LEWIS: ONE FOR SORROW - PART ONE (ITV)

[Spoiler-Free] Oxford-set British detective drama Lewis (Inspector Lewis in the US), a spin-off from Inspector Morse, was launched in 2006. Although it was assumed that Series 7 would be its last, Kevin Whately and Laurence Fox returned as Lewis and Hathaway for an eighth series last year on ITV.  

Series 9 premiered yesterday in the U.K. (Lewis is co-produced by the American network PBS) with the first part of One for Sorrow.

DI Robbie Lewis, pathologist Laura Hobson (Clare Holman) and DS Lizzie Maddox (Angela Griffin) try to identify the remains of a body found in a well. Meanwhile DI James Hathaway visits his estranged father Philip (Nicholas Jones), who's now in a care home because of dementia. Young avant-garde artist Talika Desai (Shanaya Rafaat) and her agent Sean Wilkinson (Ralf Little) open an exhibition of her artwork mixing video and taxidermy. But she's found dead the next day from an apparent drug overdose. Joe Moody (Steve Toussaint), the new Chief Superintendent, is dubious about Lewis's motivation for coming out of retirement and he threatens his position as a consultant for Oxfordshire Police.

Since 2013 each series of Lewis consists of stories split by ITV in two 60-minute instalments. This inappropriate change, conveniently turning three episodes into six, breaks the momentum of the story. Thankfully, feature-length versions are still aired on PBS or French public broadcaster France 3. Directed by Nick Laughland (Midsomer Murders), One for Sorrow is written by the talented Helen Jenkins, behind the return of Lewis and Hathaway in the excellent Entry Wounds last year. The cast, which also includes Emma Cunniffe, Steve Pemberton, Helen Schlesinger, and Tim Piggott-Smith, is really great.

The portrayal of Philip Hathaway by Nicholas Jones is touching. Dementia is approached with sensitivity in this very good episode (1). Angela Griffin returns to what successfully became a detective trio in the previous series. The only problem for now is the new boss, CS "Don't bother with the 'Sir' thing, it's Joe" Moody, whose only purpose is to be the perfect idiot. Of course, it's hard to replace Chief Superintendent Jean Innocent, played by Rebecca Front, but let's hope that the character will evolve rapidly in the second half (2). Lewis is a co-production ITV Studios and Masterpiece. The music, composed by Barrington Pheloung, is orchestrated and conducted by Matthew Slater.

(1) Interestingly, Kevin Whately investigated the subject of dementia in a formidable 2009 documentary produced for ITV's programme Tonight (http://tattard2.blogspot.fr/2009/03/tonight-kevin-whately-on-dementia-itv1.html).
(2) The two-part format definitely doesn't help.

http://www.atvtoday.co.uk/92812-itv/

See also:

http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/

LEWIS: ENTRY WOUNDS (PBS/ITV)

Oxford-set British detective drama Lewis (Inspector Lewis in the US), a spin-off from Inspector Morse, was launched in 2006. Although it was assumed that Series 7 would be its last, ITV announced in February 2014 that DI Robbie Lewis (Kevin Whately) and DS James Hathaway (Laurence Fox) would return for an eighth series.

Series 8 premiered last week on American network PBS (Lewis is co-produced by ITV Studios and Masterpiece) and will start tomorrow night in the U.K. 

The previous series of Lewis split the traditional feature-length episodes in two 60-minute instalments aired over two consecutive weeks. This inappropriate change in the momentum of each story (conveniently turning three episodes into six), added to a drop in quality, didn't hurt the ratings. Kevin Whately and Laurence Fox having expressed their desire to move on, the elegant last scene of Intelligent Design, the "finale" episode, saw Lewis and Hathaway enjoying a pint as the former retired and the latter left the force. PBS and French pubcaster France 3 stuck to the two-hour format.

Given all this, the commission of six new one-hour episodes (three films) looked rather surprising if not unnecessary, especially with the seventh series being such a letdown. But at least the return of Lewis and Hathaway in Entry Wounds, written by Helen Jenkins and directed by Nicholas Renton, was done properly thanks to everyone involved. Robbie lives with pathologist Laura Hobson (Clare Holman) and struggles to adapt to retirement when Chief Superintendent Innocent (Rebecca Front) uses a little trick in order to get his return on a contractual basis.

