| "In Two Minds" | |
|---|---|
| The Wednesday Play episode | |
 Opening title | |
| Episodeno. | Season 6 Episode 17 |
| Directed by | Ken Loach |
| Written by | David Mercer |
| Original air date | 1 March 1967 (1967-03-01) |
"In Two Minds" is a television play byDavid Mercer commissioned forThe Wednesday Play (BBC1) anthology drama series. First transmitted on 1 March 1967, it was directed byKen Loach and produced byTony Garnett and featuresAnna Cropper in the lead role.[1]
The play depicts the experiences of Kate Winter, a young woman withschizophrenia, and her experiences with the medical professionals who attempt to care for her in a mental hospital. She is shown being givenElectroconvulsive therapy (ECT) as a clinical treatment and being discussed at a lecture for medical students.[2]
In Two Minds was influenced by the ideas ofR. D. Laing expressed in his co-authored book,Sanity and Madness in the Family.[3] Attempting to demonstrate that schizophrenia lacks an organic basis in the brain, Laing believed that the family had the potential to make people mentally ill. Mercer and producerTony Garnett were introduced to Laing and his colleagueDavid Cooper, by the theatre criticKenneth Tynan;[4] Laing and Cooper served as official consultants on the project.[5]
It is the earliest of Loach's television works to be shot entirely on location, without any use of the television studio. Loach's previousWednesday Play,Cathy Come Home, contains five brief scenes which were shot electronically.[6] By the timeIn Two Minds was in production, an agreement had been reached betweenEquity, the actors' union, and the BBC to allow the shooting of drama entirely on film in the conventional manner.[7]
The play gained mixed response from psychiatrists at the time of its first broadcast, with some arguing that Kate is depressed and hysterical rather than truly schizophrenic.[3]
In his review forThe Listener, the novelistAnthony Burgess felt the play had not found a resolution for Kate's problems and found the form of the play problematic. Despite accusing the wholeWednesday Play series as being 'anti-art,' he wrote thatIn Two Minds "was better than art because it was so real".[8]
Conversely, within the BBC Drama department, the play had led to intense discussions between producer Tony Garnett and department headSydney Newman over its status as drama and its veracity.[8][9]
Television criticAnthony Hayward wrote that Cropper displayed "a rollercoaster of emotions, from breaking down on pondering her dilemma to giving a beaming smile, eyes sparkling, while recalling an ex-boyfriend. At times, she talks as if 'Kate' is another person."[10]
In Two Minds won theWriters' Guild Award for the Best Television Play of 1967.[10] It is included in theKen Loach at the BBC 6 DVD box set.
Family Life (1971), again directed by Loach and with a screenplay by Mercer, is a feature film remake of this television play.[11]
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