Life on Mars [Archive] - Caithness.Org Forums

landmarker

09-Jan-06, 22:01

I dont normally get excited about television programmes but this one tonight looks a little bit special. It starts at nine on BBC 1. I only hope it's on BBC Scotland or I shall look a right twit. (no change there I hear)
It's about a 2005 Policeman who somehow finds himself transported in time to 1973 Manchester ! It could be a bit of a throwback to the likes of 'The Sweeney' which has seldom been bettered in my opinion. It looks innovative and entertaining if you can suspend belief for an hour for the sake of drama.

Best be off or I'll miss it.

rich62_uk

09-Jan-06, 23:12

landmarker

09-Jan-06, 23:37

Thanks alot that was really great brought back lots of memorys one was going to the seaside in the boot of a cortina estate about four or maybe five kids, with so many adults I dont know how the car went up the hills lol. Trish.

...Blimey! that did bring back memories for me too. In '74 I drove a taxi for a while, I was 23. - Cortina GXL (Ithink) just like the one in the prog same colour etc! I think the series may well get better as the characters develop. It's an interesting idea and highly original. Definitely worth sticking with I think.

I still hanker after those times, but the wallpaper was bobbins!! not to mention the kipper ties.

Rheghead

09-Jan-06, 23:40

As a first aider, since when did first aid boxes become painted green with a white cross?

Surely a red cross with a white background back in 1973?:D

melted_wellie

09-Jan-06, 23:42

As a first aider, since when did first aid boxes become painted green with a white cross?

Surely a red cross with a white background back in 1973?:Dyyyaaaaawwwwwwwnnnnnnnnn.

angela5

09-Jan-06, 23:44

yyyaaaaawwwwwwwnnnnnnnnn.

You should go to bed if your so tired.

golach

10-Jan-06, 00:12

yyyaaaaawwwwwwwnnnnnnnnn.

I agree, a lot of hype, and sat in puzzlement at the finish, Did I really watch this?

rich62_uk

10-Jan-06, 17:30

I agree, a lot of hype, and sat in puzzlement at the finish, Did I really watch this?

Golach ! What was there to dislike ???? It was fantastic, if only Rich had gone away last night instead of today I could of watched it in peace. and in 73 I was wayyyyyyyyy younger he he he :p

landmarker

10-Jan-06, 20:37

I could be wrong, but wasn't the long drawn out yawwwn directed at Rheghed's pedantic nit-picking (sorry Rheghed but I'm sure a bright bloke like you might even agree with me if he's honest with himself)

I have been thinking about this programme as I worked today and there are not many times when I'd do that! It has generated three conversations with different people, all of whom enjoyed it. I'm glad I taped it because this might be worth keeping and seeing again - there will be another seven, and the Beeb have already commisioned another series.

It was best when it tried to be serious rather than funny, as some of the jokes fell flat.

I think the mood & feel of the times were captured very well & Stockport has not changed too much since the seventies.

Rheghead

16-Jan-06, 23:15

I enjoyed tonight's episode. If the writer has done his homework then I must say it goes to show how far we have come in terms of policing and attitudes towards women. I must admit that I would love to go back to 1973, as long it was a harmless construct.

landmarker

16-Jan-06, 23:36

I thought tonight's episode was a disappointment
The year concerned was 1973, not 1953! The police sequences & responses were
ludicrous, and no copper was as free with his fists in the seventies as D.C.I Gene Hunt was portrayed to be.

The fight sequence in the hospital ward, with the victim lying comatose was quite bizarre. I said at the start we'd need to suspend belief but this was well over the top.

It's obvious now the guy is dreaming this while in a deep coma, there may be a few twists and turns but it needs to get a whole lot better to keep my attention over another six weeks. Pity, because as I said this promised much. I hope it bucks up next week.

rich62_uk

17-Jan-06, 00:01

Well I loved every minute of it ! Cant wait till next week, wasn't the flares wider ? Or was that later ? And no they are making the coma thing far too obvious so early in the series, red herring......Trish. (I am gonna look silly if hes right)

Rheghead

17-Jan-06, 00:10

and no copper was as free with his fists in the seventies as D.C.I Gene Hunt was portrayed to be.

