Inspector George Gently.
Discussion
Last night's gaff for me was when he was watching the moon landing. As ever on TV, they showed the images from the Lunar Module as it approached the moon's surface. On the night (and for all of the following landings too), no live images were shown from the Lunar Modules during the landings. All those of us watching on our TVs saw was the ranks of controllers sitting at their consoles in Houston. We did hear the radio communications live, of course.
The images of the landings were shot on 16mm cine cameras and the films from these were developed after the mission had returned to earth.
The images of the landings were shot on 16mm cine cameras and the films from these were developed after the mission had returned to earth.
PH5121 said:
I have a bit of a gap in my viewing knowledge as prior to the new series starting last week on the BBC in the last episode I watched he got shot, what happened next? How many intervening series have I not seen?
I think there's only last years series, and the new one running now.Judge John Deed is generally pretty good, I've been watching a few of them on Drama recently.
droopsnoot said:
I think there's only last years series, and the new one running now.
Judge John Deed is generally pretty good, I've been watching a few of them on Drama recently.
Judge John Deed is generally pretty good, I've been watching a few of them on Drama recently.
The last one you saw was Gently in the Cathedral:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inspector_George_Gent...
FlossyThePig said:
The books are set in Norfolk.
The Norfolk accent seems to challenge most actors so changing the location was probably a good idea.
The Norfolk accent should not be a problem for Martin Shaw as he used to live down the road from us when we were in NorfolkThe Norfolk accent seems to challenge most actors so changing the location was probably a good idea.
Drive you steady bor.
I think he's probably exaggerated a bit to contrast with the Gently character but I can remember knowing plenty of people like him in the sixties and seventies and a fair few into the eighties.
I enjoyed the first series a lot but this thread is ruining the current series, I've managed to ignore the errors so far but will be looking for anachronisms with renewed vigour next week.
It's the speech anachronisms that really grate on me though, the odd satellite dish can't be helped but modern expressions are really disappointing, don't they have anyone to check the dialogue?
The mesothelioma plot was a bit predictable as well.
I enjoyed the first series a lot but this thread is ruining the current series, I've managed to ignore the errors so far but will be looking for anachronisms with renewed vigour next week.
It's the speech anachronisms that really grate on me though, the odd satellite dish can't be helped but modern expressions are really disappointing, don't they have anyone to check the dialogue?
The mesothelioma plot was a bit predictable as well.
kev b said:
It's the speech anachronisms that really grate on me though, the odd satellite dish can't be helped but modern expressions are really disappointing, don't they have anyone to check the dialogue?
The mesothelioma plot was a bit predictable as well.
The modern viewers wouldn't even notice, but being a mature chappie, I didn't notice, examples please.The mesothelioma plot was a bit predictable as well.
Edited by Vipers on Thursday 7th May 23:28
droopsnoot said:
That's the one I'd forgotten! I did wonder whether the elderly chap suffering from emphysema would have used the phrase "hunky dory" in 1969.
Personally I have perhaps known 1 or 2 people who ever used that phrase in my entire life, and I have been around a long time, maybe it's a localised saying.Either way, really enjoy the series, drive the OH nuts when I call out the year of the car from the end letter, if it has of course.
P.S. Googled and found this:-
sorry this is so long and i dont like to cut and paste but this was interesting...nice question!
Probably the most oft-heard story about "hunky-dory" holds that there was, in the 19th century, a street in Yokohama, Japan, called "Honcho-dori." It is said that Honcho-dori was the Times Square of Yokohama, and thus a favorite hangout of U.S. sailors on shore leave. So popular did this street become among sailors, it is said, that "Honcho-dori" entered naval slang as "hunky-dory," a synonym for "Easy Street," or a state of well-being and comfort.
: Now, there actually is a "Honcho-dori" in Yokohama. (In fact, there's one in many Japanese cities, because "Honcho-dori" translates roughly as "Main Street.") But there are two problems with this story. One is that there is no direct evidence of any connection between the first appearance of "hunky-dory" around 1866 and U.S. sailors in Japan or naval slang in general.
