Out There

People are right about Clunes's accent. Love this actor, he's a natural, but unfortunately they have tried to make him Welsh. If they wanted this character to be Welsh they should have got a Welsh actor.

It's great that it's set in Wales. Beautiful country and unique people. I blame the director. The one mitigating excuse for Clunes's accent is his father is English. But his accent is not continuous - it veers badly between English and Welsh in a single sentence and is distracting. It takes you out of your suspension of disbelief. They should have made him Welsh or English - a whole new barrel of issues to contend with although apparently some say too much is packed into this drama already.

Only on episode one. And will stick with it because like Martin Clunes (let down here by being allowed to make up his own accent), love Wales and the Welsh and am very interested in the subject matter of farmers, youth, county lines etc etc.

STAR RATING: ***** Brilliant **** Very Good *** Okay ** Poor * Awful

Nathan Williams (Martin Clunes) is a rural farmer in the Welsh valleys, living with his teenage son, Johnny (Louis Ashbourne Serkis.) He is becoming frustrated at the sight of the drones he sees flying over the fields near his home, on account of the county lines drug gangs operating in the area. When it becomes clear Johnny has become caught up in this world, Nathan is driven to extremes to protect his son, until a terrifying act of violence plunges them all into a swirling whirlwind of hell.

In the later years of his life and career, Martin Clunes is moving away from the fluffier, more light-hearted comedy roles he broke through with, into more mature, rounded serious drama roles, the latest of which is this six part ITV drama, honing in on the still relevant topic of 'county lines' drugs gangs, exploiting youngsters to distribute drugs in smaller, more secluded towns and cities. The result is a curious mixed bag that just about holds your attention to the end.

In the lead role, Clunes has to carry the project, which he has long form with, and he does so reliably well, managing a decent Welsh accent, numbingly calm, even during high stress moments, and losing his cool only when his emotions overpower him. He has some strong chemistry with co star Lewis Jones as his brother, who has an arguably stronger presence. It's the strongest aspect of a first half that drags a little and feels uneventful, before the gravity of the story kicks in in the second act, and things get dramatic all at once.

It's not entirely believable in its execution, but it's a depiction of an increasingly desperate situation, and it manages to keep you riveted to the end, with an opening for a follow up, to at least make things add up that little bit more. ***

Very watchable, UK take, on a Breaking Bad type of show.

I surmised, around Episode 3, that this was not a stand alone series as there are too many threads to tie up in just 6 episodes. Usually, that WOULD bother me as I like things to just finish rather than go on & on, stretching the patience of the viewer & diluting the plot (Gangs of London, take note), but this series has some understated characters & the Welsh scenery is lush.

There's really nothing too negative to say other than there being one or two characters who, so far at least, seem surplus to requirement & have a distinct scent of Red Herring about them.

I sincerely hope that all the acting team have signed up for the long haul.

Martin Clunes is very good in this, as is Gerran Howell (playing much younger than his real age) as the drug-dealing friend of Clunes' son. Carly-Sophia Davies as the girfriend is also quite a lot older than her role suggests and she performs it well, though she perhaps doesn't look quite as young as her character should. Louis Serkis is closest to the right age for his character as Clunes's son and is adequate. He is supposed to be traumatised for most of the story, but I could imagine someone else doing a better job. As with most of such serials, it is stretched out over too many episodes (by about two) and the ending is not satisfying. I won't say more, so as to avoid spoilers. Nevertheless, it kept me engaged right through.

Farmer, Nathan has to deal with a raft of problems that arrive all at once, his son Johnny gets involved with a gang of drug dealers, and when his neighbouring farmer dies, it looks as though the future of his own farm is under threat.

I had very high hopes for this one, a Welsh set drama, fronted by Martin Clunes, penned by the excellent crime writer Ed Whitmore.

After a slow start it does pick up, it gets better as it progresses, an incident in the third episode changes the tone and feel of it, it gets warmer, but I'd never really say it ignites. I wasn't blown away by the final episode, is it perhaps left open for a second series.

There are a series of hard to believe events, you need to suspend your disbelief somewhat, but it's definitely watchable, largely due to the excellent performance of Martin Clunes, who gives us an interesting Welsh accent.

It is great to see so many Welsh actors, the likes of Mark Lewis Jones, Sharon Morgan, Aneirin Hughes and Eiry Jones, all play their parts well.

Good visuals, great location work, Carmarthen in particular is great to see.

7/10.