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Under Milk Wood was originally a radio play and later a stage play and film by Dylan Thomas.
The storyteller invites the audience to listen in on the dreams of the fictional small Welsh village of Llareggub (the name is "bugger all" spelt backwards, but appeared in print as Llaregyb so as not to offend), and their innermost thoughts and dreams are laid bare to us. There is Mrs. Ogmore-Pritchard, relentlessly bossing her two dead husbands; Captain Cat reliving his seafaring times; the two Mrs. Dai Breads; Organ Morgan, obsessed with his music; Polly Garter pining for her dead lover. Later, the town wakes and we see them go about their daily business, aware of how their feelings affect whatever they do.
When Dylan Thomas was staying in New Quay one winter, he went out early one morning into the still sleeping town and verses came to his mind about the inhabitants. He wrote up the account of this as Quite Early One Morning in 1944, and recorded the story for radio in 1945. He continued to work on the idea for eight years, and on 9 September, 1953, he delivered a full draft of Under Milk Wood to the BBC as he left for a tour of America, intending to revise the manuscript on his return. He read a part of the script in public for the first time in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Two months later he was dead. The play was recorded by the BBC in 1954 with a distinguished all-Welsh cast and produced by Douglas Cleverdon. The play was first broadcast on 25 January 1954, repeated two days later. The recording featured Richard Burton as 'First Voice'.
Dylan Thomas also commented that Under Milk Wood was conceived as a response to the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, as a way of reasserting the evidence of beauty in the world.
Thomas' poetic writing and an unforgettable cast of characters makes this a landmark play in the history of both radio and theatre. It was later made into a film (1972), with Richard Burton reprising his role, and other parts played by Elizabeth Taylor, Peter O'Toole, Glynis Johns, Vivien Merchant, and other well-known actors, and Ryan Davies as the 'Second Voice'.
In November 2003, as part of the their celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of Thomas's death, the BBC broadcast a new production of the play, imaginatively combining new actors with the original 1954 recording of Richard Burton playing 'First Voice'. (Broadcast November 15 2003, BBC Radio 4; repeated December 24 2004.) Digital noise reduction technology allowed Burton's part to be seamlessly incorporated into the new recording, which was intended to represent Welsh voices more realistically than the original.
List of notable Characters
The play opens at night, and each character is dreaming-- this lasts for about one fifth of the play. While the below descriptions are NOT complete character descriptions, what they dream of certainly tells much of their personality.
- Captain Cat - The old blind sea Captain who dreams of his deceased sea fellows, and the benefits that they miss now no longer alive.
- Myfanwy Price - The dressmaker and sweet shop owner who dreams of Mog Edwards and marriage.
- Mr. Pugh - School Master, dreams of Murdering his Wife.
- Mr & Mrs Floyd - The Cocklers, an elderly couple, seemingly the only couple to sleep peacefully in the village.
- Mrs. Ogmore-Pritchard - The innkeeper who must have everything clean and dreams of her late husbands.
- Mr. Ogmore - Deceased, Linoleum salesman, late of Mrs. Ogmore-Pritchard.
- Mr. Pritchard - Deceased, failed bookmaker, late of Mrs. Ogmore Pritchard, committed suicide.
- Gossamer Beynon - The Schoolteacher, dreams of a fox-like illicit love.
- Mr. Waldo - Rabbitcatcher, barber, herbalist, catdoctor, quack, dreams of his mother, her regret and his many unhappy, failed marriages due to his alcoholism and trouble making.
- Sinbad Sailor - The Barman, dreams of Gossamer Beynon.
- Polly Garter - Dreams of babies.
- Mr. Cherry Owen - Dreams of drinking, and yet, unable to - drinks anyway.
- Mr. Willy Nilly - The Postman, who delivers the post in his sleep.
- Mrs. Willy Nilly - Who dreams of being spanked by teacher, every night of her married life.
- Butcher Beynon - The Butcher, dreams of riding pigs and shooting giblets.
- Mrs. Butcher Beynon - Butcher Beynon's Wife, dreams of the horrors that her husband commit.
- Rev. Eli Jenkins - ''The Reverend, poet and preacher, dreams of Eisteddfodau.
- Evans the Death - The undertaker, who dreams of youth.
- Nogood Boyo - Dreams of Nothing.
- Police Constable Attila Rees - The Policeman, releives himself into his helmet at night.
- Utah Watkins - The Farmer, dreams of his wife, knitting.
- Bessie Bighead - Hired Help, dreams of the one man that ever kissed her.
- Dai Bread - The baker, dreams of Harems.
- Ocky Milkman - The Milkman, dreams of pouring the milk into a river, regardless of expense.
- Lord Cut Glass - Dreams of Clocks.
- Organ Morgan - The Church Organ Player, dreams of music and orchestras within the village. Cries out 'Help' in his sleep.
- Mae Rose Cottage - Dreams of meeting Mr.Right in a faerie tale world.
- Mrs. Organ Morgan - Dreams of Silence.
- Jack Black - The cobbler, who dreams of frightening the young couples.
- Mary Ann Sailors - Dreams of the Garden of Eden.
Cast
| Character | Radio Actor | Film Actor |
|---|---|---|
| First Voice | Richard Burton | Richard Burton |
| Second Voice | Richard Bebb | Ryan Davies |
| Captain Cat | Hugh Griffith | Peter O'Toole |
| Rosie Probert | Rachel Thomas | Elizabeth Taylor |
| Polly Garter | Diana Maddox | Ann Beach |
| Mr. Mog Edwards | Dafydd Harvard | Victor Spinetti |
| Myfanwy Price | Sybil Williams | Glynis Johns |
| Mrs. Ogmore-Pritchard | Dylis Davies | Sian Phillips |
| Mr. Ogmore | David Close-Thomas | Dillwyn Owen |
| Mr. Pritchard | Ben Williams | Richard Davies |
| Butcher Beynon | Meredith Edwards | Hubert Rees |
| Gossamer Beynon | Gwenllian Owen | Angharad Rees |
| The Rev. Eli Jenkins | Philip Burton | Aubrey Richards |
| Lily Smalls | Gwenyth Petty | Meg Wyn Owen |
| Mr. Pugh | John Huw Jones | Talfryn Thomas |
| Mrs. Pugh | Mary Jones | Vivien Merchant |
| Mary Ann Sailors | Rachel Thomas | Rachel Thomas |
| Sinbad Sailors | Aubrey Richards | Michael Forest |
| Dai Bread | David Close-Thomas | Dudley Jones |
| Mrs. Dai Bread One | Gwenyth Petty | Dorothea Phillips |
| Mrs. Dai Bread Two | Rachel Thomas | Ruth Madoc |
| Willy Nilly Postman | Ben Williams | Tim Wylton |
| Mrs Willy Nilly | Rachel Thomas | Bronwen Williams |
| Cherry Owen | John Ormond Thomas | Glynn Edwards |
| Mrs. Cherry Owen | Lorna Davies | Bridget Turner |
| Nogood Boyo | Dillwyn Owen | David Jason |
| Organ Morgan | John Glyn-Jones | Richard Parry |
| Mrs Organ Morgan | Olwen Brookes | Dilys Price |
| Mae Rose Cottage | Rachel Roberts | Susan Penhaligon |
| Gwenny | Norma Jones | Olwen Rees |
External links
- The Life and Work of Dylan Thomas Full version of Under Milk Wood with the complete play in embedded audio
- Audio Book (mp3) from Under Milk Wood, translated into French by J.B. Brunius
"Under Milk Wood"