Midwinter of the Spirit

I liked the first episode of Midwinter of the Spirit, and look forward to future episodes. The biggest complaint I have is one that is fairly constant for many series and mini-series - the background noises, whether music or other sound effects, often overpower the dialogue. Some actors easily overcome this problem because their voices carry well enough that they can be heard and understood. Other actors are, naturally I suppose, more soft spoken, and I have to strain to understand what they are saying. For me, this really takes away from my enjoyment of the show. I found this to be true of this show, as much as any other. Otherwise, my rating would have been higher. I wish those in charge of sound effects would be more cognizant of this. As for those soft-spoken actors, I would exhort them to SPEAK UP!

This was frustrating. I've read a few of Phil Rickman's books, including a couple of the Merrily Watkins stories so I was predisposed to like this ITV version.

There were lots of good things (creepy atmos,scary looking spirit, David Threlfall) but for me these were all outweighed by just how pathetic the lead character was. Don't get me wrong - I'm all for having a flawed lead character but there's a fine line between 'flawed' and 'utterly useless' and Anna Maxwell Martin's inappropriately named Merrily lands the wrong side of that line. Rubbish as a mother, evidently a poor wife, an unconvincing clergy, pill-popping, fag-smoking, heavy drinking car crash of a character, she blunders through each episode making a mess of every situation she finds herself in.

I'm not suggesting she should be an ecclesiastical Jack Reacher but I just can't stay interested in a character with so few redeeming features. Shame.

Good supernatural drama (best seen before you read the book, or watched objectively). My only issue? Thank heavens for subtitles! I only have partial hearing and found some of the softer spoken actors impossible to hear without them. David Threlfall as Huw Owen absolutely owned the role he played. I sincerely hope there will be future adaptations of Phil Rickman's books, but with more episodes, as three hours wasn't long enough to do them full justice. 6 or 8 episodes would have been better. I look forward to watching without advert breaks. The locations used for filming were beautiful and atmospheric and the characters mostly well cast.

Excellent mini-series. This is how I want to watch TV (I'm 8 years late with the review but it's currently on ITVX). Succinct, compact, no wasted or drawn-out scenes. Three eposodes is perfect. Get it over with in a night.

Okay, so it's a little predictable villain-wise, but it weaves mysticism, religion, history, probably a fair bit of mumbo-jumbo, family problems, and is creepy enough to make you check that your doors are all locked before you turn in at night.

It's also a detective story as much as anything; think the da Vinci Code in Hereford. Sort of.

Get a bottle of wine out and knock yourself out.