When the Boat Comes In

I was thrilled to find this series on video at my local library, so I borrowed all copies. I'd been rapt in this series in the late 70's when it was shown on local TV, and again during its many repeats. This is superb television - excellent writing, acting, evocative locations, authentic sets - I could go on!

The characters of the members of the Seaton family are beautifully written and acted, and again, as 25 years ago, I feel that I know them. Jack Ford, played by James Bolam, is a subtle balance of strength and ambition, morality and compassion, but you wouldn't want to cross him! Bolam has a long list of credits to his name, but to me Jack Ford is his finest creation.

The producers brilliantly captured the struggle and destitution and stark inequalities of the post-World War l era in northern England. The Tyne-side accents, the `bonnie lads' and `tirra's' were like music in my ears - (even though I've never left the shores of this fair country!)

It was a pleasure to watch a story unfolding without extreme close-ups or hand-held cameras, which today simply interfere with the story-telling. I enjoy a TV program most when I feel I'm a priveleged, but unseen observer. "When The Boat Comes In" provides this level of enjoyment.

When The Boat Comes In is a gritty Northern drama, set in Newcastle just after the end of the Great War. It follows the trials of Ex-Sergeant Jack Ford and the Seaton family as they struggle with the problems of that time: The aftermath of the war, the great depression of the 1920's, trade union activists and an uncaring society. The characters also spend a lot of time drinking in and out of pubs! The props are good (some must be over 70 years old now) and outdoor shots are cleverly done, capturing the feel of streets and houses of the '20s (definitely no phone boxes or aircraft in the background!) James Bolam is convincing as Jack Ford, a cunning man who has seen ignorance and stupidity in the trenches and finds himself fighting against it in his role of Union boss during the peacetime.

I recently purchased the box set of the entire series with some trepidation - it is expensive, especially when NZ dollars have to be converted to British pounds. Half way through the first episode, I said to my husband, "I remember this series as being good, but I hadn't realised just how good it is." Several discs further on, I have had no reason to revise that judgement. The writing is tight, the characters brilliantly conceived, written and portrayed, and the whole thing a great pleasure. The creation of the time and place is faultless. James Bolam - wonderful in everything he does - is superb, as are Susan Jameson, and Jean Heywood as her mother Bella. (It is great to see Bolam and Jameson again in the current 'New Tricks'.) They do NOT make 'em like this any more! This was money well spent.

One of my favourite TV shows of all time. Not many shows on TV have I set aside time for to make sure the show is never missed. This is one of them - along with Auf Wiedersein Pet, The Good Life, Bouquet of Barbed Wire, The Lovers (with Geoffrey Bubbles Bon Bon!), Not the Nine o'Clock News, The Fast Show, Shine on Harvey Moon and recently, now I live in Canada, the new HBO series Rome.

It was put your feet up time and settle down to a good old epic story of life, with fun, tears, laughter, trauma, love, lost love and love regained. Real.

Tell me its out on DVD please!

James Bolam came into his own as a mature actor, more than ably supported by his then wife Susan Jamieson. They, in turn, were supported by a fine cast of actors playing in roles that were gritty and not so gritty, full of pathos and ranging in ages that enabled all the viewers to identify with the characters and their situations.

Quite simply, for me , the best TV series ever. The dialect is County Durham mainly, not Tyneside. The scenes and locations totally authentic and now mainly long gone as the North East has moved into its post industrial era. The story line and acting mainly very believable and evocative of a period of our history we would be foolish and poorer to forget. This was how my grandparents lived, only they didn't open a shop. Their sons went to the second war, not the first. The independent spirit of the working people of the northeast is to a great degree intact despite the best efforts of successive Tory (including the coalition)governments to emasculate the area. And the title? I would ask my mam, could I have a certain toy or some sweets. The answer , because her purse was empty, You can have it "When the boat comes in".