Synopsis
This Man Craig was a TV drama series produced by BBC Scotland and screened over 52 episodes in 1966 and 1967. It was set in a secondary school in the fictional Scottish town of Strathaird. Episodes were filmed at Glasgow’s Bellahouston Academy and Glenwood School. The series dealt with the everyday issues affecting both staff and pupils at Strathaird School, and in particular the titular character, idealistic science teacher and housemaster Ian Craig. The first series was shown over 26 episodes between January 7 1966 and July 1 1966. The second series was shown over 26 episodes between September 17 1966 and March 21 1967. Only one episode is known to be still in existence in the BBC archives. The opening sequence showed him driving over the Forth Road Bridge, which at the time was newly built and a Scottish cultural icon.
Episodes
1E1With Luv from RosieRobertson, the Headmaster, gives Craig the unpleasant task of stopping an older woman teacher from using the strap on her pupils.2E2PattersonWhen a boy is shoved down a flight of stairs and knocked out it falls to Craig to prove what everyone already knows - that the deed was done by the school 'hard case', Kenny Patterson.3E3The SearchThe death of a loved one is hard to accept at any age. For thirteen year old Hamish it is the beginning of a night of terror.4E4A Wise FatherObsession can corrupt a man. Allied to jealousy it threatens to destroy Alec McGregor's whole way of life.5E5DougieThe most popular boy at Strathaird School should have no problems, but Dougie Seaton has plenty. As a natural leader he does what he likes: shirks lessons, not pay his debts and lead others into trouble. Craig has the task of dragging the boy back to reality.6E6Girl in a ThousandThrough her outrageous schemes for bending school discipline, Chris Elliott clashes head-on with Ian Craig and the rest of the teaching staff.7E7Three's CompanyThe small American community at Strathaird becomes the focus of a 'Yanks - Go Home' campaign.8E8Live Like a ManDavy Murchie is a late developer, though hitherto he has been as much of a 'rough diamond' as the rest of Lower Four. Now, at fourteen, he is showing a passion for mathematics, coupled with a brilliant ability. He is confused and his family and friends don't understand what has happened to him. The only person who can help him is his Maths teacher, Miss Dougall.9E9A Lower DeepOn the face of it Mr. Griffin seems a fine acquisition to the teaching staff. But before he can settle down he clashes violently with a bright boy called Innes. His savage reaction to the boy makes Ian Craig doubt his suitability.10E10Sticks and StonesWhen Keith Mitchell keeps having one cold after another, Ian Craig's suspicions that he is playing truant are well founded - but the reasons go deeper than he suspects.11E11Big FallThe death of one of the pupils creates an atmosphere of suspicion and distrust at Strathaird School.12E12The BikeAngus Galbraith works a neglected farm. Because his poverty is masked by pride he rejects as charity Craig's efforts to provide his son with a bicycle.13E13Time For ProtestCraig is in trouble after accepting an invitation to speak at a political meeting.14E14The Key to it AllA probationer teacher cannot control a difficult class. How far has the school the right to protect her from publicity?15E15Tall, Fat and UglyWallace Welton is bullied by the other boys, given a nickname and generally knocked around.16E16A Rough PassageCharles Houston, an undergraduate, comes to Strathaird as a temporary teacher. He is given a rough passage before he learns how to translate his idealist theories into practice.17E17The Expedition18E18The RomanticSixteen-year-old Jane Brewer has a row with her history teacher which brings her to the notice of Ian Craig, her Housemaster. He treats her sympathetically, but in doing so becomes the victim of a crush.19E19Certain StandardsBrenda Graham returns to Strathaird as housekeeper at the Big House, once her family home. Extravagant and condescending, she insists on maintaining 'certain standards'.20E20Two Thousand a YearAlec McKinlay, a miner's son, is one of Craig's brighter pupils. Opposition to his going to University comes from an expected source - and an unexpected one.21E21A Question of BiologySally Scott is both precocious and vulnerable, hiding her shyness behind a facade of extrovert gaiety. One day when she writes a poem she is surprised to find that it shocks Ian Craig. His show of puritan disapproval makes Sally withdraw into a shell of resentment.22E22MatesFrancis Cook, nicknamed 'Wee Bonkers' by his classmates because of his bookishness and old-fashioned manner, is moved to another form. Here he teams up with Fisher, one of the School's wilder spirits, with surprising results.23E23The Rubbing Rag24E24Whose Pigeon?Robin Kyle runs off to the Highlands. Who is responsible for his disappearance? His Parents? The garage where he has been sent on an educational scheme? Or the School itself?25E25The Golden Key to KnowledgeArriving quietly in Strathaird, Ivor Fallon, an apparently charming man, singles out a woman teacher as his natural victim for a particularly ruthless venture.26E26Old FlameKenneth Woodburn is preparing a glossy tourist film in Scotland. An old flame of Margaret Craig, he stirs up not only the school, but Craig's family life as well.
Cast
