British TV/General Discussion

@BritMystery wrote:
 

Deedee, Vera S12/E2... Excellent, excellent, excellent!  Writing is superb... looked it up on IMDB - this is the third episode Sally Abbott has written for the series (S10/E3, S11/E4) both which are good, but not of the same caliper as "For the Grace of God". This episode is right at the top as one of the best of the series. Right up there with the first two seasons. It has everything that anyone could possibly want from a Vera story... it is so well done. 

The scenes (which I was so missing) of Vera at home - each one brought me back to the early years when we learned so much about Vera's past and her relationship with her father Hector - it gave me that whoosh moment of seeing her sitting there with Joe and talking about life and work. They actually work to center the story. And then, the added bonus of the scenes of her commute to the crime scene - gees, how I was (again) missing all of that. There is a lushness to these that has been absent in the series of late.

I had a feeling early on who committed the murder - nothing concrete at that time, just a buzz in my ear. I was right, and yet I enjoyed every moment of the investigation process. This episode had my full attention for its' entirety, I wouldn't even stop it for a moments break. 

Tears flowed at the end, I have never had that happen to me in a Vera story - even when Bethany died, as devastating as that was. It was to my surprise the tears flowed, that is how good the acting and story is, I never saw them coming until they were there.

Often, other series lose something as the seasons pass, they are not quite what they once were, yet Vera comes out fighting in its' twelfth year. Way to go, Vera.

Yes, yes, yes, and yes, Brit. I too was choked up at the end. I hope they continue the quality. ..............................***********SPOILERS*************

Hate the new ME. Lose the attitude toots. Love Vera to pieces. Like the starring role a bacon bap has had in 2 eps, I want one. Love that she is again seen in her house. Love that Aiden not only puts ON her blue booties, but picks them up when she drops them. LOVE Vera.

https://www.hellomagazine.com/film/20230210164063/kris-marshall-returns-humphrey-goodman-beyond-paradise-trailer/

Here's the trailer for Beyond Paradise, the spin off from Death in Paradise which sees Kris Marshall reprise his role as DI Humphrey Goodman as he moves from London to the fictional Devon town of Shipton Abbott with his fiancee Martha (Sally Bretton). Upon arrival they temporarily move in with Martha's mother played by Barbara Flynn (Cracker,Hornblower, Cranford). Humphrey's new working partner will be DS Esther Williams played by Zahra Ahmadi. The series will air on Britbox US from 24th February, the same day that it premieres on BBC1.

@Sheerwater wrote:
https://www.hellomagazine.com/film/20230210164063/kris-marshall-returns-humphrey-goodman-beyond-paradise-trailer/

Here's the trailer for Beyond Paradise, the spin off from Death in Paradise which sees Kris Marshall reprise his role as DI Humphrey Goodman as he moves from London to the fictional Devon town of Shipton Abbott with his fiancee Martha (Sally Bretton). Upon arrival they temporarily move in with Martha's mother played by Barbara Flynn (Cracker,Hornblower, Cranford). Humphrey's new working partner will be DS Esther Williams played by Zahra Ahmadi. The series will air on Britbox US from 24th February, the same day that it premieres on BBC1.

The trailer is also on TVmaze :)

https://www.tvmaze.com/episodes/2486294/beyond-paradise-1x01-episode-1

@Sheerwater and @CosmicHowl, thanks for the trailer. I am planning on watching. I find "Death in Paradise" a relaxing watch when I just need something light that will keep my attention. I hope "Beyond Paradise" fills the same bill.

Speaking of light, interesting detective shows... Prime is airing Acorn's "Madame Blanc Mysteries" with Sally Lindsay as a free sample show this month. If you have a subscription to Acorn you can go directly there, but I do not. I like Sally Lindsay (Still Open All Hours), so I dove in hoping for the best. I've been disappointed before, I thought I would love Roger Allam's  "Murder in Provence" and really didn't care for it. Watched two episodes of MBM last night and enjoyed it a lot. Very pleasantly surprised. 

Unforgotten series 5 will launch in the UK on 27th February starring Sinead Keenan as DCI Jessica James and Sanjeev Bhasker as DI Sunil 'Sunny' Khan. Also returning are, Jordan Long as DS Murray Boulting, Carolina Main as DC Fran Lingley, Georgia Mackenzie as pathologist Dr Leanne Balcombe, Michelle Bonnard as Sunny’s partner, Sal and Pippa Nixon as DC Kaz Willets. 

