My Top 30 Shows Of The Decade! (2010-2019)

Now that we’ve ticked over into a decade that actually has a name it’s time to process a time that many have named a “golden age” in television. By the way, if you’re one of those people who actually think the twenties start in 2021 then stop reading this blog because you are clearly insane and need help. And a calendar. When we’re born we’re not suddenly aged one are we?! There’s a bit of time between! They’re called months!

Sorry, where was I? Ah yes. Here is my personal list of my favourite shows of the last ten years. There’s no Fleabag because no matter how good it is there’s the inescapable feeling that it is overrated. There’s no Game of Thrones either. I saw the first episode and once you’ve seen Emelia Clarke naked it’s not going to get any better than that is it?

This has been an intense work about a great passion of mine.. TV that is – not Emelia Clarke’s bum. That’s a blog for another time. Feel free to debate, disagree and even rave about the show’s in my list. It’s all a matter of opinion. There will never be a definitive list because art speaks to us in many different ways. These are the show’s that made my heart beat faster, made me laugh and made me cry. God bless television…

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30: What Remains (BBC1) 2013

David Threlfall couldn’t be further from Frank Gallagher here. As Detective Len Harper he finds himself on the other side of the law in this claustrophobic whodunnit. When the decomposed body of a woman is found in an apartment all of the houses residents are suspects. Intriguingly and thoughtfully paced, What Remains is an underrated work.

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29: Catastrophe (Channel 4) 2015-19

From a dysfunctional couple to an even more dysfunctional family, creators Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney put their namesakes through the mill with a mixture of highly developed intelligent comedy and plenty of potty mouthed goodness. A warts and all look into modern relationships.

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28: People Just Do Nothing (BBC3) 2014-18

The mockumentary on a mock pirate radio station kurupt FM. Consider yourself mocked with strange garage beats and the ridiculous adventures of a gang with the common sense of school children. Funnier that Craig David’s back catalogue, People Just Do Nothing has a unique flow and poetry to its comedy.

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27: Rhod Gilbert’s Work Experience (BBC Wales) 2010-18

It’s official, Rhod Gilbert can make anything funny. In one of the episodes he works in a hotel and changes beds yet manages to weild more laughs than Basil Fawlty achieved before serving breakfast. He flies a plane, becomes a vet and even poses as a male model. However, what truly makes the show is Rhod’s gruff, cynical and quick-fire narration. His unrelenting one-liners prove he should stick with being a comedian.

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26: Doctor Foster (BBC1) 2015-17

Suranne Jones gives a powerhouse performance as a woman betrayed by the equally screen stealing Bertie Carvel. It’s a small town show with grand ideas, some of them absolutely barmy, but Mike Bartlett’s script pushes the intrigue and suspense to extreme levels. It’s a theatre play portrayed as a glossy small screen spectacle. Doctor Foster is about the complexities of adult relationships but with a heightened, melodramatic fizz.

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25: Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle (BBC2) 2009-2016

You know Stewart Lee, you’ve seen him. On the telly. His Comedy Vehicles are thirty minute, meandering diatribes and they are essential. Between his takes on “The UKIPS” and Chris Moyles, Lee berates himself and the audience in ever decreasing stages of madness. Iconic television that deserved more love.

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24: Broadchurch (ITV) 2013-17

It’s easy to forget the cultural impact of Broadchurch back in the first season. The nation was hooked on the mystery of Danny Latimer’s death but it was in the harrowing effect on the local community where writer Chris Chibnall really struck gold. David Tennant and Olivia Colman as Hardy and Miller, two cops thrown together, were the definition of chemistry.

Yes, series two was a bit of a letdown but the change of direction in the last run got the show back within touching distance of greatness again with a difficult subject handled with class. Series one won’t just be a classic of the last ten years, it will forever be a classic nonstop.

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23: Taskmaster (Dave) 2015-

Put a bunch of comedians in a room and you’re bound to be entertained. Get them to do ridiculous tasks and put them in a room to talk about doing the ridiculous tasks and you have an instant comedy franchise. Greg Davies and Alex Horne monitor proceedings in the hope things get out of hand and they often do. For instance, that time Liza Tarbuck got Alex to sit on a cake with his naked bottom.

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22: Bang (S4C) 2017-

A multilingual crime drama based in Port Talbot, Bang was an intense thriller which was essentially about one single gun and the chain of effects it has. Dark, twisty and so beautifully shot the town itself was a main character. Stories are rarely told from these corners of Britain and the good news is there’s a second series starts in early 2020.

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21: Stranger Things (Netflix) 2016-

It was acceptable in the 2010s. Hmm, not quite so catchy is it? The Duffer brothers piled on the nostalgia and dayglow horror to provide Netflix with one of their biggest ever hits. While evil tree branchy type things are the focus of the show’s evil, Stranger Things is all the classic buddy movies brought to the small screen.

Let’s face it, things with child actors are usually fucking awful but the show’s biggest success is how wonderful the main cast are. The third series saw an evolution and change of direction so hopes are high for the future of Stranger Things.

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20: Dave Gorman: Modern Life Is Goodish (Dave) 2013-17

Imagine Black Mirror if it was much more obscure and performed by a comedian. That’s the pitch. Dave Gorman is in the form of his life as he studies the intricacies of modern day living with his own unique perspectives. Be it online shopping, hassling Alan Sugar with billboards or furrowing the real depths of the internet – the comment sections. Cynical but warm, opinionated but friendly. Modern Life is Goodish was most excellentish.

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19: Cucumber (Channel 4) 2015

Russell T. Davies wrote a study on modern day homosexuality through they eyes of Henry (the excellent Vincent Franklin) a middle-aged man who has his life turned upside down after a party that involves a death. He flees his previously stable relationship to house share with a flat full of young strangers led by 19 year old Dean.

In typical Davies style Cucumber is laced with innuendo and high energy plotting. It’s some of the bravest drama commited to television. It’s funny and heartbreaking and leaves you on a constant seesaw between the two. There is one particular scene that is so shocking it’ll effect you for days. You’ll know it when you see it.

While being crude without ever being tasteless, Cucumber was always about the bigger message. By challenging society’s perceptions of gayness and all sexuality it stands the test of time. The last, subtle line uttered by Henry is quite the ending for this one and done series.

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18: Spotless (Netflix) 2015

Jean Bastiere’s life was perfect on the surface with his lovely family and big house but appearances are deceiving. His job could almost be a metaphor for he runs a business that cleans up after crime scenes. His world is turned upside down when his brother Martin visits with a freezer and a dead body inside. Like you do. What follows is a chain of events that spiral out of control, so much so they end up working for a mob by clearing up their dirty work.

Spotless is dramatic, cinematic and full of bleak humour in the darkest of circumstances. It’s the compelling story of a good man taken way out of his comfort zone but it’s Denis Menochet who plays Martin’s scruffy womanising bad boy with glee that steals the show.

As compelling as it was gory, a second series was on the cards but sadly it seems network wranglings have put paid to those hopes. We’ll have to keep Spotless as an eternal sunshine of our minds.

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17: Misfits (E4) 2009-2015

Not all superheroes wear capes – some wear boilersuits. Cruder than Superman in a brothel, more disgusting than Batman’s coke habit but funnier than Ardal O’ Hanlon in My Hero. Seriously.

Five juvenile offenders team up to do community service but a freak thunderstorm gives them powers they don’t understand and the magical ability to kill all their probation officers. Clumsy.

If Misfits had been American then it’d have been glossy and the superpowers would have been useful. Instead these delinquents botch their way through misadventures while trying to shag eachother.

Misfits flows with energy and off-kilter weirdness. From the bizarre (sample line: “Fuck the Tortoise, Alex”) to the blasphemous (THAT nativity scene).

While it didn’t quite adjust to an entirely new cast with as much comfort as a certain show that is higher on this list, Misfits was and will always be a riot.

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16: My Mad Fat Diary (E4) 2013-15

An eye-catching take on teenage life based on the real-life experiences and book of Rae Earl. It’s Sharon Rooney’s task to express Rae’s issues with body image, mental health and self-abuse and she does so with great dignity and humour. If this had been a movie and not tucked away on E4 then all the awards would have been falling at Rooney’s feet

Set in the nineties, My Mad Fat Diary tells the story of her interegration into a group of school friends, one of whom is Chloe, played by the then up and coming Jodie Comer. You may have heard of her?

Colourful, brash and highly inventive yet all that still ignores the kick ass nineties soundtrack. By using The Charlatans’ ‘One To Another’ as the theme song it was never going to do wrong was it?

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15: Sherlock (BBC1) 2010-17

These Sherlock Holmes adventures set in present day London were full of writer’s Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss’ usual sense of wonder and wilful deception. Everything clicked from the first minute and in Benedict Cumberbatch a rising star shone brightly.

