Wednesday 9 March 2011

TV Theme Retrospective: Will They, Won’t They?

Sexual tension – most TV series run on it. Very few featuring happily-married couples have ever been very successful, with the possible exception of ‘MacMillan and Wife’. You need a bit of a spark, a bit of a hint that will keep viewers tuning in to see if they get it on in the final episode (as fans of 'The X-Files' were always hoping and fearing at the same time).

After all, fanfic won’t write itself, right?

Chief among these was the US-inspired ‘Dempsey And Makepiece’, produced by LWT with the UK’s Glynis Barber and the US actor Michael Brandon (who clearly agreed with the idea and married in real life!).

The theme-tune was a very American affair (it was called "Blind Eye" – there’s something to help you out at a pub quiz!) by Alan Parker, a veteran of English TV soundtracks:



One of the few times a US style has been copied on English TV with a great deal of success, rather than the other way around, it's a staple of satellite channels dedicated to running old TV shows.

Next month's theme: Rise of the Miniseries.

17 comments:

Mr Eugenides said...

Man, she is hot! I'd forgotten why I watched that show religiously as an adolescent boy...

Roue le Jour said...

Certainly, sexual tension always kept me glued to "Cagney & Lacey". But you know, I'm racking my brain, and I can't think of any reason why a TV show featuring heartthrob Rock Hudson as a happily married man would be lacking in that department.

Lynne said...

Dumpitt and Makeoff never really appealed to me. Probably because even back then the genre was getting a little tired and the cliches were so familiar they could have had their own front door key.

But then, I never found Michael Brandon to be particularly fanciable...

James Higham said...

Happiness is boring, isn't it?

Jiks said...

I used to love those two and as Mr E says she is seriously hot, which never hurts.

Foxy Brown said...

@ Mr Eu,

Glynis Barber has aged beautifully, and she still meets the male hetero criteria of hotness.

Remember the case of Moonlighting? The programme never recovered after the characters played by Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd made the beast with two backs. The sexual frisson - crucial to the show's success - quite literally evaporated overnight.

Captain Haddock said...

Ahhh, yes "Dopey & Muffpiece" .. I remember it only too well ..

Patent bilge ..

Anonymous said...

"Glynis Barber has aged beautifully"

With a bit of help from fillers and botox in the face and a very good figure for her age I agree with you, yes she has and I think she looks really great.

BUT....the fillers and botox affect her acting ability. Her crying scenes in Eastenders are incredibly funny as she can only grimaces and gurn her way through them.

The thick blobs of fillers under her bottom lip stick out like those cotton wool rolls the dentist stick in your mouth. Its just hilarious.

Foxy Brown said...

@ Anon - 19.24

Really? I obviously didn't look at her properly. Should have gone to Specsavers.

Eddie Willers said...

"One of the few times a US style has been copied on English TV", thou quoth.

Methinks you dismiss the work of the Incorporated Television Company too lightly.

It wasn't just Gerry & Sylvia Anderson, there were The Champions, The Prisoner, The Persuaders, etc etc all styled towards an American market.

jd said...

The Prisoner... styled towards a US market? Well, maybe, but I'd love to have seen their reaction at the end given how loopy some Brits went at No1 not being a bald bloke with a cat....

But make to the main subject, yes Glynis was and is remarkably hot.

jd said...

PS "Very few featuring happily-married couples have ever been very successful, with the possible exception of ‘MacMillan and Wife’."

I give you "Hart to Hart".

Captain Haddock said...

Or "I Love Lucy" (Lucille Ball & Desi Arnez) ..

Not to mention "The Darling Buds Of May" .. (David Jason, Pam Ferris & others) ..

Or the one whose title I can't, at the moment remember, but starring Dick Vandyke & Mary Tyler-Moore ..

JuliaM said...

"Certainly, sexual tension always kept me glued to "Cagney & Lacey"."

;)

"... I can't think of any reason why a TV show featuring heartthrob Rock Hudson as a happily married man would be lacking in that department."

Ah, but that's with the benefit of hindsight, isn't it?

"But then, I never found Michael Brandon to be particularly fanciable..."

The accent always jarred a little, for me.

"Remember the case of Moonlighting? The programme never recovered after the characters played by Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd made the beast with two backs."

Exactly! A case of a show that lost the plot, rather like 'Twin Peaks', albeit for different reasons.

JuliaM said...

"Her crying scenes in Eastenders are incredibly funny..."

She's in 'Stenders!? I gave up watching that when Phil developed a crack habit...

"...there were The Champions, The Prisoner, The Persuaders, etc etc all styled towards an American market."

I'll grant you The Champions and The Persuaders, but like JD, I too would have loved to see the reaction to the final episode...

"I give you "Hart to Hart"."

Oh, damn, yes!

"Or the one whose title I can't, at the moment remember, but starring Dick Vandyke & Mary Tyler-Moore .."

That'll probably be 'The Dick Van Dyke Show'. Cunning with their titles, weren't they?

Roue le Jour said...

"Ah, but that's with the benefit of hindsight, isn't it?"

Looks at ground. Scuffs toe. 'es, miss.'

Anonymous said...

A model called Christie Lyons did a NSFW photoshoot based on her supposed resemblance to Glynis Barber.

Those so inclined can find it by Googling on
"Christie Lyons Mayfair".

Yes, she's hot.