Rowan Atkinson as Maigret....

[mangerton]

Merci to Caliban for the pic of that lovely old car, and to ardcarp for the theme. I was just too young to watch it, though I must have seen at least the credits a few times.

A few years later, I did non-specialist French at school and one book we read was Simenon's Le Témoignage de l'enfant de chœur, a title with some relevance to this forum!

I'll certainly be watching next week.

[vinteuil]

"I now prefer claret to burgundy and I prefer Inspector Maigret to Arsene Lupin". (TS Eliot's response to the question "the two most important changes in his life?", in The Fiftieth Anniversary Report of the Harvard Class of 1910.)

[Petrushka]

Terrific Parisian atmosphere so far and what seems like incredible attention to detail.

Pity about the adverts destroying the continuity and atmosphere.

[Ferretfancy]

Terrific Parisian atmosphere so far and what seems like incredible attention to detail.

Pity about the adverts destroying the continuity and atmosphere.

We record all drama in advance and edit out the ads, it doesn't take long. I've just edited Maigret for this evening's viewing.

[mangerton]

We record all drama in advance and edit out the ads, it doesn't take long. I've just edited Maigret for this evening's viewing.

I hate saying "me too", so I'll say "So do I". I record most things, and watch when I want. Apart from preventing the continuity and atmosphere problem, it's a great time saver - probably about 30 mins in a 2 hour programme.

[Richard Tarleton]

The red-button catch-up facility if you have Sky also tends to edit out the commercials, on most channels, although you still get a break of a few seconds where the ads should be.

[Nick Armstrong]

incredible attention to detail.

Yes.... but to my mind, rendered futile and sterile by the mind-numbingly dull and inept direction of this 'drama'. I found it a mixture of cardboard clichés and melodramatic gestures and looks which should have gone out with Maria Marten, Or the Murder in the Red Barn. Rowan Atkinson underplaying it with false eyebrows did little to redeeem it all, and even he had to perform his share of ITV House Style 'meaningful or suspicious looks' (underlined by ominous music for the really hard of understanding).

What a waste.

We record all drama in advance and edit out the ads, it doesn't take long. I've just edited Maigret for this evening's viewing.

It's tempting, but the trouble is that where there's a programme with any possibility of mystery ('oo dunnit?), doesn't the editing process involve spoiling that? Quite apart from being able to be bothered...

With this programme, what happened here was deft fingerwork to fast-forward the moment the advert break started. It's pretty difficult to avoid the infernal 'programme sponsor' bits that wrap each section of the drama though ... those wretched Sainsburys ads suggesting kitchen tips like anchovies in shepherds pie or whatever.

I wonder if the wooden/melodramatic/cliché combination which this show exemplified, and which is typical of so much ITV drama, is to some extent due to the advert breaks - the worst instances are often just before the breaks... directors know that they have to make things simple and unsubtle enough to survive the repetitive noisy commercial interruptions.

To this extent, Endeavour (and before it, Morse) were very honourable exceptions. Lewis, Midsomer Murders, Downton, Mr Selfridge &c. &c. &c. were not.

[antongould]

Agree Rumpole - a waste ... and even after one episode the Gould household is heartily sick of RA's (very) limited range of facial expressions which he seems to think constitutes acting ......

[Richard Tarleton]

Was going to watch it tonight but after all this, plus Lucy Mangan's hilarious review, I'm thinking it won't be worth having to get the smell of pipe smoke out of the curtains, carpet and soft furnishings afterwards.

[Nick Armstrong]

Agree Rumpole - a waste ...

The only good thing from my utterly subjective point of view was that it prompted me to discover on t'internet that my old Traction Avant is still apparently going strong, knocking on for 20 years after I sold her: the old girl is still looking good (if now somewhat shabby inside ): http://classiccars.brightwells.com/v...ls.php?id=4710

[johncorrigan]

Agree Rumpole - a waste ... and even after one episode the Gould household is heartily sick of RA's (very) limited range of facial expressions which he seems to think constitutes acting ......

Tend to agree Anton...Mr Bean was lurking just below the surface. Also it reminded me that it used to bore me when I watched Maigret as a kid, as my old Dad liked it...but at least we didn't have to sit through the horrible ads back then...what was Jarvis Cocker thinking? Cash, I assume.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I enjoyed it.

[Stanley Stewart]

Amused to read in the Radio Times, (2-8 April issue, page 147,) "...and yet Atkinson barely set foot in France's capital: Maigret Sets a Trap was mostly filmed in "the Paris of the East, Budapest"! I decided to stay with the final part of Art of Scandinavia, BBC 4, as mettle more attractive, before switching over for the last hour of Maigret, particularly to see how RA was tackling the title role, - a dull damp squib. Reminded me to revisit Peter Brook's The Empty Space, (1968). However, anyone troubled by intrusive commercials should note that a DVD is available for £8 50, incl post, from the RT Bookshop!

[Nick Armstrong]

I enjoyed it.

If this were a Court of Law, I would currently be passing Leading Counsel for the prosecution a note saying "Ask him about Midsomer Murders" ...



Je repose ma valise !





But it's not a Court of Law, it's the R3 Forum and here, it's each to his own, fernster!




( ... fortunately for you!)

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Coupable des faits reprochés, m'lud. Very curious - I tried three times to get through the first episode of the much-admired Night Manager, before deciding that it wasn't taking me anywhere and gave up. I was instantly "in the (slo-mo) groove" with this Maigret (except for Fiona Shaw's overacting): not nearly as good as the first two series of Endeavour; but I enjoyed it - and no CGI tigers!