Bognor is Back

I never got to see Bognor when it was first shown on television. It ran for 21 episodes from 1981-2 at a time when I wasn't watching much if any TV. Years later, I had the pleasure of meeting Tim Heald, author of the books on which the show was based, and asked him about it. To cut a long story short, he felt that Thames TV had made a bit of a mess of it. For instance, he'd very much favoured Derek Fowlds being cast in the lead as Simon Bognor, but in the end the role went to David Horovitch, a decent actor but perhaps not ideal for the part. They also put the shows out at times which were unlikely to attract a big audience.

Thanks to Talking Pictures TV, it's now possible to judge Bognor for myself. This channel has a real knack of finding lost gems, as well as some shows and films that haven't really stood the test of time. They have run Public Eye, the downbeat series about the private eye Frank Marker, which was very low-key but pretty good, and the obscure but rather enjoyable anthology series Shadows of Fear as well as the original Van der Valk, which I found surprisingly disappointing.

Bognor comprised the adaptations of four books, starting with Unbecoming Habits, set in a monastery, with one of the monks played by Patrick Troughton. Bognor, who works for the Department of Trade, is sent to investigate a suspicious death. There are some pleasing moments in the story, but overall it's pretty lightweight and forgettable. Apparently the series was cancelled long before it came to an end, and in all honesty, I can see why.

I'm glad to have caught up with it, though. Tim was as amusing in person as he was on the page, and although he took the disappointment of the adaptations in his stride, his enthusiasm for writing about the character waned. I encouraged him to consider reviving Simon Bognor after a long hiatus, and he duly contributed a fresh Bognor short story to an anthology I edited for the CWA, Original Sins. Before long, he was working on a new Bognor novel. Thanks to Bognor, I've thought back to those times (too few, alas) that I spent in his convivial company, and those pleasant memories are enough to keep me watching, even if the scripts don't quite do the trick.

The Franchise Affair - film review

The Franchise Affair is a 1951 film closely based on Josephine Tey's excellent novel. It offers a crime story, but not a murder mystery. Rather, the puzzle is based on the real life Elizabeth Canning case. A girl accuses a woman and her grumpy old mother of kidnapping her, and forcing her to become their servant. The accused women call in a local solicitor, Robert Blair, to defend them.

It's a low-key premise, one which is, I think, better suited to a book than a film, because it's not an obviously dramatic situation, despite a courtroom scene (in which the key twist comes rather out of the blue - a flaw in the writing). That said, I found The Franchise Affair to be a good example of the "well-make" post-war British film, with good performances from an excellent cast who make the most of the story's potential.

Michael Denison plays Blair, one of those small town solicitors from the Good Old Days, when you could take on a client without worrying about letters of engagement, or compliance with the anti money laundering legislation. Nor does he have to bother with computerised time recording, or targets for chargeable hours, lucky fellow. This freedom enables him to take on a case for which he's not really equipped in terms of experience. But determination sees him through.

Marion Sharp is played by Dulcie Gray, who was Denison's wife in real life. She was also a writer of mystery stories. As it happens, I've recently bought one of her books, and look forward to reading it. The remaining cast includes such future stars as Kenneth More (later Father Brown) and Patrick Troughton (a future Doctor Who). All in all, I enjoyed this film. I watched it the day after watching the much more dramatic The Shining. But in its quiet and unambitious way, it was equally entertaining.