Alice in Wonderland (1966 TV play)

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?'"

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 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. Beach scenes with the Gryphon and the Mock Turtle were filmed at Pett Level in East Sussex. 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.

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.