Current TV dramas

[Grandad]

Most evenings we have at 9pm a TV serial drama on one or other of the channels. I confess to being an avid fan of these (not always shared by my wife). The problem I have is that when following 4 or 5 of these I sometimes have difficulty remembering what happened in the last episode a week ago

My current batch are:
Unforgotten ITV 9pm Thursday. Last episode this week. I am a big fan of Nicola Waters the lead detective.

The Halcyon ITV 9pm Monday. A rather tame wartime story of a 5 star London hotel during the war. The blitz scenes this week were very well done though. Finishes this week.

Apple Tree Yard BBC1 9pm Sunday. Just 4 episodes that finish today and, unusually, tomorrow. Sex in open spaces (Apple Tree Yard) but a twist to come I suspect.

Taboo BBC1 9.15pm Saturday. A dark early 19th century tale of the battle between The Crown, The East India company and a family that owns a piece of land in North America vital for trade routes to the east. It is dark both in the story and visual presentation, dirty, prostitution is rife, and much violence. Mrs G hates it, I think it is great. Episode 6 of 8 next Saturday.

I also like Silent Witness but the current series has now finished. What do you folks watch on TV?

[Mad Dilys]

I tend to record series that I like and go to bed early, so the stations are various and not necessarily the original ones.

My favourite was Death in Paradise when Ben Miller was the lead actor, ( he's usually worth watching, whether he's got his acting or his scientist hat on) however Kris Marshall has taken over and he acts like a tailor's dummy. The background music is cheery though, and I'll watch it sometimes.

The Dr Blake Mysteries I like. Now on BBC I think I found them on Fox for the first series. The sound was dreadful, very muffled and subtitles were necessary. Now, not only is the sound better, the scripts are better the cast seems to have gelled and I love it.

My favourite now is The Closer, which I catch and record wherever I see it, currently on Alibi and Fox. Both these stations show them out of sequence which is maddening, so I store them and watch in the right order. I currently have 40 episodes recorded. I love the fact that the Heroine Kyra Sedgwick is approaching middle age, is no glamour girl. She's cranky, obsessed with her job and largely indifferent to the feelings of her nearest and dearest, lies all the time, but is dressed decently and always polite to her co-workers. The plots are interesting and believable most of the cast have many and various human frailties but are allowed to share the limelight. I love it.

I don't think it is available these days but Vera on ITV with Brenda Blethyn was excellent and I hope that there is another series being made.

Silent witness is marvellous but I don't often watch dramas these days - lots of documentaries though.

[Horus]

When I settle down most evenings, usually after about 9pm and I do not go to bed early so tend to watch a few hours of TV. Like Grandad I tend to forget what the last episode was all about so I often have to recap, I used to think it was my poor memory, but now I realise that it is just that I don’t let it sink in as it’s just entertainment, this is a handy trait as it means I can watch the same programme or film several months later and enjoy it all over again. My biggest problem is that although I have a photographic memory for faces, I still struggle to put the characters with their .names in TV series so it takes me ages to remember who is who. I do enjoy period type dramas such as the Poldark series which are well written and acted and the period costumes are excellent, I enjoyed the Downton Abbey series for the same reason. There are some good series on Sky Atlantic TV, ‘Vikings’ springs to mind which has already had several series and as the name suggests it is about a Viking leader ‘Ragnar Lothbock’ and his adventures, often with epic background scenery and haunting music. Another excellent one on the same channel was set in prohibition era America and featured a local gangster, the outwardly respectable ‘Nucky Thomson’ in a series called ‘Boardwalk Empire’ set in Atlantic City. I have quite varied taste and recently watched the whole 5 series of ‘Breaking Bad’ a really brilliant series set around a high school chemistry teacher who is diagnosed with lung cancer and desperately seeks a way to provide for his family after his death. He has a brother in law in the Drug Enforcement Bureau who takes him out on a drugs raid and it is there that he realises the money that can be made from manufacturing Meth Amphetamine and selling it. He is a brilliant chemist and he teams up with a young dope smoking ex pupil of his named Jesse Pinkman and they start making the stuff. That is the beginning of a series of life altering events that are sometimes tragic, amusing, brutal and sad that result in them being involved in the drug supply underworld with all its dangers and massive amounts of money, a brilliant series and as addictive to watch as the drugs they manufacture.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Am enjoying "Narcos" which is a quasi-documentary yet TV series based on and detailing the life of Pablo Escobar + Drug Lords and drug enforcement/politics in Columbia

[Horus]

Am enjoying "Narcos" which is a quasi-documentary yet TV series based on and detailing the life of Pablo Escobar + Drug Lords and drug enforcement/politics in Columbia

I have just watched the whole series on 'Netflix' and I agree it was really good, amazing the amount of power and money that he had, no wonder Trump wants to build a wall.

[Grandad]

Very interesting some of the stuff available on other channels. I don't subscribe to Sky or anything else, I just have digital YouView via Talktalk but I have not explored everything that is available on there. Many satelite channels can be added for subscription, but we tend to just stick with the 4 regular channels.

