Gareth Jones collapsed and died backstage during the live TV performance of this play. The broadcast continued, with Jones's dialogue re-allocated to other characters and camera moves rearranged as necessary.
When Gareth Jones collapsed just offstage and died of a heart attack mid-performance, director Ted Kotcheff had remove to the stage floor to deal with the situation. This left production secretary Verity Lambert to take over directing the cameras during the live-action play as Kotcheff reassigned dialogue and changed stage directions on the fly. Lambert had no experience directing, yet she did so well that producer Sydney Newman took note. Five years later Newman became Head of Drama at BBC and recruited Lambert to produce a new show, a little sci-fi kids show called Doctor Who (1963). Lambert was the first woman producer of a British television show as well as the youngest. The show became a surprise hit and as of 2022 is one of the best known British TV shows.