DB7

Great escapist fun reminiscent of the old ITC serials - well acted too. Tonights time-travelling investigation also brought back memories of HG Wells chasing Jack the Ripper in Time after Time.

arty-dave

I loved Time after Time - but know nothing about Life on Mars

DB7

Think The Sweeney meets Back to the Future. Modern day DCI finds himself in '73 investigating a similar case to the one he's working on in 2006. Very authentic sets, they spin round in a Cortina Ghia and his boss is Reganesque.

Also enjoyed a gritty Sea of Souls on Saturday, so it's now all down to the new space comedy Hyperdrive to hit the mark in making it a good week on the Beeb.

Harbottle

Same here! My VHS recording is pretty tatty I wonder if this will ever see a DVD release? Anyway a most enjoyable romp with David Warner deliciously manic as the “Ripper” and Malcolm McDowell in fine form, I wonder why his career nosedived? The only irritant in my view was Mary Steenburgen, who I always find rather irritating especially her voice.

Life on Mars completely passed me by though, I was trying to stay awake through the second episode of the new C4 show Invasion, not exactly racing along at a break neck pace this one

arty-dave

Luxury!

I only have memories

Shadwell

Luxury, bloody luxury! I used to have a memory until the booze killed off my brain cells!

Time to keep your appointment with the Wicker Man...

smudge

TIME AFTER TIME crops up every now and again on SKY CINEMA (or TCM ?) Keep meaning to grab a good copy but never do. I suspect it has been released in R1, but I may be wrong...

SMUDGE

Welcome to my house. Enter freely, and of your own will...

samkydd

I thought it was a Ghia because of the vinyl roof, but the Ghia didn't come out until the Mk IV, and I used to own the forerunner to it the 2000E, but the one on the programme was definitely a GXL. The 2000GXL interior has lots of little round gauges on the black vinyl dash in the centre, slightly angled towards the driver, while the 2000E was a plain wooden dash and door cappings! Besides, one clue was a camera close-up of the front grille displaying the "GXL" badge. The GXL was for a business boy racer (often a senior company rep) while the 2000E was more subtle and refined for management types and the family man.

The show was quite entertaining although I thought the timetraveller's 1973 DCI boss was a Brian Connolly parody! I don't think it was particularly realistic, probably based more on TV interpretations of the way the police operated back then than factual research, because despite the advances in technology and science today, the police back then were not completely without forensic science, or were stupid, lazy and beat people up all the time (unless it was the Regional Crime Squad)! It was almost "poli-ih-cull incorreckness gorn mad!" One thing they missed was that most policemen in 1973 had long razor trimmed moustaches and sideburns and without exception, they all looked like Colin Welland!

One scene when the DI was crying in his Jeep was a carbon copy of the Jack Bauer scene crying in his 4WD on the series 24, it was almost tear for tear and facial expression and arm movement identical!

There was some silly lines like "A Jeep, you mean you were driving a military vehicle sir?" As if no-one had Jeeps as cars in those days! My uncle had American (non-military) Jeeps in the 1960s which were the predecessors of the modern Cherokee and Grand Cherokee which is what the DI had!

The 70s fixtures and fittings were very authentic and looking at the camera shots of a street full of parked cars, I've owned most of those models (but a bit rusty and clapped out) including the Fiat 500, I had two of them (one cost £20 the second £50). This was in the days when I changed my car every few weeks at the auctions and got through a fair few!

If I was the DI I wouldn't be in such of a hurry to get back to 2006, 1973 seems a much nicer era generally; good pop music, nice looking cars, simple technology, and you would be happy with a bedsit, a music centre, a bird who drank halves of lager and lime, and a Wimpy Special on the way home!

All in all it's a very entertaining series indeed, mainly for the nostalgic look at an era which only seemed like a short time ago.

"...the chairman of Littlewoods stores made a Keynote speech!"

piroflip2

Hi guys

I like the time travel genre in films and plays but this bored the pants off me.

I found myself reaching for the Sky remote control after just a few minutes.

I know that dramas need a little time to get going but this one gave me no

incentive to stick with it.


Regards piroflip

lostintown

I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Interesting plotline, a good solid performance from the lead and some nice injections of humour.

It's not often that I laugh at tv programmes these days but there were a few lines that made me chuckle...

Angry lost in time DCI - Wheres my PC monitor!

Confused 70's copper- Who?

and

Angry lost in time DCI - What year is this?

Big bully boss pinning him to a wall- It's 1973, just before lunch time, I'm having hoops.

samkydd

Trying to remember some of the hi-tech gadgets of the day I could remember the following:

The K-Tel Buttoneer – never use a cumbersome needle and thread again, just staple your buttons on with this fantastic product

The K-Tel Brush-o-matic - especially useful for velvet collars on your Crombie or the velvet Friday night disco jacket which showed up dandruff (even if you didn't have dandruff) under the ultra-violet lights

The Em-Tex record cleaning pad – cleaned everything off the surface, and if you used the wrong side it removed the grooves as well!

The Stylophone – used to good effect on Chicory Tip’s hit Son of My Father

The Dymo tape label printer – labelled the switches on your dashboard and made it look like a Lancaster bomber’s

The Razor Comb – Save ££££££££s on barber shops, cut your own hair with the razor comb (plastic comb with a razor blade inside) as recommended by Max Wall and Yul Bryner

The Bontempi home organ – bring that package holiday hotel resident duo authentic sound into your living room “Quando, quando, quando, quando!”

The green embossed leatherette cover to keep the Radio Times in.

Car Accessories:

Steering wheel lace up glove with matching tan coloured airtex driving gloves
Clip on windscreen wiper spoilers to keep them pressed hard against the screen at high speed
The vinyl covered clip-in centre console with cut-out for a radio
Paddy Hopkirk chequered flag patterned elasticised spotlight covers
Feu Orange car air freshener, which drained away and fell apart within minutes of sticking the pin in
Driver’s quarter light window stick on ashtray
Radiomobile push button radio
Pye auto-reverse cassette shredder
Furry nylon animal print seat covers
Bullet shaped rally overtaking mirrors
Rostyle, Wolfrace (and Carlos Fandango) wide wheels

"...the chairman of Littlewoods stores made a Keynote speech!"

arty-dave

Any relation to

mysteriesofedgarwallace

I've just got 'round to watching this, and I rather enjoyed it.
Yes, it was a load of old cobblers, all a bit stereotypical, but good fun.
Certainly of better quality than the crap ITV have been churning out recently.

Steve Crook

There were also all the "labour saving" gadets that were only ever seen on sale at places like the Ideal Home Exhibition. Most of them quickly made their way to the back of the cupboard where they remained - or straight into the rubbish bin.

Steve

samkydd

Saw the second episode last light and it was very funny. Like I said "it's polih-i-cull incorreckness gorn mad!"

"The cleaners don't clean up the vomit in the cells, the WPCs have to do that!"

If they'd forget about the Quantum Leap type stuff and just set it as a 70s detective series it would be better!

"...the chairman of Littlewoods stores made a Keynote speech!"