After an extended break from the Oxfordshire Police, James is now a Detective Inspector. He investigates his first murder case, a neurosurgeon shot in the head, with his partner DS Lizzie Maddox (the excellent Angela Griffin) when his ex-boss arrives. Far better than the whole previous series, Entry Wounds is a successful balance between a well-handled relaunch and a good story. Fans of Lewis won't be disappointed and let's hope the couple of other two-parters will keep them satisfied.

Ace Bhatti and Kara Tointon are amongst the guest stars. Lewis is exec produced by Michelle Buck and produced by Chris Burt. Rebecca Eaton is the executive producer for Masterpiece. The music, superb as usual, is composed and conducted by Barrington Pheloung.

http://www.itv.com/presscentre/press-releases/itv-commissions-new-series-lewis
http://www.itv.com/presscentre/ep1week41/lewis-1
http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2013/jan/17/itv-lewis-shorter-split-timeslots
http://www.pheloung.co.uk/index.html 

ENDEAVOUR (ITV1)

1965, in a Midlands town. Young Detective Constable Endeavour Morse is writing his letter of resignation from the police force but the case of a missing schoolgirl brings him back to Oxford.

Endeavour, the two-hour prequel to the long-running Inspector Morse series (thirty-three episodes from 1987 to 2000), marks the 25th anniversary of the very first episode of the popular crime drama starring the beloved John Thaw as the novelist Colin Dexter's creation. Kevin Whately, who co-starred as his sidekick Robbie Lewis, has his own spin-off since 2006 with Lewis - known as Inspector Lewis in the US. Shaun Evans (Teachers, Martina Cole's The Take) has the daunting task to play a younger version of the iconic role in this one-off drama aired yesterday night on ITV1.

Endeavour has the necessary blessing of Colin Dexter, who first wrote a short story with young Morse for the Daily Mail in 2008, and appears in his traditional cameo. The script takes a host of precautions to conquer fans with astute references and nods cleverly brought, starting with the car - not yet burgundy. It's penned by Russell Lewis, whose work on Morse, Kavanagh QC (with John Thaw) and Lewis confers him an indisputable legitimacy, and it confronts the disillusioned young copper to apparently respectable members of the Oxford community with their weaknesses and passions.

Lewis and director Colm McCarthy (Injustice) succeed with the re-creation of the familiar environment from the Inspector Morse and Lewis dramas. But as good as Shaun Evans is in capturing manners and attitudes of the character, it takes time to get used to the idea that this Doctor Who-ish young man is the same Morse we all knew. And Endeavour is essentially the sidekick of DI Fred Thursday, played by the talented Roger Allam who steals the episode in the role of Morse's mentor. He already deserves a spin-off series as the missing link between Maigret and Gene Hunt.

Guest stars include James Bradshaw as a younger Dr Max DeBryn (1), the excellent Patrick Malahide, and Charlie Creed-Miles who shined last summer in Injustice. With 6.8m viewers and a 28% share (ITV+1 included), a subsequent series could easily follow what was announced initially as a one-off. Although the young Endeavour Morse will of course have to be very rapidly less mousy to be really interesting. The paradoxical challenge of Endeavour is to find its own style in the shadow of the portrayal of Morse by the great John Thaw.

Like in Morse and Lewis, the sublime music of Barrington Pheloung is a character in its own right. Endeavour is a co-production of Mammoth Screen and Masterpiece in association with ITV Studios.

(1) Played by Peter Woodthrope in Inspector Morse.

http://www.crimetimepreview.com/2011/12/endeavour-with-shaun-evans-preview.html#more
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/8981314/Endeavour-Will-the-frosty-reception-for-the-new-Morse-thaw.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/jan/03/endeavour-tv-ratings?newsfeed=true

GEORGE UNGENTLY

ITV has announced today the casting of English actor Shaun Evans as the young Endeavour Morse in a prequel to Inspector Morse.

Endeavour, a one-off drama, stars Shaun Evans (Teachers, Martina Cole's The Take) as the character created by novelist Colin Dexter and played with absolute talent by the late John Thaw in the long-running Inspector Morse series (thirty-three episodes from 1987 to 2000). Kevin Whately, who co-starred as Morse's sidekick Robbie Lewis, has his own spin-off since 2006 with the highly successful Lewis (known as Inspector Lewis in the US).

Written by Russell Lewis (Cadfael, Kavanagh QC, Lewis), the story follows Detective Constable Endeavour Morse in 1965. The single film, made by Mammoth Screen for ITV1, will mark the 25th anniversary of the very first episode of Morse. It will be shot in Oxford this autumn and will air early next year. Michele Buck and Damien Timmer are executive producers for Mammoth Screen, Rebecca Eaton is exec producer for Masterpiece and Dan McCulloch is the producer. Endeavour is directed by Colm McCarthy (Injustice).

