''A Passionate Woman'' is a British two-part

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

that aired on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

from 11 to 18 April 2010. It was written by

Kay Mellor Kay Mellor (née Daniel; 11 May 1951 – 15 May 2022) was an English actress, scriptwriter, producer and director. She was known for creating television series such as '' Band of Gold'' (ITV, 1995–97), '' Fat Friends'' (ITV, 2000–05), and ...

, an adaptation of her 1992 stage play, inspired by her mother's life story.

Plot

In the 1950s

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

, Betty Stevenson, a married mother of one, falls in love with her Polish neighbour, Alex Crazenovski, aka "Craze." The two begin an affair, and Craze sends a letter to Betty asking her to run away with him. She responds in kind, and her letter is found by Craze's pregnant wife, who promptly seeks him out at the fairground where he works and shoots him dead. With her lover dead, Betty continues her life with her husband Donald and baby Mark. The story then moves forward to the 1980s as Mark gets married and her affair becomes public knowledge.

Inspiration

Kay Mellor was inspired to write the story after her mother confessed to having an affair with a Polish neighbour in the 1950s when living in a poorer area of

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

. Just like the story, the unnamed Pole was killed, which ended her mother's affair which she had kept secret for 30 years before revealing all. Mellor explained that with her mother being dead for three years, it was a way of bringing her back to life. The work was originally a play that had first been performed at the

West Yorkshire Playhouse Leeds Playhouse is a theatre in the city centre of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It opened in 1990 in the Quarry Hill area of the city as the West Yorkshire Playhouse, successor to the original Leeds Playhouse, and was rebranded in June 2018 ...

in 1992 before moving on to the

West End theatre West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes"West End"in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1195, ...

. Mellor admitted that the film rights had been mooted, but she feared the production would end up with "...

Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...

on a rooftop in Detroit".

Filming locations

Filmed in 2009, Screen Yorkshire invested () in the programme and supplied crew for the filming locations. External scenes were filmed at

Roundhay Park Roundhay Park in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, is a large urban park situated on the north-east edge of the city, bordered by the suburb of Roundhay to the west, Oakwood, Leeds, Oakwood to the south and the A6120 road, A6120 outer ring road t ...

, Hyde Terrace, Hyde Park Cinema, Blenheim Square and the City Centre Market in Leeds. Additional filming was done at

Bradford City Hall Bradford City Hall is a 19th-century city and town halls, town hall in Centenary Square, Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. It is a Grade I listed building which has a distinctive clock tower. History Before its relocation, between 1847 and ...

, St Luke's Hospital, and King's Hall and Winter Gardens in

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

. Other parts were also recorded at Studio 81 in Leeds.

Episodes

Polish adaptation

In 2009, Maciej Englert directed a Polish adaptation of the original play. The main roles were played by

Marta Lipińska Marta Lipińska (born 14 May 1940) is a Polish actress. She appeared in more than 40 films and television shows since 1962. Selected filmography * '' Katastrofa'' (1965) * '' Salto'' (1965) * '' Nad Niemnem'' (1986) References External links ...

Piotr Adamczyk Piotr Aleksander Adamczyk (; born March 21, 1972) is a Polish film, television, voice and theatre actor. He is known for portraying pianist and composer Frédéric Chopin in the biographical film '' Chopin: Desire for Love'' (2002), Pope John Paul ...

and Krzysztof Kowalewski.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Passionate Woman, A 2010 British television series debuts 2010 British television series endings 2010s British drama television series BBC television dramas BBC high definition shows 2010s British television miniseries Television shows set in West Yorkshire Television shows shot in Bradford Television shows shot in Leeds British English-language television shows Television series set in the 1950s Television series set in the 1980s