"The Day of the Triffids" (1981) TV mini-series

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

10 September 1981 (Australia)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Flesh-eating plants go on the rampage.

Plot:

A terrible catastrophe has struck the population of Earth. Almost everyone on the planet has been rendered...

Plot Keywords:

Plant | Alien | TV Mini-Series | Post Apocalyptic | Based On Novel

Cast

John Duttine	...	Bill Masen (6 episodes, 1981)
Emma Relph	...	Jo Payton (5 episodes, 1981)
Maurice Colbourne	...	Jack Coker (4 episodes, 1981)
Jonathan Newth	...	Dr Soames (2 episodes, 1981)
Gary Olsen	...	Red-Haired Man / ... (2 episodes, 1981)
Perlita Neilson	...	Miss Durrant (2 episodes, 1981)
Jenny Lipman	...	Mary Brent (2 episodes, 1981)
Desmond Adams	...	Dennis Brent (2 episodes, 1981)
Claire Ballard	...	Alice (2 episodes, 1981)
Elizabeth Chambers	...	Car Attacker (2 episodes, 1981)
Bernie Searle	...	Car Attacker (2 episodes, 1981)

Series Directed by
Ken Hannam		(6 episodes, 1981)

Series Writing credits
Douglas Livingstone		(6 episodes, 1981)
John Wyndham		(6 episodes, 1981)

Series Produced by
David Maloney	....	producer (6 episodes, 1981)

Series Original Music by
Christopher Gunning		(6 episodes, 1981)

Series Film Editing by
Dick Allen		(6 episodes, 1981)

Series Production Design by
Victor Meredith		(6 episodes, 1981)

Series Costume Design by
Rita Reekie		(1 episode, 1981)

Series Makeup Department
Ann Ailes-Stevenson	....	makeup artist (1 episode, 1981)

Series Production Management
Richard Cox	....	production manager (1 episode, 1981)
Margot Hayhoe	....	production manager (1 episode, 1981)

Series Art Department
Douglas Burd	....	graphic designer (1 episode, 1981)
Peter Walpole	....	property buyer (1 episode, 1981)

Series Sound Department
Norman Bennett	....	studio sound (1 episode, 1981)
Ron Edmonds	....	dubbing mixer (1 episode, 1981)
Graham Hare	....	sound recordist (1 episode, 1981)
Elizabeth Parker	....	special sound (1 episode, 1981)

Series Visual Effects by
Steve Drevett	....	visual effects designer (1 episode, 1981)

Series Camera and Electrical Department
Brian Clemett	....	studio lighting (1 episode, 1981)
Peter Hall	....	camera operator (1 episode, 1981)
Ken Major	....	camera operator: senior studio (1 episode, 1981)
Alan Muhley	....	chief electrician (1 episode, 1981)

Series Editorial Department
Bill Morton	....	vision mixer (1 episode, 1981)

Series Music Department
Christopher Gunning	....	conductor (1 episode, 1981)

Series Other crew
Zanna Beswick	....	script editor (1 episode, 1981)
Corinne Hollingworth	....	assistant floor manager (1 episode, 1981)
Sheelagh Rees	....	production associate (1 episode, 1981)
Sue Upton	....	production assistant (1 episode, 1981)
Peter Valentine	....	technical manager (1 episode, 1981)

Production Companies

• Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)
• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
• RCTV Inc.

Distributors

• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) (1981) (UK) (TV) (original airing)
• BBC Enterprises (1981) (worldwide) (all media)
• BBC Worldwide (2005) (UK) (DVD)
• Prism Entertainment Corporation (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) (????) (USA) (TV)

Runtime:

Australia:50 min (3 episodes) | 26 min (6 episodes)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Certification:

Australia:M | UK:PG

Company:

Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)

Trivia:

Each 8-foot-tall triffid prop concealed an operator on a go-kart seat in a fan-cooled, 5-foot diameter base. The base was modelled on a ginseng root. Two of the props were later used in a carnivorous plant display at the Natural History Museum in London, England.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): At several places in the series, Bill Masen calls out for Emma instead of Jo. Emma Relph was the actress who played Jo Payton.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The 100 Greatest Scary Moments (2003) (TV)

The Day of the Faithful Adaptation

In 1962 came one of the worst film adaptations of a book in history. The plot was drastically changed, characters were eliminated, changed and new ones were added in altogether!

And then, like a holy beacon of light, came the faithful, 1981 TV series by the BBC. Yes, even though they did change a few minor details, the plot was left intact, the story followed the same route as the novel, and the actors really got into their roles.

Bill Masen awakes in hospital, with his eyes bandaged up to find that the majority of the population of the world has been rendered helpless when they blinded overnight by a spectacular comet shower. And, to make matters worse, a fairly new species of dangerous, carnivorous plants that have been kept under lock and key until now, are now free to roam, kill and eat to their own pleasure. You see, these plants aren't like your average, potter plants, that sit in a pot, grow, and die. These plants walk, they grow to great heights, they have ten-foot long poison whips, and feed on decayed human flesh. Surely we've seen the demise of the human population of Earth as the Triffids multiply their numbers with every year that passes...