[Horus]

Another good one that LLL would probably like is called 'Frontier' currently on Netflix and it revolves around the early Hudson Bay Company in Canada during the late 18th century. The central character is the Irisman Declan Haarp a fur trader played by Jason Momoa and his conflict with Lord Benton played by Alun Armstrong. I also noticed that the Mexican actor Raoul Max Trujillo who played the leader of the attack party in the excellent Mel Gibson film 'Apocalypto' also features as a Cree Indian chief, well worth watching.

[Grandad]

Something I am learning is that we have some avid TV watchers on here. I am not in your league

[Kiya]

I cant wait for Poldark to be back & I wish Downton Abbey would make another series

At the moment like Grandad I'm following Taboo, Apple Tree Yard & Call the Midwife.

On Netflix I've seen Frontier, Narcos, Peaky Blinders, The Crown, The Tudors, Bates Motel, She Wolves, Pope Joan (film), Medici, Rome, Reign, How to get away with Murder, The OA, Autopsy, Warrior Women, Stealing History, Heaven is for Real ( film, very good) & many many more.

I love any history drama's & documentaries especially 15-16th century.

Just finished Rescue Mediums and on Netflix now watching Britain's Darkest Taboos.

And many many more

[Horus]

Depends what you mean by avid Grandad, I would say 'selective' I do tend to have either a radio or Sky news on in the background if I am at home, but other wise I watch very little TV during the daytime. I usually sit down with my dinner and will watch a bit of TV, often the news and continue with what I am doing until maybe 9pm when I usually sit down and watch a bit of telly of my choice, I never watch soaps or the trashy programmes they show now days, usually a good series or a documentary.

@ Kiya, wow you are certainly getting your monies worth Ooh almost forgot 'Peaky Blinders' that was a good series.

[Kiya]

Yes I am Horus or I should say Roy's monies worth, after getting my Fire from my daughter Roy put Netflix on to it.

I never watch it during day/evening, I'm usually in bed for 10pm & watch a couple of hours.

Yes! just when I was really getting into Peaky Blinders the series finished, cant wait for the next one

Forgot to add ....Prison Break is another good series on Netflix

[Horus]

Yes the good thing about Netflix is that depending upon the package you have it can work out very good especially if you share it with the family I recently (last year) bought a 4K Smart TV so I decided to have the top package because most of them were in either HD or Ultra 4K HD, but even that works out at about £9 per month and when you consider all of the films and TV series that are available without advertising (big plus) then it is not bad value. I have created other accounts on mine so that my sons family and my daughters family can also watch it for free on my account.

[Grandad]

I have created other accounts on mine so that my sons family and my daughters family can also watch it for free on my account

Ah yes H, that sort of thing is a good deal. My son in law had last years Formula 1 on a sky subscription and he also loaded it onto my TV against his account. I think hr could do that on up to 4 sets.

Yes H I am sure you are selective but Kiya, with that library of watched series you MUST be avid or even compulsive.

We have watched and enjoyed many of the wildlife and 'real' hospital series but, TBH, you only want so much and then they become boring. I agree about series such as Poldark, Peaky Blinders, Downton Abbey, that are all well produced. We do record quite a lot and if on a commercial channel, you can Ffd through the ads. I like Michael Portillos train journeys and the places he visits. We will also record series like Rick Steins long weekends, and James Martins French Adventure. Apart from the cooking tips, the places visited are also interesting. James Martin even acquired Keith Floyds old Citroen 2CV which he is using in the current series.

[Horus]

I used to like Floyds programs, he was a jovial old sot always swigging away on the wine.

[Kiya]

Grandad since Christmas 15 getting my fire I have watched something on Netflix every single night since for a couple of hours or depending what it is at the time I can till early hours in the morning.

I do enjoy watching Michael Portillos train journeys, not so much to do with trains but where he travels to, his info is usually very good & sceneries stunning.

As for James Martin I've gone off him really!! when he was doing a show from his kitchen at home & he did nothing but brag about all his cars, that really did it for me .

[Ruby Slippers]

I'm with Grandad on this one. I properly watch about 5 hours of TV per week - by that I mean I actually go and sit in front of the TV to watch a particular programme, - although DH turns the TV on at about 4.30pm and watches all evening until 11.30 - midnight. We only have Freeview, but with all the channels on that, I really couldn't ever see us paying for extra ones.

[Horus]

I look at it the other way around RS, I reckon there is so much rubbish on normal TV that I cannot find anything I want to watch so I go to Netflix to find something more interesting

[Grandad]

I look at it the other way around RS, I reckon there is so much rubbish on normal TV that I cannot find anything I want to watch so I go to Netflix to find something more interesting

We pick and choose H. I agree that there is a lot of rubbish such as 'talent' shows and quizzes but we never watch them. Then all the reality programs, don't watch them either. So we pick the best bits of what is available and record them, that way we always have something 'in the can' for when an evenings offerings are unappealing. We also have a problem of what each of us like. My wife does not like period type dramas, I do. We both like good documentaries and programs that include scenes shot around the world. Series like 'The Night Manager' we both enjoy....

[Horus]

The Night Manager was indeed an excellent series and hard to follow I would imagine

[Kiya]

A good documentary started last night on CH 5 9.00pm

The first one SECRETS OF THE NATIONAL TRUST with Alan Titchmarsh....1/6 at Knole House Kent.

It was very interesting .

Did you spot this one Grandad