What fists? I assume you mean in the interview scene? He was using the palm of his hand to slap the baddie.

The only fists that I saw him use was during the clearing of the air fight and at the end scene during the arrest. Fists are still lawful today during arrest as long as it is reasonable force.

landmarker

17-Jan-06, 00:10

Hair was longer too - the blokes. I heard they struggled to find actors with collar length flowing locks. Could have helped them back then - not now !

(Red herring? mmm...interesting)

landmarker

17-Jan-06, 00:11

What fists? I assume you mean in the interview scene? He was using the palm of his hand to slap the baddie.

The only fists that I saw him use was during the clearing of the air fight and at the end scene during the arrest. Fists are still lawful today during arrest as long as it is reasonable force.

For Heaven's sake you should start a movement up there - nitpickers anonymous.

Rheghead

17-Jan-06, 00:20

For Heaven's sake you should start a movement up there - nitpickers anonymous.

Well, again, it just goes to show that you are having more observation skill deficiency problems with another primetime tv show.:rolleyes:

golach

17-Jan-06, 00:51

I and Mrs G watched this ...and we have not made up our minds yet...do we like it...no sure..but will watch it next week

rich62_uk

23-Jan-06, 22:15

I and Mrs G watched this ...and we have not made up our minds yet...do we like it...no sure..but will watch it next week

Make your wife a cup of tea Golach its on again..... Trish.:Razz

rich62_uk

23-Jan-06, 23:23

Thought tonights was "OK", didn't realise just how chauvinistic men were then ! And I had to ask what a party 7 was lol .... Trish.

golach

23-Jan-06, 23:26

Thought tonights was "OK", didn't realise just how chauvinistic men were then ! And I had to ask what a party 7 was lol .... Trish.
I laughed about the Party Seven, brought back memories

landmarker

23-Jan-06, 23:34

Oh dear, I think it's losing its way.

Police portrayed as numpties , shambolic numpties to boot.

We're asked to believe a works convener would risk twenty years inside for
the sake of keeping a failing mill open. Saving thirty quid a week jobs (ish) for his members at a time of fairly full employment. It didn't wash. I 'm prepared to suspend ' belief ' for the essential plot of the thing <time travel> but the storylines are too wide of the mark. There was a really gritty story waiting to be told tonight but the script let it down badly. Those stab wounds did not look like stab wounds at all, any novice Pathologist would have spotted that, let alone an experienced copper.I'm not having a pedantic go at minor detail here either, the cornerstones of the story were built on sand.

That not so dark and satanic mill was about four miles from where I'm sat now - the outside shots - and yes, it is now converted into flats.

I bought 2 x 4 hour tapes to record this en all. It needs to buck up.

landmarker

23-Jan-06, 23:36

Thought tonights was "OK", didn't realise just how chauvinistic men were then ! And I had to ask what a party 7 was lol .... Trish.

I think the term 'chauvinist' had yet to come into common parlance in 1973.
The behaviour though was evident then , and often still is.

24-Jan-06, 00:01

I had to ask what a party 7 was lol .... Trish.
Party 7s were on the go along time before i took an interest in alchol and i knew what they were! Ive found this series a bit weird and i pick holes with the programme but ive found myself watching all episodes so far and not wanting to miss the next one! strange!

JAWS

24-Jan-06, 00:10

Come on landmarker, you complained about Rheghead nit-picking last week and now you go into massive nit-extermination.

First Aid Boxes did still have the Red Cross in 1973.
Party Sevens, bliss, pure bliss, at the thought, bring 'em back, you don't know what you're missing.

