Spanish Flu: The Forgotten Fallen

Spanish Flu: The Forgotten Fallen is a 2009 television drama. It is a dramatization of Dr James Niven's attempts to deal with the Spanish flu, a 1918-1920 flu pandemic, in Manchester.[1][2] It was written by Peter Harness and it starred Bill Paterson as Niven, along with Mark Gatiss, Kenneth Cranham and Charlotte Riley. It was first broadcast on BBC Four on 5 August 2009.

Spanish Flu: The Forgotten Fallen
GenreHistorical drama
Written byPeter Harness
Story byPeter Guinness
Directed byJustin Hardy
StarringBill Paterson
Mark Gatiss
Kenneth Cranham
Charlotte Riley
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producerPatrick Spence
ProducerSusan Horth
CinematographyDouglas Hartington
EditorAlastair Reid
Running time60 minutes
Production companiesHardy Pictures
Hardy and Sons
Release
Original networkBBC Four
Original release5 August 2009 (2009-08-05)

Plot

As millions of soldiers return home from the First World War, a new disease begins to sweep through Britain. Focusing on an outbreak in Manchester, its Medical Officer of Health James Niven struggles to combat the pandemic as the public, for various reasons, fail to take action.

Cast
  • Bill Paterson as Dr James Niven
  • Mark Gatiss as Ernest Dunks
  • Charlotte Riley as Peggy Lytton
  • Kenneth Cranham as MJ O'Loughlin

Reception

The series was broadcast around the time of the 2009 swine flu pandemic, which several reviews noted the timeliness of.[3][4] Tim Teeman of The Times called it 'brilliantly acted and written'.[5]

References
  1. "BBC Four – Spanish Flu: The Forgotten Fallen".
  2. "Spanish Flu: The Forgotten Fallen".
  3. "Who do You Think You Are? | Spanish Flu: The Forgotten Fallen | TV Review". The Guardian. 5 August 2009.
  4. "Last Night's Television: Spanish flu – the forgotten fallen". The Independent. London. 5 August 2009. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022.
  5. Teeman, Tim. "The Spanish Flu: The Forgotten Fallen; Who do You Think You Are?".


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