The feature length episodes flew by with the help of brilliant dialogue and eye-catching cinematography, a lot of which has been copied to death since. Sherlock was fun and over the top but it’s extremity was what made it a trendsetter. Incredibly crafted plotlines took unexpected tangients and series 4, which many hated, was all the madness spilling over. Did it jump the shark by the end? Yes. Was it still highly watchable crime drama with twists galore? Absolutely.

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14: Uncle (BBC3) 2014-17

Nick Helm plays the dishevelled Andy who is forced to be young Errol’s (Elliot Speller-Gillott) uncle in nature more than just in name and a beautiful if strange friendship results. So far, so very twee you’re thinking? Except it’s done under the influence of alcohol and drug addiction while bursting into inappropriate songs. Dylan Moran even appears as a wizard. Potty mouthed but full of emotional resonance, Uncle was a family pack of laughter.

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13: Black Mirror (Channel 4 & Netflix) 2011-

Black Mirror’s first ever episode involved the Prime Minister fucking a pig and that’s one of the more normal plots that bears resembence to our times. Charlie Brooker’s anthology series on mankind’s relationship with technology might have dystopian overtones but sometimes the stories reflect the news in the months that follow transmission.

Dark, twisted, satirical, frightening and sometimes, just sometimes funny. A constant parade of strong casts and intriguing plots mean Black Mirror continues to be worryingly relevant and episodes such as ‘San Junipero’ and ‘Hang The DJ’ prove it’s not all doom and gloom.

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12: Luther (BBC1) 2010-2019?

Idris Elba is commanding as detective John Luther. Sure, his personal life is complex but it gets a lot weirder when he runs into Alice Morgan (played with a devilish viguer by Ruth Wilson). Alice is a murderer our antagonist can’t lock up. Against all odds they form a crime fighting partnership which surprisingly doesn’t follow rules.

In short, Luther is a mad show. A crime drama that’s permanently heightened and that’s where the fun lies. Writer Neil Cross revels in the world of this alternative London with a dark hearted crime drama that’s both thrilling and extremely gory. It’s a near perfect balance of murder mystery and action. You’re either not into Luther or you’re along for the whole ride. Just don’t get the night bus, eh?

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11: Happy Valley (BBC1) 2014-

Writer and creator Sally Wainwright had a prolific decade of not just hit television, but top quality television at that. Last Tango In Halifax, Scott & Bailey and Gentlemen Jack add to what was an already impressive CV but arguably the high-water mark is Happy Valley.

Sarah Lancashire is sensational as police sergeant Catherine Caewood, a woman struggling with her daughter’s suicide and living with her alcoholic sister. Tommy Lee Royce, played by James Norton who is clearly enjoying going dark side. Tommy has recently been released from prison. The thing is, he raped Catherine’s daughter and was ultimately responsible for for her death, not that he got locked up for that. His new found freedom causes fractures in catherines personal and work life.

Gritty is a word that could sum up Happy Valley as the backdrop for all this is a small working class town riddled with poverty and addiction. These are themes that run through the show.

The dialogue is so masterfully constructed and real to life and an impressive cast brings life to this little world with big problems. Wainwright has such a natural ability to make characters real and not just half-arsed sketches.

Despite such a huge chasm of time since the last series there is a third in the works but it’s likely we’ll have to wait at least a couple more years. The pace of life in the country is slower to be fair.

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10: Inside No.9 (BBC2) 2014-

From the, let’s say perverse, minds that gave us The League Of Gentlemen and Psychoville came a horror anthology as shocking as it was surprising. Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton dreamt up the surreal, the creepy, the mad and everything else on the bonkers spectrum.

By it’s very nature there will be episodes that disappoint, it’s range of tone and subjects won’t translate to everyone at all times, but if you don’t take to one episode it’s likely you’ll fall in love with the next. When it excels it’s one of the best things committed to telly. The variation and depth of material is to be respected.

The silent episode ‘A Quiet Night In’ was the first hint that we had something special but the tone always shifts. Take ‘The 12 Days of Christine’ which is genuinely heartbreaking. Or Zanzibar which is a hotel based farce spoken entirely in spoof Shakespearian. In ‘Diddle Diddle Dumpling’ a man becomes obsessed with a stray shoe. There’s plenty more where that came from.

2018’s live Halloween special could have been the moment Inside No.9 ate itself but they mastered every detail to perfection and so high was the concept they got viewers switching off in droves. That’s art that is.

The new decade will usher in the fifth series and as usual we have no idea what to expect other the the number nine being involved. Who knows, maybe even that’s not a guarantee.

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9: Detectorists (BBC4) 2014-17


In a decade where cynicism grew exponentially, MacKenzie Crook offered an obscure form of light relief. Tucked away on BBC4 and offering a comforting hug to those who discovered it in the ditches of the TV schedules, Detectorists was never really about metal detecting – it was about friendship. Hapless though Lance and Andy were the important thing is they were nice. That’s it. It’s not very fashionable is it? We willed them to be better with women. We hoped they would find their pot of gold.

Through stunning shots of the English countryside Detectorists brought a warm glow even if the weather conditions were drizzly. Lance and Andy nattering about nonsense was the heart of the show of course but no show is complete without a nemesis and in the ridiculous form of the ‘Antiquisearchers’ (or Simon & Garfunkel to be more precise) they definitely didn’t meet their match. So much comic gold was mined when the pairs squared up against each other.

Let’s also not forget the oddball characters that made up the Danebury Metal Detecting Club and their awkward, mostly pointless meetings. It all added to a small world with a big heart. This should go down as an all-time classic comedy, one that gave our flawed antiheroes the ending they deserved.

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8: Community (NBC & Yahoo Screen) 2009-2015

Meet Jeff Winger, a lawyer who finds himself at Greendale Community College after having his degree revoked. Jeff stands as the morale conscience of the show despite not having many morals. He meets dipsy Troy, geeky Abed, grouchy Pierce, bubbly Shirley, cutesy Annie and not so brittle Britta. They’re the seven dwarfs of pop culture references and meta comedy.

What starts out as pretty standard fare soon blossoms into a programme full of creativity and fierce intelligence. Community starts descending, or rather ascending into a world of crazy parodies and obscure ideas with the crazy dial up at eleven. There’s the spectacular episode where we visit many different timelines including Abed’s darkest. There’s the paintball episodes where Greendale keeps becoming a surreal shooting range. Then there’s the episode that is entirely animated. If these sound a bit too gimmicky then there’s the bottle episode where they’re in one room just looking for Annie’s pen.

Creator and lead writer Dan Harmon (now in charge of Rick And Morty) was absent from the often ridiculed fourth series which the show itself later referred to as “the gas leak year”. We had six seasons in the end but will we ever get the movie?

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7: Mongrels (BBC3) 2010-11

RUSSELL HOWARD’S EYES! Yes this is a high placing and it’s fully deserved. Welcome to the back garden of a pub in the Isle of Dogs, this way madness lies. Maybe “welcome” isn’t the word because being called a cunt may not be considered de rigueur in polite society… and this isn’t polite society. Only posh fox Nelson could fall under that category for he’s a metro-sexual il Divo fan.

The rest of the puppet reprobates that make up the cast are Vince the sweary fox, Kali the bad pun pigeon and Destiny the selfish dog but the less said about her the better (if only they’d followed up on the hint that she’d died at the end of series one) Lastly, and certainly not least there’s Marion the bin dwelling cat who is many furballs short of common sense.

While clearly influenced by fast-paced American comedies, Mongrels revels in the shitness of Britain. It’s crude, lewd and even offensive if you’re of a certain disposition. No subjects are off limits and it proved more cutting than any satirical show out there. They managed to do this in stories about Marion getting stuck in a wheel and training Michael Jackson’s monkey to stop masturbating.

It’s scattered with pop culture references, some of which have admittedly dated in the past ten years but many still stick. There’s also lots of brief appearances from celebrities willing to be ridiculed. Let’s face it, some are more known than others. Who’s Paul Ross?

Then there are the songs, oh boy, those songs. Marion’s ode to his underage sweetheart Lollipop, Nelson’s tourist advertisement for Millwall (“No-one’s been stabbed here since Friday / Arson is on the decline”). The previously mentioned monkey singing of his desire to murder Justin Bieber. There are so many slices of inappropriate should have been hits.

The attention to detail in both the puppetry and blink and you miss them visual jokes show a real creativity that’s gone into making of the show. The voice work is exceptional too with nods to Rufus Jones as Nelson and Dan Tetsell’s baffling transilvanian accent for Marion being the true stars of the show.

Mongrels was cut short when in its prime as the best things often are, like Princess Diana and Fuse bars.