Police? fists? 1973? I think they'd only recently stopped using Rhino Whips by then. (Not Joking)
Rule No.1 Don't leave visible bruises, they look bad in court.
Rule No.2 Don't do any permanent damage, it's too incriminating.
Rule No.3 Always have visible bruises yourself, it lessens the effect of any complaints about violence.
Rule No.4 No witnesses and don't get caught.

M.C.P.s or Male Chauvinist Pi-, Pi-, Persons started in the mid-1960s. I think Germaine Greer would be likely to confirm that.

I can see I'm going to have to start watching this programme. It should bring back happy memories of a long wonderful period which was just about to be ruined.
Ah, the good old days. :Razz

Tymey

24-Jan-06, 14:10

Watched it for the first time last night and really enjoyed it. Harmless escapism.

Rheghead

24-Jan-06, 17:53

One casual interesting item of nostalgia that was introduced last week in LoM(and would probably be best debated in another current thread) was the subject of 'white dog mess'. I remember seeing it in the 70s but not recently. Were we visited by aliens that took on canine form and left at the start of the 80s?[para]

any ideas anyone?:lol:

Tymey

24-Jan-06, 18:29

I actually did hear a little item about that on Radio FiveLive a few weeks back. Apparently it is something to do with less of something (lime I think) in a dogs diet. Possibly because less people now "give their dog a bone" to coin a phrase.

wickerinca

24-Jan-06, 18:35

Ok.....I give up. What is a party 7?

Geo

24-Jan-06, 18:49

I watched a bit of it last night but just couldn't get into it. It felt like a new show trying to be an old show, which I know it is but there are ways to limit that. It just seemed too new and shiney and contrived in places. The boxes in the alley for example looked like they were just out of a flat pack and set there just for the scene. Bits like that were like a parody, the sort of thing you'd see in a comedy sketch. I was reminded of The Fast Show, minus the humour.

Perhaps unfair given that I only watched about 10 minutes, but it just didn't grab me and make me want to watch it.

Saveman

24-Jan-06, 19:00

I think the standard of television programs has increased over the past couple of years. 24, Lost, House, C.S.I. , er... I've just realised they're all American shows....I've not seen this "Life on Mars", is it up there with this type of quality?

Geo

24-Jan-06, 19:15

No it's not.

Prison Break, the new series that started on Channel 5 last night was excellent though.

landmarker

24-Jan-06, 19:45

Ok.....I give up. What is a party 7?

It was a large can of 'Watneys' (usually I think) Beer - 7 pints in all.

'What we want is Watneys'
Roll out the Red Barrel?

Means nothing to you eh?
Sometime I wish I could say the same lol.

rich62_uk

24-Jan-06, 20:17

Ok.....I give up. What is a party 7?

At last a subject I can consider myself an expert on.
Where to start, a Party 7 something that didn't look dissimilar to a catering size can of baked beans. In red contained 7 pints of Watneys best bitter as I remember and my memory isn't at its best due to age, it was also available in blue which was the same size but contained Watneys pale ale. I must compliment the broadcasting team for their accuracy in the opening of the the tin, namely a screw driver and a hammer as in those heady days even the humble can of coke didn't have a ring pull. May I just mention that it was also available in a party 4 size for when your student grant was running out.....Cant wait for the thread on Malt Whiskey another one I can join in with........ Rich

wickerinca

24-Jan-06, 23:34

Thanks for that info!! Not a beer drinker myself.....now wine, rum, cocktails....that is a different story!!!!

Tymey

26-Jan-06, 14:07

The boxes in the alley for example looked like they were just out of a flat pack and set there just for the scene.

I thought that was a wink to Starsky & Hutch.

I saw the scene as a reminder that Simm's character has had an accident and is possibly in a coma. Was the voice on the police radio a nurse or a family member telling him to keep fighting?

The boxes in the alley could be his brain trying to conjure up what the 1970s should be like because that scene was a very obvious parody.

