by T. S. Eliot, with Robert Speaight in his original part as Becket. Produced by Lance Sieveking
'The martyr', declares Thomas Becket in T.S. Eliot's great play in dramatic verse, 'no longer desires anything for himself, not even the glory of martyrdom'. The fate of Becket, torn between religious and political loyalties, has been one of the most debated of all time. Refusing to incorporate political and ecclesiastical functions, he became more and more the priest of God. less and less the servant of King Henry, who dubbed him 'that pestilent priest'. Eliot's pen draws an inspiring picture of the tortured Becket, tempted to betray his faith, clinging despairingly to it, and finally meeting his end at the hands of the four knights who in so prosaic a manner state their reasons at the end of a play which is full of imaginative allegory.
Robert Speaight has played the part of Becket in three London theatres, at the Tewkesbury Festival, and also in America. Murder in the Cathedral has been broadcast twice previously, once in full and once in a shortened version.