Six English Towns
Alec Clifton-Taylor explores English towns and their architectural character.
Six English Towns is a BBC Two documentary series from 1978, presented by architectural historian Alec Clifton-Taylor. It examines the history and architectural character of English towns, emphasizing traditional building materials. The series was followed by two sequels, Six More English Towns (1981) and Another Six English Towns (1984). Clifton-Taylor came to television late in life, introduced by his friend Nikolaus Pevsner to BBC arts producer John Drummond, who was planning a series called Spirit of the Age. Based on the success of Clifton-Taylor's first episode on medieval English architecture broadcast in October 1975, he was teamed with producer Denis Moriarty to present these town studies. The Radio Times stated the initial six towns were chosen for the range and quality of ordinary domestic houses and the use of traditional building materials—stone, brick, wood and plaster. Clifton-Taylor said, "I'd like every programme to be an exercise in looking."
Quick Facts
- Presenter
- Alec Clifton-Taylor
- Theme music
- Thomas Arne, Jim Parker
- Seasons
- 3
- Episodes
- 18
- Executive producers
- Bruce Norman
- Producer
- Denis Moriarty, Jane Coles
- Network
- BBC2
- First aired
- 4 August 1978
Facts from the source article.
Did You Know?
- The title music for Series 1 and 2 is the final movement of Thomas Arne's Symphony No. 2 in F major; Clifton-Taylor later chose it as one of his Desert Island Discs.
- Series 3 has an original score composed by Jim Parker.
Reviews
Architectural writer Jonathan Glancey cited the series as a formative influence for his passion for architecture. He described Clifton-Taylor as a lovely old duffer in a Viyella shirt, tweed jacket and wobbly hat, pottering about small English towns. Glancey praised the programmes as some of the best made on architecture, noting their lack of pretension and Clifton-Taylor's ability as a communicator.
Media releases
Each series was accompanied by its own book. DVDs of the three series were released in 2016 and 2017. A box set titled Six English Towns The Complete Collection was released on 5 November 2018, including a discussion between John Julius Norwich and Alec Clifton-Taylor called In Search of the Spirit of the Age. Producer Denis Moriarty provided new commentary on episodes about Chichester, Saffron Walden and Cirencester.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes of Six English Towns are there?
Six English Towns has 18 episodes across 3 seasons.
When did Six English Towns first air?
Six English Towns first aired on 4 August 1978.
When did Six English Towns end?
Six English Towns last aired on 14 October 1984.
More in 1970s British Documentary Television Series
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