Five Days

[twelve_plus_one]

The drama series "Five Days" premieres in NZ on TV3 tomorrow night.

TV3 are explicitly trailing this obviously British drama as an HBO show, not as just a drama obviously set in Britain, or explicitly as a BBC production (which it is, in association with HBO).

TV3's intended audience for this show presumably a) cares who made it and b) rates HBO

Comments

[mr_orgue]

Torchwood seems to make money, despite being (by all reports) absolute pants.

And.... Spooks? *throws up hands*

[twelve_plus_one]

I don't understand why anyone thinks Spooks is any good.

Shows like Spooks and that hustling one (what's that called?) are the "let's make a cracking flash US-style drama series" and end up falling short of the mark.

[uniquefergus]

'Life On Mars'?

Other than that, I'm not sure. If you do get a list together, I'll forward to my agent and see if he can't get me some work on them.

[twelve_plus_one]

Life on Mars is great. On its own terms, I won't knock it. But even that, as popular drama, falls short of many US dramas of the same ilk.

[mcgazz]

I'm struggling here as well...does Dr Who count?

[twelve_plus_one]

Dr. Who - see comment re Life on Mars. Also it's fairly uniquely British - I can't see a show like that coming out of the US.

[anonymous]

Apparently "Gavin and Stacey" has been sold to NBC to be remade with him from the east coast and her from the bible belt or something.

The British are only ever good at comedy and documentary anyway (and not so good at comedy much anymore). Since I got Sky I hardly bother with any UK shows... things like The Wire, Rome, Sopranos, Dexter, etc are working on a level so far above UK drama there's no competition.

Even on more populist US drama... watch an episode of ER and then watch Casualty and it is like watching a school play. I know some of it comes down to money, but there just seems to be a lack of immagination in how to put together UK shows in comparison.

[twelve_plus_one]

Yeah, forgot about 'Rome'. This is where you really expect UK drama to step up. I think it can do it, though I didn't watch the Tudors - was that any good? Also damn TVNZ for putting Bleak House on so late and not publicising it.

The British TV tradition of turning the classics (Eliot, Austen, Hardy etc.) into six- or twelve-hour dramas I think is still fairly strong - in fact better than the studio-bound Dickens efforts of my childhood Sunday tea-times. (And the best counter-argument to my post.)

Anyway I'm hoping Five Days is a cracker. No spoilers please.