First of two documentaries celebrating the National Theatre's 50th anniversary. The films ask why it took until 1963 to create a National Theatre and Dame Joan Plowright talks to Adam Low about the appointment of her husband Laurence Olivier as the National's first artistic director. The films uncover the life of the Theatre's early golden period at the Old Vic under Olivier; the commissioning and construction of the controversial Denys Lasdun building on the South Bank; and the turbulent succession of Peter Hall at the end of Olivier's reign. Through anecdotes of those who wrote, directed and performed on the National's stages the films reveal the stories behind the greatest hit productions, from Olivier's Othello to War Horse, under artistic directors Peter Hall, Richard Eyre, Trevor Nunn and Nicholas Hytner. Other contributors include Maggie Smith, Derek Jacobi, Alan Bennett, Judi Dench, Francis de la Tour, David Hare, Alan Ayckbourn and Adrian Lester.
