Night & Day

Strange how this oddly understated show divides opinion so violently. I watched the first 20 or so episodes when it was airing several times a week, without quite being drawn into the curiously un-insistent plotlines. The disappearance of the beautiful but unlikeable Jane Harper (Georgina Walker) ought to be an event of considerable drama, but such is the gentle, ambient quality of the show, that even this fails to move the viewer very much. Is this a failing? I'm inclined to give "Night & Day" the benefit of the doubt. When I first saw it I wasn't sure whether it was experimental or just incompetent. I don't think it really matters.

People who like quick development of plotlines are urged to stay away! "Night & Day" unfolds at a glacial pace. It was probably inevitable, in the light of this, that it would be reduced to one episode a week. This seems less an ignominious concession, and more a realisation on the part of the programme's makers of its natural tempo.

Some viewers will also be irked by the difficulty of establishing who the central character is. Initially Della, Jane's shy friend, seemed to occupy this role, but as the show has continued this would seem to be less the case.

On balance, I find the show likeable. Its lack of urgency, its ambient, dreamy quality, and its evocation of a quiet London (which still exists in pockets here and there) mark it out as unusual in a TV world where noise, incident and naturalism are the norm.

In Finland they are re-showing nowadays NightanDay series. When I first saw this series (beginning from Fiona Brake's and Dennis relationship and soon finding Jane from this spooky tea house (where all was so white and bright) I was amazed what is this. I checked it once more and then I started watching it regularly. Last Autumn in August they started to show NightanDay from the very beginning and because I didn't see those first episodes I started watching it. Unfortunately they show it in the morning time at 11am and I'm working that time. So thanks to good old VHS I'm able to record every episode beginning every week from Monday to Friday:)

Having watched every episode so far I think this is the greatest thing to hit the screen in ages. The directing is fantastic and im sure pioneering as far as soap operas come. This is also great because it is not just targeted at the usual predominant female target audience but at young and old viewers a like, both male and female. Personally I would compare it to Hollyoaks in its target audience but completely different in its style. I think this is a space which definately needs to be watched. The characters are so distinct, from the seductive Sharon Stone(Basic Instinct) esque Jane Harper, with her michievious ways and intelligent manipulation of the male mind to the old tv favourites such as Alex (Charlie in the upper hand) and Aunt Rachel (Dorean in Birds of a feather)whom we witness in new yet very fitting roles. This Soap/drama has something for almost everyone, the almost being not the older age bracket (50+ sorry).To sum this soap/drama up I would have to say it is a combination of the escapist american shooting to the gritty British realism which has made films such as Lock Stock' and Bridget Jones Diary so popular. The experience is a vicarious ride which to a film student like myself may seem odd in a soap, but incredibally fitting. Written by Sebastian James-Yong

The use of atmospheric popular music, cinematic camerawork and special effects distinguish this "soap", (actually soap belittles NIGHT AND DAY, perhaps serial drama is a better description). Having bored of repetitive plotlines and characters, I'd given up on British soaps, until this one arrived. Off-beat characters, regular and genuine cliff-hanger endings to episodes, even adult content in the omnibus repeats, all add up to a unique approach to a formerly hackneyed genre. The opening intrigue of the series alludes to TWIN PEAKS in that the femme fatale of the neighbourhood is a blonde schoolgirl who touches many lives before shuffling off...

All of which is good enough to keep this viewer hooked.

It's really upset me how many negative comments N&D has received - I think it's the most imaginative, exciting, fresh, gripping drama/soap i've ever watched on British TV. Everything about N&D is fantastic, the acting is great and the script faultless. I love the dream sequences, the fact anything can happen, it disregards conventions and looks like alot of fun to make. The backgroud music is perfect, infact, stylistically it's very impressive.

The plot is addictive, intriguing and very unpredictable.

I feel so strongly about this show and will be really sad when it's over . My Thursdays, in fact my life, will never be the same again. What makes me sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo mad is the way it's been treated by ITV. Fair enough they cut it to once a week, but the scheduling has been appauling. It seems to change every week which makes it difficult for people to get into it. (Of course I stay up and watch it or record it every week!)

If you've never seen N&D, catch an episode before it reaches it's not to distant end. It's incredible and well worth it. This is what TV should be about - true creativity.