Robin Chapman Movies
- 1994
Two years before Warren Clarke and Colin Buchanan firmly established themselves as detectives Dalziel and Pascoe in the British cop series of the same name, comedians Gareth Hale and Norman Pace essayed the same roles in the semi-serious three-parter A Pinch of Snuff. Based on a novel by Reginald Hill, the story found Inspector Andy Dalziel (Hale) and Sgt. Peter Pascoe (Pace) investigating a murder at an upscale gentleman's club. The fact that the "club" was a front for a porno-film theater only served to add an extra dash of spice to the already zesty proceedings. A Pinch of Snuff made its British-TV premiere on April 9, 1994. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gareth Hale, Norman Pace, (more)
- 1991
Sherlock Holmes (Jeremy Brett) accepts a case involving a sinister Austrian baron and the man's bizarre fiancée. He does this on behalf of a man whose position in the British government is so high that he dare not use his own name in engaging Holmes' services. The great detective discreetly saves the empire from ruin and brings the villains to heel. "The Illustrious Client" was one of the more in-depth entries in Britain's Casebook of Sherlock Holmes. Filmed in 1990, this 50-minute drama made the American TV and videocassette rounds two years later. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Brett
- 1985
The four-part One Moment in Time was another miniseries based on the works of H.E. Bates, of Country Matters fame. Set during WWII, the story centered upon Elizabeth (Alison Elliott), who threw caution and convention to the wind when she fell in love with RAF pilot Splodge (Robin Davies). Although some of the standard wartime romance clichés were in attendance, there were enough surprises to keep the audience awake and alert. One Moment in Time was broadcast in 1985 by the BBC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1984
Produced for Yorkshire Television, the anthology series Killer offered three 60-minute plays, each with a murder at the core. The series signed on with a story titled "Contract," featuring a cast of relative unknowns. Subsequent episodes included "Exposed," starring Anthony Valentine and Dearbhla Molloy, and "Waiting," with John Thaw (of Inspector Morse fame) and Diane Keen. Killer originally aired in 1984. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1983
Aerodrome is a British black comedy set in the 1930s. A backwater English village is threatened with takeover by a fascist air force. It's the home guard to the rescue--sort of. Peter Firth, Richard Johnson, Jill Bennett, and Richard Briers head the cast. Produced for British TV in 1982, Aerodrome premiered in the US the following year over the Arts Cable Network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Firth, Richard Johnson, (more)
- 1981
The four-part British miniseries Wilfred and Eileen starred Christopher Guard and Judi Bowker as the title characters. Set during WWI, the story charted the course of true love, which for hero and heroine did not run smoothly. The series was successful in its efforts to put a human face on the tragic travesty known as war. Wilfred and Eileen originally aired in 1981. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Aldridge
Force 10 From Navarone was a sequel to the 1961 blockbuster The Guns of Navarone and tells the tale of ten widely divergent WW II troubleshooters who attempt to blow up a crucial bridge in Yugoslavia. As in the first Navarone film, one of the guerillas is a traitor: group leader Mallory (Robert Shaw) knows the identity of the turncoat, but can't prove it until it's almost too late. The beautiful female resistance leader is played by Barbara Bach, while Harrison Ford, fresh from his Star Wars success, is the romantic lead. Others in the cast include Edward Fox, Franco Nero and Alan Badel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Shaw, Harrison Ford, (more)
- 1975
The "Love School" was the popular designation bestowed upon the Pre-Raphaelite art movement in England and Europe during the mid-19th century. This six-part British miniseries dramatized selected events in the lives of such Love School disciples as John Ruskin, John Everett Millais, Elizabeth Siddall, and Dante Gabriel Rosetti, all of them equally talented within the realms of painting, poetry, and criticism. The BBC series opened on January 22, 1975 with the episode titled "The Brotherhood." Subsequent 75-minute installments of Love School included "An Impeccable Elopement" (January 29), "Seeking the Bubbles" (February 5), "Remember Me" (February 12), "Beata Beatrix" (February 19), and "The Artisan" (February 26), all in 1975. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
Set in England during WWII, this drama, also known as Soldiers in Skirts, stars Glenda Jackson as Alice, a bitter woman whose husband is captured and held as a Japanese prisoner of war. When a wandering soldier, Barton (Brian Deacon), comes by her farm, she invites him in for tea. They fall in love. In order to remain in the town with Alice and escape the military police who are looking for deserters, Barton disguises himself as a woman. A sergeant (Oliver Reed), who commands a tank unit, comes to town and makes advances toward Barton, whom he thinks is a woman. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenda Jackson, Oliver Reed, (more)
This 1973 production of the renowned novel by Charlotte Brontë features Sorcha Cusack as the title character, a young woman who goes to work for the mysterious Mr. Rochester (Michael Jayston). She notices that something strange is going on in the house, but since he does not allow her to enter certain areas, it is difficult for her to uncover the truth. As her feelings toward Rocheser begin to change into something more serious, she fears what secrets he is keeping from her. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- 1968
This spin-off of the British crime series The Fellows focused on recurring character Alec Spindoe (Ray McAnally), a brash cockney gangster. Ostensibly shipped off to prison for keeps by the two protagonists of The Fellows, Spindoe nonetheless managed to get sprung in time to appear in his own Granada TV series, beginning April 19, 1968. Attempting to pick up his vast criminal activities where he left off, Spindoe met with fierce opposition from a North London crime czar (Richard Hurndall) and a down-at-heels private eye (George Sewell). The tone of the series was succinctly established by the initial episode title "And the Blood Starts Flowing." Despite its London milieu, Spindoe was filmed in Manchester by award-winning director Mike Newell. Lasting six hour-long episodes, the series completed its run on May 24, 1968. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