I could be wrong.

rich62_uk

30-Jan-06, 22:07

Hi Life on Mars has just started ( you have already missed some)... Rich

golach

30-Jan-06, 23:11

Have to admit its growing on me, love the non PC stuff

rich62_uk

31-Jan-06, 00:06

Have to admit its growing on me, love the non PC stuff

It was good tonight wasn't it golach, I love the camera work they try so hard and then you get a quick glimpse of a velux (not sure of the spelling) window, I thought it was better than last week....... Trish.:)

landmarker

31-Jan-06, 16:11

It was good tonight wasn't it golach, I love the camera work they try so hard and then you get a quick glimpse of a velux (not sure of the spelling) window, I thought it was better than last week....... Trish.:)

Oh yes ! I agree.
It was hugely enjoyable last night. A pacey story and a good script.
Obviously you need to give 'em some licence but on the whole it was great entertainment.

I really rate the actress who played Sam's Mum 'en all. Lovely lass and
good at her job. We'll probably see her at sixty odd at some future point !

Smashing telly. I'm glad now I';ve been taping it.

Football related murder next week. I hope they remember City were by far the better team in Manchester during that period. 'appy daze.

landmarker

07-Feb-06, 20:21

Did anyone watch last nights episode.

The idea was brilliant, the script was pathetic.
With all that football related stuff going on there were no historical references of any note. The fans were dressed in totally the wrong regalia and once again the Police were portrayed as total divvies. Thinking about it, the word 'div' was used, and it was not in common parlance back then.
Such minor nit-picking aside the real problem here is we have a fantastic idea going to waste. I was so looking forward to this, thinking it was in the hand sof experts rather than juvenile twerps.

The scenes in the pub were laughable, the villain unconvincing and the whole representation of the era was grossly overlooked, undercooked and seemingly incidental to the main thrust of the story, which can only hold the attention for so long, it is clearly an impossible situation so surely the whole point of the show should be the historical differences and contrasts between those times and now.

I seldom get so involved with a television drama, I dont know if it's the era, or the location thats getting my goat on this one, but I've felt let down enough to make my views known to the beeb. The programme has a web site by the way...and a place for viewer reviews. Licence money is being wasted here for the sake of a half decent writer.

www.bbc.co.uk/lifeonmars

landmarker

14-Feb-06, 20:31

Anyone still watching this?
Last nights episode was possibly the most ridiculous telly I've seen in months - yet still I tune in! They got paid for turning out this tosh?
The acting is good, the idea great but everything else is so wide of the mark.

I'm only posting this cos it's the only thing I make a point of watching it. Is anyone really still enjoying it?

cuddlepop

14-Feb-06, 21:08

It was really awful last night. What started out as so promising has turned into tripe.Its so bad Landmarker I'll have to watch it till the end.Please dont commission another series,that would be too much.

landmarker

14-Feb-06, 21:12

cuddlepop

14-Feb-06, 21:18

Dont tell me...yes its going to end up life Dallas,he.s going to wake up in the shower or somethin like that.Who if anyone is going to watch this for a second tome.Are the bbc giving refunds on the license just to watch it.

Sandra

14-Feb-06, 21:23

I'm still watching it and think it's great. As someone said earlier in the thread, it's just a bit of harmless escapism. It will be interesting to see how it ends though, especially if they are doing another series.

melted_wellie

14-Feb-06, 21:25

14-Feb-06, 21:34

Im still watching it , and i dunno what it is but i find it ok.The non pc stuff and a few of the jokes are good.

cuddlepop

14-Feb-06, 21:42

Ilove these thing usually.SEA OF SOULS is my favourite just now.Idont no what it is about Life On Mars but its just lost it for me.
The x files ,now thats my all tome favourite.Panarama ,is that a canal somewhere:grin:

landmarker

14-Feb-06, 21:43

Only seen 'Sea of Souls' the once and it was excellent.

cuddlepop

14-Feb-06, 22:12

This second series of Sea of Souls Is even better than the first .Last weeks was brilliant.As you can tell i love anything that cant be explained by science.Bill Paterson is a fantastic actor and just makes the programe for me.Ok ,i'm biast too as its set in my stomping ground.:grin: