When the Boat Comes IN/James Mitchell

[Stillhomewardbound]

Courtesy of Youtube I have been revisiting a cherished tv drama of my past memory ... When the Boat Comes In. The conception of James Mitchell, I would struggle hard to imagine a more dynamic piece of popular television, and yet with a quality of writing that rocketed it far beyond its Cathryn Cookson milieu. (No disrepect to her writing intended but Mitchell achieves Chekovian/Dostoyevskian moments of insight).

This thread is not to celebrate some 'golden age', albeit that this series was emblematic of a particular era of quaility production, but rather to acknowledge the work of a writer that has been totally forgotten and to recall an era when rivetting, dynamic performances came into our living rooms almost as a matter of course.

It was the acme of James Bolam's career, not to forget Sue Jameson, and they achieved an on-screen dymanic that endures after an astonishing thirty-five plus years later.

When I see them now in New Tricks they are as charming and beguiling as ever, but there's no Mitchell putting jewels in their mouth alas.

Tell me I'm wrong, tell me I'm rosy eyed, but do me this favour, watch the opening episode from 1976 and tell me that this is not more neater and and sharper an introductory episode to a most beguiling saga.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rP_xRb_Yk24

[Chris Newman]

Thanks for that, Steve,

If I get time I shall retrace some steps.

Sadly, I did not see it all when it came out as I was a student and evenings disappeared before I knew it. Of course it was before the days of YouTube and iPlayer and you had to note these things in your diary. Miss part of an episode and you missed a lot. Miss an episode and it was impossible to follow. Mitchell's scenes and lines move like a machine gun... just like Janacek's operas. James Bolam is a much under-rated actor.

bws
Chris

[Norfolk Born]

I watched this on DVD last year, and thought that it had stood the test of time well EXCEPT for the fourth series, which came across as more of an afterthought than a logical extension of what had gone before. The on-screen chemistry between James Bolam and Susan Jameson made for numerous electrifying moments. I once asked another member of the cast, whom I chanced to meet, whether JB had ever not been gainfully employed as an actor. 'Only when he chooses not to be' was the reply. Which bears out my theory that he isn't, and never has been, under-rated.

[salymap]

I shall revisit James Bolam in this later, however I loved his off beat relaxed acting in the Biederbecke series too, partnered with [supply name]

[Chris Newman]

I shall revisit James Bolam in this later, however I loved his off beat relaxed acting in the Biederbecke series too, partnered with [supply name]

Hi Saly,
Barbara Flynn? A terrific cast: Terence Rigby, James Grout, Dudley Sutton. A priceless piece of Alan Plater's scriptwriting and that wonderful jazz music that lies just behind the scene regularly bursting over it.
bws
Chris.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Hi Saly,
Barbara Flynn? A terrific cast: Terence Rigby, James Grout, Dudley Sutton. A priceless piece of Alan Plater's scriptwriting and that wonderful jazz music that lies just behind the scene regularly bursting over it.
bws
Chris.

.. and for WtBCI, too. Definitely worth the price of the DVDs (even the admittedly weaker Season 4).

Those of us who have the boxed set of Beiderbecke will know that Plater's "pilot" for the series cast Alun Armstrong in the James Bolam role. He might've made a bigger impact if he hadn't been partnered with a much weaker actress in the Barbara Flynn role.

Best Wishes.

[Norfolk Born]

Barbara Flynn....
She's been in many great TV plays and series, but I think her performances in 'Cracker' were the best (so far....).

[aeolium]

She was very good in the 1980s series A Very Peculiar Practice, written by Andrew Davies who sadly gave up original writing and became the BBC's period-classic-adapter-in-residence (or whatever the term is).

[mangerton]

She was very good in the 1980s series A Very Peculiar Practice, written by Andrew Davies who sadly gave up original writing and became the BBC's period-classic-adapter-in-residence (or whatever the term is).

Yes indeed. And also in "Barchester", another great serial with a superb cast.

[Stillhomewardbound]

I watched this on DVD last year, and thought that it had stood the test of time well EXCEPT for the fourth series, which came across as more of an afterthought than a logical extension of what had gone before.

Very well expressed, NB. Yes, the fourth series which followed a few years later was rather a clunky add-on and I don't think I persisted with it.

Seen as part of a DVD set you'd notice that all the more. Rather as when vintage classic albums are bumped with extra tracks from the same period. Totally throws the symmetry of the thing off.

Returning to James Bolam, it is a shame he didn't get to, or choose to do more big screen work. In WBCI he dominates the camera in every scene skillfully shading the character of Jack Ford with black moods and sharp humour and you never doubt that he is in other than the moment.

But the bedrock of this drama has to be James Mitchell peerless writing and lines fall from the character's mouths as small gems ...

As Ford say's to his new wife whom he's married having got her in the family way ... 'Give it a rest will ya. We've got forty years in which to argue, now belt up'.

It was very much the same quaility of writing which distinguished that other great creation of his, 'Callan'.

[Lateralthinking1]

The friend at university who had to pay for his GCHQ father's rapid pints was an extra in "When The Boat Comes In".

I think he got it because of some voluntary work at Ayckborn's Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough. They lived close to Fylingdales of course.

The last I heard he was in money and living in the stockbroker belt. Very sad I think.

[salymap]

This is what I found on the Quick Links, posted by a guest. saly

[Lateralthinking1]

This is what I found on the Quick Links, posted by a guest. saly

Not sure that I understand this salymap. It sounds dubious! Hope you/we are given clarification by our administrator soon.

I note that the last post was mine but assume that this is a coincidence. Just to confirm, I did have a friend at university who starred in "When The Boat Comes In" and whose father then worked at GCHQ. The latter died years ago.

Whether that in itself is enough to make the authorities twitchy, heaven knows, but this country is quite crackers now. I was 19. Mainly we talked about football. I don't ever recall the topic of choice in the pub being state secrets. Bizarre!

[salymap]

Not sure that I understand this salymap. It sounds dubious! Hope you/we are given clarification by our administrator soon.

I note that the last post was mine but assume that this was a coincidence. Just to confirm, I did have a friend at university who starred in "When The Boat Comes In" and whose father then worked at GCHQ.

Whether that in itself is enough to make the authorities twitchy, heaven knows, but this country is quite crackers now. Mainly we talked football. I don't ever recall the topic of choice in the pub being state secrets.

Nothing to worryabout Lat, believe me. All our past posts are in the archive and I saw this as I am interested in the James Bolam programmes.

[Lateralthinking1]

Nothing to worryabout Lat, believe me. All our past posts are in the archive and I saw this as I am interested in the James Bolam programmes.

Thank you. I think I posted that message as I did because the Government was talking at the time about new legislation. It was all about compulsory monitoring of e-mails etc. Some were saying "terrible" and others were saying "what's the problem?".

My thoughts were that you couldn't necessarily rely on all those doing any monitoring to be entirely stable themselves. I believe the man in question was very dedicated to his work, often stressed and a serious alcoholic. He sadly died quite young.

His son, who may well be a grandfather by now, was quite an amusing character then, intending to become a writer. He had lived in different parts of the world when young, effectively as "army offspring", so I was also providing a rounded picture of him.

Incidentally, two days ago my father, 81, was actually locked out of his computer by an e-mail allegedly sent by the Met Police. It accused him of accessing terrorism websites, and much worse, and required a fine to be paid. My parents were worried and rang the police only to be advised that the e-mail was a scam. So beware - there is plenty of information about it on Google!