It must be my age - at the end of a busy day, I sit down to watch a TV programme, and more often than not, wake up 45 minutes later as the credits roll, and say "whodunit?" And I'm missing my Quizzy Mondays on BBC2.
If the stars are guys in suits, especially with natty fedora, I'll give it a try. We enjoyed it so much that we have worked our way through all six series. Neal Caffrey [played by Matt Bomer] is a highly intelligent, utterly charming young con artist, art Forger and thief. FBI agent Peter Burke [Tim DeKay] recruits him as his Criminal Informant, to help solve White Collar Crime.
It is a funny, clever, but thought provoking series. Neal has to wear an anklet so his movements can be tracked, and must stay within a two mile radius of FBIHQ, otherwise he goes back to prison. The dynamics of the relationship between a born liar and a man committed to truth and justice make it a clever show. Peter's wife is played by Tiffani Thiessen [Saved by the Bell, Beverly Hills 90210 - teen idol of the 90s] *****
Warning - there is a lot of swearing, and violence. You do have to concentrate, there are many flashbacks - both to the shooting incident, and the events surrounding the cold case being investigated [a lawyer, who went missing four years before] But it is well written, with an intriguing plot. Lots of well known Scottish actors appear throughout. Do not watch late at night, as it may keep you awake! Thank you Ade and Steph for the recommendation. Another *****
We gave up on Death Valley too. I'm beginning to think we are missing out by only having free tv channels!
ReplyDeleteBring back quizzy Mondays say I too.
👍
DeleteThanks for the recommendations-I’ll remember not to watch late at night. Catriona
ReplyDelete😊
DeleteI am missing Monday Quiz Night too. We have given up on Death Valley the girl detective is very irritating and it is a waste of Timothy Spall's acting talents. We don't have Netflix anymore so can't watch Dept. Q but it sounds a bit too violent for me. Watched an old programme on Bletchley Park last night, very good about Colossus and Tom Flowers and how little recognition he got compared to some. Regards Sue H
ReplyDeleteI hope to watch that on iPlayer
DeleteWe are enjoying Dept Q although, as you say, it is certainly no "Death in Paradise"!! We do like a good crime drama so may try the other you recommend. We've just finished "Black Forest Murders" (Netflix?) - it was an interesting series, showing the frustrations of police work and how working through paperwork can bring a breakthrough. It wasn't full of drama and car chases, but still interesting. Love FD xx
ReplyDeleteI think BFM is currently available on iPlayer - useful for those who do not have pay-to-view channels
DeleteMy daughter recommended Department Q, and I have watched it twice now. In spite of the swearing and violence, it is the intelligence, the humour and the love which struck me most about the series. Love for justice, for colleagues, and especially for family.
ReplyDeleteWhile we have the channel, I have been watching The Crown, and it is very good.
I agree about the men’s hats. Think of Foyle in Foyle’s War, the way he wore his hat often expressed his emotions.
Your first paragraph is an excellent comment on DeptQ. I'd forgotten Foyle. Michael Kitchen came from Leicester, and I used to teach a girl who was thrilled when it appeared on the BBC, because she told us her Mum was his best friend in Primary school.
DeleteDeath Valley is exactly where it belongs! Tried to like it but totally failed! Dept. Q was excellent in comparison. Was fun spotting the various parts of Edinburgh not normally shown (and never frequented after dark!). One bar scene purportedly in Edinburgh, was in fact filmed in a local hostelry to me. Goodness knows how they found it since there are loads of pubs in Edinburgh they could have used! The swearing was a bit OTT but some great Scottish actor's turned up! There's a new murder mystery arriving this week with Phyllis Logan doing her Miss Marple thing. Can't be any worse than Death Valley!Or can it??
ReplyDeleteI shall look out for Phyllis L. I first came across her on Lovejoy with Ian McShane, set here in East Anglia. You must have enjoyed spotting film locations close to home in Dept Q.
DeleteI watched 10 minutes of Death Valley and decided it was rubbish!
ReplyDeleteCan you remind me again about Dept Q and White Collar in about a year, when they maybe will appear somewhere free to view!
👍
DeleteWe liked Death Valley, and started watching Shardlake which took some concentrating, but we enjoyed it. If in doubt we watch NCIS or a variation of it. I've got loads of Garden Rescues recorded, which can be a bit samey but I've picked up some good ideas from them. Xx
ReplyDeleteShardlake was good .I love the books. And NCIS has been a long time favourite
DeleteLike you and many others, I have also given up on Death Valley. My husband and I started watching The Chelsea Detective after you mentioned it and we enjoy it very much, so thank you for the recommendation!
ReplyDeleteSo pleased you liked CD too!
ReplyDeleteI don't like Death Valley either. Graham is watching a recorded episode at the moment which is why I'm on the computer!. I much prefer The Chelsea Detective,
ReplyDeleteAngie
I wonder if they will bother with a second series of DV? I hope they make more CDs though
DeleteMore CD would be brilliant. I could happily watch them all a second time :)
Delete👀😊
DeleteSince I don't like any type of crime/detective stories, I don't watch any of it. But, I'm glad you have found some series that you enjoy watching. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Bless. There is plenty to choose from, so we can all find programmes which we enjoy
Delete👍
ReplyDeleteI watched the trailer for "Death Valley" on Britbox and decided it wasn't worth watching. I often look up Britbox crime series on IMDb, and check out the parental guide, because I really don't want to watch anything excessively violent, with gratuitous sex scenes that add nothing to the plot, and I particularly abhor offensive language, especially blasphemy. When I was a schoolgirl, we nicknamed our headmaster, "Holy Joe", because of his penchant for quoting the bible at us during assembly. But as an adult I understand why he liked to share St. Paul's admonition, "whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are noble, whatsoever things are of good repute, if there be any virtue and any praise, think on these things". (from memory, I think I got it right.)
ReplyDeleteIt is important to be discriminating and think about what we choose to watch
DeleteWe gave Death Valley a valiant try out as we both like Timothy Spall, but we found it really annoying. Sadly we don't get any Disney channels because White Collar sounds right up our street. We're just working our way through a rewatch of all the Strike series then it's on to Dept. Q ... and yes, I have been known to regularly fall asleep halfway through any episode. :-)
ReplyDeleteThere is a new Strike coming soon!
Delete