: Problem number two is that a connection with "Honcho-dori" is somewhat unnecessary. English already had the archaic American slang word "hunk," meaning "safe," from the Dutch word "honk," meaning "goal," or "home" in a game. To achieve "hunk" or "hunky" in a child's game was to make it "home" and win the game. So "hunky" already meant "O.K."
: Where the "dory" came from is more of a mystery. It may have arisen as what linguists call "reduplication," or the emphatic, joking repetition of parts of a word, as in "okey-dokey." Or the "dory" may actually be a reference to the Japanese "Honcho-dori" grafted on after "hunky" was already in use as slang. There is some evidence that a Japanese stage performer popular in the U.S. claimed to have introduced "hunky-dory" around 1865. What he actually may have done is blend the name of a Japanese street with our American "hunky."
Edited by Vipers on Friday 8th May 13:42
Vipers said:
The modern viewers wouldn't even notice, but being a mature chappie, I didn't notice, examples please.
I thought it odd when Bacchus referred to 'Disneyland'. Being 1969 I didn't think many people had heard of it in the UK back then, although it opened in the fifties, but wasn't a term of wonder until the Florida version opened and attracted more Europeans.Edited by Vipers on Thursday 7th May 23:28
Bacchus just seems like a thoroughly unpleasant piece of s
t, and I'm sure he's meant to represent mainstream UK (male) population in the eyes of the creatives. Hence the championing of progressive ideals defended by GG, even though it seems the whole world is against him.If they continue, what's the bets on anti-nuclear/CND story, as opposed to some mundane murder?
I did read just after posting that hunky-dory does date back to the 19th century, but still wonder if someone like that character would be using it. Disneyland was another one I'd forgotten. I guess some of the phrasing is done to make it more accessible to a modern audience.
The WPC seemed to suddenly shift from the front of Bacchus' car on the way to get the crucial evidence to the back, and then to the front again, though it might just have been camera angles.
The WPC seemed to suddenly shift from the front of Bacchus' car on the way to get the crucial evidence to the back, and then to the front again, though it might just have been camera angles.
gareth_r said:
motco said:
... Was the NATO phonetic alphabet of today in use by the police in the 1960s?
It was "Zed Victor 1", not "Zulu Victor 1" in this 1960s documentary. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vntOOo8mfKs
Also bearing in mind we pronounce "Z" as zed. Good old series as well I thought.
Enjoyed the first episode, but for the second one I thought I'd tuned into a Socialist Workers Party broadcast. I think it must have been written by the work experience student - it had every PC and "progressive" cliche going:
Plucky young policewoman not being taken seriously by nasty & chauvanistic sergeant, salt of the earth downtrodden worker and wheelchair-bound children suffering horrible disease thanks to greedy multinational embodied by rich and heartless slightly sinister foreign bird, saintly and sensitive angelic female doctor abandoning her priviledged background to live amomg the downtrodden masses and expose the corrupt capitalist multinational, her spineless (and far too good-looking) cad of a boyfriend abandoning his principles to become part of the corrupt capitalist elite....and more (the dodgy city lawyers from central casting for instance) but I'm sure you get the picture. Can't wait for the next episode to see what "ishoos" they weave into it.
On a less ranty and more PH theme, not too sure about the Ford Corsair - it looks a bit tired for a car that's supposed to be only a few months old.
Plucky young policewoman not being taken seriously by nasty & chauvanistic sergeant, salt of the earth downtrodden worker and wheelchair-bound children suffering horrible disease thanks to greedy multinational embodied by rich and heartless slightly sinister foreign bird, saintly and sensitive angelic female doctor abandoning her priviledged background to live amomg the downtrodden masses and expose the corrupt capitalist multinational, her spineless (and far too good-looking) cad of a boyfriend abandoning his principles to become part of the corrupt capitalist elite....and more (the dodgy city lawyers from central casting for instance) but I'm sure you get the picture. Can't wait for the next episode to see what "ishoos" they weave into it.
On a less ranty and more PH theme, not too sure about the Ford Corsair - it looks a bit tired for a car that's supposed to be only a few months old.
