CELEBRATING 70 YEARS! : TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED - NECK .. ANGLIA TELEVISION .. UK 1979 ..

 ANGLIA TELEVISION

 Presents

TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED

Introduced by ROALD DAHL

NECK

( Season 1 - Episode 6 )

Starring

JOAN COLLINS as Lady Natalia Turton
MICHAEL ALDRIDGE as Sir Basil Turton 
SIR JOHN GIELGUD as Jelks 
PETER BOWLES as Major Jack Haddock 
CARMEN SILVERA as Carmen La Rosa 
PAUL HERZBERG as John Bannister

Story by Roald Dahl ..... Teleplay by Robin Chapman ...  Music By Ron Granier .. 
  Produced by John Rosenberg ... Executive Producer .. Sir John Woolf ..

 Directed by Christopher Miles ..

Rare signed cast photo..

Lady Turton rules the roost of her husbands publishing empire, not to mention their country mansion..While Sir Basil has an eye for art, Lady Natalia has an eye for young men! But when Sir Basil has to make a choice, his wife or his art...who will get the axe? When it comes to the chop...who will get it in the Neck!! 

This now classic mystery/suspense series ran for nine seasons from 1979 to 1988 and attracted a high caliber of guests.. This episode was the first of three, that Joan filmed , "Neck" been the most remembered. The series first began with introductions by celebrated writer Roald Dahl, whose stories featured in the early episodes. Later on the series featured stories by different authors and Dahl no longer introduced the series...

Joan on set with director Christopher Miles

Joan had filmed the highly rated Noel Coward adaptation "Fallen Angels" for Anglia and it's head Sir John Woolf asked Joan if she would like to appear. She was more than delighted to take the role and even more so with the casting of one of her favourite actors Sir John Gielgud...John played the crafty old butler Jelks, to Joan's typical bitchy maneater Lady Turton.. Joan loved working with him and was intrigued by his sharp wit and tales of theater-land.. Sir John was equally enamored with Joan as he commented...

" Joan is a very professional actress and we got along extremely well together, in fact she was quite perfect in the part..of course people expected some kind of cataclysmic happening with Joan and I working together.."

Joan with Paul Herzberg

Both Joan and John are excellent in the episode, incidentally  Michael Aldridge who plays the diddering Sir Basil also appeared with Joan in "Fallen Angels" and in the theatre production 'The Last Of Mrs Cheyney'.. The episode was directed by Christopher Miles who would team up again with Joan for the 1998 film "The Clandestine Marriage"... 

Thankfully the series is often repeated and is widely available on dvd.. The most recent and complete
release is the 19 disc set from Network which also includes Joan's two other episodes 'Georgy Porgy ' & 'A Girl Cant Always Have Everything' .. You can order at the following link!

ORDER TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED DVD HERE!