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6: Utopia (Channel 4) 2013-14

Meeting people you know online in real life isn’t as frowned upon as it once was but if Utopia is anything to go by, perhaps it should be. Foul mouthed Becky (Alexandra Roach), straight laced Ian (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) and the paranoid Wilson Wilson (Adeel Akhtar) had been chatting together on a forum about ‘The Utopia Experiment’. This is a graphic novel which allegedly predicted the disasters of the previous century but it’s the unpublished follow up which everyone thinks will save the human race, that makes people lose their minds.

This new strange alliance sets out to find the manuscript for good reasons but ‘The Network’ want it for bad and go on a killing spree. Neil Maskell is fascinating as the sullen Arby, the murderer who has his own catchphrase in “Where is Jessica Hyde?!” We, the viewer soon find her and she’s played with relish by Fiona O’ Shaughnessy.

In keeping with the comic book theme, the palette in Utopia is visually striking with its bright, bold colours where yellow is the stand out. Look very closely and you’ll see how much it subtly filters into virtually every element of the show. It adds to the uniqueness of a thriller that would stand on its own anyway.


The brilliant soundtrack supplied by Cristobal Tapia de Veer is another important factor. The electronic glitches and uneasy bleeps sit perfectly with the oddness of the world Dennis Kelly has created. Imagine The Chemical Brothers on antidepressants.

Utopia is darkly comic and comically gruesome. While not the fastest moving of shows, the storytelling, humour and sense of farce are what give the urgency. Never a show to play it safe, so much so that the first episode of the second run was a genesis story featuring none of the main cast. From humble beginnings to eugenics and the dark forces behind it, this was a television masterclass and it’s influence on television dramas that followed is clear.

Everyone on the screen is playing a blinder (that’s an in-joke for fans) but there are two stand out performances. Alexandra Roach embodies the opinionated and strong willed Becky with classic one liners and Adeel Akhtar’s nerdy, complex Wilson Wilson is so good they named him twice.

If Utopia has one major flaw it’s that there was no resolution. The story hadn’t finished and that is an insult to the writer, cast and fans. Series two ended on a cliffhanger and then Channel 4 pulled the plug. The Network were evil commissioners all along. There was talk of a streaming site taking it on but nothing ever materialised. There is however an American remake in the offing but that must be greeted with cynicism. The original story wasn’t fully told, why start a new one? There wasn’t a show like this before and there hasn’t been one since. Utopia is small screen paradise – if paradise involves a lot of bad language and killing.

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5: Peaky Blinders (BBC1) 2013-

Back in 2013 the thought of Cillian Murphy playing a gangster would have seemed like we’d entered Abed’s dark timeline again. “Remember I’m an actor” he told writer Steven Knight when doubts were raised and what an actor he is. This slight, pretty man inhabited the demons of Tommy Shelby and made him walk tall into TV history.

Peaky Blinders tells the story of a family between two wars. Brothers Tommy and Arthur are struggling to cope after returning as soldiers. Their PTSD manifests itself in different ways, Tommy is the brains of the operation and Arthur is the attack dog. The Shelby Company limited sets up an illegal bookies and they also start exporting booze and drugs. Needless to say they get caught up with all the wrong kinds of people. Or wronger kind of people.

Peaky manages to be extremely violent and yet sumptuous to watch. It is crafted to near perfection to create a believable if grim world. Aesthetically no other show can compare as a period piece with this amazing interpretation of the times.

Backed up by a stellar cast including Helen McCrory and Sophie Rundle and guests such as Sam Neil, Paddy Considine and some bloke called Tom Hardy, Peaky Blinders continues to deliver shocks and emotional gut punches. Should we care so much about a criminal gang? Of course not but the combination of Knight’s writing, the remarkable direction, loud as fuck soundtrack and perfect cast means we can loosen our morals a little.

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4: No Offence (Channel 4) 2015-18

Crime Dramas have been ten a penny the last ten years but creator Paul Abbott had his own take on the genre. Sure, there were elements of ‘Shameless’ in the DNA but this was like no show ever seen before. No Offence was chaotic, bizarre and hard hitting. It was fast moving and dialogue heavy, so much so it could almost be disorientating. Hilarious one liners and ludicrous situations mixed effortlessly with big issues such as the murders of girls with Downs Syndrome, child slavery and far right politics.

With all that going on you need the performances to pay off so step forward Joanna Scanlan as Viv Deering. Viv is intense, playful, hard as nails and vulnerable. Most of all though she’s funny as hell. There’s so many wonderful quotes that there’s no point going into them all. If she’s not using breath spray on her privates she’s breaking the rules in her own style. Deering has to go down as one the TV greats.

It’s not all about Viv though. No Offence is an ensemble piece and everyone has their moments. Elaine Cassidy as the intensely moral but wayward Dina gives the performance of her career. Alexandra Roach as the innocent but kick ass Joy is a revelation. Then there’s Paul Ritter having the time of his life as Miller, a man who revels in the moribundity of it all and takes everything that bit too far. He is outstanding and one of his greatest moments came when he shouted “I’VE GOT GOAT ON ME!” before licking it off his coat “No, it’s Curry” Oh, by the way, they blew up a goat with a bomb. Of course they did.

Sadly this year Channel 4 announced that No Offence was not coming back and that is a dreadful loss. Television needs brave, visionary storytelling like this. One day it will be considered as a classic and when it is Viv will be raising a wry smile knowing she was right all along. As always.

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3: Car Share (BBC1) 2015-18

On paper Car Share had all the appeal of being stuck in traffic with Jack Whitehall as a your passenger. Frankly, the premise of two colleagues going to and from work is hardly something to get the pulse racing. In an age where comedies are fast paced, abruptly edited and over the top, Car Share proved there’s hilarity in the mundane and plenty of heart in the normal. While it defied genre norms it also set a benchmark by smashing iPlayer viewing records.

If you’re looking for epic plot twists and convoluted storylines then you won’t find them on the not so mean streets of Bolton. If however you want to see someone accidentally drink some piss then this is for you. It’s the mix of slapstick and intelligently observed long-form conversation that gives Car Share a warm, comforting feel and that’s nothing to do with the urine.
Charm is a word used way too often in TV circles but this has it in spades. Two opposites collide and the results are fun and often bizarre. John (Peter Kay) is a grumpy cynic worn down by years of middle management. Kayleigh (Sian Gibson) on the other hand is the bright, perky and sometimes irritating angel on his shoulder. John’s view out of the windscreen is a foggy grey mist whereas Kaleigh sees sunshine and rainbows through the same glass. The actor’s real-life friendship shows on the screen. Opposites attract as the wise prophet Paula Abdul once said.
Speaking of pop music, let’s hear it for the show’s third main character – Forever FM. The local radio station it’s ok to listen to. It’s upbeat music and oddball adverts soundtrack the show’s feel good tone perfectly. While your ears digest the cheese your eyes are distracted by ridiculous road signs and billboards. Ugly city landscapes are turned into comedy art. The attention to detail isn’t just in the script. Just don’t mention that dirty back window.

While Peter Kay is on top form, the undoubted star of the car is Sian Gibson. Her portrayal of quirky Kayleigh is totally endearing. No-one has delivered a line about an iceberg lettuce quite so beautifully.
There are so many classic moments from John’s loudspeaker call to his boss to Kayleigh’s neighbour going dogging. The standout might just be Reece Shearsmith’s appearance as a smelly fishmonger with anger issues. His scenes are full of such joy and the three of them together is comedy gold. Who doesn’t need a whiffy rendition of ‘Here Comes The Hotstepper?’

They almost messed things up by giving the second series just four episodes that culminated in an unhappy ending. Due to public demand they came back with two specials in order to prevent the politest riot ever. Curiously one was an unscripted special which basically amounted to a DVD extra. The finale made up for everything though with an ending that was happy but not overly saccharine.
Car Share first aired in 2015 and if you feel weighed down by all the gloom of current affairs then why not treat yourself to a rewatch and transport yourself back to more innocent times. Yes, it’s been a really long decade indeed but thank God John and Kayleigh were there to make us smile.

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2: Line Of Duty (BBC1) 2012-

First put out in 2012 during what will potentially be our last ever summer of love, Line Of Duty was the antithesis of the countries mood. While everybody was preoccupied with the Olympics and being proud of our country AC-12 were rooting out bent coppers before it was fashionable.

Comprised of Ted Hastings (Adrian Dunbar) Kate Fleming (Vicky McClure) and Steve Arnott (Martin Compston) the anti-corrupton unit were hot on the tail of Tony Gates, a man they believed to be fiddling the figures. What seemed like a fantastic one series arc soon bleeds onto the new story of series two. Keeley Hawes took on the role of the hunted for one of the best moments of her career. From then on each new run catches you off guard and pulls your pants down. Everything, no matter how unconnected it seems, turns out to be part of a far bigger conspiracy.