Jess’s first case is the discovery of human remains in a newly renovated period property in Hammersmith, London. But how long have they been there and is this a murder dating back to the 1930’s or has the body been disposed of in more recent times? Inevitably how will the ghost of much-loved former colleague Cassie Stuart haunt her? After all, Cassie will be big shoes for her to fill. Does she have the resolve, professionalism and spirit to live up to her much-admired and respected predecessor? 

https://www.itv.com/presscentre/presscentre/sites/default/files/2023-02/ITV1%20Unforgotten%20S5%20Press%20Pack%202023.pdf

I've just added the trailer for the new season of Unforgotten :) https://www.tvmaze.com/episodes/2491181/unforgotten-5x01-episode-1

Thanks for the info. sheerwater ...  gonna be different ta watch  Unforgotten  S5  without  Cassie  but  life moves on ..  as in real life car crashes changes lives instantly and as I said  .. life goes on .  Looking forward to the new  DCI ,  don't know if I've ever seen  Sinead  Keenan  in anything else as her face is not familiar to me.  

cosmic  ..  I wish I could see the trailer  but It's just a little beyond my  reach  with the dreaded message  '  The uploader  has not made this video available in you're country '.   %$#@#$   is all I got ta say about that .  lol  

@solar wrote:
Thanks for the info. sheerwater ...  gonna be different ta watch  Unforgotten  S5  without  Cassie  but  life moves on ..  as in real life car crashes changes lives instantly and as I said  .. life goes on .  Looking forward to the new  DCI ,  don't know if I've ever seen  Sinead  Keenan  in anything else as her face is not familiar to me.  

cosmic  ..  I wish I could see the trailer  but It's just a little beyond my  reach  with the dreaded message  '  The uploader  has not made this video available in you're country '.   %$#@#$   is all I got ta say about that .  lol  

Same here Soler, can't view in the States either. You have a good outlook about "Unforgotten" regarding the changes. I wish I felt the same way, I am still pretty iffy about moving on without the dynamic duo. I am going to be watching because of Sunny.  Love the character, hopefully they give him plenty of screen time front and center, if they don't I will probably be done and move on. 

Watched the last two episodes of Marcella... what an ending!! I thought both episodes were great, I know there were complaints by fans of the series, not me though - maybe the fact that I started with S3 is the reason for this. 

My feeling is that Katherine never gets to the point of telling anyone what Marcella did with the money or the child. If anything, the stress from what transpired at the end most likely made her health worst and she wouldn't last long in that condition. I do think Marcella's police friend DI Sangha makes it out of that shooting spree alive for reasons that are widely discussed in finale reviews (I read them all!) The only thing I felt was left hanging was who the caller was in that ending scene. It wasn't DI Sangha's voice, I went back and listened - so who discovered her new alias and was able to get to her in a private airport? Someone tracked her down...who and for what reason? 

The last two episodes were so good I am going to go back and watch them again. Couldn't happen to a more deserving family. 

@BritMystery wrote:
 

@Sheerwater and @CosmicHowl, thanks for the trailer. I am planning on watching. I find "Death in Paradise" a relaxing watch when I just need something light that will keep my attention. I hope "Beyond Paradise" fills the same bill.

 

Speaking of light, interesting detective shows... Prime is airing Acorn's "Madame Blanc Mysteries" with Sally Lindsay as a free sample show this month. If you have a subscription to Acorn you can go directly there, but I do not. I like Sally Lindsay (Still Open All Hours), so I dove in hoping for the best. I've been disappointed before, I thought I would love Roger Allam's  "Murder in Provence" and really didn't care for it. Watched two episodes of MBM last night and enjoyed it a lot. Very pleasantly surprised. 

Continuing to enjoy it... it has an 80's sounding opening theme and a "Lovejoy" spin on it with the antiques. And, that tells you why! 😀

@solar wrote:
Thanks for the info. sheerwater ...  gonna be different ta watch  Unforgotten  S5  without  Cassie  but  life moves on ..  as in real life car crashes changes lives instantly and as I said  .. life goes on .  Looking forward to the new  DCI ,  don't know if I've ever seen  Sinead  Keenan  in anything else as her face is not familiar to me.  

cosmic  ..  I wish I could see the trailer  but It's just a little beyond my  reach  with the dreaded message  '  The uploader  has not made this video available in you're country '.   %$#@#$   is all I got ta say about that .  lol  

The annoying uploader is ITV :)

YouTube video are easy to copy, so if it's not been posted on YouTube by another user, you could try searching the news/entertainment websites as they usually use their own video players.

Brit  wrote :

I wish I felt the same way, I am still pretty iffy about moving on without the dynamic duo. I am going to be watching because of Sunny.  Love the character, hopefully they give him plenty of screen time front and center, if they don't I will probably be done and move on. 

My post was deliberately clipped and harsh Brit , regarding  Cassie Woods demise and  replacement by  DCI  Jessica  James  .  Truth is , I'm a little mad at  Nicola Walker decideling to leave the show.  This is a hit show and she chooses to leave it ......  sounds ta me like she got too much on her plate  and is starting to feel her oats . I could be wrong but it's how I feel . 

