Julian Mitchell's Abide With Me places an elderly lady and a young girl together in the 1920s, the girl arriving as housekeeper, the relationship developing into something more complicated than employer and servant. The piece aired in November 1976 as a 70-minute drama, the sort of thing the BBC did when it still believed television could be more than wallpaper.
Cathleen Nesbitt plays Mrs Hollins, Ann Francis the young Winnie Mason. The setup invites sentiment but Mitchell doesn't take the bait. He's interested in what happens when two people from different generations find themselves stuck with each other, discovering they might actually prefer the arrangement to loneliness.
The Daily Telegraph's review at the time declared it "full of loving touches and rich in human understanding," which is the sort of praise that makes you nervous. But Mitchell knows his way around character, having written everything from stage plays to television drama without falling into obvious traps.
Production Details
UK / BBC / 1x70 Minutes / Broadcast 24 November 1976
Writer: Julian Mitchell
Producer: Mark Shivas
Director: Moira Armstrong
Main Cast
Cathleen Nesbitt as Mrs Hollins
Ann Francis as Winnie Mason
Zena Walker as Iris Allen
Geoffrey Bayldon
John Nettleton as Robert Drummond