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Drama on 4: Portrait of Winston

Portrait of Winston

13/09/2011

BBC Radio 4 - Drama on 4, Portrait of Winston

Drama about a controversial portrait of Winston Churchill painted by Graham Sutherland.

Dan Stevens and Benjamin Whitrow star in Jonathan Smith's drama about a controversial portrait of Winston Churchill painted by leading British artist Graham Sutherland.

By Jonathan Smith. Dan Stevens and Benjamin Whitrow star in an entertaining drama about a portrait of Winston Churchill by leading British artist Graham Sutherland. 

For his 80th birthday on 30th November 1954, an all-party committee of MPs decided to present Churchill, still the Prime Minister, with a portrait of himself. It was to be Churchill's for his lifetime but then to hang in the House of Commons. The commission was given to Graham Sutherland, aged 51, then at the height of his fame. It was a painting which was to prove highly controversial.

Producer/director: Bruce Young

"A Portrait Of Winston" is a follow-up to Jonathan Smith's previous Radio 4 play about Winston Churchill, "The Last Bark Of the Bulldog" which dealt with Churchill's stroke in 1953 while he was still Prime Minister. "The Last Bark Of the Bulldog" - which also starred Benjamin Whitrow as Churchill - was first broadcast in 2003. 

Jonathan Smith is a former Head of English at Tonbridge School in Kent. He has written many radio plays over the years, including two series of plays about a headmaster, "The Head Man". His most recent plays for Radio 4 are "The Trenches Trip" (2010) and "The Tennis Court" (2008). His latest book, "The Following Game" was published recently.

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