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Remembering Tenko
Tenko, the BBC drama about women prisoners of the Japanese, was first broadcast in the Eighties to a regular audience of over 15 million viewers and is arguably one of the best-loved TV series of all time. This book, a comprehensive celebration of Tenko, explores how this groundbreaking drama came to be made, its filming in the UK and the Far East, and the real-life events which inspired its memorable characters and storylines. The series’ cast (which included Ann Bell, Stephanie Cole, Louise Jameson, Stephanie Beacham, Veronica Roberts, Claire Oberman and Burt Kwouk) have contributed their memories of working on the show, as have creator Lavinia Warner and writers Jill Hyem and Anne Valery, who share their thoughts on working on one of television’s first female ensemble dramas. In addition to the ‘making of’ story, every episode is reviewed in depth.
Remembering Tenko is illustrated with more than 300 photographs sourced from the Radio Times, the BBC and the private albums of Tenko’s cast and crew, including 20 pages of full-colour plates.
Remembering Tenko is illustrated with more than 300 photographs sourced from the Radio Times, the BBC and the private albums of Tenko’s cast and crew, including 20 pages of full-colour plates.
- GenresNonfiction
760 pages, Paperback
First published October 20, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 31, 2012
I only started watching Tenko this year so it was great timing for me that this book came out when it did. At first I was a little trepidatious about reading it. I'm not really the type of person who enjoys "making of" documentaries and usually avoid them. I was worried that if I knew too much about the locations and filming and the women playing the roles it would seem less "real". That somehow the magic of the series would be gone. But this was not the case at all. I don't think I've ever read a non-fiction book that had me shedding as many tears.
The start of the book paid proper homage to the real life internees of Japanese camps during World War II. The true story and the inspirational women behind Tenko were really brought into focus. 15 pages in I was holding back tears. 24 pages in I bought Lavinia Warner's book about the real women prisoners. It was fascinating to read about her inspiration and the journey of the show from start to filming.
The book is set up so that it gives backgrounds on the pre-production of each series, including biographies of the main players, then location shooting, studio shooting and then detailed descriptions of each episode. I think one of the things I enjoyed the most was reading Lavinia's descriptions of the characters and some of the original storylines. It was also interesting to see how her original ideas were interpreted by the two writers, how creator, writers and actresses all worked closely together to give the charactes so much depth. It was very insightful.
Another thing I enjoyed was how many quotes from the people involved there were. One of my favourites was Stephanie Cole saying how she was a little surprised to discover herself a gay icon and how Beatrice "would never have done anything about it but emotionally she was attracted to women rather than men".
The author was very quick to pick up on the nature of not just Nellie's relationship with Sally but also Beatrice's much more subtle feelings for Nellie throughout the three seasons. The only think I felt he missed was the nature of the relationship between Joss and Monica. After reading the Well of loneliness "serving in the ambulance corps" to my mind is nothing except shorthand for lesbians. To me Joss and Monica's relationship seemed full of subtext, down to her looking upon Steven as a rival for Monica that she "had to live up to" when they first met in series 3. Of course as he had full access to the writers and creator I am saddened to think that perhaps I was reading too much into that relationship.
What also came across was the strong bond the actresses in the series had. Not only did I cry for the tragedy of the real women prisoners but also when I heard how generous the actresses were to each other even years after the show had ended.
Reading this book was a remarkable insight not just into a tv show but into history as well. I throughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to everyone who has seen Tenko and loved it. If you haven't seen Tenko yet I would recommend that you watch it now, then get the book. I can assure you that 30 years later this show is just as amazing as it was when it first aired.
The start of the book paid proper homage to the real life internees of Japanese camps during World War II. The true story and the inspirational women behind Tenko were really brought into focus. 15 pages in I was holding back tears. 24 pages in I bought Lavinia Warner's book about the real women prisoners. It was fascinating to read about her inspiration and the journey of the show from start to filming.
The book is set up so that it gives backgrounds on the pre-production of each series, including biographies of the main players, then location shooting, studio shooting and then detailed descriptions of each episode. I think one of the things I enjoyed the most was reading Lavinia's descriptions of the characters and some of the original storylines. It was also interesting to see how her original ideas were interpreted by the two writers, how creator, writers and actresses all worked closely together to give the charactes so much depth. It was very insightful.
Another thing I enjoyed was how many quotes from the people involved there were. One of my favourites was Stephanie Cole saying how she was a little surprised to discover herself a gay icon and how Beatrice "would never have done anything about it but emotionally she was attracted to women rather than men".
