TV Review

Published Monday 2 October 2006 at 12:15 by Harry Venning

Is it just me, or does the actress playing Jane Eyre look just like Glyn from Big Brother 7? I appreciate that this isn’t the level of informed opinion Stage readers expect from their reviewers but the impression was so distracting that I couldn’t shake it throughout the whole of episode one.

Glyn lookalike or not, Ruth Wilson’s assured, subtle and quietly compelling performance in the title role was terrific. It was certainly in stark contrast to Toby Stephens’ swaggeringly obvious Rochester, whose every line was delivered in the manner of Swiss Tony from The Fast Show.

Other irritations included some cringe-inducing child acting, a sprint through Jane’s formative years that that was cursory to the point of useless and a particularly baffling flashback which saw two French characters, in Paris, talking to each other in ‘Allo Allo English. This despite an earlier French-speaking character in England enjoying the luxury of subtitles.

However the production was satisfyingly shrouded in enough gothic atmosphere to hide a multitude of faults. Once the mystery began to kick in and the romance start to smoulder, this latest Jane Eyre grew in confidence. Not a classic but not a bad way to spend your Sunday evening either.

Comedy drama Berry’s Way tried really hard to please but ended up crushed beneath the weight of its own cliches. Lenny Henry starred as a working class dad enrolled on an adult education Shakespeare course.

All your favourite stereotypes were present and correct: the middle aged, pony-tailed tutor with a tangled love life, the young Asian woman whose family disapprove of her boyfriend, the fussy old snob and the big breasted blonde bimbo - OK, the actress had red hair, but the principle remains the same. Not forgetting the inaccessible, enigmatic, middle class beauty, called upon to smile winsomely at Lenny’s jokes and provide the love interest.

There were some good lines and some funny moments but there was too much crammed into its 60 minutes to hang together. Henry was, as always, personable enough. But I would love to see him cast as a heavy. This performance allowed him just a moment of menace - and it was electrifying.

Albert Speer - remorseful nazi or rope-dodging war criminal? This was the question posed by Nuremberg - Nazis on Trial, a handsomely mounted, solidly acted four-part drama-documentary about the defendants at the eponymous war crimes tribunal.

Hitler’s armaments minister and slave labour organiser, Speer looked a certainty for the gallows, especially when he himself admitted to sharing collective responsibility for the Nazi war crimes. However Speer’s conduct at the trial, plus some surreptitious negotiations behind the scenes, saved his neck and saw him serve a 20-year sentence instead. He emerged a “celebrity nazi” and was even interviewed by Playboy.

Nuremburg was a cut above the standard drama-doc with the dramatic recreations used sparingly and restricted to the intense and claustrophobic settings of courtroom, cell and the communal dining area.

Nathaniel Parker’s Speer suggested a steely malevolence beneath the suavity and sophistication but it was Robert Pugh’s sneering, swaggering, unrepentant Goering that stole the scenes. Much like at Nuremberg itself.

Details:

Jane Eyre - BBC1, Sunday, September 24, 9pm (first of four)

Berry’s Way - BBC1, Friday, September 29, 9pm

Nuremberg - Nazis on Trial - BBC2, Monday, September 25, 9pm, (first of three)