Martin Shaw has been around on various UK TV shows since the 70s as a tough Criminal Intelligence agent as part of a crime fighting duo in The Professionals through various roles to the recent 1990s benevolant yet smug High Court Judge in Judge John Deed, but as a replacement Adam Dalgliesh in a 2000s remake of PD James' Dalgliesh character he just does not cut it for me. I was brought up on his tough guy Professionals character and barely tolerated Judge John Deed, but, as a long time Roy Marsden favourite I cannot take to the modern Martin Shaw effort seriously. In short, when I see Shaw listed as the PD James character I give it a wide berth. He just doesn't have the same class as Marsden.
Reviews
27 Reviews
Dreadful L&O reincarnation.
30 June 2022
My all time favourite was Law and Order: Criminal Intent because I liked the interaction between the brilliant Goram and Eames. However, I could never take to SVU because I just did not like Meloni's arrogant and brutish character Elliot Stabler. Because of that I very rarely watched SVU, which leads me to this latest L&O franchise, Law & Order: Organized Crime. It has just started on a UK channel in June 2022, and, sorry, but it's just an extension of SVU. The episode I caught was S1. E3 'Say Hello to My Little Friends' but it did nothing for me and it will be my first and last experience of this series.
Has Marker ever heard of the NHS?
29 March 2022
Frank Marker awakes at 2.30am to find lodger Stephanie Beecham has overdosed on sleeping pills. So what does he do? Drags her out of bed, tries pouring bathwater over her head, slaps her face several times (well, it was the 60s) then drags her along a pier several times to wake her up. Emmm, couldn't he just phoned for an ambulance when he found her comatose?
Trouble in Mind
(1991)
Pulled after 9 episodes, and here's why.
26 March 2022
The only 9 episodes made for this so called 'comedy' were all based on pathetic innuendo concerning a psychiatrist's attempts to come to terms that he should go through a vasectomy procedure. Every one of the 9 episodes were all written round this nonsensical premis and I can't for the life of me understand why the lovely and very talented Susan Penhaligon saw fit to add this utter rubbish to her acting CV. Richard O'Sullivan left acting after this nonsense, maybe because of it, maybe not. We'll never know.
Sez Les
(1969–1976)
Poor man's 'end of the pier act'.
19 February 2022
Les Dawson may well have been an 'end of the pier' act who seeemed good enough for a limited 2 channel TV selection in the 60s/70s (in these days ITV or BBC) but quite frankly this man was absolutely awful. Was never funny, He based his very limited repetiore on a deadpan style, curmudgeonly persona and jokes about his mother-in-law and wife. If Dawson was 'discovered' today he would never have made it. Absolute garbage and as funny as syphilis.
'poolandews' should phone Leslie Caron whilst she's still alive.
13 November 2021
Did 'poolandews' do his research before posting his drivel? Leslie Caron is French and was born in Boulogne-sur-Seine, so why insult her with his ill informed nonsense. He may have not liked this episode but please get your facts right.
It's back on the telly in 2021!
26 July 2021
On 10 September 2008 contributor 'ShadeGrenade' stated 'I. T. V. Should now consider repeating the whole series (though I doubt that they will). Sorry sir! It's now summer 2021 and the whole series is being repeated, and today I watched this very same episode!
Katie says NO! and again, and again, and again!
18 June 2021
One of the best episodes of the entire series. Dermot and QS Lisa are up against a doggedly intransigent client Katie who, no matter what Dermot comes up with, Katie says no. He draws up plans for an open plan design and immediately Katie is dead set against it and wants a collection of small self contained functional rooms. She disagrees with every proposal Dermot puts forward, and as Dermot puts it if he says black she will say white. When Katie's response to Dermot's opinions is 'in your opinion' his response is 'Exact - all I can do is my opinion' and in a fit of frustration he says out of earshot 'I'm here for my bloody opinion! Nothing else. So, if "that's just your opinion", and that's irrelevant, I'm irrelevant.' Classic!
What a load of rubbish and I've read the book.
22 May 2021
Where do I start? This episode is so far removed from the book it should have had Rankin squirming. The murder victim is a student named Phillipa Barbour (Flip) and not a wealthy banker. It makes no reference to the ongoing computer gamesmanship played out between DS Clarke and a mystery online gamer who leaves puzzles which need to be solved. It makes no mention of 'The Falls' a fictional village outside Edinburgh which provides further links to the killer. It makes no reference to the arrogant smug suspect that Rebus has down as the killer of Phillipa (Flip - was she actually mentioned in the episode?). AND Rebus is definitely not a Hibernian FC supporter, he is a Hearts supporter (Edinburgh football rivals) and didn't sneak into Easter Road and turn on the floodlights as shown in the episode. In fact football is never mentioned in the book apart from the opening remark from on duty PC 'Good result for the Jambos eh sir?' - a reference to Heart of Midlothian FC. Utter garbage.
What on earth is 'yankeedisc' slavering about????????
6 May 2021
@yankeedisc Re your comment 'The storyline submitted by EdinaJambo further down the page is actually the plot from episode 2.53 "Prejudices". Then you go on to say 'I have just watched the episode and characters "Carole and Ian" do not feature at all.' My plot summary refers to that very same episode 'Prejudices, 2.53' which you have incorrectly complained about, and my summary is therefore correct. I do not understand why you think it is wrong. What is your point??
Jimmy
(I) (2013)
Beware of those giving high praise.
2 January 2021
This film, like many of its ilk, are shown in the UK on a Christian worship channel, and usually the very first thing to look for on these obscure offerings are very high scores with lots of good things to say. Curiously most of them are posted around the time the film is released, usually by users who have just one post. A dead giveaway that the high praise being lavished is usually by people connected to the film trying to drum up some interest. The film is as ever drivel with a Christian faith message.
Talk about keeping it in the family.
17 December 2020
This episode, together with the previous episode, Susan Part 1, deals with the tricky subject of parental child abuse, in particular sexual abuse on a daughter by the father. Although there was no explicit abuse shown in this episode, the inference was clear enough. I suspect that at the very least a scene, or at least parts of some scenes have been cut for broadcast in 2020, and there may at least have been a bit more to this episode when first broadcast in 1975. Incredibly, this is Jane Wymark's screen debut, and considering the subject matter, a very impressive debut it was. She would later go on to find fame as Joyce Barnaby, the wife of Midsomer Murders DCI Tom Barnaby (John Nettles).
Typical treatment for the era
26 November 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Just to be clear regarding the review left by 'fbm72751' the cops never "gunned this poor guy down which no doubt fuels the notion that cops shoot first and ask questions later". He was throwing heavy objects at the deputies and a heavy chain thrown at one accidentally set off his gun, as he said he 'didn't mean to shoot at him'. People who leave reviews should at least be accurate in their reporting. For avoidance of doubt I've just watched this on UK tv as a UK citizen, so I have no axe to grind with American law enforcement.
An En Vogue Christmas
(2014 TV Movie)
Why was this turkey ever made.
17 October 2020
Made over 20 years since En Vogue were, well, 'en vogue', basically an all black rip off of the 1980 Blues Brothers film using the same basic storyline, with a couple of token whites thrown in presumably for politically correct balance. Wooden acting and horrendously wooden directing, this turkey is riddled with woodworm and termites, Since nobody has recorded any facts, reviews, goofs, trivia etc would tend to suggest that this horrendous flop has never been taken seriously, and nobody except me has seen fit to record any semblance of interest. Unless you have anything serious to do, such as arrange your own funeral, or sit and watch a newly painted wall dry, avoid at all costs.
Yanks just can't do Scottish accents.
2 September 2020
I've never really had any interest in Hart to Hart but it was playing on my TV as I was flicking through channels. OH MY GOD, as a Scotsman what can I say about Bill Erwin's 'Scottish' accent. It was so awful it made me cringe and was actually an insult to my ears. Also, there is no such surname in Scotland as 'MacLaish'. At least if they wanted a modicum of authenticity the nearest correction to that name would be 'McLeish'. PS, if the reviewer HilaryElizabeth9 ever gets the chance to re-read her review we are 'Scottish', not 'Scotish'. At least the bagpiping was OK.
Explosives in Mrs Beale's cupboard?????
13 August 2020
Sorry, but the author of the following plot outline: "Brian having been drugged by Singer wakes up to find a note from Kathy. She explains that she is scared of Gavin and had to leave with him, but Brian must find some deteriorating explosives Gavin had left in Mrs Beale's cupboard." must be on drugs themselves. That outline together with the previous 5 or 6 that have been posted (probably by the same person) are a complete figment of their imagination and should have that deranged nonsense deleted. The proper plot summary has been submitted by me.
A real puzzle if you haven't already read the book.
22 June 2020
Warning: Spoilers
I have read this book, however it was so intricately interwoven and the characters so intermixed in a such a heavily byzantine manner it took me a whole summer of careful reading to get through this enormous work. So, already familiar with the characters, the plots and outcomes, I understood how this first episode, with its intertwined segments of 'nine months earlier' (Staines and Weatherill meeting on a ship to New Zealand) and 'current events' (the discovery of the dead body of Crosby Wells - husband of Lydia Wells, and Anna now a drug addled prostitute and in gaol for her sins) has left some puzzled without the benefit of having read the book, although I had to watch this episode twice to get my bearings. I will stick with it to see how the next episode pans out.
Blankety Bland.
18 April 2020
At the time this game show appeared on British TV in January 1979 we only had three channels, so no doubt the limited light entertainment available gave this programme a bigger share of the ratings that it would never achieve today. First broadcast on the BBC I admit that I was hooked for a while, but the novelty quickly wore off. It's only now (April 2020) being repeated on the Challenge channel, and having refreshed my memory, it really was truly awful.
