TREVOR Nunn co-directs Richard Johnson (The Haunting) and Oscar-nominee Janet Suzman (The Draughtsman’s Contract) in this landmark production of Shakespeare's tragedy of power and passion in Ancient Egypt.
Antony and Cleopatra (U) is released on DVD on 25 July 2016, RRP £12.99, courtesy of Network.
First broadcast in 1974 and based on Nunn's celebrated staging with the Royal Shakespeare Company, its intensity and originality raised the bar for small-screen adaptations of Shakespeare's plays.
Emphasising the futility of the protagonists' unworldly love against the coldly calculating might of Octavian, adopted son of Julius Caesar, this intimately staged production earned a BAFTA for director Jon Scoffield, with Janet Suzman receiving a BAFTA nomination for her mesmerising portrayal of the doomed Egyptian queen.
Antony and Cleopatra also features early appearances by Ben Kingsley (Gandhi), Tim Pigott-Smith (Gangs of New York) and Patrick Stewart (Star Trek) – who won universal praise in the role of Antony's loyal, agonised confidante, Enobarbus.