Shaun Evans will have to fight the shadow of the great John Thaw and judging from the photo he looks more like the Doctor than like a younger version of the beloved DCI Morse. But ITV has the golden touch for dramas, with eight of the ten most watched new dramas of 2011 and four of those new dramas recommissioned by ITV1 last month: Vera, Scott & Bailey, Monroe and Case Sensitive. Also in the pipeline are a second series of Kidnap and Ransom and another case of Victorian detective Inspector Jack Whicher (The Suspicions of Mr Whicher).

What's next? Young Kavanagh QC? Young Regan? (with Dennis Waterman as the "Guv") Or even Young Jane Tennison?

Endeavour will be distributed internationally by ITV Studios Global Entertainment.

http://www.itv.com/presscentre/pressreleases/programmepressreleases/endeavour/default.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/may/06/inspector-morse-prequel-for-itv
http://www.itv.com/presscentre/pressreleases/programmepressreleases/itvrecommissionesfournewdramasforitv1/default.html

MORE LEWIS?

[Updated][10.46 - French Time] Digital Spy, quoting The Daily Record, writes that ITV has reportedly ordered a fifth series of Lewis (Inspector Lewis in the US).

The detective drama, a sequel to Inspector Morse produced by ITV Studios, stars Kevin Whately in the title role and Laurence Fox.

Whately's Robbie Lewis started his TV career in 1987, as the sidekick of Morse, played by John Thaw. The two characters were created by Colin Dexter for his Inspector Morse novel series.

Update (13.45 - French Time): ITV commissioning team confirms that four new episodes will go into production this month (http://www.itv.com/presscentre/pressreleases/programmepressreleases/itvcommissionsmoreepisodesoflewis/default.html).

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/news/a240685/itv-orders-fifth-series-of-lewis.html
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/showbiz/2010/07/09/morse-spin-off-lewis-set-for-new-itv-return-86908-22399845/

LEWIS SERIES FOUR ON ITV1

[18.05 - French Time] DI Lewis (Kevin Whately) and DS Hathaway (Laurence Fox) are back on ITV1 for series four of Lewis .

Lewis and Hathaway investigate more murder mysteries in Oxford. Produced by ITV Studios, Lewis (shown as Inspector Lewis on PBS in the US) is now watched in more than 120 territories around the world following last fall sales by ITV Studios Global Entertainment.

The four episode series starts with The Dead of Winter on Sunday, 2 May 2010. Author Colin Dexter, who created ITV’s BAFTA award winning Inspector Morse, is once again consultant on Lewis.

http://www.itv.com/presscentre/presspacks/lewiss4/default.html
http://ow.ly/1Bfsh

FRENCH FROST FOR BRITISH CRIME DRAMAS?

[11.50] C21 reports that France 3 wants to launch a new entertainment strand in Sunday primetime, in a slot previously devoted to European drama - particularly British crime dramas.

Programming director Laurent Corteel told Marie-Agnes Bruneau that France 3's European drama slot in Sunday primetime had not performed particularly well. ITV's Midsomer Murders did well last fall but its share eroded and the channel ran out of episodes. Another UK crime drama, A Touch of Frost, was tried recently with its 14th series but "did not really work out".

In the past France 3 even aired new episodes of Taggart after a long absence of the Scottish drama on French TV but it didn't last and the crime series never came back. Interestingly, Corteel also explained to C21 that European drama won't disappear from the channel but it will probably be scheduled in the second part of the evening, or in daytime.

We'll observe how it could affect a drama like Midsomer Murders, which relies on international sales to the point that they will carefully replace DCI Tom Barnaby by his cousin DCI John Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon, introduced on ITV1 in a February episode) when John Nettles retires at the end of series 13. Because in many country the show's title bears the name of its character (in France it's called Inspecteur Barnaby).

The Sunday primetime slot on France 3 was also the home of Lewis.

http://www.c21media.net/news/detail.asp?area=1&article=55142

See also:

http://tattard2.blogspot.com/2010/02/keep-it-in-family.html

HAVE FAITH IN ITV (THE SEQUEL)

[8.27 - French Time] According to the excellent Broadcast website, ITV's crime drama Lewis (shown as Inspector Lewis on PBS in the US) will now be watched in more than 120 territories around the world following recent sales by ITV Studios Global Entertainment (http://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/news/international/lewis-sales-surpass-120-territories/5006154.article).