The annoying uploader is ITV :) 

Thanks  Cos ....  I'll be lookin' around  ta see what I can find .    

@solar wrote:
Brit  wrote :

I wish I felt the same way, I am still pretty iffy about moving on without the dynamic duo. I am going to be watching because of Sunny.  Love the character, hopefully they give him plenty of screen time front and center, if they don't I will probably be done and move on. 

My post was deliberately clipped and harsh Brit , regarding  Cassie Woods demise and  replacement by  DCI  Jessica  James  .  Truth is , I'm a little mad at  Nicola Walker decideling to leave the show.  This is a hit show and she chooses to leave it ......  sounds ta me like she got too much on her plate  and is starting to feel her oats . I could be wrong but it's how I feel . 

Actually, that is how I feel, Soler. I am also a little annoyed with Nicola for leaving such a popular show mainly because I think she was chomping at the bit to do "Annika" and let "Unforgotten" go to the waste-side. 

Most actors would be beyond thrilled to have such a colossal hit and would ride the wave for a good while - at least a bit more than three seasons. She is in such demand that she could walk away in to another project without looking back. Personally, as I was not a fan of Annika, I would have preferred her giving us one more season of Unforgotten. 

@BritMystery wrote:
 

Actually, that is how I feel, Soler. I am also a little annoyed with Nicola for leaving such a popular show mainly because I think she was chomping at the bit to do "Annika" and let "Unforgotten" go to the waste-side. 

Most actors would be beyond thrilled to have such a colossal hit and would ride the wave for a good while - at least a bit more than three seasons. She is in such demand that she could walk away in to another project without looking back. Personally, as I was not a fan of Annika, I would have preferred her giving us one more season of Unforgotten. 

I have held my tongue (and am not adept at doing so and admire restraint but I am new here) but I couldn't agree with you more, solar and Brit. Hope I don't offend.

Annika was okay but it was NO Unforgotten. In the end, I will follow Nicola wherever she goes, but the Unforgotten chemistry had the same feel as Morse (before they killed him off, or Gently (before they got him sick and I didn't even really like Bacchus), or Branagh's Wallander (no partnership, but they didn't have to make him sick).

Nope, killing Nicola off wasn't necessary. Want to ride off into the sunset, Cassie? Be my guest. Die in a car crash? There is a nice British word for that, but I won't use it here. 

I can't play the Morse DVD set I have that has been collecting dust. I won't watch Gently or Wallander again. And I certainly won't watch the new Unforgotten.

Oh, I almost forgot about the new cast of New Tricks. Blech.

Anyway, just me. I had to steel myself up for days to watch the last episode of Astrid (not British, French, but one of the best series I've seen) but it was worth it. I recommend it.

Again, sorry if I've offended, but if a character wants to exit, I'm talking to you writers, don't kill them off or give them a disease. Just let them decide to leave. 

Thank you for listening and pardon my personality. Oh, and I do hate real animal deaths on shows of any nationality.

OH, and when and if Vera decides to end........do NOT kill off anybody. Thank you.

 Well  said ,  dee  . 

@deedee713 wrote:
I have held my tongue (and am not adept at doing so and admire restraint but I am new here) but I couldn't agree with you more, solar and Brit. Hope I don't offend.

Annika was okay but it was NO Unforgotten. In the end, I will follow Nicola wherever she goes, but the Unforgotten chemistry had the same feel as Morse (before they killed him off, or Gently (before they got him sick and I didn't even really like Bacchus), or Branagh's Wallander (no partnership, but they didn't have to make him sick).

Nope, killing Nicola off wasn't necessary. Want to ride off into the sunset, Cassie? Be my guest. Die in a car crash? There is a nice British word for that, but I won't use it here. 

I can't play the Morse DVD set I have that has been collecting dust. I won't watch Gently or Wallander again. And I certainly won't watch the new Unforgotten.

Oh, I almost forgot about the new cast of New Tricks. Blech.

Anyway, just me. I had to steel myself up for days to watch the last episode of Astrid (not British, French, but one of the best series I've seen) but it was worth it. I recommend it.

Again, sorry if I've offended, but if a character wants to exit, I'm talking to you writers, don't kill them off or give them a disease. Just let them decide to leave. 

Thank you for listening and pardon my personality. Oh, and I do hate real animal deaths on shows of any nationality.

OH, and when and if Vera decides to end........do NOT kill off anybody. Thank you.

