The One Game

The One Game
Cover of the 2003 DVD release
Written by	John Brown
Directed by	Mike Vardy
Starring	Patrick Malahide Stephen Dillane
Theme music composer	Nigel Hess
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	4
Production
Running time	50 minutes
Production company	Central Independent Television
Original release
Network	ITV
Release	4 June (1988-06-04) – 25 June 1988 (1988-06-25)

The One Game is a four-part 1988 British television drama serial, produced by Central Independent Television and broadcast on ITV from 4 June to 25 June 1988. Set and filmed in Birmingham, it starred Patrick Malahide, Stephen Dillane (credited as "Stephen Dillon"), Pippa Haywood and Kate McKenzie, and was written by John Brown from a concept by Tony Benet.

Plot

Nick Thorne (Dillane) is a businessman who has achieved success by marketing games. He finds himself drawn into a "reality game" by his former business partner Magnus (Malahide), whom Nick had forced out of their games company after its initial success. Called "The One Game", this sees Nick take on a series of challenges which force him to explore his past, while both his professional and personal life come under threat.

Production

Filming took place in the winter of 1987–8. The production aimed at a surreal rather than a fantasy atmosphere, with an emphasis of only including narrative elements which could occur in real life. Writer John Brown worked an Arthurian theme into his scripts, with the idea that the story was about what would happen if

"Arthur said to Merlin after he'd helped set up the Kingdom, 'Get lost. I don't need you any more.'"

with Nick and Magnus as Arthur and Merlin, respectively; images such as a knife thrown into water, and a woman's hand rising from a lake, were likewise based on the legend of Excalibur. The theme song, "Saylon Dola", and other incidental music by series composer Nigel Hess built on the use of Celtic mythology by incorporating Welsh-sounding gibberish.

Releases

The One Game was released on Region 2 DVD in 2003, in a set which includes a 12-page booklet detailing the series production. The One Game was re-released by Network DVD in 2016.

Episodes

No.	Title	Original air date
1	"Friday"	4 June 1988 (1988-06-04)
2	"Saturday"	11 June 1988 (1988-06-11)
3	"Sunday"	18 June 1988 (1988-06-18)
4	"Monday"	25 June 1988 (1988-06-25)

References

• "The One Game". Cult News. BBC. 21 March 2003. Archived from the original on 13 June 2004. Retrieved 10 July 2008.

External links

• The One Game at IMDb
• The One Game (2003 release) on Amazon
• The One Game (new release) on Amazon