December 11th 2007
The best of British crime series
Poirot – have I mentioned I love Agatha Christie? When I was little I begged the librarian to let me take out her books even though I was not allowed to take books from the adult section. So by the time I was 7 or 8 I had already read most of her books. I absolutely adore Poirot with his mustache, prissiness and little gray cells. And there is nothing lovelier then settling down with a cup of hot cocoa on a wet Sunday afternoon and watching Poirot. With David Suchet of course, he is the embodiment of Poirot. Whether it is London or English countryside, regardless if I know who the killer is - it is old school crime at its best.
Silent Witness – CSI the English way. Sort of. There is no Horatio with Horatio-nisms, there is no Grissom with his bugs or the lovely Gary Dourdan to look at, but it does not mean Silent Witness is less worthy of the accolade for giving us great insight into forensic pathology. And unlike with CSI, some crimes do not get solved and Horatio is not there to save the day. Not to mention a very big plus none wears sunglasses indoors. That could hinder the actual investigation you see.
Midsommer Murders – hm now this one combines 2 of my favorite things – crime series and English countryside. And you would not believe how many people get topped off, the body count is at least 4 per episode. Who would have thought those pretty whitewashed cottages could hide such gruesomeness? And you thought NYPD has their hands full.
Cracker – an English take on the profiling with ever great Robbie Coltrane (he might be more familiar if I say Hagrid in Harry Potter). A profiler with a penchant for booze, gambling, cigarettes and younger women, Cracker is an English take on all that profiling business. On one hand I’m not gullible enough that Robbie Coltrane is so wickedly clever to solve every case (he is not House after all) but Cracker makes an interesting watch.
Sherlock Holmes – did I mention I use to sneak out Arthur Conan Doyle out of library as well? Another favorite of mine and the reason why I love Baker street tube station so much, Sherlock Holmes was another favorite pastime when I was little. And I cannot imagine a better Sherlock then Jeremy Brett, which is unfortunate as he passed away in 1995. Still it makes for an excellent viewing.
Daziel and Pascoe – based on the novels written by Reginald Hill, Daziel and Pascoe is crime series about a duo of detectives. Daziel (it is pronounced Dee-el) is huge, abrasive and decidedly gross at times while Pascoe is more mellow well anyone is more mellow then Daziel. It is classic murder mystery set in a small and fictional Yorkshire town. See told you that countryside in England is awash with crime if these series are anything to go by.
Inspector Lynley Mysteries – great BBC crime series about another detective duo. Inspector Lynley is a bit of a poshy posh English earl or some other sort while his partner is DV Havers is as working class as they get. Forced to work together their partnership might seem as mismatched as it can get on paper however it does work. And it makes for some interesting telly that is for sure.
Waking the Dead – think Cold Case, but in a British version. And I might add much more interesting then the American version. For one all cases do not get solved. Plus unlike in the Cold Case there are far less trips back the memory lane but in my opinion this is what makes the series so good. So if you like crime, pathology, forensics and profiling this just might be your cup of tea.