A poor copy of American Jihad (Law and Order)
10 February 2020
The 'American turned Jihadi murderer' has been done to death (pardon the pun) on various US law and order/various cop shows and this one was a very poor copy of my review title; American Jihad (2002). I have only seen episodes 1 and 4 of this cheap Law and Order knock- off, and based on what I've seen so far, I doubt that I will follow it through the rest of what appears to be only one complete series. Maybe there is a reason that it didn't make it any further than that. Additionally, was it coincidence that Peter Coyote as D.A. Jerry Hardin is a dead ringer for Jack McCoy? Thankfully here in the UK the original Law and Order together with Criminal Intent and SVU are shown on a regular basis, so this poor effort will not be missed.
Car Crazy
(1955)
Never seen before and not originally listed
8 February 2020
I saw this short film on Talking Pictures TV recently and in order to get more information I checked IMDB for further details on the actors etc. To my astonishment, this little gem was not listed at all, so I added it with what little information I had to hand. A first for me as I expected IMDB to be the definitive source of all film material, however old or obscure. There are a lot of credits missing from my submission of this comedy short for inclusion so if anyone has more information that can be added, I would be eternally grateful!
A new direction for Rooms.
24 January 2020
Previous landlord/landlady and common law couple Dorothy and Bryan Lawson are no longer around since their apparent break up towards the end of series 1. The format of the show has now changed from individual one off stories about here today and never seen again tenants to a soap style storyline with a core of regulars such as new owner/landlady Kathy Singer (Ann Curthoys), and tenants Jill Gascoine, Jenny Twigge, Ian Redford and William Marlowe.
Two Lame Ducks
(1934)
Not a silent short.
27 September 2019
I note that the other reviewers remark on the fact that this seems to be a silent 1936 film, however the version that was broadcasted on Talking Pictures TV (a UK free to air channel) this week (September 2019) had full sound throughout, ducks and all!! As a matter of fact, both actors sounded like a Laurel and Hardy tribute act, and if you didn't know better, you could be fooled into thinking it was actually them.
Menu for Murder
(1990 TV Movie)
Not Knot's Landing!!
5 July 2019
A brief check of the cast here would lead you to believe you've accidentally tuned into an episode of Knot's Landing, Dallas or even Falcon Crest. The actors in question even provide a healthy does of big hair, thick make-up and shoulder-pads galore. What you're actually getting here is a 'murder mystery' of soap opera standards. The cast is pleasant enough, the plot is a little whimsical, the story is not difficult to follow. I would never usually watch anything so lacking in a challenge but it was from 1990 with a few well known TV stars of the time so I gave it a chance. It wasn't bad, it wasn't good, it was watchable.
A disliked head member of the local school's PTA is murdered, apparently poisoned, and initial suspense falls on Susan Henshaw (Julia Duffy), but eventually, she and 'hunky' Detective Joe Russo (Ed Marinaro) set out to solve the murder, and, along with some of the other ladies of the PTA, work their way through a reasonably light entertainment script to catch the murderer, who, as it turns out, is one of their own. Columbo it certainly is not but it's worth watching for it's 1990 soap opera style glamour.
A disliked head member of the local school's PTA is murdered, apparently poisoned, and initial suspense falls on Susan Henshaw (Julia Duffy), but eventually, she and 'hunky' Detective Joe Russo (Ed Marinaro) set out to solve the murder, and, along with some of the other ladies of the PTA, work their way through a reasonably light entertainment script to catch the murderer, who, as it turns out, is one of their own. Columbo it certainly is not but it's worth watching for it's 1990 soap opera style glamour.
Mistaken
(2008 TV Movie)
Not bad for 'bored housewife' territory.
24 May 2019
This film was just shown here in the UK on the Sony Movie Channel. I usually avoid anything of this genre on any daytime soap/movie channel especially if it is Canadian (sorry Canada!). As a male Brit (Scot actually) I tend to think of this type of offering as 'bored housewife' territory, simply because they can often come over as insipid and bland. This one, however, I liked. I liked it not just because the lovely Lana Parrilla was in it, but it actually had a decent storyline and a good quality cast. Everything here ticked the right boxes for me and I am quite pleased that I was at home when it was on TV. No need for me to re-iterate the plot; that has already been adequately covered. If it comes on again I will make sure I record it, just for the lovely Miss Parrilla!
Caught in Providence
(2000– )
A Touch of Nepotism?
15 November 2018
Local TV series about Judge Frank Caprio, directed by Joseph Caprio,
Produced by David Caprio,
Executive producer Irene Caprio,
Producer John Caprio,
Executive producer Joseph Caprio,
Makeup Marissa Caprio.
Hmm....... is there a theme here?
Hmm....... is there a theme here?
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