Song of Summer
Song of Summer is a 1968 black-and-white television film co-written, produced, and directed by Ken Russell for the BBC's Omnibus series which was first broadcast on 15 September 1968. It portrays the final six years of Frederick Delius' life, during which Eric Fenby lived with the composer and his wife Jelka as Delius's amanuensis. The title is borrowed from the Delius tone poem A Song of Summer, which is heard along with other Delius works on the film's soundtrack. It stars Max Adrian as Delius, Christopher Gable as Fenby, and Maureen Pryor as Jelka, with director Russell in a cameo role as a philandering priest. The cinematography was by Dick Bush, and the editing was by Roger Crittenden. It was shot on black-and-white 35mm film. It has received wide praise since its first screening, and Ken Russell said it was the best film he ever made and he would not have done a single shot differently. Book Song of Summer was based on Eric Fenby's memoir Delius As I Knew Him (1936, republished in 1966), which recounts his offer to transcribe Frederick Delius's music from the composer's dictation. At the time, 66-year-old Delius lived with his wife Jelka and their