|
He approaches his task using mild mannered conversation, a liberal amount of black humour and a steel trap of a mind.
He
sorts through the clues in a methodical manner, often over a cup of tea
or puffing on a pipe. Despite the image of the pipe and trenchcoat on
the DVD cover shot (designed to create the look of Sherlock Holmes), the Purbright character has a much different approach to solving crime.
In a strange sort of way, the Purbright character is more reminiscent of Columbo, the murder investigator who Peter Falk would later make his own on American TV.
Purbright’s
amiable assistant Sid Love does not tend to say much but he does most
of the foot work while Purbright constantly reports back to his
superior, Chief Constable Chubb, often as a plot device to explain the
events as they slowly unravel.
Christopher Timothy (young and
blond at this stage of his career) created such an impression in his
role that, only a year later, he started his 12 year run in All Creatures Great and Small.
Aside from arguably the most insipid opening credits and theme music I have ever seen or heard, the
show does get more interesting by about Episode 5 as Rodgers warms up
in his role with the enthusiastic support that Timothy provides him.
I
also liked the surprising twists that come at the very end of each of
the four stories – especially an amusing one at the end of Episode 7.
There
are some great guest stars of the British TV 1970s era who make
appearances in some episodes. I particularly liked watching
Michael (On the Buses) Robbins
in a rare non-comedic role. In Episode 2, listen for his deadpan
delivery of a great line about someone being “operationally negatived”
instead of “killed”!
Using theatrical looking sets and drab outdoor location scenes, Murder Most English has the feel of a video-taped play. The constant wordy explanations to expose the storylines tend to slow down the show.
That said, you could quite easily and happily close your eyes and listen to the soundtrack as a radio play... EXTRAS
There are only a few Extras included here - seven actors’
filmographies and some background on the writer, Colin Watson, plus a
small picture gallery. Conclusion: Episodes 70% Extras: 50%
|
