The Roads to Freedom (TV serial)
| The Roads to Freedom | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Drama |
| Based on |
The Roads to Freedom by Jean-Paul Sartre |
| Written by | David Turner |
| Directed by | James Cellan Jones |
| Starring |
Michael Bryant Daniel Massey Rosemary Leach Georgia Brown Alison Fiske |
| Opening theme | La Route est Dur |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 45 minutes |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC2 |
| Original release | 22 September – 27 December 1970 |
The Roads to Freedom is a 13-part drama serial broadcast on BBC2.
Based on the trilogy of novels by Jean-Paul Sartre, The Roads to Freedom was adapted for television by David Turner and directed by James Cellan Jones. It was first shown in late 1970, with Sunday episodes repeated the following Saturday. The serial was repeated in 1977.
David Turner spent fifteen months on the script. While Sartre's trilogy is divided into three more or less equal parts - The Age of Reason (novel), The Reprieve and Iron in the Soul – Turner's adaptation was divided as The Age of Reason (6 episodes), The Reprieve (3 episodes) and The Defeated (4 episodes), thereby placing greater emphasis on the protagonists' pre-war lives in Paris.
Reception was mixed. The series drew several comments over its nude scenes and sexual references. Some doubted if Sartre could or should be adapted for television
The show's theme song, La Route est Dure, was sung by Georgia Brown who also played the part of Lola.
The Roads to Freedom was nominated for five BAFTAs (Best Writer, Best Drama Production, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Design). In 1971 David Turner won the Writers Guild award for 'Best British Television Dramatization: Jean Paul Sartre's Roads To Freedom (BBC)'
For many years the serial was considered 'lost'. In 2011, considerable interest was generated by a screening of episodes 7,8 and 9 as part of a BFI season dedicated to director James Cellan Jones. The following year a 'rare and complete screening' took place at the BFI South Bank, with all thirteen 45-minute episodes being shown on the 12 & 13 May.
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