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*Alice in Wonderland*
Alice in Wonderland
Based on	Alice's Adventures in Wonderland; by Lewis Carroll
Written by	Jonathan Miller
Directed by	Jonathan Miller
Starring	John Gielgud; Peter Cook; Leo McKern; Peter Sellers; Michael Redgrave; Anne-Marie Mallik;
Music by	Ravi Shankar
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
Production
Producer	Jonathan Miller
Cinematography	Dick Bush
Editor	Pam Bosworth
Running time	72 minutes
Original release
Release	28 December 1966

Alice in Wonderland is a 1966 BBC television play, shot on film, based on Lewis Carroll's 1865 book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. It was adapted, produced and directed by Jonathan Miller, then best known for his appearance in the satirical revue Beyond the Fringe.

Miller's production is unique among live-action Alice films in that he consciously avoided the standard Tenniel-inspired costume design and "florid" production values. Most of the Wonderland characters are played by actors in standard Victorian dress, with a real cat used to represent the Cheshire Cat. Miller justified his approach as an attempt to return to what he perceived as the essence of the story: "Once you take the animal heads off, you begin to see what it's all about. A small child, surrounded by hurrying, worried people, thinking 'Is that what being grown up is like?'"^[1]

Unlike many 1960s BBC productions, the play survived destruction, and was issued onto DVD by both the BFI and the BBC themselves.

Cast

John Gielgud as the Mock Turtle
Peter Cook as the Mad Hatter
Leo McKern as the Ugly Duchess
Peter Sellers as the King of Hearts
Jo Maxwell-Muller as Emma, Alice's sister
Finlay Currie as the Dodo
Michael Redgrave as the Caterpillar
Anne-Marie Mallik as Alice
Alan Bennett as the Mouse
Wilfrid Brambell as the White Rabbit
Michael Gough as the March Hare
Wilfrid Lawson as the Dormouse
Peter Eyre as the Knave of Hearts
Avril Elgar as Peppercook
Alison Leggatt as the Queen of Hearts
Malcolm Muggeridge as the Gryphon
John Bird as the Frog Footman
David Battley as the Executioner
Eric Idle (uncredited) as a member of the Caucus Race
Angelo Muscat (uncredited) as a Courtier/Juryman

Production

Interiors were filmed at Netley Hospital, a mid-19th-century building that was demolished not long after the film was made. Also known as the Royal Victoria Military Hospital, Netley Hospital was the world's longest building at the time it was completed.^[2] Beach scenes with the Gryphon and the Mock Turtle were filmed at Pett Level in East Sussex.^[3] The courtroom scene was recorded at the BBC's Ealing Studios and involved the building of the largest set that Stage 2 at Ealing had ever seen.^[4]

In July 1966 the BBC spent three days at Donington Hall filming the 'Pool of Tears' and the 'Caucus Race' scenes for Jonathan Miller's production. The Caucus Race was filmed in the cellars.^[5]

References

^ Thill, Scott (November 2003). "Jonathan Miller's Alice in Wonderland (1966) on DVD". Bright Lights Film Journal, Issue #42. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 14 June 2010.
^ Hoare, Philip (21 August 2014). "Palace of pain: Netley, the hospital built for an empire of soldiers". The Guardian.
^ Donnelly, Luke (28 August 2021). "David Bowie, Kaiser Chiefs and the other celebrities drawn to Pett Level beach". Sussex Live. Archived from the original on 20 April 2024. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
^ David Martin A History of the BBC's Film Department (1983)^{[Link to precise page]}
^ Castle Donington Local History Society (1991). Donington Hall and Park, An Illustrated History.