Quarter 1 Reviews- 008 Horror- Old

008 Horror – Old

There were several good stories in the Ghosts from the Past series from 1992, so here are my two favorites.  “Black Stockings and Broken Mirrors” was Bernadette Crosthwaite’s first radio script. Maureen O’Brien is convincing as a young wife whose proximity to a house where a woman was murdered brings to mind immediately the claustrophobic suburbia of The Snowman Killing.  However, this character is not haunted by ghosts, as such; rather by the deeds she did, which manifest in her delusions surrounding her new neighbour (Margot Boyd). An effective and disturbing piece of drama.  It was directed by Martin Jenkins.  “A Warden for All Saints” was adapted by Gerry Jones from a story by HS Bahbra.  It was especially suited to an aural medium, nicely combining visual and tactile horrors with ones that were creepily aural.  What could be more quintessentially English than a ghost story set in an archaic Oxbridge college?  James Montague (Benjamin Whitrow) is a devoted member of his old college, All Saints, and when the election for a new warden takes center stage, he ensures that not only does it escape the tongue-wagging speculation of the gutter press but also throws his weight, finally, behind his friend, unassuming Simon Evans (John Rowe).  All of this voting, campaigning and manuevering has clear parallels with how Popes are elected, and as such is redolent of the otherworldly.  There is one female candidate for warden, but we never hear from her and indeed, I don’t think there’s a single female speaking role in this drama.  It’s a very old-fashioned world that nevertheless still existed in 1992 and must still do, in some pockets, to this day.  However, when Simon Evans wins the wardenship, he is unprepared for what his rival, Matthew Moors (Keith Drinkel), is willing to do to reclaim the job that he has been working his entire life towards. It’s well-written and plotted, giving a glimpse into a rarefied world that to most of us is as foreign as the Moon.  It’s also well-cast and quite scary in places. 

Quarter 1 Reviews- 006 Contemporary Drama- Old

006 Contemporary Drama – Old

I was blown away by 24 Kildare Road; I thought it was new and wondered who on Earth this talented new radio writer was.  Turns out it was Katie Hims; of course it was.  By the end of it, it actually bore all the hallmarks of a Katie Hims story:  loved ones separated for decades, secrets, but a happy ending.  However, the characters and dialogue are just stunning, and it’s a wonderfully revealed mystery that at first glance seems like a shocking tragedy.  The story starts with children Ryan (Harry Grasby) and Jackson (Aaron Gelkoff) who discover the body of an elderly woman in a snow-covered park.  They alert police officers Mick (David Reed) and Hayley (Christine Bottomley); off to the scene are sent paramedics Ozzy (Ikky Elyas) and Ned (Will Kirk).  A young woman on her way to Hull who is meeting up with an online boyfriend in the flesh for the first time shares a train carriage with Marion (Marcia Warren), an elderly woman whose family has recently sent her from her home in Leeds to a care home in London.  Her daughter had recently died of cancer.  At the care home, Kadija (Nahel Tzegai) and Pat (Heather Craney) were trying to find the whereabouts of Marion, only slowly revealed by Rose (Jessica Turner).  In Hull—actually Bridlington—Marion takes a taxi to 24 Kildare Road, where she is trying to find Joe (John Rowe).  When she can’t find him, we are led to connect her with the body in the park.  However, the story is not so simply concluded.  Excellent performances complement plenty of cliffhangers. 24 Kildare Road was directed by Mary Peate in 2010, and also starred Ian Conningham, Neil McCaul, Amanda Wilkin, Sinead MacInnes, Greg Jones, Neil Dudgeon, and Amelia Bullmore.

Quarter 1 Reviews- 004 Historical Comedy- Old

004 Historical Comedy – Old

Gary Brown and Peter Leslie Wild directed a series of clever historical comedies (Take Away) about a fictional fish and chip shop in Leeds over more than five decades. These are the three I most enjoyed. Each episode went back further in time as a new group of immigrants tried their fortunes at the Battered Devil.  In 1988, in “Patty’s Patties” by Leah Chillery, the eponymous Jamaican matriarch returned from holiday to find her grown up son Everall (Daniel Poyser) had converted to Rastafarianism.  Patty (Yvonne Brewster) had to learn to let go of some of her prejudices—against Rastafarianism for one—in order to come to terms with her community.  She also had to realize that Pastor Andrews’ (Vincent Davies) rank did not necessarily mean he was to be trusted.  What Patty takes longer to recognize is that (white) electrician Jeff (Bernard Wrigley) might also be worth the time of day.  It’s heart-warming and quite funny to hear Jeff and Patty’s relationship take shape.  This was an amusing story with interesting characters.  It also starred Trevor Dwyer-Lynch, Danielle Henry, and Marcus Hercules.  

Going back in time a further three decades, “Ciao Chapeltown” by Sharon Oakes takes place in 1953.  I was pleased to find this story wasn’t quite the squeaky-clean, saccharine sweet drama of family acceptance that I expected.  The Battered Devil’s current owners, Eileen (Sue Kelly) and Italian immigrant Gianni (Joel Lessi), are preparing for the Coronation.  That’s when Gianni’s mother Caterina (Flamenia Cinque) arrives from Naples.  Gianni is less than pleased to see her, and it seems there’s more to it than her interfering—but seemingly sincere—ways.  Caterina is flamboyant, and Eileen’s father George (Russell Dixon) starts to wonder if she could be the one to replace his long-dead wife.  Meanwhile, Vito (Anthony James Anthony), another immigrant, isn’t completely happy with Gianni’s assimilationist ways (noting that British-Italians were interned during the War, something even I didn’t know).  Eileen can’t conceive, something with which Caterina becomes obsessed and insists is the result of a curse.  What will be the ultimate result of this culture clash?  What has Caterina done that so unsettles Gianni?  You’ll have to listen to find out.

Gary Brown wrote the final episode, “Bitter Batter,” which explains the unique name of the take-away.  In 1936, the owner is Jewish Melvyn (David Fleischman), harassed by blackshirts and rescued by Malcolm Hovis (Geoff Hordley), a do-gooder seemingly passing through.  Malcolm worms his way into the trust of all in the establishment, charming Jean (Olwyn May).  She and Melvyn have been having an affair for a long time, but he cannot marry her as she isn’t Jewish.  Melvyn’s mother is “Bobby” (Yorkshire for “bubby,” as explained by the sometimes helpful, sometimes annoying narrator; at least she breaks the fourth wall with him).  Bobby (Vanessa Rosenthal) eventually becomes suspicious of Malcolm, wondering what it is that he puts into the chip batter that makes it taste so good.  Meanwhile, Rachel (Julia Raynor), Melvyn’s daughter, wants to marry Harvey (Richard Jackson), a nice Jewish boy who was stricken with polio.  Malcolm insinuates himself here, too, by subtly prejudicing Melvyn against Harvey.  Who exactly is Malcolm Hovis and what does he want?  Entertaining and with a similar vein of magical realism as ran through MetaphorMoses.  The narrator was Stephen Grieff.  The Take Away series was originally from 2007.