Trevor Griffiths

Writing

Trevor Griffiths

Born April 4, 1935 · Manchester, England

Died March 29, 2024 · aged 88

Trevor Griffiths (4 April 1935 – 29 March 2024) was an English dramatist. He was a prolific and avowedly Marxist writer for stage and screen most widely known for his play “Comedians,” which was staged in London and on Broadway.

Known For

RedsReds · 1981
Reds
6.91981
MovieDramaHistory
An account of the revolutionary years of the legendary American journalist John Reed, who shared his adventurous professional life with his radical commitment to the socialist revolution in Russia, his dream of spreading its principles among the members of the American working class, and his troubled romantic relationship with the writer Louise Bryant.
ComediansComedians · 1979
Comedians
7.51979
MovieDramaComedy
Comedians is a TV movie/play by Trevor Griffiths, set in a Manchester evening class for aspiring working-class comedians.
The Cherry OrchardThe Cherry Orchard · 1981
The Cherry Orchard
7.01981
MovieDramaTV Movie
Madame Ranevsky and her daughter Anya return home from Paris to find their beloved family estate and cherry orchard are to be auctioned off to pay debts. Lopahin, a former serf on the estate who is now a wealthy landowner, proposes razing the home and cherry orchard and dividing the estate into plots that could be leased at great profit. The family, however, continues to hold out hope that their beloved home can somehow be saved from destruction.
Going HomeGoing Home · 1993
Going Home
5.71993
MovieDramaWar
Johan Ten Berghe joins the Dutch army when the Dutch East Indies unilaterally declare independence as Indonesia. He initiates his naive driver Twan in life in the East, having grown up there as son of colonial official Hendrik, now missing. Their adventures intertwine with Johan's childhood memories, especially concerning his native best friend, Oeroeg, who joined the rebellion, as well as their nanny and later de facto stepmother. Conflicting loyalties become tangible in extreme situations
FatherlandFatherland · 1986
Fatherland
6.31986
MovieDramaMusic
Persona Non Grata in his homeland, protest singer Klaus Drittemann must leave East Berlin, his wife and child and emigrate to the West, where representatives of an American record company are eagerly awaiting him. They plan to exploit his defection from communism both ideologically and financially. But Klaus, as ill-at-ease in the West as in the East, is reluctant to be an expendable commodity. Leaving his contract unsigned (or signed in his manner), he departs for Cambridge to meet his father, a concert player, who left East Berlin when Klaus was young. He is accompanied by a young French journalist, Emma, who claims to have knowledge of where his father has been living since he disappeared for more than a decade.
OccupationsOccupations · 1974
Occupations
1974
MovieDramaHistory
In an attempt to win better conditions for the workers in 1920s Turin, Gramsci leads a takeover of the factories by the workers. He is offered assistance by Kabak (who has just arrived from Moscow) but Gramsci soon realizes Kabak is not motivated by ideology, as he has other motives.
The PartyThe Party · 1988
The Party
1988
MovieDramaTV Movie
10 May 1968. In Paris the barricades are about to burst into flames as students and police clash. In London the fashionable Left are having a dialogue.
CountryCountry · 1981
Country
7.51981
MovieDramaTV Movie
In 1945, the Carlions assemble at an English country house for a family gathering. During the event, they must determine who is to take over the family brewing empire, since the present head of the business, Sir Frederick, is getting old. The results of the 1945 general election causes a major stir, and some angry farmers occupy a barn.

Filmography

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ComediansComedians · 2021
Comedians
5.32021
MovieComedy
Six aspiring comedians tired of the mediocrity of their lives, at the end of an evening stand-up course they prepare to face their first performance in a club. In the audience there is also an examiner, who will choose one of them for a TV show. For everyone this is the great opportunity to change their life, for some it could be the last one. The performances begin and each comedian takes the stage with a great dilemma: to respect the teachings of their master, devoted to intelligent and uncompromising comedy, or to twist their numbers to satisfy the much less refined taste of the examiner? Or maybe look for a third way, one of absolute originality? Through the stories of six comedians, Comedians is a reflection on the very meaning of comedy in our time, facing absolutely topical issues.

Theatre Play

The Last Place on EarthThe Last Place on Earth · 1985
The Last Place on Earth
7.41985
SeriesDrama
The Last Place on Earth is a 1985 Central Television seven part serial, written by Trevor Griffiths based on the book Scott and Amundsen by Roland Huntford. The book is an exploration of the expeditions of Captain Robert F. Scott and his Norwegian rival in polar exploration, Roald Amundsen in their attempts to reach the South Pole. The series ran for seven episodes and starred a wide range of UK and Norwegian character actors as well as featuring some famous names, such as Max von Sydow, Richard Wilson, Sylvester McCoy and Pat Roach. It also featured performances early in their careers by Bill Nighy and Hugh Grant. Subsequently Huntford's book was republished under the same name. The book put forth the point of view that Amundsen's success in reaching the South Pole was abetted by much superior planning, whereas errors by Scott ultimately resulted in the death of him and his companions.

Writer