First off, a bit of admin…
As our newsletter subscriber list continues to grow, the monthly costs have continued to rise - so we’ve switched to a new provider to bring costs down and create new opportunities for sponsorships that pay better without quite as many ads all over the emails. If this email looks slightly different, it’s just because the new provider uses a slightly different email builder.
Some inactive readers (people who don’t click on any links in our emails) weren’t initially transferred over, but I think we’ve fixed that now. If you ever feel like you’re missing emails for one of our newsletters, you can check at:
Club.BritishTV.com (for all emails going forward)
This week marks 25 years since the premiere of Black Books, the cult British comedy that gave us Bernard Black, one of TV’s most memorably grumpy shopkeepers. Co-created by Dylan Moran (who also starred as Bernard) and Graham Linehan (Father Ted), the series followed the chaotic life of a misanthropic bookshop owner who preferred wine and sarcasm to customer service.
Moran was joined by Bill Bailey as the ever-patient but hapless Manny and Tamsin Greig as Fran, their equally eccentric friend from the shop next door. Other guests included Rob Brydon, Annette Crosbie, Olivia Colman, and Peter Serafinowicz.
The offbeat, occasionally zany comedy isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s a solid classic we’d recommend to anyone who enjoys British comedy. In the US, you can watch it HERE on Prime - or find it on free-with-ads services like Tubi, Plex, Crackle, and Fawesome.
What we’re…
Watching: Murder Before Evensong - This one premiered over on Acorn TV yesterday, and while there’s only one episode up for now, it’s promising. The series follows Canon Daniel Clement, who’s been inadvertently pulled into a murder investigation in 1980s England - and along with lead Matthew Lewis, it also stars Amanda Redman (New Tricks, Good Karma Hospital).
Reading: The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman - It was released last week in the UK, and now, the latest Thursday Murder Club book is available in the US. This one finds them juggling family troubles and wedding plans while investigating the disappearance of a guest whose secrets may be worth killing for. As a side note, we still haven’t heard any official confirmation on whether Netflix will be doing a second film - but hopefully, we’ll know more soon!
THIS WEEK IN BRITISH TV
On BritBox, new episodes of The Change, Silent Witness, The Hardacres, and Escape to the Country continue weekly. On October 2nd, Karen Pirie returns for season 2 (one episode weekly, total of three feature-length episodes).
On Acorn TV, new episodes of Summertide and The Crow Girl continue weekly. Murder Before Evensong premiered on the 29th, and new episodes will continue weekly on Mondays (6 in total). On October 6th, they’ll add the 1983 adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Tommy & Tuppence.
Over on the PBS Masterpiece Amazon Channel, all episodes of the new seasons of Marlow Murder Club and Unforgotten are now available (so if you’ve been waiting to binge, you’re all set). On October 5th, the new Maigret adaptation (with Benjamin Wainwright) will premiere.
On AMC+, new episodes of the folk horror-crime drama The Red King continue every Thursday through October 23rd.
“Everything will be all right in the end… if it’s not all right, then it’s not yet the end.
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