Agreeing with all the other commentators, this drama is the best that the BBC can produce. Gina McKee, Mark Strong, Daniel Craig, and Christopher Eccleston all cut their teeth in this series and went on to bigger things - but never better. Even Daniel Craig's James Bond does not outshine his performance as Geordie. Watching the DVD set years after the first viewing, I cried all over again at human weakness, corrupt politics, illusions and disillusionment, and marvelled afresh at the supremely accomplished acting skills. I have lived right through the period of the play and empathise all the way with the four protagonists' dreams and aspirations then disappointment and demoralisation. And all credit to Peter Flannery whose script's excellence matches those of such playwrights as Poliakoff and Stoppard. He never misses a trick and his grasp of the vagaries of human behaviour are pitch-perfect, and nor do his actors ever fail in conveying his meanings and intentions. And despite everything in the plot lines implying a diastrous ending, the final scenes are upbeat and positive - an admirable achievement.
I disagree with some of the other commentators who felt Mark Strong's acting was not quite as good as the others. Oh yes, it was. His character was a deceptively difficult one to play and Strong was convincing in every scene. His ingenuous naivete in its own way compared equally with Eccleston's. The different directions the four lives take were totally believable and every scene in all nine episodes was brilliantly played. And to maintain this the back-up cast were superb. The exceptional performances of veteran actors David Bradley and Peter Vaughan, and also Freda Dowie and Alun Armstrong, added acute verisimilitude, making the whole a complete and perfect drama. If I had to choose, then Daniel Craig's portrayal of the doomed but not defeated Georgie has to be the most powerful in a whole cavalcade of outstanding performances.
I can't praise this series enough and would recommend it to any teacher of drama, film studies, general studies, current affairs, or history. All the younger generation should see this. It encapsulates their immediate historical background and provides a context by which they could understand why England is in the state it's in today.
I disagree with some of the other commentators who felt Mark Strong's acting was not quite as good as the others. Oh yes, it was. His character was a deceptively difficult one to play and Strong was convincing in every scene. His ingenuous naivete in its own way compared equally with Eccleston's. The different directions the four lives take were totally believable and every scene in all nine episodes was brilliantly played. And to maintain this the back-up cast were superb. The exceptional performances of veteran actors David Bradley and Peter Vaughan, and also Freda Dowie and Alun Armstrong, added acute verisimilitude, making the whole a complete and perfect drama. If I had to choose, then Daniel Craig's portrayal of the doomed but not defeated Georgie has to be the most powerful in a whole cavalcade of outstanding performances.
I can't praise this series enough and would recommend it to any teacher of drama, film studies, general studies, current affairs, or history. All the younger generation should see this. It encapsulates their immediate historical background and provides a context by which they could understand why England is in the state it's in today.