History
Howards' Way was created and produced by Gerard Glaister and Allan Prior with lead writer, Raymond Thompson as story and script consultant - at a point in the BBC's history, when the organisation was making a concerted populist strike against ITV in its approach to programming. Howards' Way debuted on BBC One in 1985, the same year that the BBC launched their first ongoing soap opera EastEnders as a challenge to the ratings supremacy of ITV's Coronation Street. Although Howards' Way is commonly cited as an attempt to provide a British alternative to glossy American sagas such as Dallas and Dynasty, it also acts as a continuation of plot themes explored in a previous Gerard Glaister series, The Brothers, which involved a family's personal and professional crises running a road haulage firm and embraced several soap opera touches in its characterisations and storylines.
The original working title for the series was "The Boatbuilders", which was ultimately rejected when it was felt that it sounded like a documentary series and wouldn't grab viewers’ attention.
The theme music was composed by Simon May and performed by his orchestra. Marti Webb reached number 13 with "Always There", the lyrical version of the theme tune, in 1986.
Inspired by a storyline in Howards' Way, producer Gerard Glaister went on to create Trainer (1991–1992) set in the world of horse-racing, and also featured several of the same cast members.
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“All things are moral. That soul, which within us is a sentiment, outside of us is a law. We feel its inspiration; out there in history we can see its fatal strength.”
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