3059hp said:
Enjoyed the first episode, but for the second one I thought I'd tuned into a Socialist Workers Party broadcast. I think it must have been written by the work experience student - it had every PC and "progressive" cliche going:
Plucky young policewoman not being taken seriously by nasty & chauvanistic sergeant, salt of the earth downtrodden worker and wheelchair-bound children suffering horrible disease thanks to greedy multinational embodied by rich and heartless slightly sinister foreign bird, saintly and sensitive angelic female doctor abandoning her priviledged background to live amomg the downtrodden masses and expose the corrupt capitalist multinational, her spineless (and far too good-looking) cad of a boyfriend abandoning his principles to become part of the corrupt capitalist elite....and more (the dodgy city lawyers from central casting for instance) but I'm sure you get the picture. Can't wait for the next episode to see what "ishoos" they weave into it.
On a less ranty and more PH theme, not too sure about the Ford Corsair - it looks a bit tired for a car that's supposed to be only a few months old.
Well analysed! But couldn't that formula be applied to so many modern drama productions? Senior police officers almost always seem to be female, and in medical dramas it's so often the hitherto 'unseen' woman who saves the day. It crosses over into advertising too; thick chauvinistic man and clever hard-working, multi-tasking wife...Plucky young policewoman not being taken seriously by nasty & chauvanistic sergeant, salt of the earth downtrodden worker and wheelchair-bound children suffering horrible disease thanks to greedy multinational embodied by rich and heartless slightly sinister foreign bird, saintly and sensitive angelic female doctor abandoning her priviledged background to live amomg the downtrodden masses and expose the corrupt capitalist multinational, her spineless (and far too good-looking) cad of a boyfriend abandoning his principles to become part of the corrupt capitalist elite....and more (the dodgy city lawyers from central casting for instance) but I'm sure you get the picture. Can't wait for the next episode to see what "ishoos" they weave into it.
On a less ranty and more PH theme, not too sure about the Ford Corsair - it looks a bit tired for a car that's supposed to be only a few months old.
The Don of Croy said:
I thought it odd when Bacchus referred to 'Disneyland'. Being 1969 I didn't think many people had heard of it in the UK back then, although it opened in the fifties, but wasn't a term of wonder until the Florida version opened and attracted more Europeans.
I can assure you that most of us would have been well aware of "Disneyland" in the 1960s. Disney himself had hosted a TV series from the mid 1950s which was partly made in order to promote and advertise Disneyland. In fact, the programmes were introduced with a rundown of the various "lands" incorporated into the theme park "Frontier Land", Tomorrow Land", Adventure Land" and "Fantasy Land". These programmes were shown extensively on British TV. I grew up in Ireland in the 1960s and well remember watching "Disneyland" as a mall child on RTE.Here's the original intro to the programme which still brings waves of nostalgia for me -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZUBiptZDLU&li...
Bacchus would have been wrong if he had said "Disney World" rather than "Disney Land" - as the Florida park was given a different name by Disney to differentiate it from the original park.
pitboard said:
Does anyone else find Sgt Bacchus to be thoroughly unpleasant and a useless copper?
I'm surprised he ever made sergeant with such bigotted views and opinions. Evidence? Don't bother, just arrest the guy! After all, he had black shoes on didn't he?I reckon in any real force, he would have been drummed out - as would Gently for not reigning him in.
I thought they were overdoing that a bit just to reinforce how much things were different back in that time. In the first episode where the prostitute had reported a rape, I found the bit where the all-male group of police came in to the interview and basically didn't believe her, but wouldn't that have been close to the way she'd have been treated back then, with a bit of artistic license to maybe boost it up a bit?
grumpyscot said:
I'm surprised he ever made sergeant with such bigotted views and opinions. Evidence? Don't bother, just arrest the guy! After all, he had black shoes on didn't he?
I reckon in any real force, he would have been drummed out - as would Gently for not reigning him in.
On the one hand I like it that they havent ignored the attitudes of the day, on the other it get a bit repetitive as he relearns every week. He starts the episode with out of date/ racist/sexist view then by the end something will happen that makes him think differently. By next week he's back to square oneI reckon in any real force, he would have been drummed out - as would Gently for not reigning him in.
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