The Befrienders

The Befrienders
GenreDrama
Created byHarry W. Junkin
Written byHarry W. Junkin
Chad Varah
Directed byKen Hannam
Simon Langton
StarringMaggie Walker
Patrick Connor
Peter Halliday
Megs Jenkins
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes11 (2 missing)
Production
ProducersHarry W. Junkin
John Henderson
Running time50 minutes
Original release
NetworkBBC1

The Befrienders is an 11-episode British television series produced by the BBC in 1972. The series was originally a play by the Reverend Chad Varah, founder of the mental health charity the Samaritans.[1] Called Nobody Understands Miranda, the story was loosely based on casework undertaken by the Samaritans staff.[1][2] The leading cast members were Megs Jenkins and Michael Culver.

A 1975 study published in The British Medical Journal found that although The Befrienders did not have preventative effects, it did result in an influx of calls to the Edinburgh branch of the Samaritans.[3] In 2022, the Express & Echo reported that the show had inspired a volunteer at the organisation's Exeter, Mid & East Devon branch to work with the Samaritans for fifty years.[2]

The Befrienders was first aired as a single play as part of the Drama Playhouse strand in 1970, which was followed by one series of eleven episodes. Of these eleven, nine are believed to exist.[citation needed]

References

  1. ^ a b Armson, Simon (10 November 2007). "Rev Dr Chad Varah". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Community News". Express & Echo. 15 September 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2024 – via ProQuest.
  3. ^ Holding, T. A. (1975). "Suicide and "The Befrienders"". The British Medical Journal. Retrieved 30 December 2024 – via National Library of Medicine.


Stub icon

This article related to a BBC television programme is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.