Written by: Guest Bloggers at 9:27 pm
Filed under: DVD Box Sets,Movies,Television
Guest Post by: RPalladino
Starring – Jane Horrocks, Janet McTeer, Jodhi May, Geraldine James, Steven McKintosh
Written by Sally Wainwright
Directors – Simon Curtis, Declan Lowney, Catherine Morshead
Spread over five weeks on PBS and, from October 30th, available on a 2-disc Acorn Media DVD set, The Amazing Mrs Pritchard weaves an intriguing spell and is, at times, a wildly entertaining mix of laugh-out-loud comedy, superb drama and a little soap thrown in for good measure.
Starring the irrepressible and daring Jane Horrocks (Little Voice, Absolutely Fabulous) as Ros Pritchard, this six episode mini-series is a new take on the old little guy does good story (made especially famous by the wonderful 1939 Capra-classic, Mr Smith Goes To Washington), updated for a modern UK viewing audience, and is now garnering good figures for the superb PBS “Masterpiece Theatre” series, from an increasingly appreciative American audience.
After breaking up a scuffle between two local candidates outside her grocery store, Ros shouts that “I could do better than you lot” to the applause, cheers and general egging-on of reporters and on-lookers.
Seemingly within hours, and with no small amount of hoopla from a delirious media greedy for a new angle for a dull election, she is the head of a new political party called The Purple Democratic Alliance.
Bankrolled with an obscene amount of money by the almost reptilian Kitty Porter (played with gleeful malice by Frances Tomelty), Pritchard, with the help of some major female defections from the left and right of the British political system, is handed the biggest political landslide in British history. The grocery shop manager, who just wanted to make a point, is now the most powerful person in Europe.
So begins a story of political intrigue that is the TV equivalent of a real page turner, a book you just can’t put down. It is a testament to how great British drama can really be, and hopefully how good it can become once again.
At the center of it all is Jane Horrocks. Horrocks is more famous on these shores for her seemingly witless, brain-dead PR Bubble, on BBC America’s Absolutely Fabulous and the superb Little Voice. Here, Horrocks is just outstanding, delivering her lines with wit, drive, and meticulous timing.
The supporting cast is just as good. The aforementioned Tomelty is masterly as the brooding Kitty Porter, Jodhi May (Daniel Deronda) as the Karl Rove-like Miranda Lennox, Steven McKintosh (Our Mutual Friend and Prime Suspect 5) who as the P.M.’s overwhelmed husband, Ian, is heartbreakingly familiar and a joy to watch.
Of the supporting cast though, it is Janet McTeer, who all but steals the show. Playing the Chancellor and Deputy Prime Minister, Conservative Party defector Catherine Walker, McTeer plays the granite-tough politico for all it’s worth. She is at times brutal, confused, vulnerable and crabbily humourous and, by some distance, has all the best lines and delivers them magnificently.
All in all, however, it is very much an ensemble piece that works because the writing is contemporary, razor-sharp and is directed with a sense of purpose and feel by Curtis, Lowney and Morshead.
The Amazing Mrs Pritchard is a landmark show and should not, on any account, be missed by followers of British political writing. This is simply the best show all year.
Overall Rating: 
Technorati Tags: The Amazing Mrs Pritchard, British Television, TV Box Set, DVD Review, Jane Horrocks, Janet McTeer, Jodhi May, Geraldine James, Steven McKintosh, Simon Curtis, Declan Lowney, Catherine Morshead
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