''Spoiled Darlings'' is a 1940 Australian romantic comedy radio play by

Edmund Barclay Edmund Piers Barclay (2 May 1898 – 26 August 1961) was an English-Australian writer known for his work in radio drama. Radio historian Richard Lane called him "Australian radio's first great writer and, many would say, Australian radio's g ...

that was broadcast nationally on the ABC. Its light hearted treatment of Australian history was unusual for the time. Leslie Rees write in 1940 that “I don’t know of a single Australian historical play other than Barclay’s that could be called jolly.” The play was very popular and was produced again several times. There were productions in 1941, 1951, and 1954 (with Ray Barrett and Reg Lye). Geoffrey Thomas, reviewing the 1954 production, called it "gay and charming... and, if it is, perhaps, a little overstrained in its mannerisms (I can’t believe that people were ever quite so flowery either in their rudeness or in their politeness to one another!) yet it is pleasant to pretend that even Sydney once had time for such leisurely behaviour." Leslie Rees referred to it as "a witty souffle of a comedy... a play of light intention, it doesn’t dissect or probe, it does chuckle!" A copy of the script was published in a collection of Australian radio plays in 1946. The ABC later used Ralph Darling's regime as a background to the 1962 mini-series '' The Patriots''. ''Filmink'' magazine argued that ''Spoiled Darlings'' was a superior treatment of this period.

Premise

A comedy in 1839, the time when Sydney was under the governorship of

Ralph Darling General Sir Ralph Darling, GCH (1772 – 2 April 1858) was a British Army officer who served as Governor of New South Wales from 1825 to 1831. His period of governorship was unpopular, with Darling being broadly regarded as a tyrant. He introd ...

. A young man from England , Jeffrey Lorimer, is mistaken for an assigned convict servant by the beautiful Anne Carmichael, daughter of a rich settler. Lorimer also goes to work for

Robert Wardell Robert Wardell, marble tablet, St James Church, Sydney Robert Wardell (1793 – 7 September 1834) was an English-born Australian barrister and newspaper editor. Early life Wardell was born in England and educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, ...

and

William Wentworth William Charles Wentworth (August 179020 March 1872) was an Australian statesman, pastoralist, explorer, newspaper editor, lawyer, politician and author, who became one of the wealthiest and most powerful figures in colonial New South Wales. He ...

, whose newspaper articles greatly annoy Darling.

Cast of 1954 production

Ray Barrett Raymond Charles Barrett (2 May 19278 September 2009) was an Australian actor. During the 1960s, he was a leading actor on British television, where he was best known for his appearances in '' The Troubleshooters'' (1965–1971). From the 1970s, ...

as The Hon. Jeffrey Lorrimer *Audrey Teesdale as Anne *Walter Sullivan as Captain Nicholson * James Mills as Sir

*Ailsa Grahame as Lady Darling *Peter Owen as Doctor Wardell *Daphne Winslow as Mrs. Carmichael *Helepe Jacoby as First Lady *Diana Bell as Second Lady * Reg Lye as Servant

References

Notes

*{{cite book, first=Edmund, last=Barclay, title=Australian Radio Plays, editor-first=Leslie, editor-last= Rees, publisher=Angus and Robertson, year=1946, chapter=Spoiled Darlings, pages= 29–54

External links

''Spoiled Darlings''
at Ausstage
''Spoiled Darlings''
at AustLit 1940 Australian radio dramas 1941 Australian radio dramas 1951 Australian radio dramas 1954 Australian radio dramas Radio plays by Edmund Barclay Australian radio dramas based on actual events Australian radio dramas set in Sydney Australian radio dramas set in colonial Australia Australian radio dramas that have been published