Jed Mercurio’s writing is so intricate and clever. Things don’t make the final draft for no reason. The sheer audacity to stick to the conspiracy whilst throwing in curveballs as bullets is the sign of a master at work. In Line of Duty he has created a vibrant, suspenseful thriller, the like of which has not been seen before. Far from being boring, thirty minute interrogation scenes are heart racing slabs of perfect melodrama. The beat to those interviews are almost hypnotic.

Adrian Dunbar is in great form as Ted, a man so full of principles he might burst and let some secrets out. He’s authoritative, charming and has many a catchphrase to cause a chuckle in the most heated of moments. But every good man needs a nemesis and AC-12 has had its fair share so it’s worth mentioning that Lennie James, Keeley Hawes, Daniel Mays, Thandie Newton and Stephen Graham have all been worthy adversaries. All villains with shade and complexity. If they walked on stage at a panto they wouldn’t get booed. They’d be greeted by confusion. Mainly because five year olds won’t have watched Line of Duty. Craig Parkinson’s excellently sinister Dot would not only get booed but kicked out the theatre – by the children’s parents.

2020 will see our favourite anti-corrupton unit (BOO TO AC-9!) return. Is Ted really dodgy? Will Arnott buy some more waistcoats? Just remember one thing – don’t trust anyone.

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1: Being Human (BBC3) 2009-2013

So a werewolf, a ghost and a vampire decide to live like humans do. They get jobs, a house and a TV license. They make friends they will lie to, take lovers they will infect-in fact, the only part of humanity they successfully adopt is its ability to deceive and destroy”

A small scale domestic drama with a supernatural twist. It’s a simple houseshare premise but this time the inhabitants are a vampire, a ghost and a werewolf. The scope of creator Toby Whithouse’s vision meant BBC Three’s modest little show transcended it’s humble beginnings. The balance between mundane domesticity and ambitious science fiction is just part of what makes Being Human truly special. This isn’t grandiose Dracula style mythology nor is it tepid Twilight / Vampire Diaries nonsense.

Initially set in Bristol with Mitchell (Aidan Turner) George (Russell Tovey) and Annie (Lenora Crichlow), series one could almost be classed as the innocent times. Innocent here translates as bloody killings, haunting your ex from the grave, being accused of fiddling with kids and a gruesome battle with an arch enemy. The masterstroke is that all these things happened between conversations about mouli graters and Marigolds. This balance continued perfectly throughout all five series. Switching between brooding intensity and full-on funny within seconds came naturally to a show that never played it safe. There were two mass murder sprees and a baby was blown up yet this doesn’t come close to describing the blood shed or services rendered as Mr. Snow might say. This deep mood is darkened further by composer Richard Well’s atmospheric original score.

Being Human evolved further with a move to Barry Island and enforced cast changes that would’ve been a stake through the heart of most shows. In series four and five we were gifted with newcomer Damien Molony and his awkward bromance with Michael Socha’s Tom which, along with a move deeper into science fiction territory gave proceedings a new lease of life when it wasn’t thought to be needed. Kate Bracken’s Alex soon completed a new trio that weren’t given enough time together because the axe fell in 2013. While general consensus lies with the original trio being the best, what followed them is extremely underrated. The first three years may have been more consistent but when the last two years peaked the episodes were equal to and sometimes even better than the original incarnation. ‘Making History’ stands atop a very busy podium.

One of the biggest factors in Being Human landing the top spot is the dialogue. Oozing with quotability and natural conversation, everything flows so bloody well. There isn’t a show around with dialogue this special. Take Hal’s tense reunion with Mr Snow in the cafe. Take George calling Mitchell “deadly furniture”. Take Herrick’s last speech in the cellar. Take Alex berating Hal for causing her death. Take the epic Captain Hatch speech in the finale. Take Ivan’s shruggles to stay clean (“I’m this close to wiping out an entire branch of Argos”) Take it all for goodness sake and annoy your friends by quoting it all the sodding time. Who cares if they have no idea what the hell you’re talking about.

It goes without saying how strong the aforementioned actors are but Being Human was chock full of talent everywhere you looked. Sinead Keenan’s Nina was an undervalued character but a vital part of the story. It may be because she dumped George and challenged Mitchell as to why praise wasn’t heaped on in spades but it’s easy to forget that she started out human. Nina is us, the viewer, except she actually inhabits this strange world for the first time but still with all her natural instincts and moral convinctions at her core. In the second and third installments particularly Sinead deserved equal billing.

Then there was Herrick, the greatest baddy there’s ever been. On the surface he looked about as threatening as a lamppost but Jason Watkins took a great villain on paper and twisted him into something special. He acted his socks off with knowing smiles and wicked grins. So good was Watkins that on Herrick’s grand return he made us think the old rogue could have some redemption inside his cold, cold body. Silly us.

The acting credits are an impressive rollcall featuring respected names such as Donald Sumpter and Phil Davis to early roles for up and coming performers. Craig Roberts played a perverted teenager in his forties, Alexandra Roach fell apart as a decomposing zombie, Sacha Dhawan hunted vampires so badly they slayed him and Sara Pascoe was a widow ghost mum. There are too many to mention because it’s bewildering and that’s before you hear who some of the writers are. As you ask, Tony Basgallop, Lisa McGee, Sarah Phelps and Jamie Mathieson to name some.

Long story short, if you haven’t watched Being Human then make a start on it today. If you have watched it then do it again and again until Toby Whithouse is in 10 Downing Street and its script is taught on every school syllabus. SHOW NO MERCY.

Peaky Blinders: The Shock (Series 5, Episode 5 review)

“A CONSEQUENCE OF GOOD INTENTIONS”

It turns out Polly’s aim with a bullet is as pinpoint as her sass and rumours of Linda’s death have been greatly exaggerated. There’s a strange hate directed at Linda in the fandom and many will be up in wound free arms. Strange, because all of Arthur’s toxic actions are overlooked mainly because he’s a man, but thats a debate for another time. Meanwhile, Doctor Tommy is quick on the scene to apply his own medical style. A stunned Arthur, who by now is begging for the kindness of death is thankful. “I saved his life, he hugs him” Pol bemoans with a knowing look almost to camera. In the end, Linda says her goodbyes on her own terms and it looks like this really is the last we’ll see of her.

So what of Oswald Mosley who, to prove the point, is more popular than Linda? He takes it upon himself to grand stand on Tommy’s platform. His diatribe is full of slogans such as “change is coming” and “false news”. It also went on way too long so there’s another comparison to today’s political escapades. There’s also an odd moment where he eyes up the swan (honestly, it did happen) that jars because his impassioned speech continues but his lips stop moving. It’s obviously meant but somehow looks like a mistake in the edit. Either way, Mosley looks to have the upper hand. “Drink less” he orders Tommy as he walks out of the room but this is a spur for him to down a few in one go. That’s their relationship to a Tee (well, a whiskey).

What most sets Peaky Blinders apart from other shows is the music but setting two sex scenes to a song from Radiohead’s ‘Ok Computer’ is a brave move even by its own standards. The claustrophobic sounds of anguished guitars and distressed vocals as Oswald watches himself in the mirror and Tommy lays Lizzie down as an act of power play are about as sexy as dipping your genitals into a beehive. But then, hopefully that’s the point.

Ben Younger gets his reluctant hands on the evidence of a criminal network as supplied by Tommy. The claim earlier to his wife that he’s only doing it to get favourable terms on defence contracts is pretty transparent. Lizzie and Ada see the heart beating underneath. “Don’t listen to my sister’s opinion of me. They are always hopeful, therefore always wrong” he tells Younger, a man who will never get older due to the small matter of a bomb going off in his car. In an instant two lives are gone and so too might be all the evidence. Tommy running into the street to save the children amid the debris is an affecting moment made more heartbreaking as Tommy follows the hearse of the young boy killed at a grand funeral he clearly paid for. The scene is set to Joy Division’s ‘Atmosphere’. Hardly an original choice, it might even have been a respectful nod to the Ian Curtis funeral from the film ’24 Hour Party People’, but flipping hell it was powerful.

In another inspired Steven Knight twist we suddenly find ourselves in a mental asylum with Tommy to meet an old friend. The whole set up as he’s getting searched and walking to the cell is deliberately designed to build up the hope with every footstep that Allie Solomons is behind the door. It’s actually Barney Thomson who we’ve never met before but he fought the war with Tommy ten years previous. It serves as a reminder where Thomas and his brother could end up. What starts as an attempted mercy killing ends up in potential assination. A plan is hatched to free Barney from his padded cell resulting in a gleeful “IT’S FUCKING WEDNESDAY!

