A Question of Attribution

Episode aired Oct 4, 1992
1h 10m

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

271

YOUR RATING

Comedy Crime Drama Mystery Romance War

Sir Anthony Blunt, who was a Soviet agent for 25 years, is routinely questioned and gives no answers, but is knighted and works as Director of the Courtauld Institute, and presents his inter... Read allSir Anthony Blunt, who was a Soviet agent for 25 years, is routinely questioned and gives no answers, but is knighted and works as Director of the Courtauld Institute, and presents his interrogator with a puzzle in the shape of a doubtful Titian painting. He also does art restora... Read allSir Anthony Blunt, who was a Soviet agent for 25 years, is routinely questioned and gives no answers, but is knighted and works as Director of the Courtauld Institute, and presents his interrogator with a puzzle in the shape of a doubtful Titian painting. He also does art restoration work in Buckingham Palace, where he gets into an interesting conversation with HMQ.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

271

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Photos

Storyline

Edit

Did you know

Edit

Trivia
Based on the same real life events as Another Country (1984), Cambridge Spies (2003), History in Faces: Cambridge Five (2011), Philby, Burgess and Maclean (1977), An Englishman Abroad (1983), Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979), Blunt (1987), Traitor (1971), Blade on the Feather (1980), The Jigsaw Man (1983) and influenced the source novels of The Fourth Protocol (1987), The Innocent (1993) and others works such as A Different Loyalty (2004) and Olding (2019), even in minor form like in The Imitation Game (2014).

Quotes
[the Queen knows that Sir Anthony Blunt is a traitor and Blunt knows that the Queen knows this, but both maintain a facade of innocence as they discuss the Queen's art collection, amid many coded references]
H.M.Q.: Portraits are supposed to be frightfully self-revealing, aren't they? Show what one's really like - the secret self. Either that or else the eyes are supposed to follow you round the room. Have you had your portrait painted?
Sir Anthony Blunt: No, Ma'am.
H.M.Q.: So we don't know whether you have a secret self?
[later]
H.M.Q.: If one comes across a painting with the right background and pedigree, Sir Anthony, it must be hard, I imagine, even inconceivable, to think that it is not what it claims to be. And even supposing someone in such circumstances did have suspicions, they would be chary about voicing them. Easier to leave things as they are. Stick with the official attribution, rather than let the cat out of the bag and say "Here we have a fake".
Sir Anthony Blunt: I still think the word "fake" inappropriate, Ma'am.
H.M.Q.: If something is not what it claims to be, what is it?
Sir Anthony Blunt: An enigma?

Connections
Featured in Zomergasten: Episode #6.1 (1993)

User reviews6

Review

Featured review

10/10

Another very clever Alan Bennett work which is very enjoyable

Alan Bennett has done it again with A Question of Attribution. His writing is so very clever. James Fox is very good indeed as Sir Anthony Blunt. Prunella Scales is quite brilliant as HMQ. Jason Flemyng is also wonderful as Colin the cheeky Palace worker. Phillips the young student, played by Mark Payton, is also very good. Geoffrey Palmer is very clever as the corrupt Donleavy and David Calder is really in his element as Chubb. Ann Beach is suitably revolting as Mrs.Chubb and Barbara Hicks is in her element as the Lady at the National Gallery.I would highly recommend film this very much. It is real cloak and dagger stuff and also at times highly amusing.