Such A Lovely Man
| "Such A Lovely Man" | |
|---|---|
| 'Upstairs, Downstairs' episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 5 Episode 8 |
| Directed by | Christopher Hodson |
| Written by | Rosemary Anne Sisson |
| Production code | 8 |
| Original air date | 26 October 1975 |
Such A Lovely Man is the eighth episode of the fifth and final series of the period drama Upstairs, Downstairs. It first aired on 26 October 1975 on ITV.
Such A Lovely Man was recorded in the studio on 17 and 18 April 1975. John Hawkesworth and Alfred Shaughnessy wished an episode to revolve around Hannah Gordon's character Virginia, and Rosemary Anne Sisson wrote Such A Lovely Man. The character of Sir Guy Paynter was inspired by Sir Philip Sassoon, who was the Conservative Member of Parliament for Hythe from 1912 until his death in 1939, and cousin of Siegfried Sassoon.
It is summer 1925, and Richard wants the soon to be vacant post of Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. He thinks that Sir Guy Paynter, a wealthy and influential industrialist who is also a bachelor, would be able to use his influence to help Richard obtain the post. Virginia agrees, and invites Sir Guy to lunch. However, the lunch ends abruptly when Sir Guy makes a comment regarding death by firing squad for cowardice, not knowing that Virginia's son Michael was court-martialed for such an offense, but reprimanded, sent back into action, and killed. A few days later, Sir Guy sends flowers to Virginia to apologise, and he then takes her to a luncheon. As a thank you, he gives her a signed first edition of Browning's poems.
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