Play for Today

Play for Today is currently streaming in the UK on Sky Go and BBC iPlayer, and it rewards the patience it asks of you. 14 seasons is a serious commitment, but one that pays off episode after episode. 10 viewers have already rated it on TMDB — the kind of consensus that does not happen by accident. The ensemble does the kind of work that holds up under scrutiny. Put it on tonight on Sky Go and see for yourself.

Play for Today arrived without much fanfare and built its audience the hard way — through word of mouth. Play for Today trusts its audience to sit with discomfort instead of resolving it too quickly. Play for Today is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage plays and novels, were transmitted. The individual episodes were between fifty and a hundred minutes in duration. It ran for 14 seasons (1970–1985), and the writing holds up across every one of them. What elevates Play for Today is a refusal to let any character off the hook too easily. It delivers reliably on what it promises, which is more than most of its competition manages.

Play for Today is what you recommend to people who say they do not really watch much. Fans of Tales of the Unexpected will recognise the sensibility here immediately. 14 seasons in, there is no shortage of material once you get started. The performances match the material at every turn. Worth starting sooner rather than later.

Play for Today wrapped up in 1985 — and 14 seasons are available to watch from start to finish. Find exactly where it's streaming below, and TV Butler Pro makes it effortless to track your progress as you go. Just search the name, and Butler finds it instantly, tells you which service has it, and remembers exactly where you left off.