physics

The Brack Report

The Brack Report is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand The Brack Report rather than just read about it. In short: The Brack Report is a British television drama series created by Christopher Penfold for Thames Television looking at concerns about nuclear power, and exploring some alternative energy sources. It was broadcast over 10 weeks on ITV from 6 April 1982 to 8 June 1982 which overlapped with the Falklands War.

Key takeaways

The Brack Report belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect The Brack Report to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of The Brack Report from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Brack Report is a British television drama series created by Christopher Penfold for Thames Television looking at concerns about nuclear power, and exploring some alternative energy sources. It was broadcast over 10 weeks on ITV from 6 April 1982 to 8 June 1982 which overlapped with the Falklands War. It stars Donald Sumpter, Patricia Garwood and Jenny Seagrove.

Plot After an earthquake causes some damage to a nuclear power station, one of the chief nuclear physicists, Paul Brack, starts to investigate the safety procedures and policies of the station. He is dismayed to discover that there is a lack of real safety processes at the station, and quits his job in disgust. His disillusionment puts a strain on his relationship with his wife, Pat, a fellow researcher and academic. Through a mutual friend, Brack meets and begins to work for energy consultant Harold Harlan, with hopes that Harlan can highlight the issue of nuclear safety, and explore alternative energy sources. Unfortunately Harlan has his own plans for how he can use Brack.

Cast

Episodes

Production

Writing The show's creator, Christopher Penfold, was previously a writer on Space: 1999 (a show where a nuclear accident on the Moon causes it to be knocked out of orbit), and he developed The Brack Report as a means of exploring and dramatizing some of the challenges of nuclear power, as well as looking at some of the alternative ways of generating energy.

Music The theme tune was composed by Christopher Gunning, who had been composing music for film and TV for twelve years when he completed this piece. Other notable work by Gunning includes the themes for Rogue Male (1976), The Day of the Triffids (1981), Porterhouse Blue (1987), Under Suspicion (1991), Lighthouse Hill (2004), and La Vie en rose (2007).

Filming Filming of the series took over a year to complete. Geoffrey Beevers, who played Dr. Scheer in Episodes 4 and 7, had to be excused from filming on 17 December 1980 to shoot scenes for the Doctor Who serial "The Keeper of Traken" which had been delayed due to an electricians strike. Some exterior scenes for Episode 7 were filmed in Tynemouth, including at Tynemouth Castle and Priory. Some exterior scenes for Episode 9 were filmed at the Rance Tidal Power Station in Brittany, France. Some interior scenes were filmed at Pinewood Studios.

Broadcast United Kingdom: It was originally broadcast on ITV in 1982 Australia: In 1983 it was shown on SBS Australia Germany: In 1983–1984 it was broadcast on ARD United Kingdom (again): In 2020 it was broadcast by Talking Pictures TV

Reception Creator Christopher Penfold commented that the transmission of the series (6 April to 8 June 1982) "got absolutely swamped by the Falklands War" (2 April to 14 June 1982), and that the show "would have created a much bigger public stir" had it not been for that war. Episode One was referred to the Broadcasting Complaints Commission by the Central Electricity Generating Board. The UK Atomic Energy Authority also expressed their concerns over the series. A contemporary review by Lucy Hughes-Hallett, writing in The Times, noted that the weighty subject-matter made for a ponderous narrative: "artistically…not a great success" but allowed that it was "an…intelligent attempt to tackle a difficult subject". Another contemporary review by Chris Dunkley of the Financial Times noted that the show was being broadcast in the same slot that had been previously occupied by drama series Muck and Brass (starring Mel Smith), and he felt those shows were evidence that ITV have a "sane and admirable new policy of creating modern drama series dealing with contemporary themes".

In other media

Books A 192-page novelization of "The Brack Report", written by Patrick Winter, was released on 15 March 1982 by Arrow Books publishers.

See also The Day After Tomorrow, a 1975 television drama set in a future where environmental damage on threatens the survival of humanity. The China Syndrome, a 1979 American drama film concerning safety coverups at a nuclear power plant. The Chain Reaction, a 1980 Australian thriller film about an engineer who tries to warm the public about possible nuclear waste Dark Circle, a 1982 American documentary on the connections between the nuclear weapons and the nuclear power industries. Silkwood, a 1983 American biographical film of nuclear whistleblower and labour union activist Karen Silkwood. The Day After, a 1983 American television film exploring a potential nuclear exchange between the United States and the Soviet Union. Threads, a 1984 drama television film about nuclear war and its effects on the city of Sheffield in Northern England.

References

External links The Brack Report at IMDb "The Brack Report screencaps TV Times interview with Donald Sumpter, April 1982 The Brack Report on The Radio Times BFI: The Brack Report Chapter 1 (1982) RosterCon.com: The Brack Report

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with The Brack Report

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what The Brack Report claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to The Brack Report before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about The Brack Report ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of The Brack Report

In research: The Brack Report appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses The Brack Report in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: The Brack Report is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1980s British drama television series, 1980s British television miniseries, 1982 British television series debuts, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for The Brack Report outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study The Brack Report in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what The Brack Report means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain The Brack Report out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is The Brack Report in simple terms?

Why does The Brack Report matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study The Brack Report?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on The Brack Report.