(Listen at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08wn0lm)
Crimes of Passion, a double-bill of Joe Orton plays to mark the 50th anniversary of his death, plus an interview with Kenneth Cranham, a close friend of Orton’s who played several key roles in his plays. The two plays are The Ruffian On The Stair, a Pinteresque radio play about a couple whose lives are disrupted by a young visitor and The Erpingham Camp, Orton’s rambunctious State-of-England farce, set in a 1960’s holiday camp.
The Erpingham Camp:
Erpingham ….. Robert Daws
Riley ….. Jonjo O’Neill
Lou ….. Kerry Gooderson
Ted ….. Samuel James
Kenny ….. Charlie Clements
Eileen ….. Sarah Ridgeway
W.E. Harrison ….. Tom Forrister
Jessie Mason ….. Sanchia McCormack
Padre ….. Simon Ludders
Accordion Player ….. Colin Guthrie
The Ruffian On The Stair:
Mike ….. Gerard Horan
Joyce ….. Sophie Thompson
Wilson ….. Jack Rowan
Producer ….. Mary Peate
The Ruffian On The Stair was Orton’s first play, commissioned by BBC Radio and later adapted for the stage. The Erpingham Camp started life as a TV drama. Both plays were later presented at the Royal Court Theatre as a double bill with the title Crimes of Passion, which marked the beginning of a turn of fortune in Orton’s career as a playwright after the poorly-received first production of Loot. Both the radio and the stage productions of Ruffian on the Stair starred the young Kenneth Cranham, who went on to play Hal in Loot and Sloane in Entertaining Mr Sloane and became a friend of Orton’s. As part of this evening, Matthew Sweet interviews Kenneth Cranham about his friendship with Orton.
