Neljä jaksoa illassa on sopiva rupeama
Four episodes a day is about right
Meillä tavallaan katsotaan paljon televisiota, tavallaan ei. Meistä ei ole seuraamaan sarjoja niiden normaaliin lähetysaikaan. Koleat talot ja Sopranos-sarjat on katsottu DVD:ltä omaan tahtiin eli ahneesti: kolme, neljä jaksoa illassa.
Yksi upeita uusia löytöjä viime vuosilta - uusia minulle - oli BBC:n 1990-luvun sarja House of Cards, jota en muista Suomen tv-ohjelmissa nähneeni, liekö kuitenkin jossain vaiheessa tullut. Kolmesta tuotantokaudesta varsinkin kaksi ensimmäistä ovat hauskoja, satiirisia, teräviä, vähän jännittäviäkin, ja brittinäyttelijä Ian Richardson yhtakaa charmikas ja luotaantyöntävä.
Ja nyt kävi muutama päivä sitten niin että Ian Richardson kuoli (Guardianin taideblogi, BBC News online). Arvaan että meillä katsotaan Korttitaloa kohta uudestaan. Ja suositellaan kaikille muillekin, moraalittomista poliitikoista kertova sarja ei taida vanhentua ollenkaan. DVD:llä sen saa (Amazon.co.uk tarjoaa tällä hetkellä 16 punnalla koko pakettia) ja sijoitus on hyvä, aina parin vuoden välein jaksaa hyvin katsoa.
Teatterinäyttelijänä Briteissä niinikään tunnettu Ian Richardson oli toisessakin klassikkosarjassa, nimittäin John Le Carre -sarjassa Tinker, tailor, soldier, spy. Pahis siinäkin. Tinker, tailor... ja jatkosarja Smiley's People hankittiin nekin hyllyyn. Kohta epäilemättä taas katsotaan - pääosassa Alec Guinness, joten Ealing-komedioiden ystäville ohittamaton hankinta siitäkin syystä.
***
I was going to blog about this earlier, but the database misery got me distracted. Francis Urquhart has died (see the Guardian Art blog or BBC News online)! Or more precisely, Ian Richardson has died - the actor who created Francis Urquhart as a cunning and morally corrupt politician in the BBC series House of Cards.
The House of Cards trilogy kept us occupied for many, many winter evenings a year or two ago when we first got the series on DVD. This is how we seem to watch television these days - we pick a DVD and greedily watch three or four episodes of any given favourite series of ours in one go (series 5 or 6 of Sopranos is next I think). After House of Cards, we went on to watch all of John Le Carre's Tinker, tailor, soldier, spy as well as its sequel series Smiley's people. In addition to our mutual favourite Alec Guinness, the former featured Ian Richardson. (They didn't seem to give him nice roles all that often.)
I know he was also known as theatre actor - I am rather sorry I will never see him on stage. But I feel another winter with House of Cards coming along. (Right now the price at Amazon.co.uk is not too scary.)
"You might very well think that, I couldn't possibly comment." (F. Urquhart)
Comments - Kommentit
House of Cards tuli muinoin 90-luvulla Suomen telkkarista, mutta muistaakseni ruotsinkielisin tekstein. Katsoin silloin, ja äskettäin katselin dvd:ltä uudelleen; aivan mahtava trilogia. Eikä hiukkaakaan vanhentunut.
Posted by: Jarmo Papinniemi | February 12, 2007 10:34 PM
We were fortunate enough to see Ian Richardson as Sir Epicure Mammon in 'the Alchemist' at the National last September. What an outstanding cast that was, with Simon Russell Beale and Alex Jennings as well - Lesley Manville was excellent too. We shall always think of him as Francis Urquhart though!
Posted by: Marford | February 13, 2007 03:11 AM
Huomasinkin Jarmo että olit tuolla, tuota noin, toisessa yhteydessä maininnut tästä sarjasta. Unohtui tärkein, eli se että tämäkin sarja on Andrew Daviesin käsialaa. (Vaikuttava lista, vai mitä?)
Marjorie, he was in Bleak House as well, wasn't he - I had forgotten.
Posted by: Anni | February 13, 2007 11:08 AM
I loved that series - which you loaned to me. I hope that I returned it to you.
I did not know that Ian Richardson had died. I remember hearing an Amemerican reviewer comment on that program: fancy having such a fine actor with such bad teeth?
..... Hello?
What on earth are those Americans on about? Brilliant acting, brilliant story, and they notice the dentistry? Spare me!
Denis
PS - I was in love with Matti!
Posted by: Denis | February 14, 2007 04:36 PM
Your PS confused me for a second. She was called Mattie, the journalist in the series, wasn't she? 'Matti' is a Finnish male name. I thought you were in some weird Valentine's Day mood and declared love for the Finnish prime minister. He has a blog, too.
Posted by: Anni | February 14, 2007 04:45 PM
And yes, you did return it. I think you still have 'Our friends from the North' the one with our new Bond.
Posted by: Anni | February 14, 2007 10:04 PM
Ooops. I was not "coming out" for Valentine's Day.
Pardon the spelling error. It was TV, after all, so I never read her name spelled out.
Cute as a button, she was.
I shall find your Our Friends from the North series. It was very good too.
Thanks
Denis
Posted by: Denis Wilson | February 15, 2007 11:47 PM
DVDs of favourite series(eseses) are so addictive. Over the summer I went crazy for the West Wing; a friend who lives around the corner has the WHOLE THING so by the time the series ends I may actually understand what's going on.
It's a rather more optimistic outlook on politics than House of Cards... or perhaps wishful thinking is more accurate!
Posted by: Angharad | February 16, 2007 02:09 PM
They speak far too fast for me. I think we are meant to think that every single receptionist and messenger working in the White House is unbelievably intelligent, witty and verbally talented. I am not buying any of it!
Posted by: Anni | February 16, 2007 03:36 PM
Oh, and regarding Mattie - I knew because I watched with subtitles!
Posted by: Anni | February 16, 2007 03:37 PM
Yes... this is where the wishful thinking comes in. It's like a late 20th-c Pride and Prejudice where the entire cast is Lizzy Bennett. But there are worse dreams!
Posted by: Angharad | February 17, 2007 12:59 AM
Andy points out that Mattie (the characted in House of Cards that Denis fell in love with) was an actress called Susannah Harker, also known as Miss Jane Bennet in the BBC Pride and Prejudice tv series (1995). Screenplay again by Andrew Davies.
Posted by: Anni | February 19, 2007 07:45 PM