Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Cast: Douglas Henshall, Gemma Chan, Steve Robinson, Alison O’ Donnell, Alexander Morton, Lewis Howden, Mark Bonnar, Martin Wenner, Claire Rafferty, Sophie Rundle, Geraldine Alexander, Finnden Hertog, Alison Peebles, Erin Armstrong, Jim Stugeon, Lindy Whiteford, James Greene.
Based upon the books by Ann Cleeves, the new drama vehicle for Douglas Henshall, Shetland, premiered over the last two nights and whilst it was up against I.T.V.’s superb Broadchurch, it had a lot going for it and provided another outlet for viewers starved in recent years with decent crime drama and who have been having to get their fix from either second rate thrillers from America that rely far too much on the application of science over genuine detective work, or intensely psychological brilliance from the Nordic Noir genre such as The Killing.
Set, as the title suggests in the farthest outpost of the British Isles, the scenic and otherwise tranquil Shetland Islands, are rarely troubled by anything more harmful than a drunk singing too loudly in the dead of night in the capital Lewis. However when a murder takes place, the island is rocked with suspicion and its population of just over 20,000 all become hostage to the island and the deep secret that has been buried since the dark days of World War Two.
Like the family favourite Bergerac in the 1980s, the real star of the programme were the islands themselves, but even underneath that stunning beauty lies secrets buried for 70 years and some would rather keep them there. When an old woman who had links to the Shetland Bus missions is murdered, the site of a 500 year old burial is not the only thing being dug up. Jimmy Perez, a native of the islands but a man who escaped the confines of loneliness that island life brings only to find the pull of solitude take him back, is called to investigate and like everything that takes place in island life, finds that family is far too close and always has something to hide.
Douglas Henshall once again turns his hand to make a good literary character interesting and always provides an excellent portrayal, however and perhaps for the better, there seems to be no secrets lurking in his own past and it makes an ideal change to not have a detective cumbered by his own demons.
Pitting the programme against Broadchurch was a brave move by the B.B.C. and thankfully in the age of catch up television it will get the viewer audiences it deserves but surely a drama that could have benefited from being played in just one night.
Ian D. Hall