New Agatha Christie!

Doodledog is it the change of ethnicity really caused all the fuss. I thought it was the whole production that caused all the fuss. the fact that 2 Scottish actors were trying to talk with an English accent and failing is unfortunate, but I would hardly describe it as all hell breaking lose

Reading back through this thread, the main complaints seem to be dullness, bad script, poorly produced. Casting is almost entirely irrelevant.

Thank you Iam64 for clearing up my misconception.

We may not have liked this interpretation but it’s certainly got us chatting.

Shame really because it was shown in UHD and I thought it might be entertaining.
Alas I found all of the characters instantly irritating and had to switch it off and search for something else.
This was definitely trying too hard to be stylish which only works if the production is worthwhile in other areas.
It wasn’t, and there wasn’t a single scene that I considered credible.

Maremia

I thought they were playing tennis? Loved seeing 'Thomas' from Ghosts in another role. Think he was also in a Death in Paradise.

He also appeared in one episode of Ghosts US. I didn't recognise him but his voice gave him away though not immediately.

I didn’t care about the skin colour-I didn’t know what to expect anyway. I did care that the acting in an Agatha Christie that I’d looked forward to, was dire.

I object to both Doodledog. Have now lost faith in BBCs taste and choice of scriptwriters.

I thought they were playing tennis? Loved seeing 'Thomas' from Ghosts in another role. Think he was also in a Death in Paradise.

Calendargirl

Miss Marple was not in the ‘Murder Is Easy’ book.

She was shoe horned in in one of the tv adaptations, the one with Benedict Cumberbatch I think.

Nobody seems to object to a whole character being erroneously inserted into an adaptation, but a change of skin colour and all hell breaks loose

Ilovecheese

Fancy! 1954 and nobody smoked!

😁

Fancy! 1954 and nobody smoked!

Miss Marple was not in the ‘Murder Is Easy’ book.

She was shoe horned in in one of the tv adaptations, the one with Benedict Cumberbatch I think.

NanKate, he wasn’t a replacement for Miss Marple. He was a replacement for a white man, recently returned from what Agatha often called the colonies.

I can see no reason why a black actor can't play Miss Marple

How many elderly black women lived in sleepy English villages circa 1935?
It’s ridiculous.
It’s as ridiculous as a white man playing Nelson Mandela.

I thought Dougie Henshall looked suddenly older and a bit porky, very different from when he was in Shetland.

I liked to see all the lovely clothes of the 1950s.

The young black actor looked about 18 but I’m sure I must be wrong. I didn’t realise he was supposed to be a replacement for Miss Marple. He looked so smart, how did he get all those pressed suits in his suitcase 😀

I can see no reason why a black actor can’t play Miss Marple

Well, I can. It would just come across as totally unrealistic.

Brilliant!

Found an image. Love it! 😃

GrannyRose15

glammagran

Probably not helped by having the 2 Scottish actors from Shetland trying to talk in plummy English accents and making a hash of it.

That was the best bit. Persuaded me not to take the whole thing too seriously.

I'd like to find a screen shot of them in their cricket sweaters!

glammagran

Probably not helped by having the 2 Scottish actors from Shetland trying to talk in plummy English accents and making a hash of it.

That was the best bit. Persuaded me not to take the whole thing too seriously.

I can see no reason why a black actor can't play Miss Marple or almost any other character for that matter. I particularly referred to the black actor because he was the principal character in the story and he felt too young to me. At least his acting wasn't embarrassingly awful, unlike quite a few of the other characters. There has been talk of a black actor for James Bond - which is certainly not in keeping with the book - but there is no reason why the part can't be played by a black actor.

I thought virtually all the acting in Murder is Easy was dreadful (apart from Penelope Wilton) and really corny. but I suppose the whole plot was totally ridiculous anyway. If they had hammed it up just a little bit more it might have been a mildly amusing parody.

Callistemon In the same post I commented that my daughter, a trained actor who worked in the media for many years blamed the bad acting on bad direction.

However even good actors can have bad productions when no one seems to be able to do a good job, in the samw way that superb football teams have games when all of them are having an off day together.

It definitely had a Pantomime feel - oh yes it did

glammagran

Probably not helped by having the 2 Scottish actors from Shetland trying to talk in plummy English accents and making a hash of it.

That's when I thought it was a send-up 😁

Although I did enjoy seeing them

Probably not helped by having the 2 Scottish actors from Shetland trying to talk in plummy English accents and making a hash of it.

ITV did Poirot very well indeed. No big deal or insertion of current hot topics. Good quality viewing. Foyles War was excellent too.