The author was very quick to pick up on the nature of not just Nellie's relationship with Sally but also Beatrice's much more subtle feelings for Nellie throughout the three seasons. The only think I felt he missed was the nature of the relationship between Joss and Monica. After reading the Well of loneliness "serving in the ambulance corps" to my mind is nothing except shorthand for lesbians. To me Joss and Monica's relationship seemed full of subtext, down to her looking upon Steven as a rival for Monica that she "had to live up to" when they first met in series 3. Of course as he had full access to the writers and creator I am saddened to think that perhaps I was reading too much into that relationship.
What also came across was the strong bond the actresses in the series had. Not only did I cry for the tragedy of the real women prisoners but also when I heard how generous the actresses were to each other even years after the show had ended.
Reading this book was a remarkable insight not just into a tv show but into history as well. I throughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to everyone who has seen Tenko and loved it. If you haven't seen Tenko yet I would recommend that you watch it now, then get the book. I can assure you that 30 years later this show is just as amazing as it was when it first aired.
April 9, 2022
As a life-long Tenko fan, this book has been relished and devoured. The details of planning, writing and filming provided a lot of extra info I hadn't known. There was a lot of nostalgia to recapture, and the quotes and personal stories and photos added to a very satisfying read for a fan. The author also gave a lot of time to detailing without judgement on my favourite characters. This was interesting to look back on in 20
22. I have also rewatched the series and it is as engaging as I remembered. A wonderful tribute.
22. I have also rewatched the series and it is as engaging as I remembered. A wonderful tribute.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 31, 2018
I've read quite a lot of books about TV shows and this is one of the best. If you want all the information about how Tenko was insipred by real life events and people, the ins and outs of getting a TV drama commissioned and then made, how it became a hit and returned a few times.... then this is your lucky day. It has insights from all of the important people who made Tenko, which is exactly what you would want in an excellent guide to it.
October 27, 2021
Enjoyable
Entertaining book. Learned a lot of the background of this great series. I didn't read all the synopses but enjoyed the rest.
Entertaining book. Learned a lot of the background of this great series. I didn't read all the synopses but enjoyed the rest.
September 21, 2022
This review first appeared on my blog - https://nsfordwriter.com - on 12th September 2022.
An incredibly in-depth study of the TV drama Tenko (1981-4). Featuring many contributions from the people who were involved in making the programme, this is a must-read for anyone who has enjoyed watching Tenko.
The book begins with a background on the subject matter - the civilian women and children interned in camps when the Japanese took control of Singapore in 1942 - and the career of Lavinia Warner, who would eventually create a fictional TV series based on real events. This area of history had been neglected and it was meeting survivors of the camps which gave her the idea to bring these women's experiences into public consciousness. The book then describes how the TV drama was pitched to the BBC (it was a groundbreaking show and not at all predicted to be a success), scripts written, locations scouted and cast recruited. This is followed by production diaries which demonstrate the highs and lows of filming this extraordinary show. Each episode is given a detailed review (I skipped these) and finally there is discussion of the context and legacy of Tenko. There are a generous number of photos, some of them provided by the cast.
Certainly the best TV-themed book I've read, one which explores its subject with passion, reverence and attention to detail.
An incredibly in-depth study of the TV drama Tenko (1981-4). Featuring many contributions from the people who were involved in making the programme, this is a must-read for anyone who has enjoyed watching Tenko.
The book begins with a background on the subject matter - the civilian women and children interned in camps when the Japanese took control of Singapore in 1942 - and the career of Lavinia Warner, who would eventually create a fictional TV series based on real events. This area of history had been neglected and it was meeting survivors of the camps which gave her the idea to bring these women's experiences into public consciousness. The book then describes how the TV drama was pitched to the BBC (it was a groundbreaking show and not at all predicted to be a success), scripts written, locations scouted and cast recruited. This is followed by production diaries which demonstrate the highs and lows of filming this extraordinary show. Each episode is given a detailed review (I skipped these) and finally there is discussion of the context and legacy of Tenko. There are a generous number of photos, some of them provided by the cast.
Certainly the best TV-themed book I've read, one which explores its subject with passion, reverence and attention to detail.
January 28, 2016
If you are a fan of the television series Tenko, or if you have never seen it but are interested in its topic (women in British and Dutch areas in the Pacific area who were put into concentration camp)then this is without doubt the book for you.
At 746 pages it has virtually everything you would want on the series. There is a section that explains how Tenko came about. Each season shows a synopsis of the episode and a review of what happened in that episode. There's a section on the reunion show, various color photos, black and white photos and even a series of appendices. A truly massive work but also one that's written in a style that is easy to read. An absolute must if you are a fan of this series.
At 746 pages it has virtually everything you would want on the series. There is a section that explains how Tenko came about. Each season shows a synopsis of the episode and a review of what happened in that episode. There's a section on the reunion show, various color photos, black and white photos and even a series of appendices. A truly massive work but also one that's written in a style that is easy to read. An absolute must if you are a fan of this series.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews