From comments around Shetland today on last night's episode, and on the Twittersphere, I'd say percentage-wise it's 80-20 dumbstruck at the sheer awfulness of Shetland. The 20 per cent loved it with a great and surpassingly sentimental landscapery love.
Tonight I was in the end reduced to giggles. Not at the appalling editing of the Up Helly A' sequence (day, then it's night, then it's day, a few vikings, a lot of vikings, setting fire to the boat, not setting fire to the boat, then into Promote Shetland's excellent footage of the actual winter festival. Which is vast, crazy, rather wonderful, and frankly makes what was on telly look rather silly.
No, it was the predictable bathos of the plot, and the hyper-oxygenated (in one case, via a cylinder) acting of the principals. With the exception of the great Stephen Robertson, who was barely in it tonight. Rather too good, I fear. Don't forget he actually played Jimmy Perez, in the Radio Four adaptation of Ann Cleeves's White Nights.
I will leave you with an invitation to view tomorrow's Scottish Sun, which is devoting Page 8 to the show, and indeed to my thoughts on it. And the following quotes:
"As far as I'm concerned, this is a suspicious death."
"Just got the pathologist's report. You were right. Foul play!"
"They say, on a clear day you can see Norway...and Iceland."
But not Denmark. Where Sarah Lund sits, slowly shaking her head...her jumper's status is safe.
Most watched TV programme at 9.00pm on Sunday with 6.4 million viewers, mind you. Probably a lot less tonight. But I fear, I truly fear, they may commission a series.
Dalry's Volunteer and Masonic Arms, and the ferry from Largs to Millport, better start preparing for the tellytourists.
When did Scottish Police start using the English caution? I'd liked to have been told or a few of my recent cases could be subjected to legal argument...
ReplyDeleteI didn't even notice that ...Schoolboy error shurely?
ReplyDeleteAnd is it Lerrick ?? I've always said Lerwick .
Would two murders ..well suss deaths...be dealt with by One Man and His Dug ...surely the mainland troops would have been called in much earlier ..
Yeah Yeah..I know ..It's only a telly programme !!!
"With the exception of the great Stephen Robertson, who was barely in it tonight"
ReplyDeleteShould that not be Steven ? :-)