Victoria Wood & Julie Walters (Live from Two) (Live from Two)
Revealing early-career interview with the much-loved comic partners, alongside a newspaper columnist and a celebrity vicar.
Victoria Wood and Julie Walters - at the time still on the cusp of stardom - are the highlight of this daytime chat show from Granada Television’s Studio 2. Interviewed on the eve of their first TV series, Wood & Walters (ITV, 1982), the pair open up about their career beginnings, their friendship and their partnership to date (three comic dramas for Granada).
Wood, the shyer of the two, is sometimes visibly uncomfortable, but does her best with some occasionally oddball questions (“do you find women funny?”) and gives some insight into her career beginnings and her inspiration, insisting that her authentic-sounding dialogue is entirely invented, never lifted from overheard conversations. The duo also perform one of Wood’s comic songs, and can't hide their schoolgirl delight at getting away with some mildly risque lyrics on daytime TV.
Also in the studio are Observer newspaper columnist Sue Arnold and an eccentric TV vicar, while Strictly fans won’t want to miss a Rumba from All-England Latin American Dance Champions, enhanced by glorious early-80s video effects.
Trailblazing Women
Meet some of the pioneering women who broke through barriers, forged new paths and made history
This collection celebrates female firsts that span disciplines and centuries, from film, fashion, sports and writing to technology, science, politics and exploration. Shrugging off patronising questions and challenging societal norms, these ambitious women revolutionised their respective fields and shaped history. While one or two figures might be polarising and controversial, and other names forgotten over time, their achievements certainly aren’t.
Some of these women weren’t recognised as pioneers until long after their death, others had their ground-breaking contributions credited to men – or, they were simply ignored. While the glass ceiling still needs smashing, these determined, resourceful and ingenious women chipped and chipped and chipped away, setting precedents to inspire us all.
32 videos in this collection
The Amazing, Mysterious and True Story of Mary Anning and her Monsters
Guardian Interview: Kathryn Bigelow
Jet Pilot Judith Chisholm
Yachtswoman Hicks in Mini-Transat on Anonymous Bay
Woman Train Driver
Barbara Hepworth at the Tate
Book Four [23/10/85]
Caroline Lucas
Celebration (Grace Jones)
Clive James Meets Katharine Hepburn
Ellen Kuzwayo with Hilda Bernstein
Film Talk: Glenda Jackson
Harriet Vyse
Hepworth on Form
In My End is My Beginning