�� Genome Blog Feed

Genome scrapbook: 1997

2017-02-24T14:22:16+00:00

Samantha Morton as Sophia Western and Kathy Burke as Honour in Tom Jones

Twenty years ago Labour won the election after 18 years in opposition, Princess Diana died in a car crash in Paris and Arsene Wenger was confirmed as Arsenal’s new manager. In 1997 I was doing my GCSE’s, so it won’t surprise you to learn that I remember a lot about what was on TV…

Drama got off to a grand start on ��2, with an epic adaptation of Joseph Conrad's Nostromo running throughout February. Just over a year after he appeared in Pride and Prejudice, Colin Firth played Englishman Charles Gould, who returns to his South American birthplace to reopen an old mine (sound familiar?) The adaptation of this tale of social and political corruption was a huge undertaking. It was filmed in Colombia, and involved no fewer than 15,000 extras. The Radio Times reported that the actors, who included Albert Finney, Serena Scott-Thomas and Claudio Amendola, had to perform in 95% humidity.

Meanwhile, there was mystery afoot on home-turf; mystery of an unusual and somewhat spooky kind… Enter magician Jonathan Creek (played by comedian and actor Alan Davies). Helped by journalist Madeline Magellan (Caroline Quentin), he set to work solving crime, with an approach that could only be described as inimitable. Episode titles such as The Reconstituted Corpse gave some augury of the macabre crime-solving missions that were to follow. The programme has run on-and-off for the last 20 years and has clocked up 32 episodes, notably all written by the same man – David Renwick.

Caroline Quentin, Annette Crosbie and Alan Davies in Jonathan Creek

Psychological thriller Bright Hair hit our screens later in the year, starring another former Pride and Prejudice star, Emilia Fox. The then-23 year old was a convincing teenage schoolgirl, haunted after witnessing the aftermath of a murder. And on the subject of crime - although this blog focuses on �� programmes - it would be an oversight not to mention that Midsomer Murders also debuted on ITV in 1997. The series, which launched with John Nettles starring as DCI Barnaby, is now in its 21st season and has probably solved more TV murder cases than all other crime series put together.

Later in the year on the ��, Max Beesley smouldered in period drama The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling. Billed as a “rollicking” tale, this five-parter also starred Samantha Morton, Frances de la Tour and Kathy Burke. It was racier than the recent Pride and Prejudice and Middlemarch adaptations, and Radio Times even flagged up some of the more controversial content. I certainly had to resort to some subterfuge to watch the third episode.

Back to pre-watershed, the “will-he-won't-he?” plotline continued in the Irish town of Ballykissangel, as the nation’s prime-time audience willed Father Peter (Stephen Tompkinson) to do something un-priestlike and elope with love interest Dervla Kirwan.

Just kiss her! Stephen Tompkinson and Dervla Kirwan in Ballykissangel

Soap fans were treated to two exciting plotlines in Eastenders, as Bianca and Ricky tied the knot (for the first time) and the tempestuous relationship between Grant (Ross Kemp) and Tiffany (Martine McCutcheon) culminated in a paternity row over baby Courtenay.

Now for something a bit more serious…

On factual TV, psychologist Oliver James put some of the famous faces of the day on the couch in The Chair, showing that psychotherapy really had gone mainstream in the UK. And there were plenty of white knuckles over on �� Two, with fly-on-the-wall docu-drama Driving School, which followed the experiences of learner drivers. The programme is best remembered for bringing cleaning lady Maureen Rees to fame as an early “reality TV star” (and for helping her to pass her driving test on the 7th attempt).

Meanwhile in my household, as Radio 4 celebrated 12,000 episodes of The Archers, an obligatory silence was imposed in the kitchen each evening so that my mum could tune into the latest from Ambridge. And comedy To The Manor Born had an outing on �� Radio 2, with Penelope Keith reprising her role as Audrey fforbes-Hamilton.

Say Hello!

It was also an important year for children’s TV, with the launch of Teletubbies on ��2. Within months, that theme tune had become every parent’s earworm, and a debate was set off about whether the Teletubbies’ gibberish would harm children’s speech development (shades of Bill and Ben the Flowerpot Men in the 1950s). There was also an important moment for children’s news programme Newsround, which celebrated its 25th anniversary. In its honour, ��1 hosted a nostalgic retrospective, Newsround’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Years.

Alan Partridge first appeared on the radio, in �� Radio 4's On The Hour in 1991

A-haaa!

We all had a bit of a laugh when Steve Coogan reprised his role as an inept presenter in I’m Alan Partridge. The 1997 series saw Partridge demoted to a role in local radio ("Good morning, Norwich"), but still dreaming of the "glory" days. Could he get his television show re-commissioned? His frantic attempts to pitch new formats to a �� commissioning editor are classic moments of television comedy.

And after a three-year absence, fans were thrilled when Red Dwarf reappeared for its seventh series. Episode 6, written by Kryten actor Robert Llewellyn, saw the crew being transported back to a virtual reality land - based on Pride and Prejudice. And what happened when Red Dwarf met period drama? Answer, Kryten’s head exploded…

Over to you chaps… did you enjoy the programmes mentioned above? Or have we missed one that you liked? Let us know in the space below:

The following programmes are available to purchase from �� Store and other providers: Jonathan Creek, Red Dwarf, I'm Alan Partridge, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling and Teletubbies.

Test your television mettle

2016-02-10T10:00:00+00:00

We've been poking around in the picture archives and Genome listings to bring you another crop of television teasers to exercise your eyes and minds.

Each of the following five visual teasers features a star of the small screen or the movies. They may not appear as you know them best and be shown in the early parts of their careers. Take a punt and tell us your guesses at the bottom of the page.

To get closer to their identities, click on each link which takes you to the television listing - the right name will be in there somewhere. Happy hunting!

You can also try the first and second editions of our quizzes.

1) Who is this russet-haired gentleman from Scottish historical series The Borderers, which screened in 1968? He has since gone on to become a Knight of the realm and starred in countless memorable roles. You might see him at the moment in a senior role at the movies.

Click here to find out his identity with Genome's help

2) This studio shot from 1974 is from a production of Greek tragedy Electra. Can you identify the actor being locked in an embrace? He has gone on to take on a host of lead TV roles, including pillars of the establishment.

Click here to find out his identity with Genome's help

3) This actor, regularly a romantic lead and dashing hero on the big screen, goofed it up for 1993 one-off comedy Mama's Back, which starred Joan Collins.

Click here to find out his identity with Genome's help

4) You'll find this actor fully in character as Sigmund Freud in an 1984 television drama about his life. His most famous character is suitably hirsute in the facial department - and also European.

Click here to find out his identity with Genome's help

5) A little behind-the-scenes moment from a popular 2005 costume drama. Our heavily draped star has appeared in a number of period pieces, including a recent epic.

Click here to find out her identity with Genome's help

Feel free to leave your guesses in the space below or share your thoughts about any of the programmes mentioned in our quiz!

The Sunday Post: Life before Dot

2015-10-25T10:00:00+00:00

Actress June Brown is inextricably linked with playing one character, the instantly recognisable Dot Cotton (later Branning) in EastEnders for the past 30 years.

She wasn’t actually in the first episode of EastEnders. Dot was originally brought in as a support character for her dastardly son Nick, gracing the cast list for the first time in July 1985.

But Dot - the god-fearing woman who is never one to gossip - went on to become a much-loved figure at the centre of Walford life, with connections to both original and new characters to grace Albert Square.

Brown is now 88 and her career has almost exactly matched the development of TV in the UK. You can follow her long career on screen through the Genome listings.

The actress made her first credited appearance in 1957, playing Aisla Crane in a TV adapation of Edgar Wallace's crime thriller The Case of the Frightened Lady (below). Brown was also rewarded with this photo and caption in the magazine along with co-star Enid Lindsey.

June Brown followed up her initial success with more theatre for the screen, including an adaptation of The Rough and Ready Lot in 1959. She played the character of Chica, but this time wasn't featured in a photograph which accompanied the listing.

She went on to take roles in a variety of leading programmes during the 1960s, including Dixon of Dock Green on a number of occasions, Z Cars and outings of The Wednesday Play.

The flow of appearances continued into the 1970s, including a part in Doctor Who four-parter The Time Warrior opposite Jon Pertwee, while she was seen in a number of dramas that were a far cry from the grit of Albert Square.

Brown played a substantial role in The Duchess of Duke Street (below), a 15-part costume drama set in Edwardian London in which she played the heroine's mother, Mrs Leyton. The actress showed her mettle in another period piece, with the Tudor setting of Mark Twain's The Prince and The Pauper which screened in 1977.

Four years later she was again in costume in era-straddling, cross-generational children's television drama, God's Wonderful Railway - her last major listing before the domination of Dot.

As recalled in last week's Sunday Post, Angels was a major, long-running TV medical drama - and it just so happens that June Brown was in the first episode of its second series.

But Brown is forever to be thought of as Dot, and has hundreds of listings for EastEnders. The soap opera was initially teased in the Radio Times with lines from that episode's dialogue - and Dot landed her first taster in March 1986: 'No law against a bloke visiting his own wife, is there, Dot?'

When simpler plot summaries took their place, Dot has been regularly mentioned and continues to be to this day. In 2008, Brown's performance in a unique single-handed episode of EastEnders won her a Bafta nomination.

June Brown continued to pursue an acting life outside of EastEnders. In 2000 she starred in the lavish adaptation of Mervyn Peake's fantasy drama Gormenghast as the deliciously named character Nannie Slagg (below).

What else has Brown featured in and what about performances that weren't on the ��? Can an actor escape their best-known creation? Let us know what you think in the space below.

Poldark v Poldark

2015-10-06T09:30:00+00:00

Robin Ellis played the lead role in the first �� adaptation of Poldark

On Monday it was 40 years since the first episode of Cornish costume drama Poldark took to our screens. We asked our Twitter followers on @bbcgenome if they preferred this incarnation to the "raunchier" reboot starring a smouldering Aidan Turner, which aired earlier this year. Here's a selection of what they said...

_________________________________________________________________________

@mariaDadd: I fell in love with Poldark when I saw the original all those years ago, and the new version made me fall once again.

@CameronYardeJnr: I think both versions are perfect for the eras they were made in.

@Rockbird86: Original by a country mile. I'm too young to have seen it 1st time round and remake is good but not as good.

@JuliaGulia809: The remake is "raunchy?" People please.

@nois_faida: I prefer the Aidan Turner and I'm old enough to remember the Robin Ellis version.

@RiehlAlice: Don't believe it's "raunchy" at all! Both have pluses and minuses. Both good.

@AidansHair: The Aidan Turner version is closer to the novels.

@coolmarg: It's the opposite of raunchy. It's classy.

@tvmuseum: Tough to bring out the characterisation in fewer episodes, so the original wins on that front. But the new version is great too.

_________________________________________________________________________

If you'd like to join the debate, please leave comments below or feel free to head over to Twitter.

Aidan Turner played a dark, brooding Poldark in the ��'s recent remake

The Pride and Prejudice years

2015-09-24T09:00:00+00:00

Today marks 20 years since the opening episode of the ��'s landmark adaptation of Pride and Prejudice was first screened.

It has since become the definitive television version of Jane Austen's classic, partly down to Colin Firth's smouldering portrayal of Mr Darcy - and the heart-stopping moment when he emerged from a swim in his dripping wet shirt.

However, this isn't the only time the �� has brought this tale to television. Here's a quick walk through the listings and the Pride and Prejudices of yesteryear.

The 1980 adaptation of the classic story starred Elizabeth Garvie as heroine Elizabeth Bennet. One of her sisters Mary was played by Tessa Peake-Jones, who later starred in Only Fools and Horses.

The advent of the 1967 �� television version of Pride and Prejudice was marked with a Radio Times front cover. In the lead roles were Celia Bannerman as Elizabeth Bennet and Lewis Fiander as Mr Darcy.

In the 1950s viewers were treated to not one but two adaptations of Austen's tale. In 1958 a six-part extravaganza was screened, starring Jane Downs and Alan Badel.

In 1952, the dashing hero was played by none other than Peter Cushing, best remembered for his ghoulish creations in a string of Hammer films.

Before this the novel regularly cropped up in the radio listings, including in 1932 with "a series of readings" and again seven years later. A perennial favourite, it would seem...

�������� Genome Blog Feed

Genome scrapbook: 1997

Test your television mettle

The Sunday Post: Life before Dot

Poldark v Poldark

The Pride and Prejudice years

�� Genome Blog Feed