For an episode which had a bomb explosion, awful sex, Arthur going physco with a gun and a prison escape the pacing still feels on the laboured side. That’s not to say it was bad, far from it, it just feels like a new era for the show and shows must always evolve. For any new slight flaws there will always be new positives and the mix of dialogue heavy scenes and action sequences must be a difficult balancing act.

As things stand we now have the plan in place. The Billy Boys and Oswald Mosley are in Tommy’s sights and the war we were promised looks to be back on again. To quote the Black Sabbath tune at episode five’s denouement: “Evil minds that plot destruction /
Sorcerers of death’s construction“. Indeed Ozzy, indeed.

A LITTLE PEAK:

– Artistic license has always applied to Peaky Blinders, historically speaking. Mosley lived until 1980. Will the sniper miss?

– Arthur’s gun toting lunacy at the London docks felt a bit forced and fan servicey.

– “He’s in the mood for a quarrel”. Perhaps the most obvious thing said about Arthur ever.

– “Don’t scare me by saying you see things in my face” Tommy can’t hide from Lizzie even if he wants to.

– Michael and Gina have gone very quiet which is disconcerting.

– Alfie gets a mention when Tommy refers to him in the present tense. Is he really alive? Is Alfie part of a back up plan?

– Has Tommy been his own black cat all along and does that mean he’s trying to not walk in front of himself?

“I don’t think it’s really flour” Nothing gets past Curly.

Peaky Blinders: Black Cats (Series 5, Episode 2 Review)

Peaky-Blinders-season-5-2026935 (1)
“YOU MIGHT HEAR SOME BANGS

Tommy has been standing on landmines since the war, mostly metaphorically, but in quite possibly the most stunning opening seven minutes of a TV show ever he does it for real. For as long as we’ve known him he’s always thought of himself as a dead man walking and this provides the perfect visual metaphor. He stands before his scarecrow self which is hung on a cross, millimeters from being scattered across the field like compost. Stylistically the direction and atmosphere has a poetry to it  Amid all this drama the only sound is the foreboding bluster of the wind in the distance. Until Tommy goes full suicide bomber that is and we hear those bangs. Boy, do we hear them. As he says shortly after, “It’s pretty dark Frances”. We wouldn’t have it any other way.

Meanwhile Michael is apprehended on his way back and held in Belfast by the Occupied Six Counties who report that he has betrayed his family. His eventual return is met with a magnificent standoff in the street and is followed by a bruising non physical showdown with Tommy and Arthur in the bar. Cillian Murphy saying so much in his performance when saying so little. His words undercut by mixed messages. “Ok Michael, I believe you” he deadpans before demanding his money back. He giveth then taketh away. Michael and Tommy squaring up are heart skipping moments and give the show a new kind of edge. Let’s face it, this show has always had edge.
An intriguing turn this year is the younger generation starting to stand up for themselves. “General Finn” too is getting his say even if that say is ignored. “I’ve met this girl and want to get married” he declares proudly, “Fuck off!” responds Arthur. Classic bants. The dialogue is even zippier this series and that is quite an achievement given all that’s gone before.
Lizzie and Linda are also taking on the Peaky patriarchy but their letters of intent fall on flat ears , or burning coals to be precise. They are dismissed but no moment was crueller than Tommy telling his wife “In my head I still pay for it”. He definitely deserved the gun pointed at him.
We meet the Billy Boys. We know they’re the Billy Boys because they politely introduce themselves (“Did you not hear my song?!”) They’re a Protestant razor gang and they surprise Aberama Gold’s picnic, not to steal the sausages, but to kill his son Bonnie and tie him to a cross. It’s gruesome and as Gold lies in a pool of his own tears his life is spared purely to pass a message on to you know who…

Narcism and paranoia are the driving force behind Tommy now. He states “I am the revolution” and that “Someone wants my crown” This is no longer about family. This is about status and ego. Michael, Lizzie, Linda, Aberama, the Billy Boys and probably the whole of Ireland are in his sights. Apologies if anyone was left out, it’s difficult to keep up. Everything is falling apart from the inside while the hunters outside prowl. Let’s enjoy the fireworks because the bangs are set to get even louder.
A LITTLE PEAK
– In a rare moment of vulnerability Tommy told Arthur “I don’t like the fucking life” with tiredness writ large over his face. The human inside is trying to come out.
– We got another glimpse of Oswald Mosley who was met with Ada’s typical offishness. He is being held back for now.
– Here’s betting The Garrison doesn’t serve Guinness.
– “How can a one armed man avenge the death of his son?” Hand grenade? Knife? Angry glove puppet? The possibilities are vast.

Peaky Blinders: Black Tuesday (Series 5, Episode 1 Review)

“EVOLUTION OR REVOLUTION

Cillian Murphy rides once more into the breach (on his one horse open slay). His return is grander than a canyon and it’s bloody spectacular. Tommy is a man full of his own importance and the cinematic opening sees him once more as the star of his own Hollywood tragedy. Television shouldn’t look this good, television shouldn’t feel this good, television shouldn’t sound this good and yet here we are in 1929 setting higher and higher bars for programme makers in 2019.

While Murphy rocks every scene he’s in with a vibrant coldness, the malevolent world of Peaky Blinders is brought to life by every character, every set detail, every chord struck and every line said in the Brummy timbre. Quality runs through every pore of its sweating but very furrowed brow. The show knows how bloody good it is and even if the first ten minutes play out like a blockbuster film, it’s the subtlety in everything that follows which transcends it beyond just theatre – this is art.
The central theme of series five looks set to be Tommy’s inner demons but this isn’t an overnight thing. This has been going for six years. Strands from previous series are always picked up on or referenced to. Nothing feels throwaway and even if Steven Knight did scrunch an idea up and throw it in the bin he must later save it from the recycling to take us by surprise.
Maybe Michael will wish Knight had trashed the bit where he inadvertently loses a lot of money in the stock market crash because Tommy is furious with him. Actually, Tommy is furious with everyone. Lizzie, their son, and later on a journalist. “What do I have to do to make people fucking listen to me?!” he bellows. His family might zone out but the irony of Tommy being welcomed into the Garrison with open arms by an adoring public is strong. His reputation has changed with his role as an MP but with the inner turmoil rapidly escalating he should be feared more now than ever.
With Tommy’s struggles as the centrepiece Peaky Blinders has evolved. It may not be the Arctic Monkeys blasting riot fuelled pubescent early days anymore but in middle age it is aging well. The storytelling is even better, the direction is more on point and the impending sense of doom is even more sinister. Anna Calvi’s score is perfectly in sync with Tommy’s despair. It’s a glorious marriage made in hell.
Believe it or not there are softer moments too and Arthur’s attempts at holding a meeting are uncomfortably funny. Even when Finn got shot we were allowed to raise a smile. Sorry Finn While there has been many funny lines in the past it feels like a concerted effort has been made to make the lighter moments lighter. That may have something to do with the transition to BBC1. It’s not even a criticism because the comedy works and in every other way there’s no sense of compromise. Peaky Blinders is still unrelentingly dark and violent. Which is nice.
It’s a wonder of script writing how Knight can focus on Tommy’s downfall and unite his venture into politics so harmoniously, yet alone everything else that’s going on. In parliament he isn’t much more corrupt than the fellow politicians and it’s delicious to see him let loose in this world of careerist vagabonds. Two standout scenes highlight this perfectly. The first when he knocks red wine onto the table and the second when he’s at loggerheads with a journalist by the name of Michael Levitt. Two people are simply talking in a darkened room but the tension is unbearable and broken up only slightly by Tommy’s insistence that he writes it all down. The closing scene is confirmation that with power comes great irresponsibility. Levitt Is shot down im a swarm of bullets. It’s graphic and shocking and would no doubt make Quentin Tarantino a little jealous.
So our antagonist is making enemies out of his own family, has enemies in his own head and is making new enemies with each new scene. With friends like Tommy and all that..
A LITTLE PEAK
– Ada is pregnant. In an incident packed episode this news felt small fry.
– The surprise appearance of Grace felt eerily out of place at first but in full context it does make sense.
– We see a little glimpse of Oswald Mosley and as hindsight has taught us, anyone with a ‘tashe like that shouldn’t be trusted.
– It’s good to see Aberama Gold still working for the gang. For the time being anyway.
– Lizzie has quite clearly had enough of Tommy’s shit. In fact all the women have. An uprising is in the offing.
– Michael is going to have quite the welcome back. Let’s just say the order on bunting has been cancelled.

Peaky Blinders Series 5 interview With Executive Producer Caryn Mandabach

This interview was conducted for thecustardtv.com and an abridged version can be found there.

Caryn has taken the long route via horse and cart to end up in the dark streets of Small Heath. Back in her birthplace of America she was executive producer for such hits as The Cosby Show, Roesanne and Third Rock From The Sun. Now settled in England, we have been called to this extraordinary meeting by an incoming message from the big giant head. Probably.

