I discovered the TV author Michael J Bird first through my partner recommending The Aphrodite Inheritance, then Who Pays the Ferryman (superb) and finally realising that The Dark Side of the Sun (very interesting) was a TV production of his I had seen as a teenager and had found made a vivid impression on me. The Lotus Eaters is Michael J Bird's first production: It is a little dated in attitudes but once you get used to the characters and central premise, like all of his other TV, I found this absolutely compelling. Whilst I agree with the lead reviewer on this page that the first series is somehow more gentle and easy to watch (it is 11 episodes or so) I take issue with the idea that Series 2 (which wraps up the central plot) is a disappointment caused by a "young director" (as far as I know Viktors Ritelis was a well thought of director and learned his trade with the great Douglas Camfield who directed a couple of episodes in Series 1). If Series 2 had never happened, viewers would have been left with an unresolved plot, and whilst different to Series 1, I found Series 2 to be very poignant and emotional as well as being dramatic, if a little less diverse, given its shorter 6-episode focus, and every single episode is written by the series creator, Michael J Bird - which perhaps makes it more "one note". All in all, a great, original, inventive, ground-breaking series: The fact that the alcoholic background of Ian Hendry's character somewhat reflects the actor in real life, adds an extra dimension of realism. Michael J Bird has a unique voice, and I have yet to see a production of his that fails to engage and entertain, which given this series was made in 1972-3, is no mean achievement. Some great familiar TV actors seen also from this period: Stefan Gryff and Maurice Denham giving particularly fine and interesting performances. In short, despite its flaws, I loved this series.
4 Reviews
Weird and, sometimes, wonderful
chuffnobbler11 February 2009
Warning: Spoilers
All kinds of people pass through Ann and Erik Shepherd's bar, in the first series, and all bring their stories with them. A real "Tales of the Unexepected" atmosphere kept me on my toes through the first series. Weird hints to Ann's secret identity; sinister suggestions that Erik may be capable of terrible things; people coming to the island with personal problems that soon catch up with them.
The problem is that some of it is very long winded and waffly, and a couple of the first series' episodes are very missable. When it's at its best (the episode A Touch of Home), The Lotus Eaters is top-quality British drama. There are some episodes that just don't bother to bring tension, excitement and drama to the situation, and are plain boring.
The final couple of scenes of A Touch of Home are unbeatable, and completely blew me away. The Present Mrs Clive and A Tiger in Bristol Street all have twists in the tail, and are thoroughly rewarding for that. The Climbing Wave, ending series one, brings everything together nicely and is full of surprises.
Series two is not nearly as good. All that waffle about spies and double agents goes on far too long, and the mysteries and shocks of series one are not replicated. Some episodes (notably Beside A Crooked Stile) are too preoccupied with intrusively flashy direction and editing, which becomes annoying after a while. Ann's dream sequence utterly defies understanding and just serves to annoy.
Wanda Ventham gives as strong a performance as you would expect from her, while Ian Hendry is cursed with a horrible cardigan and strange motivation. There are some scenes when Erik's behaviour seems totally unfathomable and illogical. Some great guest performances (Maurice Denham is fun, and Sylvia Coleridge will make your hair stand on end), but some stodgy scripts and an occasionally pretentious approach to storytelling. Very hit-and-miss, but the "hits" are certainly worth it.
The problem is that some of it is very long winded and waffly, and a couple of the first series' episodes are very missable. When it's at its best (the episode A Touch of Home), The Lotus Eaters is top-quality British drama. There are some episodes that just don't bother to bring tension, excitement and drama to the situation, and are plain boring.
The final couple of scenes of A Touch of Home are unbeatable, and completely blew me away. The Present Mrs Clive and A Tiger in Bristol Street all have twists in the tail, and are thoroughly rewarding for that. The Climbing Wave, ending series one, brings everything together nicely and is full of surprises.
Series two is not nearly as good. All that waffle about spies and double agents goes on far too long, and the mysteries and shocks of series one are not replicated. Some episodes (notably Beside A Crooked Stile) are too preoccupied with intrusively flashy direction and editing, which becomes annoying after a while. Ann's dream sequence utterly defies understanding and just serves to annoy.
Wanda Ventham gives as strong a performance as you would expect from her, while Ian Hendry is cursed with a horrible cardigan and strange motivation. There are some scenes when Erik's behaviour seems totally unfathomable and illogical. Some great guest performances (Maurice Denham is fun, and Sylvia Coleridge will make your hair stand on end), but some stodgy scripts and an occasionally pretentious approach to storytelling. Very hit-and-miss, but the "hits" are certainly worth it.
****excellent**** unique and memorable
lorilimbo21 January 2007
The Daily Telegraph says 'extremely watchable' I found it addictive.
Up late on consecutive evenings watching episode after episode.
The plots, screenplay, humour, drama and acting are of the very best of anything the BBC has ever produced.
The first series contains nine single part stories each based on a different character in the community
The second series is formed of one six part story based around the central couple, Erik and Ann Shepherd.
Centred in Crete and involving intelligent themes in espionage, psychology and slow-paced thriller twists, this comes very highly recommended
Up late on consecutive evenings watching episode after episode.
The plots, screenplay, humour, drama and acting are of the very best of anything the BBC has ever produced.
The first series contains nine single part stories each based on a different character in the community
The second series is formed of one six part story based around the central couple, Erik and Ann Shepherd.
Centred in Crete and involving intelligent themes in espionage, psychology and slow-paced thriller twists, this comes very highly recommended
Of its time..
richard-parkin412 March 2020
Watched it back in the day, really enjoyed it as a teenager. A friend bought me the box set o series 1 and it brought back all those memories, not just the episodes but the times. Wanda has an interview in the section at the end and is very honest. People of today may find it slow and the acting a bit wooden, although Ian Hendry and Wanda Ventham were brilliant. The second series was hopeless, it became ridiculous with abstract scenes that were far away from the writer, Bird's ideas. Typical BBC, break something that didn't need mending. They allowed a younger Director to mess it up with his ideology and futuristic nonsense. Surprise that we never heard of him again....thankfully. The series, as it ended in Series 1 could have gone on with similar storylines, it was a winning, popular format. RIP Ian Hendry.
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