Digital Spy: BROADCHURCH and the business of keeping secrets on TV

Over at Digital Spy yesterday, I wrote an article looking at 6 television shows that managed to keep huge secrets from their fanatical audiences, thus maintaining big surprises when important episodes aired. Take a look! And share if you enjoyed reading it.

Trailer: BROADCHURCH - Series 2

How will ITV's small-town whodunit justify a second series, considering the murder was solved last time? It's still vague, although the first 60-second trailer for BROADCHURCH series 2 suggests the story will concern the disappearance of two little girls. It feels like we're just going to have to buy into the idea this town's cursed when it comes to bad shit happening. Maybe the disappearances will tie into last year's storyline, somehow? Who knows. But if it's ultimately a different crime being investigated in the same coastal community, I'd say the chances of a third series are slim. Unless audiences are happy to buy into the idea of picturesque Broadchurch being some kind of nexus for murder and kidnapping...

Broadchurch returns to ITV on 5 January 2015.

What did you make of GRACEPOINT, the U.S remake of BROADCHURCH?

Broadchurch was such a success it's been given the honour of a U.S remake. Fox's GRACEPOINT values the UK original so much that its premiere employs the same writer (creator Chris Chibnall) and director (James Strong), not to mention David Tennant reprising his role as the lead detective (with a wobbly American accent). But what did you think of it? I won't be writing a full review of this pilot, because it was practically a shot-for-shot remake in a less beautiful setting, but below are some Twitter-quips I made along the way...

Trailer: Fox's GRACEPOINT

ITV's Broadchurch was such a massive success that it's getting a US remake on Fox called GRACEPOINT, for all the Americans who couldn't understand the English version because of its funny Cornish accents and colloquialisms. Fortunately it will still star David Tennant (Doctor Who) as the lead detective, now partnered by Anna Gunn (Breaking Bad) in Olivia Colman's role.

David Tennant reprises BROADCHURCH role in US remake

I never expected this! David Tennant has been cast in the US remake of hit ITV drama Broadchurch, which also found an audience and critical acclaim in the US during its broadcast on BBC America. A remake of the show is already planned for Fox (which creator Chris Chibnall is writing the pilot for), and it's just been revealed that Tennant will be hopping across the pond to play the lead detective!

Fox remaking ITV's BROADCHURCH

The murder-mystery drama Broadchurch was a huge hit for ITV earlier this year (peaking with 8.9 million viewers for the finale), which didn't escape the attention of Fox bosses over in the US. They're lining up an American remake for 2014/15, in partnership with its British production company Kudos, with the premiere written by series creator Chris Chibnall (who will also serve as executive-producer).

MSN TV: ITV's BROADCHURCH - finale

Over at MSN TV today: I've reviewed the finale of ITV's murder-mystery drama BROADCHURCH, starring David Tennant and Olivia Colman. Did you guess who killed Danny Latimer?

It could have been a diluted version of The Killing, but Broadchurch crafted its own identity to charm nine million loyal viewers. Much of that is down to the difference in approach, as this was a less depressing affair, despite the child-killing subject matter. Maybe that's partly down to its idyllic seaside locale, but Broadchurch also embraced the British tradition of a good murder-mystery. It also didn't outstay its welcome over a lean eight weeks. A good murder-mystery's only as good as its final chapter.

Continue reading at MSN TV...

MSN TV: ITV's BROADCHURCH

Over at MSN today: I've reviewed the premiere of Chris Chibnall's eight-part drama BROADCHURCH, starring Doctor Who's David Tennant as an out-of-town detective investigating the murder of a young boy in an idyllic coastal community.

The problems facing Broadchurch are obvious and anticipated in this overworked genre. There isn't a fundamentally fresh way of presenting a murder-mystery, which immediately sucked drama out of this opener. If you've seen The Killing's first season (original or remake) you probably felt particular twinges of déjà vu while viewing this new ITV series. Both shows concern detectives investigating a crime in a small town, where a family's torn apart by the death of a child. The key difference is perhaps the weather, as Broadchurch's balmy Dorset is a world away from the relentless rainfall of The Killing's Copenhagen.

Continue reading at MSN TV...