| To Serve Them All My Days | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover | |
| Genre | Drama |
| Based on | To Serve Them All My Days byR. F. Delderfield |
| Written by | Andrew Davies |
| Directed by |
|
| Starring | |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Ken Riddington |
| Running time | 50 minutes |
| Production companies | |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC One |
| Release | 17 October 1980 (1980-10-17) – 16 January 1981 (1981-01-16) |
To Serve Them All My Days is a British television drama series, adapted byAndrew Davies fromR. F. Delderfield's 1972 novelTo Serve Them All My Days. It was first broadcast by theBBC over 13 episodes in 1980 and 1981. It was broadcast in Australia in 1981 by the Australian Broadcasting Commission, and in 1982 byPBS in the United States as part of theirMasterpiece Theatre anthology series.
David Powlett-Jones, acoal miner's son fromSouth Wales, hasrisen from the ranks and been commissioned as aSecond Lieutenant in theFirst World War. In 1918, after being injured and shell-shocked, he is hired to teach modern history at Bamfylde School, a fictionalpublic school inNorth Devon, in the southwest of England, where he wins the respect and acclaim of colleagues and pupils. He serves under headmaster Algy Herries, forms a friendship with Ian Howarth and marries Beth. He engages in a long bitter rivalry with the jingoistic science master Carter but the two of them later become friends. Powlett-Jones is eventually appointed headmaster.
The series was filmed over 11 months in 1980,[1] withDevon andDorset locations[1] includingMilton Abbey School in Dorset.[2]
Writing forThe New York Times, John J. O'Connor described the production as "a richly textured tapestry crammed with the social details that were the speciality of Mr. Delderfield",[3] with "a steady flow of insightful and touching moments".[2] He praised the performances of the cast and that of Duttine in particular.[2][3]People magazine called the series a "colorful chronicle of post-World War I England that never crosses over to the gooey side of sentiment."[4]
The adaptation was nominated in the Best Drama Series category at the 1981British Academy Television Awards and in the Outstanding Limited Series category at the1983 Primetime Emmy Awards.[5]
All episodes ofTo Serve Them All My Days have been made available on DVD in the UK, Australia and the US.