Alice in Wonderland (1966 TV play)

Alice in Wonderland is a 1966 BBC television play, shot on film, based on Lewis Carroll's 1865 book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. It was adapted, produced and directed by Jonathan Miller, then best known for his appearance in the satirical revue Beyond the Fringe.

Miller's production is unique among live-action Alice films in that he consciously avoided the standard Tenniel-inspired costume design and "florid" production values. Most of the Wonderland characters are played by actors in standard Victorian dress, with a real cat used to represent the Cheshire Cat. Miller justified his approach as an attempt to return to what he perceived as the essence of the story: "Once you take the animal heads off, you begin to see what it's all about. A small child, surrounded by hurrying, worried people, thinking 'Is that what being grown up is like?'"<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Unlike many 1960s BBC productions, the play survived destruction, and was issued onto DVD by both the BFI and the BBC themselves.

Cast

(as credited, in order of appearance):

• Anne-Marie Mallik as Alice
• Freda Dowie as Nurse
• Jo Maxwell-Muller as Alice's sister
• Wilfrid Brambell as the White Rabbit
• Alan Bennett as the Mouse
• Finlay Currie as the Dodo
• Geoffrey Dunn as the Lory
• Mark Allington as the Duck
• Nicholas Evans as the Eaglet
• Julian Jebb as a Young Crab
• Sir Michael Redgrave as the Caterpillar
• John Bird as the Frog Footman
• Tony Trent as the Fish Footman
• Leo McKern as the Duchess
• Avril Elgar as the Peppercook
• Peter Cook as the Mad Hatter
• Michael Gough as the March Hare
• Wilfrid Lawson as the Dormouse
• Gordon Gostelow as 1st Gardener
• Tony Trent as 2nd Gardener
• Peter Eyre as the Knave of Hearts
• Alison Leggatt as the Queen of Hearts
• Peter Sellers as the King of Hearts
• Sir John Gielgud as the Mock Turtle
• Malcolm Muggeridge as the Gryphon
• David Battley as the Executioner
• Charles Lewson as the Foreman of the Jury
• Eric Idle (uncredited) as a member of the Caucus Race/the Queen's entourage/the Court Chorus
• Angelo Muscat (uncredited) as a Courtier/Juryman

Production

Interiors were filmed at Netley Hospital, a mid-19th-century building that was demolished not long after the film was made. Also known as the Royal Victoria Military Hospital, Netley Hospital was the world's longest building at the time it was completed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Beach scenes with the Gryphon and the Mock Turtle were filmed at Pett Level in East Sussex.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The courtroom scene was recorded at the BBC's Ealing Studios and involved the building of the largest set that Stage 2 at Ealing had ever seen.<ref>David Martin A History of the BBC's Film Department (1983)Template:Deep link needed</ref>

In July 1966 the BBC spent three days at Donington Hall filming the 'Pool of Tears' and the 'Caucus Race' scenes for Jonathan Miller's production. The Caucus Race was filmed in the cellars.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

External links

• [https://www.imdb.com/{{#if: 0060089

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• Alice in Wonderland (BFI)
• DVD Review of 1966 BBC adaptation at DVDTalk.com
• "Jonathan Miller and Childhood", DVD review from Lewis Carroll Review