Tag: BBC

Sally Wainwright will Write and Direct Drama About Brontë Family

According to The Guardian, Sally Wainwright snagged the writing and directing gig for a new drama currently called To Walk Invisible: The Brontë Sisters. It will be a two hour drama on the BBC. No casting news has been announced.

Anne, Emily, and Charlotte Brontë, by their brother Branwell (c. 1834). He painted himself among his sisters, but later removed the image so as not to clutter the picture. Image from Wikipedia
Anne, Emily, and Charlotte Brontë, by their brother Branwell (c. 1834). He painted himself among his sisters, but later removed the image so as not to clutter the picture. Image from Wikipedia.

The film will center on the Brontë family: Charlotte (who wrote Jane Eyre), Emily (who wrote Wuthering Heights) and Anne (who wrote The Tenant of Wildfell Hall). Also in the story will be their troubled brother Branwell and their father. The eternally popular Brontë name will no doubt make this film a topic of great interest.

The script is apparently already written, because a spokeswoman for the BBC referred to it as brilliantly authentic. I don’t know how filming will affect Sally Wainwright’s schedule in creating new seasons of Last Tango in Halifax and Happy Valley, but I hope those projects proceed at a steady pace.

The film will be shot in Wainwright’s familiar territory of Yorkshire. She described the Brontë women as “three fascinating, talented, ingenious Yorkshire women.” There are quite a few fictional fascinating, talented and ingenious Yorkshire women among Wainwright’s writing credits, but the Brontës were real. I can’t wait to see what Wainwright does with them.

For Americans who love such British period dramas, here’s hoping the BBC finds a way to quickly export the film to the U.S. via PBS or Netflix or some other outlet.

PBS Announces Dates for Season 2 of Last Tango in Halifax and I’m Not Happy – Updated

PBS announced that the second season of Last Tango in Halifax will air on PBS beginning Sunday June 29, 2014.

You read that right: June 29. Five months from now.

As far as I’m concerned here at Old Ain’t Dead, that’s a unacceptable delay and wait.

Blimey

Okay, I am pretty upset with PBS. And I was trying to stage a revolt against the 5 month wait on my  little blog. Then I heard from Tony Gardner, who plays John on Last Tango in Halifax.

So here’s the thing. Last Tango in Halifax

  1. is pretty much the best show on earth
  2. is home to great actors and I don’t want to stuff any of them

So I’ve decided not to encourage you to violate any intellectual property laws in an effort to override the inertia of PBS. I’ve also decided to wait to publish my recaps until PBS actually airs the show in June.

I Hate This

I hate the fact that in an Internet-connected world where there is no place, no geography, any longer,  we are bound by geographic restrictions on content.

I hate PBS taking its sweet time to air something that is out in the ether in a million other ways. Why are they so slow? What’s the purpose of the delay? Why not simulcast it like Doctor Who? Why not show it shortly after the British version has shown like Downton Abbey?

Is it about money? Doesn’t the show have good enough ratings?

Yes, I’ve seen season 2 on the BBC. It isn’t that I’m dying of curiosity because I haven’t seen it yet. But – and this is a big but, I will watch the whole series AGAIN when it comes out on PBS. It isn’t that knowing season 2 is going to prevent me from seeing it on PBS. I’ll watch it on PBS. Whatever I contribute to PBS in ratings when the show airs is still coming their way.

Here’s the real point for me: PBS is taking too freaking long to bring the show to America. Too freaking long.

I may rant about this until June.