Was the process more daunting this year knowing the show was moving to BBC One?

“It’s a joy to be on the BBC generally. I don’t know if we’ll be more or less received, all I know is it’s a giant hit and a giant hit in my American view means that a lot of different people tend to watch it. I feel Peaky is a hit because everyone likes it, old or young, rich or poor, male or female.
Peaky has fans in Iceland, Uruguay, Mexico, Russia. There’s fans everywhere largely because of Netflix but it’s still an incredible thing to think about how wide and deep. Sometimes you can have a deep hit and I believe Peaky is both wide and deep. Also, I just think it’s really good!”
How difficult is it to make the show look so cinematic and beautiful on a relatively low budget?
“Ooh! I’m just desperate to answer that question.. because we’re extremely good at it! It’s a crafted show, this is not a corporate effort. It is so beloved and every craftsperson, which includes anybody who has anything to do with it, loves it because they know the intention is to support Steve’s vision as realised by the director. There’s such respect for the craft. Every single decision is related to extremely talented, top of their game people. A lot of the time we get favours from people who want to be on the show. The musicians don’t have to give us their stuff.”
Caryn is gleeful in her passion and love for the show. Her excitement grows with each question. This isn’t just a job for her, this means something. If her aura was visible it’d be a warm Ready Brek glow of pride and rightly so.
Series five sees Anthony Byrne take over as director. What does that bring to proceedings?
“Every season has a slightly different genre. The first one was definitely a Western. Two men meet at the bar, one guy rides in on a black horse and there’s a woman between them. The third season was psychological, almost tragedy because he lost his wife and season four was siege”
Caryn makes strangely convincing machine gun noises but it doesn’t interupt her flow.
“You’ve got a guy with a toothpick so there’s gangster in there too. Directors are chosen for their ability to approach genre given those characters. Anthony Byrne is TOP. OF. GAME”
Anna Calvi does the soundtrack this time, how did that come about?
“The director, he really took that forward. She’s done the score – it’s unbelievable! I met her for the first time the other day and I was really in awe. I knew she was the right girl”
Music has always been such an integral part of the show and the combination of the historical setting with contemporary songs is part of what makes the unique atmosphere.
“Time shouldn’t be that important. Certain things are eternal. If you’re hearts broken it doesn’t matter who’s singing. Like, ‘A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall’ at the end of last season.. the guy is walking down, he’s just become an MP, he’s got a broad over here and a broad over there. He’s got a baby and just put a gun in his pocket after joining the Labour government. It doesn’t matter that Bob Dylan did it in the sixties, we have to choose the music that fits the emotion. It’s so chic I can barely stand up!
Also, what PJ Harvey did in series two.. to finally hear a female voice and it wasn’t Nick Cave who is our original curator of Tommy’s subconscious. You don’t want to go too far from Nick Cave and one degree of separation is PJ Harvey! Then you’re not too far from Thom Yorke. They’re cerebral and also talk about what’s going on inside a man’s head, even Anna or PJ. The score has to underscore what people are feeling and in particular, Tommy”
There are original songs as well?
“Not from Tommy’s perspective. We are commenting on how he feels because sometimes Tommy doesn’t know what he’s feeling”
Having worked in both, what differences have you noticed between British and American television?
“In England you’re not used to doing multiple series. In America we don’t say “series four was better than series two” we just think it has to keep getting better. We anticipate and prepare for the fact that things are going to continue and that the story will continue to be as interesting.
It’s not like a soap opera. Here’s a guy walking around with a subtext. He’s got family, he’s got a love life and he’s got a text around him that’s ever changing. This season has a different text to Lucas Changretta coming to get him”
Steven has started writing series six with the hope of a seventh to follow, what do you think the chances are of a film or spin off?
“As I was saying, it’s a crafted experience. You can’t put a gun to Steven’s head and say “For money you must deliver!” It doesn’t make any sense. It has to come from an organic place. I think we have to talk more about craft and less about corporate needs.
In principle the ‘Peakyverse’ is my favourite place to be. When I get a new script, honestly, I’m like a kid! He’s finished thirty scripts now. That’s thirty hours. That’s fifteen movies in a span of eight years. That’s a giant achievement. That’s crazy! Who has that body of work?
Cillian once said he thought he was going to die when reading a script for the end of series two and started crying. We still have that same innocent response as you would if you were twelve and reading Dickens for the first time”
What are the biggest production nightmares in the making of Peaky Blinders?
“If we feel there’s going to be a real production problem we’ll push back or if we feel he (Steven) has already covered it but we don’t note him. The biggest problem..?
She pauses and thinks how to answer diplomatically then clearly decides not to and pulls a sulky face.
“We don’t have enough money!” That’s about it really. The whole thing is a joy”
What benefits would a bigger budget give you?
“Two areas, the first is schedule. We have to shoot out of order so Cillian can do an episode one scene in the morning and the end of episode six in the afternoon. A feat that’s insane. That’s not talked about enough – Cillian’s astonishing performance.
Secondly, we can’t afford some artists. When we started out we were told we would have to cover Nick Cave for the American version. I said “there’ll be no covering Nick Cave or Jack White!” We had to write that cheque. I had to go into my own purse and write a cheque. So we could do a better job of marketing ourselves”
Despite budget limitations you’ve had some incredible talent take part.
“All our antagonists have said “Please don’t kill me!” Sam Neill really didn’t want to leave and neither did Adrien Brody.
They (the guest stars) are all very very good. You can see the actors are having a good time and are at the top of their game. Helen (McCrory), who would want to be in a scene with her? She’ll kill you! It’s terrifying how they’re all so wildly talented”
Caryn has a wistful look in her eye at the mere mention of that name.
“When I first met Helen she goes”who are you?” I said “I’m Caryn” and she was “let’s be friends and I was “ok!” She’s so present and very giving to the other actors. They all are”
Put it this way, if series five has even half the energy that Caryn possesses then we are in for a real treat. The show couldn’t be in better hands.

Peaky Blinders Series 5 Interview: Sophie Rundle & Natasha O’Keeffe

This interview was carried carried out for the custardtv.com The abridged version can be found there.

It’s great to meet Sophie and Natasha together, both are of a similar age and with CV’s that are growing ever more impressive. Sophie has been part of both successful cult programmes and massive ratings hits, with Bodyguard and Gentleman Jack the most recent of those. Before the huge success of Peaky Blinders one of Natasha’s earliest breakthroughs was landing a leading role in Misfits. Both are young and have the acting world as their oyster but today they are only here to talk about that one little area of the planet called Small Heath.

