This dramatic series was based on the suicide-saving work of The Samaritans crisis hotline and starred Megs Jenkins as the senior Samaritan, Janet.
The BBC showed a great deal of courage in placing such a serious and – of necessity – demanding subject at such a popular time as 9.00 pm on a Saturday night.
The plots were fictional but the incidentals were authentic and the series had the approval of the Reverend Chad Varah, founder of The Samaritans.
The first story – ‘Allenby and Son Limited’ which aired on 19 February 1972 – was sombre, but there was no false sentiment in the case of the widower (a moving performance from Glyn Houston) stricken with apparently inconsolable grief when his idol, his only son, was killed in a car accident.
The producer was John Henderson.
Janet
Megs Jenkins Jerry
Michael Culver Chuck
Peter Armitage Helen Rolfe
Jane Wellow Frances Ricks
Jenny Till
Episodes
Allenby and Son Limited | Mister Marland’s Revolt | Hunted | Dense Forest, Hungry Wolves | A Case of No Resolution | Nobody Understands Miranda | Lots of Friends in the Big City | Next Patient, Please | Wedding March | Odds Against | Fallen Star
The plots were fictional but the incidentals were authentic and the series had the approval of the Reverend Chad Varah, founder of The Samaritans.