This news arrives after the return of the wonderful comedy drama Doc Martin on ITV1 for an eagerly awaited series 4. Martin Clunes stars as Dr. Martin Ellingham, a London surgeon whose career collapses when he develops a blood phobia. He decides to become a GP in the small Cornish village of Portwenn. But if "Doc Martin" (as he's nicknamed) is a gifted doctor, he's totally grumpy and he resents the company of practically everything from human beings - except his aunt - to dogs.

Doc Martin returned on September 20 and triumphed of BBC One's Waking the Dead. The second episode of series 4 triumphed too with 7.2M v 6.2M for Waking (http://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/ratings/dirty-dancing-gives-five-the-time-of-its-life/5006145.article).

Perhaps this and The X Factor rating bonanza (the French version started yesterday on digital channel W9) will come as a comfort for ITV, right in the middle of a terrible leadership crisis because of the difficulties encountered in the replacement process of executive chairman Michael Grade. Whoever may become its new boss (see updated candidate list here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/sep/28/itv-chairman-chief-executive-candidiates) ITV needs Peter Fincham (1). Fincham is the current ITV's director of television and has been rumored as a possible new Channel 4 chief executive..

The uncertainty over ITV's leadership could leave the company vulnerable to a takeover bid, according to a City analyst (http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/sep/28/itv-leadership-uncertainty-takeover-bid). In a recent article I joked that Disney supremo Bob Iger should buy ITV because of the synergies with the shows of Gerry Anderson (http://tattard2.blogspot.com/2009/09/spiders-and-mice-and-bears-oh-my.html).

I was half-joking, actually. Our dear Nikki Finke seems to believe shopping season is open (http://www.deadline.com/hollywood/time-warner-to-make-showbiz-acquisitions/). Regarding what happened to Marvel recently I humbly tend to agree.

(1) http://tattard2.blogspot.com/2009/07/itv-autumn-2009-drama-season-highlights.html

HAVE FAITH IN ITV

Great news: ITV has recommissioned prestigious detective drama Lewis, known as Inspector Lewis in the US, for a new series (http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/a161616/itv-recommissions-lewis.html). This announcement comes after the justified cancellation of Primeval, whose lame third series kissed the shark (1).

Honestly, the news of a fourth series of Lewis, starring Kevin Whately and Lawrence Fox, is a relief after some interrogation about the show's future regarding its cost and the difficulties of ITV (http://www.brandrepublic.com/News/887661/ITV-cost-cuts-hit-drama-daytime-shows/). To cancel Lewis and renew Primeval would have been a terrible move for both the future of drama in the UK and the future of drama and series in general on ITV. Amongst series to be noticed this summer on ITV: series three of the wonderful Kingdom, starring Mr Stephen Fry, and one of the most hilarious situation comedies of the decade: Mumbai calling.

Created and produced by Allan McKeown, Mumbai calling stars Sanjeev Bhaskar (Goodness Gracious Me, The Kumars at N°42) as Kenny Gubta, a British Indian accountant born in Wembley and sent to Teknobable, a Mumbai call center, by his boss to make it more profitable. Kenny works with Dev Raja (the excellent Nitin Ganatra), who prefers chasing his female staff, and no-nonsense Teri Johnson (Daisy Beaumont), an assessor from London headquarters. The series, shown on ITV two years after the original pilot (2007), is entirely shot in India with a substantial cast of Indian actors.

The fast-paced dialogues and gags are pure joy: each episode opens with a joke around a situation between a client on phone and an employee of Teknobable (comedienne Tracey Ullman, Allan McKeown's wife, is one of the voices on phone), the trio hires a failed British stage actor (the great Richard E. Grant) as a coach but the man is xenophobic, Amar - Dev's assistant - loses self-confidence when his parents want to arrange his marriage, etc... Should ITV not commission another series of this gem they should do a movie from it.

(1) http://tattard2.blogspot.com/2009/06/primeval-walking-with-dinosaurs.html
(2) http://tattard2.blogspot.com/2009/03/tonight-kevin-whately-on-dementia-itv1.html

See also: http://tattard2.blogspot.com/2008/12/itv-winter-spring-season-bbc-or-bust.html

TONIGHT: KEVIN WHATELY ON DEMENTIA (ITV1)

Kevin Whately is one of the most appreciated actors of British television for his roles in Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, Inspector Morse, Peak Practice and of course, Lewis. But with this episode of ITV1's current affairs programme Tonight produced and directed by Linsey Wynton, Whately shares with us a personal concern in an inspired documentary about dementia. A subject the actor knows too well: his mother, Mary (aged 83) was diagnosed with the most common form of dementia, Alzheimer's disease, eight years ago.