 

Interesting point to add to your comment Deedee, I remember reading an article somewhere that Nicola planned her exit with the writers/producers a season before (so that would be at during S2) - so she had a hand in how she exited the show. Clearly, to me, she wanted the drama of an unexpected demise - if you remember most people were in shock after the episode of the accident - very few saw that coming. 

What did she get along with this shock....everyone crying over her demise and generally a lot of hoopla with people talking about it for months and months after (we are still talking about it now). What does that really say about "why" the choice to exit that way was made?

There was a whole other storyline set up for her which would have made the fans much more happy with her decision to leave - she could have retired and rode off in to the sunset with the new boyfriend... we all saw that they were very good together and knew she was moving on in a positive way. But noooo, where is the "on the floor" drama with that? Nowhere, not even a tear with that ending and that obviously is not what she was going for. 

I would have to add to your list of partnerships with a chemistry that rivals Morse and Lewis - definitely for me I would add Hardy and Miller from "Broadchurch". I loved their dynamic, I would never get tired of seeing them together.

Regarding "Morse", you know a year or so ago I re-watched the entire series when it replayed on PBS. In fact, I re-watched most of the episodes twice as it had two go-arounds, some episodes were still glorious, others were dated and difficult to watch. Time and perspective does take its' toll. The one episode I chose not to rewatch was the finale - there I stopped short, I just didn't want to go there, it wasn't necessary, once was enough.

And, don't get me started on Bacchus - couldn't stand him, the little git that he was. In the end he had a hand in Gently's death. I stopped watching that long before the finale episode even though I loved Martin Shaw as Gently. The stories got too much for me. 

Oh, btw - I agree, "Astrid" is very good. I have the last episode to go, I am watching S1 on PBS (TV). I am hoping that PBS airs the second season as well. 

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<POSSIBLE SPOILERS>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

End first - Astrid was wonderful. Seems there is a season 2 AND a season 3. But PBS passport chooses not to show them, while PBS Masterpiece does. Yeah, like I'm going to pay for two streaming subscriptions. Oh, and when I asked PBS passport why? LOL, they ignored me. P.S. Do you understand the VERY quickly spoken French?!

I believe you're right - the PR they got for both Walker and those who will still watch Unforgotten was tremendous.

Nope, still can't watch the finale of Morse - how many years is it!?

Curtain was awful, as I thought it would be.

Oh dear, I think I blocked out of my mind that the very loverly Gently died at the end. Good thing too. Git - good word for Bacchus.

Oh, ditto on Luther, hate what they did. Although Warren Brown is EXcellent in 'The Responder' have you seen it? With Martin Freeman no less.

Finally, and I know we differ by a mile here - I HATE David Tennant in Broadchurch. He is like nails on a blackboard to me. Or, like James Nesbitt and Dominic West.

Out of nothing else to watch, I am watching the episodes with Julie Hesmondhalgh - even as I type it I don't know her name and won't remember it! - whom I recognized, in season 3. Interesting storyline.

That's why I am glad this place gave us chairs to sit on and join them, there is nothing like sharing our differences!

@deedee713 wrote:
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<POSSIBLE SPOILERS>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

 

 

End first - Astrid was wonderful. Seems there is a season 2 AND a season 3. But PBS passport chooses not to show them, while PBS Masterpiece does. Yeah, like I'm going to pay for two streaming subscriptions. Oh, and when I asked PBS passport why? LOL, they ignored me. P.S. Do you understand the VERY quickly spoken French?!

I believe you're right - the PR they got for both Walker and those who will still watch Unforgotten was tremendous.

Nope, still can't watch the finale of Morse - how many years is it!?

Curtain was awful, as I thought it would be.

Oh dear, I think I blocked out of my mind that the very loverly Gently died at the end. Good thing too. Git - good word for Bacchus.

Oh, ditto on Luther, hate what they did. Although Warren Brown is EXcellent in 'The Responder' have you seen it? With Martin Freeman no less.

Finally, and I know we differ by a mile here - I HATE David Tennant in Broadchurch. He is like nails on a blackboard to me. Or, like James Nesbitt and Dominic West.

Out of nothing else to watch, I am watching the episodes with Julie Hesmondhalgh - even as I type it I don't know her name and won't remember it! - whom I recognized, in season 3. Interesting storyline.

That's why I am glad this place gave us chairs to sit on and join them, there is nothing like sharing our differences!

 

Deedee, I just wrote you a long reply and it is not here. Don't know where it went because it was showing right after I posted it. Too long to rewrite, I'll get to it another time.

Death in Paradise has been renewed for two more seasons including Christmas specials. https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/drama/death-in-paradise-season-13-release-date-bbc/ ( this article contains spoilers for those who haven't seen all of season 12). 

Spin off series, Beyond Paradise made a promising start with overnight ratings of 4.4m viewers, but has received mixed reviews so well see...