What’s in store for Lizzie this time around?
Natasha: “It’s an entangled relationship between Lizzie and Tommy. She is one of the Shelby’s now she has a child with him. Lizzie is the engine behind Tommy at this stage. She’s been the loyal one that’s keeping him grounded”
How has she taken to being a mum?
N: “She’s kind of the lady of the manor as they have a nanny. Lizzie is embracing motherhood and is trying to protect her family”
Is her sex work fully in the past?
N: “She knows where she’s come from and knows in a click she could be back there. There’s a plot in this series where there’s some mindplay and she’s got to work with that”
Sophie: “That’s part of what pulls Lizzie in. She feels like family and they’re all trying to escape their past. It’s why you work well in that dynamic. They all had nothing and now they’re living these very ostentatious lives. A wrong step by the family and it could all come crashing down”
What’s Ada’s take on Tommy’s Westminster career?
S: “Politics has always been Ada’s thing. She’s got strong convictions and now that Tommy has taken a step into that area that world has come back to her. It’s frustrating that her older brother is getting to do what she wanted to do. As a woman that route isn’t an option for her. She becomes his confidant and ally in many ways. They’re perhaps the two most intellectual Shelbys and that bonds them. This is Ada and Tommy finding a mutual understanding”
Ada has always been in a moral conflict with her family.
S: “I think she always will be to a certain extent but she’s embraced it out of necessity. She loves her family therefore has to accept them”
Does Ada clash with Oswald Mosley?
S: “She has an eye on him and an opinion!”
The women of Peaky Blinders have formed a strong unit recently. Is there more if that?
N: “Yes, most definitely. There’s also more covert things happening behind the scenes without the men involved!”
S: “I think it is still quite unusual to get such strong, brilliant, powerful women on screen so it’s exciting when they collide with eachother. It’s not just one strong female character leading a drama, they’re fucking everywhere!”
Apparently, Peaky Blinders has more female viewers than male.
S: “I think it’s a really outdated, lazy inherited opinion that women like this kind of TV and men like that kind of TV. In the past five to ten years we’re really splitting that open. There’s an assumption that women like nicey nicey shows with princess hair and men like guns. I don’t know any women like that in my life . It’s about the story. There isn’t too much toxic masculinity on this show and it is counteracted with people being fallible as well as the interesting female characters. That is appealing to everyone”
N: “The show is essentially about an idiosyncratic family so I guess that’s why it’s popular as well”
What do you make of the public’s reaction to the show?
S: “It’s mad isn’t it? What did you get given by David Beckham?”
N: “Well, he said he’d get me a coat from his clothing range because I like tailored things but I didn’t actually get a coat, I got a candle!”
S: (Who is in hysterics by now) “It’s so weird! David Beckham sent you a candle!”
N: “And a little note!” As a Manchester United fan my ten year old self would never have thought I’d shake Beckham’s hand. It’s just really funny and so random. Yeah, there’s David Beckham between a take just chatting with Steve (Knight) behind a monitor”
S: “We’ve come a long way from series one where people were like ‘P..P..Pokey Blunders?!’ and then there’s David Beckham”
As they sit here they’re a far cry from their screen personas. They’re more like naughty sisters, giggling at everything and trying to hold back the inappropriate stuff. It’s almost as if they’re bloody good at the acting malarkey.
Where would you like you character to go from here?
N: “In my dream scenario, if it’s going into political lands, then Lizzie Stark/Shelby as the next Prime Minister! It could go anywhere. That’s the beauty of this show. Think of all the people you could invite in from history books”
S: “It’d be interesting to see these women, instead of having to insist upon freedoms and liberties, being given them. I’d like to see what they’d do with that and the tragedy of another war. When we first met them it was on the back of these broken men and that’s what makes this period so fascinating with hindsight. They’re living between these two wars but they don’t know that”
N: “Maybe the show will keep going until we’re really wrinkly”
S: “I’d like to play Ada Shelby as a granny! That’d be really cool. We could all come back to it in forty years. Imagine if Ada or Lizzie were your granny with the stories that they could tell. That’s a show I want to watch. We’ll be Maggie Smith and Judy Dench!”
If they keep going the way they are then a damehood in the future is more than a distinct possibility. Coming to a screen near you (not very soon and if you’re alive) – the Peaky Blinders 2059 reboot. So, who is going to be the first to Faceapp Ada and Lizzie for the promotional poster?

Peaky Blinders Series 5 Interview: Steven Knight

This interview was carried out on behalf of thecustardtv.com and an abridged version can be found there.

Steven Knight has become one of television’s most successful writers since Peaky Blinders launched back in 2013. Not just content with creating one of The BBC’s most critically acclaimed hits he’s also close to finishing scripts of the second series of Taboo and has completed ‘A Christmas Carol’, starring Guy Peace which is coming to your screens this winter. If he is feeling the pressure it’s not showing as he takes his seat with a relaxed smile, clearly relishing what series five has in store.

What are the themes of the new series?
“It’s a fork in the road for a lot of characters, especially Tommy and if you put it simplistically, between good and bad. Is he going to do the right thing? It’s about members of the family being confronted with things that are so huge and potentially damaging that they have to decide who’s side they’re on”
What is it that will make Tommy happy?
“I think that he’s drawn to acquire power but doesn’t know why. Tommy doesn’t know what he wants since the war. If anything, I’d say what he wants is to go back to being the person he was before the war. He worked with horses, he was attached to nature, he had compassion and feelings but the war blasted everything out of him. When he came back he was just switched off so what I’m trying to do over the series is flick his switch back on and make him human again even though it’s painful to start feeling”
Do you have a writing process? Is the plan still to take the Shelby family up to the second world war?
“I don’t really plan things to that extent but what I do have is a destination and when you have a destination you can then get there however you want because at least you know where you’re going. For any journey the most important thing is where you’re heading so it’s always been a particular scene at a particular moment in history that’s going to happen, it’s just how you get there. I’ve found that sitting down and planning an episode doesn’t work for me”.
Do you know how Peaky Blinders ultimately ends?
There’s a knowing laugh followed by a firm “Yes…” The short silence that followed conjured up so many possibilities.
So you knew how series five ended when you started it?
“Only that, so everything else is up for grabs. You can do anything else, keep Tommy alive.. probably and head for that destination. It sounds weird but I know the characters really well so I tend to put them in a room and let them talk about anything. The kiss of death is saying ‘in this scene she must reveal this to him’ whereas if you just let them talk it happens naturally.
For the end of series three the idea was to split everybody and series four forced them back again. What I wanted at the end of the fourth was to experiment with the idea that you get to the end of the series and there’s still ten minutes left, so what are you going to do? So Tommy, goes on holiday and can’t stand it. So what am I going to do now? So I come up with this thing that completely surprises everybody”
Is Tommy’s PTSD explored further, as hinted at in that finale?
“Very deeply. A lot of it is about where he’s at and the business of coming alive again. He hasn’t reached the bottom yet. What I didn’t want to do is give him post first world war stress related mental illness in series one and in series two say ‘oh, that’s over now’. I want to keep it going because these people lived with it all their lives”
On Tommy’s venture into politics, there are certainty comparisons that can be made between the late twenties and the current climate.
“It’s extraordinarily appropriate. It’s fortunate for me and unfortunate for the world but those years had a great deal in common with what’s happening now. There’s the rise in nationalism, populism, facism and racism were suddenly becoming currency, becoming respectable. Some of the things that were said at the time could have have been out of the newspapers today – word for word. It’s quite chilling because we all know how it ended up, it ended in war”
Were you conscious of drawing those parallels in your writing?
“I didn’t even have to. I didn’t have to force it because you just read what happened and what people said and quote that. I think people will think I made it up. It’s like with Churchill, you take things that are real, dance around them and join the dots. It’s great for driving the plot when you know that history is marching alongside you”
How does Tommy manipulate the establishment from inside?
“He’s in his element in the house of commons because he’s found an environment where people with power are not particularly scrupulous. There’s lots of fighting, lots of gangs. His ability to speak, control and strategic are really useful. It’s not beyond reality”
What can we expect from Oswald Mosley? How do he and Tommy spar against eachother?
“Tommy confronts many things. Family things, gang things and emotional things but the biggest thing he can confront is this new sensibility. Sam (Claflin) is absolutely hypnotic in it”
The show has had its share of brilliant guest stars over the years.
“We get a lot of approaches from astonishly A-list actors who love the show but we’ve always tried not to make it ‘spot the celebrity’ because it’d spoil the atmosphere”
Is there life in these characters beyond 1939? A spin off maybe?
“They wouldn’t fight in the war but they would live through it. I’m starting to think there’s something to be had there. I don’t know yet, it’s just a thought”
A film has long been rumoured. Is there any substance to that?
“I’d never rule anything out. The inspiration came from my parent’s stories that I heard when I was a kid so the world sort of came out of that. It’s the details that are really amazing. The authority of truth is always important”
With that, it’s time for Steven to leave and head to a spa weekend retreat or whatever the hell it is he does to keep himself so calm and serene. There may be be gruesome murders and graphic violence in his mind but he’s floating out of here on a different plain to the rest of us. We, and not just for the obvious reason, really don’t want the second world war to start.

Peaky Blinders: ‘The Company’ (Series 4, Episode 6 Review)

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“Big fucks small”

So it turns out the ominous shadow of Alfie Solomons was not being followed by further shady characters. Not directly anyway. He just wants a chat and chats with Alfie are always a one sided affair, he regales Tommy of his plans to move to Margate and intentionally(?) offers some cryptic advice.

Meanwhile, back out in the boxing ring “gypsy boy” is taking a bit of a battering but it’s all for show. The ladies are getting merry and Arthur’s drug induced paranoia proves correct. In a dark corner of the venue he is jumped on, strangled and left for dead. Tommy arrives too late but fires shots in the ring out of fury. For what is essentially the second billing character to be killed off is a shocker and for the first time in a few episodes makes real the threat of the Mafia. Finn even comes of age in true Peaky fashion by taking the eyes out of a “wop”, glee covering his face as he does so. Welcome to the dark side, Finn. It’s exactly the sort of exhilarating set piece the show thrives off. Violence and intrigue matched perfectly.

“You can sign them on your knees”

Tommy has a new plan and it looks a lot like the white flag of surrender Changretta’s mother was just waving at him. In a move that gives an impression the series is going to end on a whimper, he agrees to sell over his businesses to Luca. The moment Tommy gets to his knees and starts reeling off a speech after minutes of silence is when you realise we’ve been deceived. Deception has played such a big role in series five, it really should have its own credit on IMDB. Heeding Alfie’s “advice”, they find someone bigger and turn the just thrown tables round onto Luca. The gunmen that have been trained on the Blinders now turn to their enemy.

