The
lowdown: 'Kingdom' is a comedy-drama series that debuted
on ITV1 on 22 April 2007. A total of 18 episodes have
been made to date, with
the third series finishing on 12 July 2009. Set in the small Norfolk
town of Market Shipborough,
it stars Stephen Fry as
Peter Kingdom, who runs a local firm of solicitors, Kingdom & Kingdom,
with his brother Simon.
The series begins six months
after Simon disappeared; his clothes were found on a beach but there has
been no sign of
his body. Simon's fate is
an ongoing theme of the first season, and although he is never seen there
are many clues to
indicate that he is still
alive. Kingdom & Kingdom's other staff are trainee solicitor Lyle Anderson
(played by Karl Davies)
and legal secretary Gloria
Millington (Celia Imrie). Many of the show's plots concern legal situations
involving the town's
eccentric and quirky inhabitants.
The
episode: The second episode of series three is a treat
for science fiction fans, and Doctor Who fans in particular.
First broadcast on 14 June
2009, it features Colin Baker as an eccentric aged man named Mr Dodds,
who lives with his
wife and 15 dogs. The Dodds'
daughter is seeking to have the council compulsorily acquire her parents'
home and have
them put in care, because
she feels that they can no longer look after themselves. She happens to
work for the council,
and when the case comes
to court, it turns out that the Dodds have left her out of their will,
and the dogs will inherit their
house. The judge rules in
favour of the Dodds, although he seems much more concerned about lunch
than hearing legal
matters. Meanwhile,
a local woman has found elaborate crop circles in her field, and assumes
it is a case of vandalism.
However, ufologist and science
fiction fan Terry (Neil Dudgeon) believes it is the work of aliens. He
also begins hearing
messages from the aliens
on his radio, telling him to do certain things at a certain time. Ufologists
descend on the field,
many dressed in alien attire
(including a few in Star Trek uniforms and one dressed as the fourth Doctor).
Peter Kingdom
uncovers the truth about
the crop circles, which appeared on the eighth anniversary of the death
of Terry's wife, and were
made by his son in an attempt
to bring him out of the world he has retreated into since his wife's death.
Peter also finds
out that the radio messages
were sent by Terry's rivals in the pub quiz competition - the teams in
the final are the Three
Marketeers and Terry and
the Time Lords (strangely dressed in Star Trek uniforms, complete with
Vulcan ears).
The
verdict: 'Kingdom' is an
entertaining series that will particularly appeal to those who enjoy shows
like 'Doc Martin',
which is also set in a small
country town with a cast of eccentric characters. Apart from Colin Baker,
it features several
other Doctor Who actors,
including Richard Wilson (The Doctor Dances) and Richard Briers (Paradise
Towers). A fourth
series has not yet been
commissioned, and given the production cutbacks at ITV its fate remains
uncertain.
Video
clips: Mr Dodds
5.6mb
Court hearing
5.0mb |
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