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{{short description|1978 British television series}}
'''''Edward And Mrs. Simpson''''' is a [[United Kingdom|British]] [[television]] series made by [[Thames Television]] for [[ITV]].
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox television
| image = Edward & Mrs. Simpson.jpg
| image_size = 220
| image_alt =
| caption =
| genre =
| creator =
| based_on =
| writer = {{Plainlist|
* [[Frances Donaldson, Baroness Donaldson of Kingsbridge|Frances Donaldson]]
* [[Simon Raven]]}}
| screenplay =
| story =
| director = [[Waris Hussein]]
| starring = {{Plainlist|
* [[Peggy Ashcroft]]
* [[Maurice Denham]]
* [[Edward Fox (actor)|Edward Fox]]
* [[Marius Goring]]
* [[Cynthia Harris]]
* [[Nigel Hawthorne]]
* Charles Keating
* [[Cherie Lunghi]]
* [[Kika Markham]]
* [[Jessie Matthews]]
* [[Andrew Ray]]
* [[John Shrapnel]]
* [[David Waller]]}}
| narrated =
| theme_music_composer = [[Ron Grainer]]
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
| num_episodes =
| producer = Andrew Brown
| editor =
| cinematography =
| runtime =
| company =
| budget =
| network = [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]]
| first_aired = {{start date|1978|11|6|df=y}}
| last_aired = {{end date|1978|12|20|df=y}}
}}
'''''Edward & Mrs. Simpson''''' is a seven-part British television series that dramatises the events leading to the 1936 [[Abdication of Edward VIII|abdication]] of King [[Edward VIII]], who gave up his throne to marry the twice-divorced American [[Wallis Simpson]].


The series, made by [[Thames Television]] for [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]], was originally broadcast in 1978. [[Edward Fox (actor)|Edward Fox]] played Edward, and [[Cynthia Harris]] portrayed Mrs. Simpson. The series was scripted by [[Simon Raven]], based on Fox's maternal aunt [[Frances Donaldson]]'s biography of the King, ''Edward VIII''. It was produced by Andrew Brown, overseen by the Head of Drama at Thames Television [[Verity Lambert]] and directed by [[Waris Hussein]]. The [[incidental music]] was by [[Ron Grainer]].
The series, broadcast in [[1978]], dramatises the [[abdication]] crisis involving the [[British Royal Family]] in [[1936]] when [[Edward VIII of the United Kingdom|King Edward VIII]] gives up his title and throne to marry [[United States|American]] divorcee [[Wallis Simpson]].


The series, broadcast in the US in 1979 as instalments of the nationally syndicated [[Mobil Showcase Network]], won the 1980 [[Emmy Award]] for Outstanding Limited Series, and [[British Academy Television Awards|BAFTA Awards]] in 1979 for Best Actor, Best Design, Best Costume Design, and Best Series or Serial. It has been released on [[DVD]] in Region 2 (UK) by Network, and in Region 1 (United States) by [[A&E Network|A&E]].
[[Edward Fox]] played the King in the series, while [[Cynthia Harris]] was cast as Mrs. Simpson. The series was executively produced by [[Verity Lambert]] and directed by [[Waris Hussein]]. The [[incidental music]] was by [[Ron Grainer]].


