BBC Suggestions

[knitwit45]

I can hardly wait! this series is one of the best I've seen. Gosford Park is a huge favorite, and I didn't realize Lord Fellowes had written both. What a lovely way to spend a snowy January!

[feaito]

I have been watching some outstanding BBC series like "Wives and Daughters" (1999), "Cranford" (2007) and "Downton Abbey" (2010-2011) and I have a question if any BBC connoisseur knows:

In Wives and Daughters' last episode Lady Harriet Cumnor (Rosamund Pike) wears a very contemporary haircut & hairstyle, which is at odds with its setting during the mid 1800's...I thought that it could have bee done on purpose to highlight the fact that the ending was created by the screenwriter, due to the fact that the novel upon which it's based was not finished by Elizabeth Gaskell....Could it be?

[JackFavell]

You know, something in the tone of that last episode seemed modern to me - I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but it actually bothered me, because I had enjoyed the series so much up until then. Maybe you are right, that they did it on purpose to highlight that it was "finished" by someone else - it makes perfect sense now that you mention it. It's also in keeping with the light spirit of the series.

[movieman1957]

Downton Abbey, season 2 starts next week, the 10th I think.

[feaito]

You know, something in the tone of that last episode seemed modern to me - I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but it actually bothered me, because I had enjoyed the series so much up until then. Maybe you are right, that they did it on purpose to highlight that it was "finished" by someone else - it makes perfect sense now that you mention it. It's also in keeping with the light spirit of the series.

Thank you for sharing your views with me Wendy. I hadn't noticed about the morden tone of the last episode, only about the hairdo....I'm glad that you noticed this.

[feaito]

Downton Abbey, season 2 starts next week, the 10th I think.

Hi Chris, I watched both Seasons during the last couple of months (I bought Season 1 on Amazon.com and Season 2 on Amazon.UK)....and you are in for a treat, in spite that some reviewers have stated that Season 2 is nferior to Season 1, it's one of the best Miniseries produced by any company during the last years, nonetheless....and I recently bought The Christmas Special which aired in UK on December 25th....Can't wait to watch it!

[movieman1957]

I enjoyed but The Bride and my daughter have really been looking forward to it. Season 2 starts on the local Washington station on the 12th.

Didn't even know there was a Christmas special. Something else for them to look forward to. Thanks.

[feaito]

Welcome Chris

[charliechaplinfan]

The Christmas period has been so hectic I've not treated myself to any of the Christmas specials that have been on. The BBC broadcast another version of Great Expectations with Gillian Anderson as Miss Havisham which looked really good. They're broadcasting The Mystery of Edwin Drood next week and had a good programme on about Dickens last night.

I haven't yet seen Downton Abbey when it was aired it clashed with something Chris was watching, it wasn't a BBC production and ITV are a bit hit and miss with their productions but Downton has struck the right note, I'm currently waiting to rent them from the library to catch up on what I've missed. I watch relatively little TV preferring to read but when I come to this thread I realise just how rich our television can be, we don't have TCM America here but we do have uninterrupted television programmes. One of our biggest differences I found when I visited the States is how many and how frequently the adverts are on your TV channels and how generally annoying the adverts were, particularly the regional adverts. Perhaps we just tuned into the wrong channels and there are better examples but I found them really intrusive.

[knitwit45]

Alison, I quite agree about the number of adverts we have to endure. The funny thing is, I think we have become so used to them, that unless they are totally obnoxious, we just tune them out, mentally. Some that were aired this Christmas season were unbelievably rude, playing on out and out greed. I think more and more, people are tuning to cable TV, such as our beloved TCM, to escape those ads.

[feaito]

Alison,

I can't stand adverts either...that's why I tend to watch only recorded programmes or DVDs. Thanks for pointing out that DA is an ITV production.

Last WE I played a DVD version of "Gosford Park" (2001) I bought some time ago and I could not watch it because the quality of the print was below average and it was Pan&Scan and not Widescreen, and I want to revisit this contemporary classic as it should be. I'm going to look for the Blu Ray edition of this movie.

[charliechaplinfan]

I like Gosford Park, I love all the cameos, I particularly like Alan Bates. I wonder why it took so long for a television channel to commission a series from Julian Fellowes, I always thought it was because the lovers of Gosford Park were in a minority but it's not the case. Time and again whenever the BBC does one of it's adaptations from classic literature it gets good viewing figures which tells the tale that viewers love a good story with good characters preferably acted by people they recognise.

[feaito]

I agree Ali; I'll have to watch the version I own, since there isn't another available in Chile and the Canadian Blu Ray has poor reviews on Amazon.com

[feaito]

I finished watching Cranford: a masterpiece.

[charliechaplinfan]

I never watched Cranford because I didn't care for the book but I can see how those characters would come to life on screen. Maybe I'll give this a look to, it was enormously popular when it was on. I like Elizabeth Gaskell's work but the book doesn't hold up like her work that draws attention to the plight of the poor, however so many people can't be wrong.