King Lear, old and tired, divides his kingdom among his daughters, giving great importance to their protestations of love for him. When Cordelia, youngest and most honest, refuses to idly flatter the old man in return for favor, he banishes her and turns for support to his remaining daughters. But Goneril and Regan have no love for him and instead plot to take all his power from him. In a parallel, Lear's loyal courtier Gloucester favors his illegitimate son Edmund after being told lies about his faithful son Edgar. Madness and tragedy befall both ill-starred fathers.
Michael Hordern
as King Lear
Brenda Blethyn
as Cordelia
John Shrapnel
as Earl of Kent
Norman Rodway
as Earl of Gloucester
Michael Kitchen
as Edmund
Gillian Barge
as Goneril
Penelope Wilton
as Regan
John Bird
as Duke of Albany
Julian Curry
as Duke of Cornwall
David Weston
as Duke of Burgundy
Harry Waters
as King of France
Anton Lesser
as Edgar
