Blackpool

I did not expect this to be anywhere as good as it turned out to be. I mean, who wants to see a murder mystery where the main characters break out into song every 30 minutes or so? Yes, they actually do sing in their own voices over recordings you will recognize.

The songs are a perfect fit to the story, moving it along and providing a lot of context. My personal favorite was the head to head between David Morrissey and David Tennant, both singing "These Boots Are Made For Walking."

Sarah Parish has always been a personal favorite, starting with "Cutting It" and doing a killer job as a lawyer in the short lived series "Trust". David Morrissey did a fantastic job. You'd swear he is a total sleaze in the beginning of the series, but by the end, your opinion will probably change. Likewise, David Tennant (the new Dr Who) seems to be the perfect cop, but is he really?

PS - If you saw this on BBC America, you missed about 10 minutes out of every episode. Several songs were cut, as were a lot of key scenes that made the story much easier to follow, and also developed some of the the characters much further. Especially Hallworth, the character played by David Bradley who was protesting the conversion of the arcade into a casino.

Do yourself a favor - get a multi-region DVD player, and order the DVD from the UK.

Blackpool (released as Viva Blackpool in the US) is absolutely the best mini-series I've ever seen. It was unique, well written, directed and acted. Although both David Tennant and David Morrissey are wonderful actors, I felt that David Morrissey really stood out in his role of Ripley Holden. If anyone's seen any of his other work, they would see what an incredible actor he is!! And outrageously attractive as well. The musical numbers are well done. What a brilliant idea to have the actors sing along with the original artists, sort of like Karaoke. I was also impressed with new actor Tommy Morrisson, who played Danny Holden. I expect to see him in other films..he's very talented. Sarah Parrish is lovely and talented as always, and I'm looking forward to seeing David Tennant as Dr. Who. In conclusion, I highly recommend this series. I only wish that BBC would release the DVD for Region 1 soon, as my home VHS recording is getting worn from repeated viewings.

Blackpool is a comedy/drama. It was great acting by the whole cast and every episode ended on a cliffhanger which left you wanting to watch the next episode straight away! The way the songs were done was brilliant and the chemistry between David Morrisey and Sarah Parish was good. There are a lot of twists in the whole story which make it even more fun to watch because it is unpredictable. The music, the dancing and the singing make this drama a part comedy because however serious the song is it still manages to make you laugh. I really liked the way the director used the songs and put them into the mood of the scenes as well, it helped you to understand what the characters were thinking and feeling with out them telling you. Overall I think this is one of the best dramas the BBC has produced in years!

I was flicking through the channels on TV slightly bored had not a lot to do until i came across a program that was just starting. I didn't know what it was about but it was called Blackpool. It seemed pretty good nothing more than you normal melodrama and about five minutes in they burst into You Can Get It If You Really Want (Jimmy Cliff) and to my amazement i found it hugely captivating.

The musical choruses are great through out the series ranging from Gabrielle to The Clash i think that you don't have to be into musicals to appreciate the bursts of songs as they almost fall into a category of music video within the program having there own dance routines even little fantasies they help a great deal to build the plot.

Apart from the music the program takes very sinister turns that make very significant changes to the plot throughout and as the truth gradually seeps out you will begin to see darker secrets and darker changes in the characters Which after every episode had me eager for more. From watching the casino owner Ripley opening his brand new casino to have his whole world fall apart in 6 episodes will bring out many emotions but inevitably entertain you throughout.

The cast is brilliant The chemistry between David Morrisey (Ripley Holden) and David Tennant (D.I. Carlisle) they have a great passion to hate each other although will stop at nothing to get one over on the other one. Tennant however falls in love with Sarah parish (natalie Holden) and the romance between them is great along with the music you can really feel a great passion between them which on screen is captured so well the rest of the cast really pull the whole thing together and ensure a great performance on the whole.

This program is well worth a watch to anyone who enjoys being entertained. The blend of music great characters and a superb and captivating story all set on the back drop of the sunny seaside resort of Blackpool will have you wanting more.

This program gets my vote i hope it gets yours.

I have to say when I first heard about "Viva Blackpool" I was very curious to see it. I missed the first episode and was upset but thank goodness BBC America showed a repeat of it a few days later the night before episode 2 so I taped both and watched the first two episodes back to back.

I'll admit that when I first started watching it I was thinking "Ok maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all." But somewhere between that thought and the first 20 minutes of the show I got drawn in and found I couldn't wait to get to the second episode on the tape.

It's slow moving at the start but once it kicks in it grabs hold of you and won't let go. I couldn't wait for the next week's episode and once it came I was never disappointed.

Each episode ends with a brilliant cliffhanger done with a brilliantly done stage and well chosen song that fits the situation and mood. "These Boots Are Made for Walking", "Knock, Knock Who's there" just to name a few. Also the way all the songs through out the show are all staged you see how the lyrics really fits each and every character with what's not only going on with them, but all the small sub plots of the show as well. All perform them with great emotion and bring the lyrics to life and you can feel their pain, anger, joy , fright and love.

The ending of the story is very well done I think and brought a few feeling good type of tears to my eyes as I sat and watched the show ended set to Burt Bacharach's beautifully done "Alway's something there to remind me." I've kept each episode on tape till it comes out on DVD here in the states. Which I hope will be very soon.