The Passion + The Runaway

2 drama serials


The Passion
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Passion_%28TV_serial%29


The Runaway
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Runaway_%28TV_series%29

Hitch Hikers Guide To The Galaxy + Counterstrike

Hitch Hikers Guide To The Galaxy was a 1981 Sci-Fi/comedy television adaptation of a book, a popular radio program, stage show and audio recordings. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hitchhiker%27s_Guide_to_the_Galaxy_%28TV_series%29#Episode_guide


Counterstrike was a 1969 Sci-Fi program. 10 episodes were made but only 4 survive.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterstrike_%28TV_series%29


Mystery & Imagination was a late 60's anthology series of chiller thriller's. 24 episodes were made. Here's two of them.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0165050/

The Doombolt Chase + Moonacre + Moondial

The Doombolt Chase
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Doombolt_Chase


Moonacre
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0305072/combined


Moondial
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moondial_%28TV_serial%29

Harry's Law - Disc 1

Harry's Law - Disc 1


What? An American show on this blog? Well, let me tell ya......


When I first started doing this it was intended to provide "data" on British programs for other people in the USA. I had a very nice collection and I figured somewhere out there were other people who also had an interest and it would be mutually rewarding as they say.
Ultimately, I talk with many more people outside the US than inside and at their request you may see the odd US show on here from time to time. Of course, I do have an interest in US shows from the first generation of TV: the 1950's and 1960's, but for US TV of the past 40 years I am totally clueless. I don't know anything and I don't care.
I worked nights, I went to school nights, I had family obligations nights. If I watched TV it was baseball, hockey, football and the British stuff on PBS.
This show is from writer-producer David Kelley who I gather is a Hollywood big wig. He's married to Michelle Pfeiffer and is the creator of such shows as Chicago Hope, Ally McBeal, Picket Fences, Boston Legal, The Practice, Boston Public and is the only screenwriter who has developed shows for all 4 networks.
He was also the lead writer on LA Law, Doogie Howser MD and did the US version of Life On Mars. He also wrote/produced the films Lake Placid and Mystery, Alaska. 
So why am I going on about this when I couldn't tell you one thing about any of those shows?
I recently found out that David Kelley is the same little kid Dave Kelley I knew about 50 years ago when I used to  hang out at his house with his older brother Paul. They didn't live there too long but they had a nice spread with horses and stuff but soon moved into the city where his dad was the hockey coach at one of the largest universities in the country. 
This all came about earlier this summer after I had a conversation with someone about "the oldest hockey arena" still in use, Boston Arena which has stood at St Botolph and Mass Ave for over 100 years now and what that has to do with any of this tain't worth going into.
Anyways, Harry's Law is a legal comedy-drama and currently in its second season...or so I'm told.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry%27s_Law

Jemima Shore Investigates + A Perfect Spy

Jemima Shore Investigates + A Perfect Spy


Jemima Shore is a fictional character, an investigative reporter, in a series of books published between 1977 and 1995 and written by Antonia Fraser.
The first television adaptation , based on the first novel Quiet As A Nun, appeared as 6 episodes of Armchair Thriller in 1978 with Maria Aitken as Jemima.
This adaptation, from 1983, ran for 12 episodes with veteran actor Patricia Hodge in the lead role.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jemima_Shore


A Perfect Spy was produced by BBC with funding from the US and Australia for broadcasts in those countries.
Based on the John Le Carré spy novel of the same name, it's about MI6 agent Magnus Pym from his schoolboy days until his.......well, I don't want to spoil it for anyone and you may want to avoid the wiki page.
Featuring Peter Egan who's probably best known for his comedy work in Ever Decreasing Circles and Joint Account as well as drama roles in Cold Comfort Farm, Lillie, Dark Side of the Sun and Reilly Ace of Spies.
It also stars the late Irish actor Ray McAnally.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Perfect_Spy_%28TV_series%29

