Susanna Rustin’s article on Winifred Holtby (Scenes from provincial life, Review, 14 January) was excellent, except that it mentioned only two dramatisations of Holtby’s novel South Riding – the 1938 film and the BBC’s 2011 adaptation. Good though these were, there must be many people like myself, born and brought up in the area, who feel that both were outshone by Yorkshire TV’s 1974 serial. It was adapted from the novel by Stan Barstow and superbly acted by a cast including Dorothy Tutin, Nigel Davenport, Hermione Baddeley and Clive Swift. Much of it was filmed locally, and it captured the atmosphere of the area and the essence of the East Riding characters brilliantly. It can still be watched with pleasure and it deserved to be mentioned.
Jean Williams
Swanland, East Riding, Yorkshire
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