==External links==
== Episodes ==
# "'''The Little Prince'''": Edward's life in the 1920s as Prince of Wales, his romances with [[Freda Dudley Ward]] and [[Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness|Lady Furness]], his introduction to Mr. and Mrs. [[Ernest Simpson]]. There is a slight historical query as the first official meeting of Edward and Mrs Simpson took place at [[Burrough Court]] near [[Melton Mowbray]], [[Leicestershire]], on Saturday 10 January 1931.<ref>{{harvnb|Ziegler|1990|p=223}}</ref> The episode suggests a short meeting took place at the London residence of Lady Furness in the autumn of 1930 (which is not documented and therefore cannot be proved).
# "'''Venus at the Prow'''": The romance between Edward and Mrs. Simpson develops, with regular weekends at his country home [[Fort Belvedere, Surrey|Fort Belvedere]] outside London near Windsor.
# "'''The New King'''": Edward succeeds to the throne on the death of his father, [[George V of the United Kingdom|King George V]], in January 1936, and asks Mrs. Simpson to marry him. Mr. Simpson agrees to a divorce. The King, Mrs. Simpson, and friends cruise the Mediterranean, an event widely reported by the press outside Britain. Mrs Simpson is invited to [[Balmoral Castle]], which causes difficulties with Edward's brother [[George VI|Bertie]] and his wife [[Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother|Elizabeth]].
# "'''The Divorce'''": Edward convinces Mrs. Simpson to go forward with her divorce; she would then be free to marry him and be crowned Queen at the coronation scheduled for May 1937. The King and the government pressure the British press to maintain silence about the King's romance, but news dribbles into Britain and gossip abounds.
# "'''The Decision'''": Edward is warned that British press silence about his 'friendship' with Mrs. Simpson is about to be broken. The King tells the royal family and the [[Stanley Baldwin|Prime Minister]] that he intends to marry Wallis Simpson, and will abdicate if he cannot do so as King.
# "'''Proposals'''": Attempts are made to resolve the problem without Edward abdicating, including a proposal put forth by the King for a [[morganatic marriage]] with Wallis Simpson. The British and Dominion governments oppose the marriage in any form.
# "'''The Abdication'''": The final days of Edward as King as attempts to gain more time are undercut by Edward himself. The signing of the Deed of Abdication on 10 December 1936 at Fort Belvedere. The radio broadcast to the nation on 11 December 1936 from the Augusta Tower, [[Windsor Castle]]. Edward's exile sailing on {{HMS|Fury|H76|6}} from Portsmouth. The marriage of Edward and Mrs Simpson on 3 June 1937.<ref>{{harvnb|Ziegler|1990|pp=311–365}}</ref>


== Music ==
*[http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/457044/index.html British Film Institute Screen Online]
In 1978, RK Records released an official soundtrack album (UK cat No: RKLP 5003). It had 12 tracks, some composed or arranged by Ron Grainer and all played by his orchestra.<ref name=soundtrack>Edward & Mrs Simpson, Soundtrack, RK Records, 1978</ref> The track listing is as follows:


;Side one
{{UK-tv-stub}}
# "[[I've danced with a man, who's danced with a girl, who's danced with the Prince of Wales|I've Danced with a Man]]" ([[Herbert Farjeon]])
# "[[The Very Thought of You]]" ([[Ray Noble]])
# "A Room with a View" ([[Noël Coward]])
# "If I Had You" ([[Al Bowlly]])
# "Of Cabbages and Kings"
# "Bring Down the Curtain"


;Side two
[[Category:ITV television programmes]]
# "One More Dance"
[[Category:Television miniseries]]
# "Dance Little Lady" (Coward)
# "Tango"
# "When Love Grows Cold"
# "Rumours in the Wind"
# "I've Danced with a Man" (End Titles/Reprise) (Farjeon)

The theme music used for the opening and closing titles was a composite of Herbert Farjeon's 1927 song "[[I've danced with a man, who's danced with a girl, who's danced with the Prince of Wales]]" and the opening of the British national anthem "[[God Save the King]]." The vocalist for "I've Danced with a Man", "Bring Down the Curtain" and "One More Dance" is Jenny Wren.<ref name=soundtrack />

Al Bowlly's original recordings of "Isn't It Heavenly" and "[[Love Is the Sweetest Thing]]" are also used in the series.

The soundtrack album was produced and engineered by Barry Kingston for Robert Kingston Productions Ltd.

== Cast ==
* [[Edward Fox (actor)|Edward Fox]] as King Edward VIII
* [[Cynthia Harris]] as Wallis Simpson
* [[David Waller]] as [[Stanley Baldwin]]
* [[Nigel Hawthorne]] as [[Walter Monckton]]
* [[Dame Peggy Ashcroft]] as [[Mary of Teck|Queen Mary]]
* [[Marius Goring]] as [[George V of the United Kingdom|King George V]]
* [[Cherie Lunghi]] as [[Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness|Lady Thelma Furness]]
* [[Kika Markham]] as [[Freda Dudley Ward]]
* [[Jessie Matthews]] as Aunt Bessie Merryman
* [[Charles Keating (actor)|Charles Keating]] as [[Ernest Simpson]]
* [[Andrew Ray]] as the [[George VI of the United Kingdom|Duke of York]]
* Amanda Reiss as the [[Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon|Duchess of York]]
* [[John Shrapnel]] as [[Alexander Hardinge, 2nd Baron Hardinge of Penshurst|Alexander Hardinge]]
* [[Maurice Denham]] as [[Cosmo Lang]], [[Archbishop of Canterbury]]
* [[Ed Devereaux]] as [[Lord Beaverbrook]]
* [[Geoffrey Lumsden]] as [[Geoffrey Dawson]]
* [[Patrick Troughton]] as [[Clement Attlee]]
* [[Trevor Bowen]] as [[Duff Cooper]]
* [[Patricia Hodge]] as [[Lady Diana Cooper]]
* [[Elsie Randolph]] as Lady [[Sibyl Colefax]]
* [[Bessie Love]] as [[Maud Cunard|Emerald (Maud) Cunard]]
* [[Tony Church (actor)|Tony Church]] as [[Samuel Hoare, 1st Viscount Templewood|Sir Samuel Hoare]]
* [[Wensley Pithey]] as [[Winston Churchill]]
* [[Gary Waldhorn]] as [[Chips Channon]]
* [[Hugh Fraser (actor)|Hugh Fraser]] as [[Anthony Eden]]
* [[Gerald Sim]] as [[Theodore Goddard#Role in the abdication|Theodore Goddard]]
* [[Jeremy Child]] as equerry Piers “Joey” Legh
* [[Simon Cadell]] as equerry [[Aird baronets|Major John Renton Aird]]
* Michael Stroud as [[Esmond Harmsworth, 2nd Viscount Rothermere|Esmond Harmsworth]]
* [[William Hoyland]] as Lord-in-waiting [[Peregrine Cust, 6th Baron Brownlow|Lord Perry Brownlow]]

