The Bletchley Circle

"The Bletchley Circle" from 2012 is about women who worked on cracking German military codes during the World War II. They are described as "Alan's girls," meaning Alan Turing, whose tragic life will be the subject of a film starring Benedict Cumberbatch later this year. After the war, though they were all very smart, they settled in everyday life that sometimes was less than satisfying.

When young women start disappearing and wind up dead in 1952, one of the code-breakers, Susan (Anna Maxwell Martin) becomes interested in the case, sees a pattern emerging, and asks her husband to use a connection to get her in to see the Deputy Commissioner. Unfortunately, her idea -- the location of the currently missing girl's body -- is incorrect.

Discouraged, Susan is sure that she and her old code-breaker friends can find the killer using their code-breaking skills. She gets the old group together: Jean (Julie Graham), Millie (Rachel Stirling), and Lucy (Sophie Rundle) who are resistant at first, then agree. It means using information supplied by other code-breakers. It also means putting themselves in danger.

I thought this was a suspenseful, intriguing, and interesting story, with the '50s atmosphere, clothing, and hairstyles intact, with strong acting from the actresses. Because it's a feminist story, meant to show that post-World War II, England didn't need its women any longer, the men in it are annoyed, angry, suspicious, and in one case, violent. I would say the Deputy Commissioner, despite finding Susan a bit of a nuisance, does follow up on what she says, knowing the job she had during the war and her intelligence; and Susan's husband, though not particularly happy, knows she's a good woman and in the end, has patience with her long hours away from the house.

My only question is, where is season 2? Can't wait.

The British really do period drama well. Often they choose strangely identifiable characters, which are played by highly competent actors. This show was much better than I expected. I really wondered how they were going to tie in code-breakers to a post-war world, and assumed it would be something to do with Russia. What a pleasant surprise to find these extraordinary women on the hunt for a serial killer. The science behind their quest was also extraordinary, and believe me, never suffers from the antiquated or mundane in terms of mind boggling genius in terms of their analytics. It's all very original indeed. The background is authentic 1950s and worth a look just for that. The social commentary was brilliant, though some may find it a little too extracurricular to the suspense of the main plot. The villain is good and evil, and I would have liked to have seen more of that, which is where my extra point disappeared. It would have given the story an extra kick to the suspense, which it needed, because a lot of the suspense was how husbands and other chaps would react to such aggressive role-breaking. It's a tiny criticism. This is truly a wonderful show. If you love excellent period piece BBC crime drama, then you are in for a treat when you discover The Bletchley Circle.

I adore shows with woman as main characters, they are so rare, and this one is thoroughly involving, before you know it-it is over, you are so completely wrapped up in the story, acting; this thriller that you cant believe you drank it all in so sweetly. Each of the woman has her own life story, each of them come with their own brilliant gift, and all care without being sentimental. They are so "you and me" that you feel you could go out to tea with them if you saw them in your life. They are focused, dedicated to the mission and like the marines-leave no woman behind. The more seasons pass-the more developed the characters and possibilities are. Just when I am excited to have found a new friend- ITV makes a gender biased call-women aren't a powerful enough audience-so why bother? 9/10

During WWII, many women were vital to break the German codes at Bletchley Park. It's seven years after the war. Susan finds herself as a simple housewife and mother of two. Her days of life-and-death work is over. She starts noticing suspicious patterns with murders in the newspapers. Her husband humors her by going to the police but it's hard to be taken seriously. She recruits her fellow Bletchley workers. Millie is the outgoing one. Lucy is the youngest one with an abusive husband. Jean was their supervisor and now works as a librarian.

This is a fine British crime TV mysteries. The superior aspect is the cast and the characters. Bletchley Park is a great backstory. Susan a great character and her issues are compelling. The show could have overdosed with sexism but it is able to find a certain balance. Most of the men are dismissive but they aren't actually hostile. Timothy is a good example. He really loves Susan but he doesn't really know her history or the true extend of her skills. It's a great touch that he is constantly searching for hard puzzles for her. It's both loving but infantilizing. My constant issue is that the ladies are sometimes a little too cavalier with potential dangers. Susan's fears in the second season are well founded. I'm not sure why she gets written out for the last two episodes. All in all, I love the characters and the mysteries are fine.

This was a sparkling, well thought out, murder mystery. It dealt with the part of World War II that we seldom get to see on the screen. These four women had developed their minds to nearly super-human levels, only to let them rust in the decades following the war. This drama is set in that curious after-time. It's a time when hands that had once killed and maimed had to be placed in a domestic setting. Both the protagonists and villain were all products of that curious time. They captured the sense of mid- 50's London exquisitely. The piece was well cast, well filmed and well acted. I hope that we get to see more of the amazing women of Beltchley!