Saturday, March 1, 2014

More Mad for British TV and Movies

Really? Downton Abbey is over already? What kind of a "season" is that? Listen, I grew up in the 70's and 80's and even the 90's had the same TV programming schedule. The new seasons used to begin in September, just like the school year, October at the latest. We used to look forward to the first shows of the season because we had waited all summer to see what would happen next. In the summers were all reruns so you could watch the shows you missed during the season. There was an order to the world!  Now there is no knowing when something starts, when it is over, if it is returning, let alone which of a million channels it will be on.
 I have to say, the Downton Finale was pretty darn good. That Mr. Barrow, what a weasel. So are they coming back in a few months, or a year, or what? How long was this "season" anyway? Seems like only 6 or 7 weeks. Well, in the mean time, have you seen "Call the Midwife?" It's fantastic! Season 1 and 2 are available on DVD or streaming on Amazon. The contrast of the happy go lucky music of the fifties and the dreary streets of the East End of London is a great backdrop for this series about young midwives and nuns working in the lower class areas after the war, each week offering more than just plots to be acted, but life lessons, tears, and laughter. I am loving getting to know the characters, especially Chumley, the overly tall, often bumbling nurse who is in her own way the strongest of them all. Like other British series which are so vastly different from anything being produced here in the states right now, I feel as if I am reading instead of just watching the episodes. There is a depth and building of characters that pulls you in and makes you want to follow them, not just the stories. 

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