My favorite show thus far on Acorn is "Ladies of Letters", which is fabulous fun. Two quite mismatched English ladies meet and then keep in touch via letters. Their letters are often wildly untrue which makes for much laughter from me. The first photo is of Maureen Lipman who plays Irene, and the second is of Anne Reid who plays Vera. Anne Reid does a wonderful performance in "Last Tango in Halifax", by the way.
Some people who enjoyed the books and radio series do not like this rendition of "Ladies of Letters" but this is my first introduction to it and I find the ladies to be hilarious while being not very pleasant in the way they treat each other. Their letters to each other show them to be out of touch with reality, which causes funny situations. There are 20 episodes and some of the episodes are rather dark.
Two other funny comedies I am watching are "French Fields" (English couple moves to France and this show is a continuation of "Fresh Fields") and "Boomers" (3 English couples who are long time friends).
I watched all 20 episodes of "Ladies of Letters" and miss those gals, wish they would make more. Another good comedic find is P.G. Wodehouse's "Blandings" which I am watching.
I enjoyed the movie "The Man Who Lost His Head" about a man who works for the "British Imperial Museum" and travels to New Zealand on assignment to get the Maori people to allow the museum to keep a famous Maori chieftain's carved head. Will romance occur? A nice glimpse of very rural life of a group of Maoris. I saw this on Acorn TV.
Today on Facebook I saw an ad for Britbox_US which offers shows from the BBC and ITV, and claims to be the biggest collection; it is $7.99 a month and apparently became available in the USA earlier this year. Have you tried it?
Do you have any favorite British or Australian TV shows or movies you suggest I look for?
23 comments:
If you like crime. Lightheartedish is Father Brown. One we really like is Law and Order a British version of an American programme!
I love Foyle's War which is a police drama set in WWII era. The Vicar of Dibley is very funny. And Lark Rise to Candleford is really great.
Thank you for the review. I will look these up!
My favorite British show is As Time Goes By. I love it and watch it over and over.
A good chuckle is good for the soul. We need more shows like this.
I love British tv - haven't heard of these ones though!
I had to come here when I saw your photo of Maureen Lipman on this post, she is one of my favourites!
Well I am a Brit but I don't watch much TV these days but I still enjoy all the classic British comedies like Only Fools and Horses etc.
I haven't tried either of them but I am glad you are enjoying your new programs.
Never heard of Ladies of Letters. We get quite a lot of British series on Swedish television though. I have seen some the series mentioned in other comments above (Father Brown, The Vicar of Dibley, Lark Rise to Candleford, Foyle's War). I have also collected quite a few old favourites on DVD, like... Upstairs Downstairs. All Creatures Great and Small. Brideshead Revisited. The Onedin Line. Jeeves & Wooster. Lord Peter Wimsey. The House of Elliott. Monarch of the Glen. ... And Australian: The Flying Doctors. One more recent British series I've watched/am watching recently (on Swedish TV and on Netflix) is Call the Midwife. Also recently watched the Netflix series The Crown (about Queen Elizabeth II), and found it as good as "everyone says".
That Ladies of Letters sounds very good!! If there's laughter, I'm enjoying every minute!!
Jeeves and Wooster with Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie!
Sounds like great shows, thanks for sharing!
Gosh I'd forgotten all about French Fields! I used to watch it (I'm in the UK). I'm a bit of a fan of American TV. Loved Sex in the City (particularly the early episodes)and I used to love Happy Days.
I have never heard of Ladies of Letters. I have to check this out! Thank you again for visiting me. Means so MUCH! <3
Jennifer, and all, I love P.G. Wodehouse and those Jeeves and Wooster shows, I don't think Acorn TV offers them, but I am watching Blandings, another Wodehouse series, produced in 2014, it is entertaining too.
I wonder if I can get Acorn TV in this area? I get their catalogue every Christmas and always look at the British shows they sell. My favorite Brit sitcoms were To The Manner Born and As Time Goes By. I have heard of the shows you mentioned, but haven't seen them yet. We are also thinking of giving up on our cable, not enjoying a lot of the things we see on there and you're right, it is very expensive. There is so much to see on the Internet now.
Denise and all, I think AcornTV is now available all over the USA. I have an Amazon Prime subscription ($10.99 a month) and for additional $4.99 a month I added AcornTV.
You could look up Acorn online, I imagine you can directly subscribe. I loved the two shows you mention "To the Manner Born" and "As Time Goes By."
I will have to check out the Acorn TV. We have stopped our cable service- we are watching movies on Netflix. thanks!
Thanks for your comment:
When the news and boredom set in I escape
to the English Country side. In my books
I have watched many of Brit sitcoms and love them.
My husband says he doesn't get their humor.
Hi Terra! I too love British programming! I don't have Britbox but may have to try it as I also don't have cable! I do have a subscription to MHZchoice which broadcasts Euro shows with sub-titles and I love it. Thanks for the head's up!
Tina xo
Thank you for the mention of Britbox!! I thiink I'll try the seven day free trial. I can never get enough British television. I liked The Man Who Lost His Head, too. I'm amazed at all the Martin Clunes programs on Acorn! I liked The Syndicate, also. As Time Goes By is my all time favorite and I own the DVD set. I've watched the whole thing several times. There's an intelligence and a humor that I really love in British tv. We just started Loch Ness via Acorn, and I'm not sure if it is too creepy for me, or not!
Nan, we share the same taste in some of our tv watching; I agree, there is an intelligence and a humor that I really love in British TV. I have considered watching Loch Ness, and imagine I will sign up for Britbox eventually. I am watching 19-2 now, which I think is on Acorn TV, it is a character driven cop show and is set in Canada. 19-2 is the number of the two main guys' police car.
Cranford was nice. You must watch A Place to Call Home, an Australian series. Spectacular sets and clothes! Many seasons available and still going... I didn't watch the Vicar of Dibley except for the finale: The Vicar of Dibley - A Holy Wholly Happy Ending. I laughed so hard, and I adore Richard Armitage :) I assume you watched Downton Abbey? Don't know how you feel about subtitles, but my daughter, sister and I LOVED Velvet, a Spanish series. It's on Netflix, and it's is fabulous! Beautiful, sweet, romantic, it has it all...
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