Montalbano alert

Yay! I've just come back from two weeks in Italy - blissss.

Yes, can't wait. A new Livia apparently, but the same Salvo, Luca Zingaretti.

Ready and waiting

Excellent news! I watch very little television but make an exception for Montalbano.

I love Montalbano. Unfortunately I have my DGS here for a sleepover. He keeps very late hours so we are watching James and the Giant Peach. I will have to watch it on catch up later.

Thanks for the tip! ?Love all the series of this.

Ooh, I do love a bit of Montalbano.

Need to get used to the new Livia, but thought Salvo pretty much unchanged

Agree Bellanonna Salvo as delicious as ever, Livia, somewhat vacant personality, not as charismatic as my favourite first Livia, but mimi, fatzio and cat as mesmerising as ever, love love love all things sciclian!

I agree, they seem to have tried to plump out the Livia character a bit more but I found her constant pregnant pauses and wistfulness rather irritating. Does anyone else wonder why Mimi is still employed by the police? He seems to be utterly useless as a detective, has zero respect from his colleagues and has sexual liaisons with witnesses! It's still the best damned thing on tv! I'm too over invested in Montalbano aren't I?

Now here's a thing... I've just come back from a holiday in Southern Italy and I have never seen so many deliciously bandy men in one place before. Is it something in the water, perhaps?

Yes! Grannyknot, I was going to ask if anyone else thought that Montalbano looked bowlegged when he walked down the street. A common feature you say? Hmmm, may have to go and investigate this for myself.

Yes I've noticed that before - he's still gorgeous though.
To bring it down to earth, bandy legs are usually caused by poverty, lack of calcium and malnutrition in infancy and early childhood.
Post WW2 there was a lot of poverty in Italy.

ps from Wiki:
In 1953, a Parliamentary Commission on poverty estimated that 24% of Italian families were either “destitute” or “in hardship,” 21% of dwellings were overcrowded, 52% of homes in the south had no running drinking water, and only 57% had a lavatory.[6] In the 1950s, several important reforms were launched: e.g. agrarian reform (legge Scelba), fiscal reform (legge Vanoni), and the country enjoyed a period of extraordinary economic development (miracolo economico, economic miracle). In this period of time, a massive population transfer, from the impoverished South to the booming industrial North, took place. This however exacerbated social contrasts, including between the old-established "worker aristocracy" and the new less qualified immigrants ("operaio-massa") of Southern origin. In addition, a wide gap between rich and poor continued to exist. By the end of the Sixties, it was estimated that 4 million Italians (out of a population of 54.5 million) were unemployed, underemployed, and casual labourers. As noted by the historian Paul Ginsborg, the affluent society to this section of the Italian population “might have meant a television set but precious little else.”[5]

The further south you go in Italy the poorer it gets, and I think that is still true. Look at Apulia. Sicilian folk were probably the poorest of all.

No doubt the EU has helped these regions enormously and continues to do so, that is obvious when you look at regions like Apulia and the infrastructure that has been built with EU money - it has certainly opened it up to the tourist, as I believe there were areas that were only accessible by sea at one time. Gorgeous though

Didn't mean to be unkind about men who have a particular curve to the leg! It is just that on a previous Montalbano thread we were all swooning over his legs (not actually, you understand).

Glad that Salvo is back. Love him and his home. Not sure about Livia. I would so like to live that close to a beach. Why were the streets empty most of the time, beautiful as they are, and how the police force manage to solve any crime is a wonder? They are all as mad as a bucket load of frogs, but love them just the same.

Oh my Lord, thanks so much, didn't realise it was on! I moved faster than a ferret down my trousers to record!!!!!!

And I don't watch him for his legs !?

He seems to have worn better than the rest of them who all look a bit haggard.

Have to say we were disappointed with last night's episode - weak plot, farcical and over acting. Not sure about the new Livia either. Wonderful scenery and excellent listening practice though. I much prefer The Young Montalbano - Michele Riondino - hope another series of that will follow this one.

Really enjoy this but I don't know why. It's a load of hokum isn't it ?

Not my cup of tea - but I did enjoy the Spanish series. Just can't take to Montalbano.

What is the Spanish series called please as we missed that entirely.