A scandalous birth, a vanished masterpiece — this lost BBC drama haunts TV history.
Season 1 • Episode 6
LatestSinister Street is a 1969 British television miniseries based on Compton Mackenzie's 1913-14 novel of the same name. Dramatised by Ray Lawler, the six-part serial stars Brett Usher, Gillian Hawser, Kate Lansbury, and Jo Kendall. Being the sole televised adaptation produced, all episodes were wiped and are believed to be lost. A psychological coming-of-age drama, two children, Michael Fane and his sister Stella, are born out of wedlock, something considered taboo at the time, but to rich parents.
Writing
Ray Lawler adapting Mackenzie's scandalous source material.
Production
BBC's 1969 period detail, now permanently lost.
Creator
Ray Lawler
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The BBC's archival wiping policy destroyed hundreds of 1960s dramas; Sinister Street is collateral damage of institutional indifference to television as art.
Compton Mackenzie's novel was considered shocking for its frank treatment of illegitimacy in 1913; by 1969, the BBC found it tame enough for Sunday evening viewing.
GB
