes in a brilliant, hallucinatory narrative.

Potter’s readiness to engage with complex themes, including politics, class, illness, sexuality and religion, is a significant reminder of a time when a limited number of television channels vied for public attention and challenging content was broadcast to a mass audience.

Brimstone and Treacle (1976)Wednesday 26 November 2025, 7–8.30 pm

Commissioned for the BBC's Play for Today in 1976 but withheld from broadcast until 1987, Brimstone and Treacle was initially pulled from the BBC schedule two weeks before transmission. The Director of Television Programmes Alasdair Milne described the work as "nauseating" though "brilliantly made".

The story sees a manipulative stranger infiltrate the home of a middle-aged couple, ‘the Bates’, whose daughter Pattie is living with physical and cognitive impairments following a hit-and-run accident. The stranger, Martin, insinuates himself into their lives by claiming to be a friend of their daughter, becoming a catalyst for the family to confront their values, faith and ideologies.

A particularly distressing scene involving sexual violence made the film highly controversial. While Brimstone and Treacle is one of Potter’s most notorious works, it is also considered the most significant of his ‘visitation’ dramas, and his radical treatment of morality, religious themes and symbols was a source of debate and provocation throughout his career.

Writer: Dennis Potter; Director: Barry Davis; Producer: Mark ShivasRuntime: 85 mins

Content warning

Contains very distressing material, including a graphic depiction of sexual violence, manipulation, and abuse. The drama also features strong language, discriminatory language and attitudes, and unsettling themes relating to disability, religion, and morality. Viewer discretion is strongly advised. Age guidance: 18+

Image credit

Dennis Potter, The Singing Detective, 1986. Film still. Copyright BBC Archive.