Memorials to the Missing
Encyclopedia
Memorials to the Missing is a radio play from the BBC Radio 4
Afternoon Play
strand on the establishment of the Imperial War Graves Commission, first broadcast early in 2008 and repeated on 30 October 2008. It was written by Stephen Wyatt
and directed by Martin Jenkins. It won the 2008 Tinniswood Award for Best Original Radio Drama Script at the Sony Radio Academy Awards.
Other minor characters included Herbert Baker
(Lutyens' initial opponent, going on to suggest the standard IWGC Cross of Sacrifice
to Christianise the cemeteries), Charles Aitken
(another architect who recommended a memorial institution rather than spending on war graves) and William Burdett-Coutts (MP for Westminster
), whilst 'offstage' characters included Rudyard Kipling
.
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
Afternoon Play
Afternoon Play
The Afternoon Play is a long-running drama programming strand, broadcast every weekday at 2.15pm on BBC Radio 4. Each play lasts for 45 minutes, and roughly 190 new Afternoon Plays are broadcast each year....
strand on the establishment of the Imperial War Graves Commission, first broadcast early in 2008 and repeated on 30 October 2008. It was written by Stephen Wyatt
Stephen Wyatt
Stephen Wyatt, born in 1948 in Beckenham, Kent , and brought up in Ealing, west London, is a British writer.- Education :He was educated at Latymer Upper School and then Cambridge University...
and directed by Martin Jenkins. It won the 2008 Tinniswood Award for Best Original Radio Drama Script at the Sony Radio Academy Awards.
Plot
It is centred around a fictional address given by Ware at the opening of the Thiepval Memorial, with flashbacks to his Red Cross work at the start of the war and his struggles against fierce opposition ever since to have war casualties buried where they fell under uniform headstones with no distinction of faith or rank. It is also interspersed with actuality recordings of present-day visitors to CWGC graves and with the voices of the soldiers commemorated 'haunting' Ware telling their own stories.Cast
- Fabian WareFabian WareMajor General Sir Fabian Arthur Goulstone Ware KCVO, KBE, CB, CMG was the founder of the Imperial War Graves Commission, now the Commonwealth War Graves Commission-Early life:...
- Anton LesserAnton LesserAnton Lesser is a British actor. He attended Moseley Grammar School and the University of Liverpool before going to RADA in 1977 where he was awarded the Bancroft Gold Medal as the most promising actor of his year.... - Edwin LutyensEdwin LutyensSir Edwin Landseer Lutyens, OM, KCIE, PRA, FRIBA was a British architect who is known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era...
, inspired by his wife's theosophyTheosophyTheosophy, in its modern presentation, is a spiritual philosophy developed since the late 19th century. Its major themes were originally described mainly by Helena Blavatsky , co-founder of the Theosophical Society...
, designer of the Thiepval Memorial and the altar design for memorials to the missing and Ware's main supporter - Michael MaloneyMichael MaloneyMichael Maloney is an English actor.Born in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, Maloney's first television appearance was as Peter Barkworth's teenage son in the 1979 drama series, Telford's Change.... - Gen Sir Nevil MacreadyNevil MacreadyGeneral Sir Cecil Frederick Nevil Macready, 1st Baronet, GCMG, KCB, PC , known as Sir Nevil Macready and affectionately as Make-Ready , was a British Army officer...
- Keith DrinkelKeith DrinkelKeith Drinkel is a British actor, born in York on 14 November 1944. He was educated at St Michael's College, Leeds and is now based in Brighton.... - Lady Florence Cecil, wife of Lord William Cecil - Theresa Gallagher
- Alice/nurse - Sophie Roberts
- Soldiers - Karl DaviesKarl DaviesKarl Davies is an English actor, who portrayed Lyle Anderson in the TV series Kingdom. Previously he had portrayed Robert Sugden in the ITV soap opera Emmerdale.- Biography :...
, Alex WyndhamAlex WyndhamAlex Wyndham is an English actor, best known for his role as Gaius Cilnius Maecenas in the HBO television series Rome .-Biography:...
, Ben Crowe
Other minor characters included Herbert Baker
Herbert Baker
Sir Herbert Baker was a British architect.Baker was the dominant force in South African architecture for two decades, 1892–1912....
(Lutyens' initial opponent, going on to suggest the standard IWGC Cross of Sacrifice
Cross of Sacrifice
The Cross of Sacrifice was designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield for the Imperial War Graves Commission and is usually present in Commonwealth war cemeteries containing 40 or more graves. It is normally a freestanding four point limestone Latin cross in one of three sizes ranging in height from 18 to...
to Christianise the cemeteries), Charles Aitken
Charles Aitken
Charles Aitken CB was a British art administrator and was the third Keeper of the Tate Gallery and the first Director .-Life and work:...
(another architect who recommended a memorial institution rather than spending on war graves) and William Burdett-Coutts (MP for Westminster
Westminster (UK Parliament constituency)
Westminster was a parliamentary constituency in the Parliament of England to 1707, the Parliament of Great Britain 1707-1800 and the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801. It returned two members to 1885 and one thereafter....
), whilst 'offstage' characters included Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...
.