== Production ==
The series was made by [[Thames Television]], part of the [[ITV (TV network)|ITV network]], at its [[Teddington Studios]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Teddington Studios |url=https://www.twickenham-museum.org.uk/detail.php?aid=215&cid=3London&ctid= |website=The Twickenham Museum |access-date=22 May 2022}}</ref>

== Response ==
The series was produced and aired during the Duchess of Windsor's lifetime and it is reported that although becoming increasingly ill, she found the series to be a gross invasion of her privacy. Her requests to be sent a copy of the script were apparently ignored and she received correspondence from people who said they would not watch the series.<ref>{{citation|last=Mosley|first=Diana|author-link=Diana Mitford|publisher=Gibson Square Books Ltd; New edition|location=London|title=The Duchess of Windsor and Other Friends|year=2003}}</ref>

== References ==
;Citations
{{reflist|30em}}

;Bibliography
* {{cite book |last=Ziegler|first=P.|date=1990|title=King Edward VIII: The Official Biography|publisher=Collins|location=London}}

== External links ==
* {{IMDb title|0080212}}
* [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/457044/index.html British Film Institute Screen Online]

{{Abdication of Edward VIII}}
{{EmmyAward Limited Series}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edward and Mrs. Simpson}}
[[Category:1978 British television series debuts]]
[[Category:1978 British television series endings]]
[[Category:1970s British drama television series]]
[[Category:1970s British television miniseries]]
[[Category:ITV television dramas]]
[[Category:Television series set in the 1920s]]
[[Category:Television series set in the 1930s]]
[[Category:Films directed by Waris Hussein]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of the Edward VIII abdication crisis]]
[[Category:Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Miniseries winners]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of George V]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of George VI]]
[[Category:Television shows produced by Thames Television]]
[[Category:British English-language television shows]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Stanley Baldwin]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Winston Churchill]]
[[Category:Television shows shot at Teddington Studios]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Mary of Teck]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother]]

Latest revision as of 23:57, 5 February 2024

Edward & Mrs. Simpson
Written by
Directed byWaris Hussein
Starring
Theme music composerRon Grainer
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducerAndrew Brown
Original release
NetworkITV
Release6 November (1978-11-06) –
20 December 1978 (1978-12-20)

Edward & Mrs. Simpson is a seven-part British television series that dramatises the events leading to the 1936 abdication of King Edward VIII, who gave up his throne to marry the twice-divorced American Wallis Simpson.

The series, made by Thames Television for ITV, was originally broadcast in 1978. Edward Fox played Edward, and Cynthia Harris portrayed Mrs. Simpson. The series was scripted by Simon Raven, based on Fox's maternal aunt Frances Donaldson's biography of the King, Edward VIII. It was produced by Andrew Brown, overseen by the Head of Drama at Thames Television Verity Lambert and directed by Waris Hussein. The incidental music was by Ron Grainer.

The series, broadcast in the US in 1979 as instalments of the nationally syndicated Mobil Showcase Network, won the 1980 Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series, and BAFTA Awards in 1979 for Best Actor, Best Design, Best Costume Design, and Best Series or Serial. It has been released on DVD in Region 2 (UK) by Network, and in Region 1 (United States) by A&E.

