Within These Walls

Within These Walls is a British television drama programme made by London Weekend Television for ITV and shown between 1974 and 1978. It portrayed life in HMP Stone Park, a fictional women's prison. Unlike later women-in-prison TV series "Bad Girls (1999-2006) and Australian series Prisoner (aka Prisoner: Cell Block H, original run 1979-1986) and Wentworth, Within These Walls tended to centre its story-lines around the prison staff rather than the inmates.

The lead character was played by British film actor Googie Withers who played the well-groomed, genteel governor Faye Boswell and episodes revolved around her attempts to liberalise the prison regime while managing her personal life at home.

Another prominent character was her Chief Officer, Mrs. Armitage (Mona Bruce).

Googie Withers left after three series; in Series Four her character was replaced as governor by Helen Forrester (Katharine Blake), who in turn left to be replaced in the final Series Five by Susan Marshall (Sarah Lawson).

Creator and screenwriter of the programme, David Butler, appeared in some episodes as prison chaplain, Rev. Henry Prentice[1]