The term "dementia" is used to describe the symptoms that occur when the brain is affected by specific diseases and conditions, including Alzheimer's disease, stroke and many other rarer conditions (http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/documents.php?categoryID=200131). Kevin Whately believes passionately that it is important to raise awareness about dementia and its potential effects on society. But also to ensure that people suffering with dementia get much better treatment and care. In the UK 700 000 people live with dementia. Probably about 400 000 to 450 000 of these people have Alzheimer's disease. One in three people over the age of 65 will die with the disease and by 2025 more than a million will have dementia.

Alzheimer's disease results from a build-up of toxic proteines on the brain that causes nerve cells to die and the brain to shrink. Stroke related dementia - sometimes called vascular dementia, the second most common cause of dementia, occurs when nerve cells die because of the lack of oxygen. It is often following a stroke. Both provoke memory loss, particularly of the short-term memory, and confusion.

Three years ago, Kevin Whately's mother became very ill and, after a stay in hospital, the family had to move her to a nursing home because she was no longer able to cope with living on her own. Sadly she's now in an advanced condition and could not take part in the ITV programme. For the Tonight doc, Kevin Whately's brother Frank remembers when he first noticed that their mother was losing her memory, and the brothers discuss how they had to face the progression of her condition on a daily basis.

It took a few years to get Mary Whately diagnosed but about two-thirds of those having dementia have no diagnosis. British Government has launched in February a National Dementia Strategy backed by £150 million over the first two years, and wants to set up a Memory Clinic in every town. Kevin Whately visits one of these clinics, Newbury Memory Service in Berkshire, where a woman has her memory tested with a series of 19 questions after evaluation by a doctor and a clinical psychologist. Unfortunately, she's diagnosed with both Alzheimer's and Lewy Bodies dementia - the third most common form of Dementia, which bears some similarities to Parkinson’s disease.

Diagnosis is primordial. There's no cure for dementia but anti-dementia drugs Aricept, Exelon and Reminyl can improve or stabilize the symptoms of the disease in about 50% of cases. But since November 2006 NHS doctors have been banned from prescribing these drugs to thousands of patients newly diagnosed with Alzheimer's by the National Institute for Health & Clinical Excellence (NICE) because "benefits don't justify costs". Kevin Whately meets a patient with Alzheimer's, Keith Turner, who got prescribed Aricept prior to the ban and so receives it free on the NHS (£900 a year/£2,50 a day). His wife and him are now campaigning for others to have the same access (http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/youandyours/transcripts_2006_23_mon_02.shtml). Later this year NICE will review its cost calculations and consider whether to review its guidance.

During the filming of the Tonight programme, Whately discovered that there is a therapy called SPECAL (Specialised Early Care for Alzheimer's) which carers can use to make communication easier with patients with dementia (http://www.specal.co.uk/). Admiral Nurses, specialist dementia nurses, can also be of a great source of help and support (http://www.fordementia.org.uk/admiral.htm). Journalist and broadcaster John Suchet (David Suchet's brother) tells Kevin Whately about the precious help he has from Ian Weatherhead, an Admiral Nurse, in caring for his wife Bonnie for dementia. There's only 60 Admiral Nurses in the UK, funded by the NHS and local councils.

The documentary also introduces us to Music therapy, which calls to the part of the brain not yet deteriorated, and the work of Singing for the Brain (http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/singingforthebrain). Reminiscence Therapy, recalling memories ("the good old days") can have therapeutic benefits for people with dementia. And Kevin Whately talks about the importance of finding a decent care home when comes the time, and the illogism that people with dementia has to pay themselves for their care.

Kevin Whately on Dementia is a programme which is the honour of every person involved in its conception, or interviewed, for its clarity and its constructive approach of one of the main health issues of the century. Kevin Whately, who is ambassador for the Alzheimer's Society, shares his concerns and his experience with humility, generosity, and empathy. The programme and its production team deserve to be awarded and it is not unreasonable to believe that Mr Whately should have his own current affairs series.

http://www.itv.com/News/tonight/episodes/KevinWhatelyondementia/default.html
http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1163677/KEVIN-WHATELY-I-wouldnt-worst-enemy-care-homes-looked-Mum.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/4684841/John-Suchet-in-tears-as-he-describes-wifes-Alzheimerss-Disease.html