Episodes

[edit]
  1. "The Little Prince": Edward's life in the 1920s as Prince of Wales, his romances with Freda Dudley Ward and Lady Furness, his introduction to Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Simpson. There is a slight historical query as the first official meeting of Edward and Mrs Simpson took place at Burrough Court near Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, on Saturday 10 January 1931.[1] The episode suggests a short meeting took place at the London residence of Lady Furness in the autumn of 1930 (which is not documented and therefore cannot be proved).
  2. "Venus at the Prow": The romance between Edward and Mrs. Simpson develops, with regular weekends at his country home Fort Belvedere outside London near Windsor.
  3. "The New King": Edward succeeds to the throne on the death of his father, King George V, in January 1936, and asks Mrs. Simpson to marry him. Mr. Simpson agrees to a divorce. The King, Mrs. Simpson, and friends cruise the Mediterranean, an event widely reported by the press outside Britain. Mrs Simpson is invited to Balmoral Castle, which causes difficulties with Edward's brother Bertie and his wife Elizabeth.
  4. "The Divorce": Edward convinces Mrs. Simpson to go forward with her divorce; she would then be free to marry him and be crowned Queen at the coronation scheduled for May 1937. The King and the government pressure the British press to maintain silence about the King's romance, but news dribbles into Britain and gossip abounds.
  5. "The Decision": Edward is warned that British press silence about his 'friendship' with Mrs. Simpson is about to be broken. The King tells the royal family and the Prime Minister that he intends to marry Wallis Simpson, and will abdicate if he cannot do so as King.
  6. "Proposals": Attempts are made to resolve the problem without Edward abdicating, including a proposal put forth by the King for a morganatic marriage with Wallis Simpson. The British and Dominion governments oppose the marriage in any form.
  7. "The Abdication": The final days of Edward as King as attempts to gain more time are undercut by Edward himself. The signing of the Deed of Abdication on 10 December 1936 at Fort Belvedere. The radio broadcast to the nation on 11 December 1936 from the Augusta Tower, Windsor Castle. Edward's exile sailing on HMS Fury from Portsmouth. The marriage of Edward and Mrs Simpson on 3 June 1937.[2]

Music

[edit]

In 1978, RK Records released an official soundtrack album (UK cat No: RKLP 5003). It had 12 tracks, some composed or arranged by Ron Grainer and all played by his orchestra.[3] The track listing is as follows:

Side one
  1. "I've Danced with a Man" (Herbert Farjeon)
  2. "The Very Thought of You" (Ray Noble)
  3. "A Room with a View" (Noël Coward)
  4. "If I Had You" (Al Bowlly)
  5. "Of Cabbages and Kings"
  6. "Bring Down the Curtain"
Side two
  1. "One More Dance"
  2. "Dance Little Lady" (Coward)
  3. "Tango"
  4. "When Love Grows Cold"
  5. "Rumours in the Wind"
  6. "I've Danced with a Man" (End Titles/Reprise) (Farjeon)

The theme music used for the opening and closing titles was a composite of Herbert Farjeon's 1927 song "I've danced with a man, who's danced with a girl, who's danced with the Prince of Wales" and the opening of the British national anthem "God Save the King." The vocalist for "I've Danced with a Man", "Bring Down the Curtain" and "One More Dance" is Jenny Wren.[3]

Al Bowlly's original recordings of "Isn't It Heavenly" and "Love Is the Sweetest Thing" are also used in the series.

The soundtrack album was produced and engineered by Barry Kingston for Robert Kingston Productions Ltd.

Cast

[edit]

Production

[edit]

The series was made by Thames Television, part of the ITV network, at its Teddington Studios.[4]

Response

[edit]

The series was produced and aired during the Duchess of Windsor's lifetime and it is reported that although becoming increasingly ill, she found the series to be a gross invasion of her privacy. Her requests to be sent a copy of the script were apparently ignored and she received correspondence from people who said they would not watch the series.[5]

References

[edit]
Citations
  1. ^ Ziegler 1990, p. 223
  2. ^ Ziegler 1990, pp. 311–365
  3. ^ a b Edward & Mrs Simpson, Soundtrack, RK Records, 1978
  4. ^ "Teddington Studios". The Twickenham Museum. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  5. ^ Mosley, Diana (2003), The Duchess of Windsor and Other Friends, London: Gibson Square Books Ltd; New edition
Bibliography
  • Ziegler, P. (1990). King Edward VIII: The Official Biography. London: Collins.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Edward_%26_Mrs._Simpson&oldid=1203924849"