Editing Michael Hordern (section)

====''Paradise Postponed'' and ''You Never Can Tell''====

In 1986, John Mortimer, a writer whom Hordern respected greatly, engaged the actor in ''[[Paradise Postponed]]'', an eleven-part drama which took a year to make and cost in excess of £6 million. Set in rural England, the saga depicts the struggles within British middle-class society during the post-war years.<ref>Hordern, pp. 159–160.</ref> In his autobiography, Hordern described himself as "a man of prejudice rather than principle" and as such, had very little in common with his character, the left-wing, [[Marxist]]-loving vicar, Simeon Simcox. Despite the political differences, Hordern felt great empathy towards his character, and admired his "plain, straightforward attitude to life, his dottiness, and the way he hung to his faith in a wicked world with a saintliness verging on the simple".<ref name="HORDERN160">Hordern, p. 160.</ref>{{#tag:ref|The cast included [[David Threlfall]], [[Richard Vernon]], [[Annette Crosbie]], [[Jill Bennett (British actress)|Jill Bennett]], [[Colin Blakely]], [[Zoë Wanamaker]], [[Peter Egan]], and [[Paul Shelley]].<ref name="HORDERN160" />|group= n}}

Hordern made a return to the London stage in 1987 after a four-year absence. The play in which he starred, ''[[You Never Can Tell (play)|You Never Can Tell]]'', transferred to the [[Haymarket Theatre]] that December having made its debut at the [[Theatr Clwyd]] in Wales earlier that year.<ref name="HORDERN158">Hordern, p. 158.</ref> It was the second time the actor had appeared in the play, the first being back in Bristol fifty years previously when he starred as the youthful lead, Valentine. This time he was cast as William, the elderly waiter, a part which he considered to be "a real hell to play",<ref name="HORDERN158" /> partly because of the many meals he had to serve up on stage, whilst at the same time trying to remember the complex script. He enjoyed the play immensely and was thrilled at its successful run. His engagement also gave him a chance to reunite with some old friends, including [[Irene Worth]], [[Michael Denison]] and Frank Middlemass, all of whom were in the cast.<ref name="HORDERN158" /> Hordern admitted that, on the whole, the experience made him feel "a little happier" about life.<ref>Hordern, pp. 158–159.</ref>