Shetland previews
- From the Radio Times:
Crime drama Shetland, starring Douglas Henshall, Steven Roberston and Alison O'Donnell, is based on the bestselling novel Red Bones by Ann Cleeves.Starting on Sunday 9 March on BBC1, the two-part story follows police detective Jimmy Perez as he investigates a murder on his native Shetland islands.
Douglas Henshall stars as Perez alongside a host of recognisable faces including Being Human's Steven Roberson and Doctor Who/Sherlock actress Gemma Chan – plus Monarch of the Glen alumni Lewis Howden, Lindy Whiteford and Alexander Morton.
The atmospheric drama kicks off when an archaeologist discovers a mysterious set of human remains – and continues as an elderly woman is shot dead at her home.
The thriller has been likened to popular Scandinavian dramas. Executive producer Elaine Collins said: "Influenced by both mainland Scotland and Scandinavia, but with very much its own identity, Shetland is a location like no other. The uniqueness and sense of place make it an ideal setting for traditional British crime drama with a unique twist."
Christopher Aird, Head of Drama at BBC Scotland added: "A truly atmospheric murder mystery, Shetland has a unique tone and will be a real treat for fans of crime drama on BBC1. The Shetland Isles are a very special place, they are extremely remote – further away from Glasgow than London. And an island setting is perfect for a murder mystery; it is like a pressure cooker – you know one of the characters must be the murderer..."
Watch the trailer:
Source (including photo and trailer): Radio Times
- From The Guardian:
Read more at The GuardianA moss-faced local glares at DI Jimmy Perez (Douglas Henshall) over a pint of Old Exposition. "We're all connected on Shetland, in one way or another," she says. She's no' wrong. Shetland, or at least the Shetland of Shetland (Sunday, 9pm, BBC1), is a rum old place, a wind-blasted wilderness seething with ancient family feuds, sheep, buried secrets, accents, overly eyebrowed yokels and, inevitably, murdurr most foul.
A two-part procedural based, as the opening credits whisper, "ON THE BOOK RED BONES BY ANN CLEEVES", Shetland starts with an old woman getting shot in the gilet. While Perez (a knob) investigates, islanders with complexions like dead bread stand glumly at kitchen sinks in knitwear that speaks of long nights and minor livestock displacement. There are spats over land rights, inheritances and empty crofts, but most of the grumbles appear to centre on the islands' atrocious mobile coverage, which invariably plays up at times of mild peril. "Nae signal," grumps Perez in his minging roll-neck as witnesses trudge around holding their phones like kites and saying things like "… grandmother … dinnae understand … dead … " and "… umph … ib … urgent … LANDLINE".
The tone lumbers between brooding glum-swept noir (McWallander) and rural teatime potboiler (Midsomer Murdurrs). There are extras from The Hoots Mon's Guide To Scotland and a soundtrack composed of depressed pipes and sporran runoff. And yet! Beneath the kilt twitches a rudimentary nub of wit. Henshall gives good roll-neck ("I can still roll over the bonnet of a car if I need to"). Sidekick Tosh wears braces because she "disnae want Scottish teeth". But then somebody says, "People say Shetlanders discovered the double agent and meted out their own brutal form of justice," and all hope crumbles like a bombed cliff.
- From This is Bristol:
Influenced by both mainland Scotland and Scandinavia, the Shetland Islands is a location like no other. For award-winning writer Anne Cleeves, the uniqueness and sense of place made it an ideal setting for her novel Red Bones, a traditional British crime drama with a unique twist.Northern Star
Cleeves' work has been adapted into this two-part drama being shown on consecutive nights, with Douglas Henshall assuming the role of detective Jimmy Perez, a native Shetlander and widower who has decided to return home with his step-daughter so she can be near her biological father.
Needless to say, it's not too long before his professional skills are called upon when a young archaeologist discovers a set of human remains that could be more recent than may be considered appropriate.
Suspicions are reinforced when a local woman is shot dead on the same site.
Henshall's Scottish accent is, of course, entirely genuine, though he was born in urban Glasgow rather than the rural splendours of Shetland. "Sometimes I wonder if people really know where it is or what it's like, what the people are like and what goes on there. It's worth taking a look at Shetland and you'll discover it's a truly beautiful place."
Read more at The Express
THE Shetland Islands are as far north as you get within the United Kingdom. They are actually closer to Norway than to Scotland.
"Shetland is so far of the coast of Scotland that during national weather forecasts on TV, they have put it in its own separate box because the map does not stretch far enough north!" says Douglas Henshall, the Scotish star of Shetland, a new two–part detective drama set on the wild, isolated archipelago.
Shetland's extreme remoteness helps to create a wonderfully atmospheric setting.
Adapted by David Kane (The Field Of Blood, Taggart) from the best–selling books by Ann Cleeves, this murder mystery is set against the breathtaking backdrop of the rugged islands.
The central character is Detective Jimmy Perez (played by Douglas), a native Shetlander who has come back home after many years away. Recently widowed and looking after his young stepdaughter, Jimmy boasts a wry sense of humour and the idealistic aim of preserving his adored island as he remembers it from his youth.
When an archaeologist uncovers a set of human remains and an old woman is shot dead soon afterwards, Jimmy's investigation unearths a feud between two families whose long–running and biter enmity has split the tight–knit island community.
Elaine Collins, the executive producer of Shetland, explains just why this isolated, windswept location works so well as a setting for drama.
"It's the same as shows like The Killing or Wallander. I love to watch dramas like that. They are set in places that do not feel like here," she says.
"It's very appealing to us as viewers to be taken out of our own world. It's like listening to great music or looking at a painting. We want to escape from what we are dealing with on a daily basis and lose ourselves in this diferent realm."
Douglas, 47, who has also starred in Primeval, Doors Open and The Silence, underscores that crime on such a sparsely populated island has deeper resonance than it would in a big city.
"In a small community, murder takes on even greater signifcance because you know everyone – one half of the island is related to the other," he explains.
"This crime totally shocks the community. Everyone is suspicious of everyone else because people are so intertwined and families' histories with each other become more important."It's one of those places where, regardless of how self–conscious or shy or reclusive you are, you just have to mix in and put in the efort to be part of the community. You have to communicate with other people. Community really maters." In a small community, murder takes on even greater signifcance because you know everyone
- TV Choice Magazine has an interview with Douglas Henshall here
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