That’s not all, though is it? From being redundant and then dead of all things, Arthur suddenly turns up to be the one who shoots Luca with his own bullet. We’ve been conned again but it’s all worth it for the shock value. Welcome back Arthur, though we didn’t get the chance to miss you.

“Alfie, stop talking!”

In a more gory and unromantic version of Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, Tommy meets Alfie on Margate beach. No ice creams, no seaside reminiscing, just penance for treachery. Even with death encroaching, Solomons still babbles on and only a bullet to the face stops him. Is he even dead? Even if the dog gave him mouth to mouth his chances aren’t looking good, frankly. Women might not fancy Tom Hardy so much with half a face.

“Distilled for the eradication of seemingly incuarable sadness”

Arthur’s words that the “war is over” don’t ring true though. The Mafia may be gone but the much bigger war still is playing on Tommy’s mind. On a self-imposed break he retreats back into the PTSD and no amount of gin is going to put a smile on his face. No matter how bad he felt, his strop at golf was perfectly justified. So, who do you call when you’ve got a really depressing montage to soundtrack? Radiohead, of course.

“Your cause is now my cause”

Tommy and Jessie reunite, get naked and fight for socialism together. Which sounds like a lot of fun, doesn’t it? In a political twist more surprising than Jeremy Corbyn’s first Labour leadership victory, our main man runs for office and soon becomes the representative for Birmingham South. How much is for personal gain and how much is actually for social justice is up for debate and will surely be explored in the next series. It’d be great to see more of Jessie (we saw quite a lot of her tonight to be fair, nudge nudge) with a more substantial storyline.

Did the set up six weeks ago live up to its own billing? Probably not. The threat was never quite as bad as was made out. However, Peaky Blinders always serves up unexpected twists and thrills through the lens of incredibly shot, brilliantly acted television. If series five is the last, let’s cherish every minute because we won’t see its like again. 9/10

 

 

Peaky Blinders: ‘The Duel’ (Series 4, Episode 5 Review)

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“Me and you, Tommy”

We pick up exactly where last week left off, Tommy being followed in slow pursuit by the Mafia and with a knowing look into the rear view mirror we know that our anti-hero is in on Polly’s plan. What follows is an epic, noisy opening few minutes of, let’s face it, very badly aimed gunfire. There’s more shots here than in the last half hour of Hot Fuzz as Tommy and Luca rampage through a housing estate.

Riveting though it most definitely is, it does raise some questions. Why did Changretta and his gang not carry out the deed on a quiet road en route rather than wait for the final destination? Why did Tommy not seek back up from either the Blinders or the gypsies to help him take on the hit squad? Is his death wish so strong? Hey, who cares, it looks amazing. There’s a murder committed through a white bed sheet and everything. An unlikely advertisement deal with Ariel is but a phone call away (“Killed someone on your linen again? Try new Shelby All In One”). The duel doesn’t last very long because it is crudely interrupted by the police.

“I don’t drink whiskey or gin anymore”

Lizzie delivers the news of her pregnancy in typical matter of fact Lizzie fashion and Tommy takes to the news as if he’d just won a tenner. He has got the shakes though, bless. He did kill three people, not sure if he mentioned it.

While pregnancy is causing one person to tone down on their vices, the same can’t be said for Arthur who is getting carried away with the white powder and not the kind Tim Henman would happily promote. That combined with his drinking means he’s slipping down a very slippery slope and falling down a very still table. He calls for Linda to save him but frankly, the man may be beyond redemption. Full marks for Paul Anderson’s drunk acting, it was convincing enough to conjure up images of Delia Smith shouting on a football pitch.

“I know ways back that will take forever”

Much to Michael’s delight, Polly arranges a little holiday for him with the gypsies. The idea is that he’ll be off map and avoid detection. While the son is away the auntie will play as she soon starts locking lips with Aberama Gold. Inappropriate men indeed. They may be getting it on but Gold knows full well that if any harm comes to her child, then he won’t have the equipment to get it on much longer.

“You just made a deal without a negotiation, didn’t ya?”

There’s another face to face duel as Luca squares up to an Alfie who conveys much more menace than the man stood opposite, even with his eyes closed. The negotiations involve an indecent proposal of sorts. Alfie will hand Tommy over at the boxing match if Luca runs his alcohol into New York. We don’t get the outcome of this intriguing conversation, but where would the fun be in that?

“Tommy Shelby is going to stop the revolution with his cock”

The pesky C word pops up again – communism. Ada is taken in for questions by the military who have a keen interest in her political past. As with most things, Tommy is responsible. His wheeling and dealing  climbs two further levels. Firstly, the military have offered him a lucrative contract and secondly, he reveals his plans to deceive and corrupt Jessie Eden for his own gain. Profit over principles. The very opposite of the socialist he once was.

They settle down for a dinner that wouldn’t have made the edit of First Dates. The tone is completely serious and worse still, Curly is the DJ. You can see Jessie’s guard falling by the wayside as Tommy works his charm once more but fair play, she doesn’t put out. Physically, at least anyway. In the end she does comes to an agreement she’ll soon regret.

“Take your bets”

And so to the ring and there’s nothing Peaky Blinders loves more than high octane drama around a boxing match. Out of the shadows Alfie appears in a blaze of mystery. Is he alone or did he strike a deal with Luca? The imagery of Tommy walking into the light suggests it’s actually a trap for the boys from New York. While the Mafia haven’t lived up to their early threat, next week’s finale still looks set to be an explosive, gory and satisfactory ending to the series and hopefully Changretta’s bloody toothpicks too. 8/10

Peaky Blinders: ‘Dangerous’ (Series 4. Episode 4 Review)

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“If you’re here in one hour, I swear to God I will cover you in tar and fucking feathers”

One of the many great strengths of Peaky Blinders is the unpredictability of its narrative. It never adheres to a set formula and that is shown off with great dexterity tonight. The first half plays out like a series finale. Teapots are shaking and guns are blazing as a woman from the past comes back to haunt Arthur. The second half takes the foot off the pedal and even the loud reintroduction of Alfie Solomons can’t shift the gloom encompassing Small Heath.

Mrs Ross, the mother of a boy killed in the ring at the hands of the moustachioed one, offers Arthur round for a nice cuppa and a big slice of decoy cake, which tastes even worse than last week’s dry scone. It’s all a trap so Mr Changretta can sneak into the hospital unchallenged and he’s not turned up with grapes. Turns out, this is just more gameplay too. He pushes an unloaded gun into Michael’s sweaty forehead and pulls the trigger. It’s all about the drama and that was a truly dramatic way to open the show.

As Luca saunters away, turbo charged on his own raging gangster pheromones, things soon come to a standstill at a road block. This time it’s Luca who has been lured into a trap. One of Aberama Gold’s making. Gypsies assemble (now that’s an idea for Marvel) en masse and shoot to kill. Changretta gets away. Of course he does, but the driver isn’t so lucky. It establishes just how dangerous the two sides are and shows that Tommy being between the two parties means he is the very epicentre of the storm.

“Sometimes he sees something glamorous and expensive.. he just can’t resist it. He’s so weak”

Lady Carleton is back on the scene and even though she’s smelling of paraffin it won’t put Tommy off. They talk about horses and drink gin but it’s quite obvious the chemistry between them is as explosive as the factory when he walks through it. The train strike that never happened was another trap. but this one didn’t catch its intended target. They kiss but the lady isn’t for turning. She has his horse but he doesn’t have her heart.

Speaking of long faces, this brings out Lizzie’s exquisite bitchiness (“fuck Tommy and his cock and his gin”). Her seething jealousy is not in the slightest bit hidden, yet Tommy remains oblivious. He might have to take notice soon if Lizzie is pregnant, as is hinted here.

 

“Morning Alfie”

It is a typically grand introduction for Tom Hardy, clearly still loving the role of Alfie and making his potty mouth sound so ridiculously poetic. Which side is he on? What kind of world is this for kids to live in? Answers on a postcard. He squares up to Aberama Gold with great comic pathos. This is a verbal wrestle but they set up a proper one and Gold’s boy is, as ever, up for the fight. Quite where this storyline  is heading is a mystery but it’ll certainly be an entertaining spectacle.

“Just tell us where and when. We’ll do the rest”

Of course, Michael is now wise to Polly’s deal with the devil and we have to wait most of the episode to know what he does with the information. As it turns out, he simply wishes his boss a good weekend. Which is nice, isn’t it? If you disregard the fact he’s letting Tommy leave that building knowing he could be dead by Monday morning. Still, Australia is nice this time of year..

As Tommy sets of, his car is followed by Luca and his gun toting team while a pensive Polly looks on. Is Peaky Blinders brave / mad enough to kill Tommy Shelby? Answers on a postcard to:

Alfie Solomons

1 Smells of pig road

Shithole

England.

8/10