Smörgåsbord - Disc 32

Smörgåsbord - Disc 32


Beaten
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0450984/


Compulsion
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1287323/


Dead Gorgeous
This one was also aired a couple times in the US on PBS Mystery.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0337967/
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/mystery/deadgorgeous/index.html


Faith
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436294/


Spacemen Three is a 12-minute Irish film with Pat Shortt, Peter McDonald and Michael McElhatton.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1233229/

Holding On + The Hanging Gale

2 drama's from the 90's


Holding On was a well-received serial with a solid cast.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0124241/


The Hanging Gale was an Irish 19th century drama serial with/by the 4 McGann brothers (Paul, Joe, Mark & Stephen) all of whom are no strangers to UK television and Michael Kitchen.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0111995/

Reckless

Reckless is a drama serial from 1997 starring Robson Green, Francesca Annis and Michael Kitchen. This also was aired in the US on PBS Masterpiece Theatre. In 1998 there was a movie sequel which also featured Geoffrey Palmer as well as the original cast. I should have listed it as "Reckless: The Movie" instead of The Sequel on the disc, but these things happen. Oh well. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reckless_%28TV_serial%29

Smörgåsbord 31

Smörgåsbord 31


Christopher And His Kind
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_and_His_Kind_%28television_adaptation%29


Eric And Ernie
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_and_Ernie


Hancock And Joan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hancock_and_Joan


Joe Maddison's War
http://amanda-wilkins.suite101.com/joe-maddisons-war-a287709


The Last Musketeer
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0246749/


Whistle And I'll Come To You
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whistle_and_I%27ll_Come_to_You

Great Expectations

There have been many film adaptations of the Dickens novel Great Expectations, but this BBC serial from 30 years ago is certainly the one that goes into the greatest depth. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Expectations_%281981_TV_serial%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Expectations

Lock, Stock...

Lock, Stock.... was a drama-comedy on Channel 4 that was sort of spun off from the 1998 film Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels (although the film was more of a hardcore crime vehicle).  The pilot is feature-length and the remaining episodes run about 52 minutes each.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lock,_Stock

Appropriate Adult + Spiderhole + The Night Watch + This Is England '86

Appropriate Adult
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appropriate_Adult


Spiderhole
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiderhole_%28film%29


The Night Watch
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Night_Watch_%28Waters_novel%29


This Is England '86
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Is_England_%2786

underbelly NZ - Land of the Long Green Cloud

Underbelly, the Australian crime drama, has become something of a franchise. Razor, the new Australian 13-part show, is currently being aired. Now it's branched out across the Tasman Sea to Underbelly (New Zealand) Land of the Long Green Cloud. 
http://www.tv3.co.nz/Shows/UnderbellyLandOfTheLongGreenCloud/AboutThisSeries.aspx

The Borgias

The Borgias is a big international production. As it says on the wiki page, "directed by an Irishman, filmed in Hungary, and produced in Canada." Listed as "historical fiction" (aka "fantasy"?) it appears this isn't the end of  it and it will be back for more. Jeremy Irons stars as Pope Alexander VI in this late 15th century tale about the Borgia family.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Borgias_%282011_TV_series%29

Spirited - Disc 2

Spirited, the Australian drama, has now completed its second series. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirited_%28TV_series%29

Yes - Honestly

Yes - Honestly was a 70's comedy that was some sort of continuation or alternate version of No - Honestly which preceded it.
No-Honestly starred the husband-wife team of John Alderton and Pauline Collins who during that same period also appeared together in Upstairs Downstairs, Thomas & Sarah, Wodehouse Playhouse and later in Forever Green. 
Yes-Honestly starred Liza Goddard and Donal Donnelly.
http://www.phill.co.uk/comedy/yes/index.html

Old Tricks

The British press is reporting that New Tricks has been contracted for two more series in 2012 / 2013, but that James Bolam has stated he will no longer be part of the cast because the show has "gotten stale". Um.....

