George Gently: Series One

Wonderful pairing of Gently and his Sargent
We had previouly seen Martin Shaw in the "Daglish" series as one of the actors for the Commander. Very stoic and a bit unfriendly, but on the track when others didn't see it. In this series he is just as irritating but just as inciteful as ever. He has set out to retire in a small village, but remains. His Sargent is the local copper trying to get out and up in the force from the backwater. As Gently is by the old book, the sargent if a bit of however you can is alright -- ends justify the means. His unorthodox means help solve their cases, all the while Gently is caring for him and guiding him. And probably saving him! They are delightful foiles for each other. If you like "Daglish" and other British mysteries like "Lindley", Morse, Frost, etc., where there is great interplay between the inspector and the argent, you will like these.

Gripping drama with great cast.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable drama with a great cast. I especially liked Martin Shaw (who has aged very well) who plays the title role of George Gently, and "Robin Hood" star Richard Armitage as the charismatic and ambiguous biker Ricky Deeming. Also of note is Lee Ingleby as Gently's young (and brash) partner.

The dramatization apparently takes a few liberties with the original novel (I daresay might be a little more politically correct) but holds its own and is full of twists and turns. It holds the period flavor (early '60s) well. Worth a look, especially if you're a fan of any of the lead stars.

Go Gently Into the Human Condition
Quite some years ago I fell in love with British police procedurals, and among my favorite authors was Alan Hunter who created George Gently, a police sleuth in northeast England. June Thomson (Inspector Rudd), Jonathan Ross (Inspector Rogers), and W.J. Burley (Inspector Wycliffe) were turning out very good cop crime novels in those days.
Actor Martin Shaw portrays Gently in a series of English feature-length television programs. In "Bomber's Moon" Gently has to solve the murder of a German businessman whose drowned body is discovered near his sailing yacht. The German has returned to the neighborhood where he lived as a P.O.W. during World War II. Most people seem to have genuinely liked the generous German who bought drinks for the locals in their pub.
There are a number of suspects and red herrings. Just as we are convinced of the guilt of one suspect, another one pops up. It seems as if a number of people were at the scene of the crime that night.
Gently has a...

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