Law & Order UK - Disc 3

Law & Order UK - Disc 3....which contains the recent Series 5 episodes.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_and_Order:_UK

Harley Street + Personal Affairs

Harley Street was a medical drama series back a few years ago. (The 4th episode was on one of the early Smörgåsbord discs as it features two British television greats playing quarreling sisters.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harley_Street_%28TV_series%29

Personal Affairs was a drama-comedy a couple years ago.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_Affairs

Crownies - Disc 1

Crownies is a new Australian legal drama currently airing until December 1....I believe.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crownies

People Like Us

People Like Us was a mockumentary (comedy documentary spoof) that had a run as a radio program before becoming a TV show. Some familiar faces pop up in these episodes.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People_Like_Us

Desperate Romantics + The Children

2 drama mini-series from the recent past.


Desperate Romantics is a mid-19th century costume drama about the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desperate_Romantics


The Children is a drama-murder mystery mini-series about a dysfunctional step-family and a murder within the family. If you plan on watching this you probably don't want to look at the wiki page as it does contain a spoiler. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Children_%282008_miniseries%29

Downton Abbey & Spooks return

Last year's popular, and extremely hyped, Downton Abbey returns Sunday night for a 2nd series (8 new episodes) as does Spooks, returning for it's 10th series (6 new episodes). Spooks is called something else in the US. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downton_Abbey
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spooks_%28TV_series%29

Tommy Cooper

Tommy Cooper was a popular British entertainer in the 50's/60's/70's with numerous television programs over the years. He died suddenly in 1984 while performing on live TV. This is just a bunch of odds and ends I've had lying around here. A lot of his stuff is available on DVD and I'm sure I'm missing a lot of it but I've never really pursued his material either. There's isn't very much accurate information out there in regards to his long television career but for those outside the UK his shows mainly consisted of standup and sketches. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Cooper

Torchwood - Series 4 - Miracle Day

4th series of Torchwood, Miracle Day, recently concluded. 10 new episodes from this science fiction drama spinoff of Doctor Who.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torchwood_%28TV_series%29

The Chief

The Chief. Series 1 - 4 only. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chief_%28UK_TV_series%29

Another Bouquet

Another Bouquet was the 1977 sequel to the 1976 drama serial Bouquet of Barbed Wire (which was remade as a 3-parter for ITV about a year ago.)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075477/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bouquet_of_Barbed_Wire
http://uktvfl.blogspot.com/2010/09/bouquet-of-barbed-wire-1976-2010.html

Inspector George Gently

Inspector George Gently returned for a 4th series (2 episodes) this month.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inspector_George_Gently

Doc Martin returns

Nearly two years since the last episode, Doc Martin, the internationally popular comedy-drama, is returning Monday night with a fifth series of 8 new episodes. Katherine Parkinson (Pauline) has left, replaced by Jessica Ransom (Armstrong & Miller Show) as Morwenna. Stephanie Cole (Aunt Joan) has left and is replaced by Dame Eileen Atkins as Aunt Ruth. Hopefully there was a little more funding in the budget this time around as Series 4 certainly had a noticeable drop in production value compared to the first 3 series.  
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doc_Martin

The Alice

T

The Alice....a 22-episode Australian drama from 2005.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Alice_%28TV_series%29

Wallander (Sweden) Discs 7 & 8

Wallander, the Swedish crime drama. Has English subtitles.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallander_(Swedish_TV_series)

Dan For Mayor + Hiccups update

Dan For Mayor and Hiccups are 2 Canadian sitcoms featuring 3 of the stars of Corner Gas. Fred Ewanuick stars in Dan For Mayor and the wife-husband team of Nancy Robertson and Brent Butt star in Hiccups. Unfortunately the combined Series 1 and 2 of each will not fit onto a single disc so both shows appear together on a Disc 2 along with the 10 Hiccups webisodes.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_for_Mayor
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiccups_(TV_series)

Wild Roses

Wild Roses was a Canadian drama series back a couple years ago.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Roses_(TV_series)

New Tricks - Series 9 update

New Tricks - Series 9

Rob Brydon Show

The Rob Brydon Show
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rob_Brydon_Show