Case Histories is a British crime drama television series based on the Jackson Brodie novel series by Kate Atkinson. It stars Jason Isaacs, who has also narrated the abridged audiobook adaptation, as protagonist Jackson Brodie.[1] The series is set and filmed in Edinburgh.[2] Initially, each episode was aired in two 60-minute sections. The first series premiered on June 5, 2011, on BBC1 in the United Kingdom,[3] and in October 2011 on PBS in the United States.[4][5] A second series aired in 2013.[6] Initially commissioned as two feature-length episodes,[7] in September 2012, the BBC reported that the format of series two would be different, encompassing three self-contained stories, at a running time of ninety minutes per episode. The first episode was revealed to be an adaptation of Atkinson's 2010 novel, Started Early, Took My Dog. Filming for the second series commenced in October 2012.[6] The second and third episodes of the series are original stories, written exclusively for television.[8]
| Case Histories | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover | |
| Genre | Drama |
| Directed by |
|
| Starring | |
| Composer | John Keane |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 9 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Nicole Finnan |
| Producer | Helen Gregory |
| Production locations | Edinburgh, Scotland, UK |
| Editor | William Webb |
| Running time | 60 minutes (series 1) 90 minutes (series 2) |
| Production company | Ruby Films |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC One BBC Scotland |
| Release | 5 June 2011 – 2 June 2013 |
Plot
editThis section's tone or style may not reflect the encyclopedic tone used on Wikipedia. (March 2018) |
Private investigator Jackson Brodie (Jason Isaacs), a former soldier and policeman, hides a deeply empathetic heart under his tough-guy exterior. He is unable to resist coming to the rescue and is a magnet for the bereaved, the lost and the dysfunctional. Intriguing, moving, and funny, the character-driven stories conjure up a richly imagined world in which Brodie attempts to bring resolution to the victims of unexplained mysteries and comfort to the survivors of personal tragedies. He is the ultimate survivor himself—a bruised optimist, compelled to help others. Assisted by his faithful colleague Louise Munroe (Amanda Abbington), Jackson attempts to provide answers to those without hope of ever finding them any other way.[9]
Cast
edit- Jason Isaacs as Jackson Brodie
- Amanda Abbington as D.I. Louise Munroe
- Zawe Ashton as Deborah Arnold
- Millie Innes as Marlee Brodie
- Natasha Little as Julia Land
- Kirsty Mitchell as Josie Brodie
- Edward Corrie as Marcus Stewart
- Martin Stevenson as Archie Munroe
- Rory Barraclough as Young Jackson Brodie
- Allan Linsday as Francis Brodie
- Paterson Joseph as Patrick Carter
- Tessa Titterington as Young Amelia
- Morven Christie as Michelle Moore
- Rose Leslie as Laura Wyre
- Phil Davis as Mr Wyre (father of Laura)
Episodes
editSeries 1 (2011)
edit| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [10] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Case Histories" | Marc Jobst | Ashley Pharoah | 5 June 2011 (Part 1) 6 June 2011 (Part 2) | 6.42 (Part 1) 5.56 (Part 2) | |
|
While searching for a lost cat, private investigator and former policeman, Jackson Brodie takes on the cold case of a girl who went missing thirty years earlier. He is also talked into helping a grieving father find the man who murdered his daughter, and tracking down the niece of a mysterious seductress. In addition to his hunt for a killer and a long-vanished young girl, Brodie takes on another missing-persons case. This time the absent youth is the niece of a woman he met in a bar, who secured his services through an unorthodox method. | |||||||
| 2 | 2 | "One Good Turn" | Bill Anderson | Unknown | 12 June 2011 (Part 1) 13 June 2011 (Part 2) | 4.91 (Part 1) 4.88 (Part 2) | |
|
On an early morning run along the coast, Brodie spots a woman's body in the water but is unable to prevent it from floating out to sea. When the police appear less than enthusiastic about investigating, Brodie decides to do it himself. Brodie has several questions to ponder: Why would a road rage attacker want to kill him and another bystander, a crime novelist, who witnessed the incident? What does the attacker have to do with a shady cleaning business? And how does it relate to the body Brodie saw in the sea? Brodie then uncovers the dark secrets of the novelist's holiday in Russia. | |||||||
| 3 | 3 | "When Will There Be Good News?" | Dan Zeff | Peter Harness | 19 June 2011 (Part 1) 20 June 2011 (Part 2) | 5.03 (Part 1) 5.00 (Part 2) | |
|
While investigating an apparently routine case of marital infidelity, Brodie is caught up in an accident and falls into another job—tracking down a mother, Joanna Hunter, and her baby who, the husband claims, are staying with a relative. Brodie picks up a lead on the missing mother and child, and learns that the husband knows more than he has been willing to admit. Brodie also discovers why one of his clients has been so desperate to find his wife. | |||||||
Series 2 (2013)
edit| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [10] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 1 | "Started Early, Took My Dog" | Kenny Glenaan | Peter Harness | 19 May 2013 | 5.47 | |
|
After being duped into taking part in a kidnapping in Germany, Jackson returns to Edinburgh feeling dejected, though he does acquire a dog. He is approached by Hope McMaster, an adoptee anxious to locate her birth mother, which leads Jackson to see retired cop Ray and his wife Maggie, who knew the adoptive parents. Soon afterward an anonymous caller warns him not to investigate Carol Braithwaite, who, Jackson learns, was a prostitute killed in 1979. He visits the case officer, Tracy Waterhouse, now a security guard who has illegally taken in Courtney, the silent child of another prostitute, the latest victim of a serial killer. After corrupt ex-police chief Lomax threatens Jackson to back off, Tracy and her former colleague Barry explain that, after Carol's murder, Lomax appears to have spirited away her son, Michael, and Jackson meets another private eye, engaged by Michael to learn what happened. Barry tells Jackson exactly what happened when Carol was murdered, leading Jackson to work out who killed her. To assuage his guilt over the kidnapping he gives his fee to Tracy to start a new life with Courtney. | |||||||
| 5 | 2 | "Nobody's Darling" | David Richards | Emily Ballou | 26 May 2013 | 4.15 | |
|
After Jackson's daughter Marlee returns to live with him, he is approached by Rachel Stewart, who is perturbed by her boyfriend Andy Marshall's frequent disappearances. Jackson follows Andy to a remote farm where he meets Miriam Baker. Miriam believes that the death of her estranged daughter, Isobel Marshall, a noted equestrian, was no accident and blames her then-son-in-law—Andy Marshall. Posing as a friend of Isobel, Jackson calls on Andy and is told by Rachel that he was having an affair with her whilst still married; and a colleague of Isobel reveals that Isobel was planning to take their son Freddie and leave Andy. Jackson discovers that Isobel was less than the golden girl suggested by her public image before working out how she died. His luck seems to be in when he wins a small fortune on a race-horse called Nobody's Darling but sadly the death of the bookmaker leads to the exposure of a scam and the winnings are frozen. | |||||||
| 6 | 3 | "Jackson and the Women" | Keith Boak | Debbie O'Malley | 2 June 2013 | 4.32 | |
|
Jackson arrives at his office to find Deborah has quit and young Aiden Kelso is waiting for him. Aiden's mother Isla was understood to have been the victim of serial killer Philip McCrory. Recently the dying McCrory had owned to all the murders bar Isla's and Aiden wants the case reopened. Aiden's father Ian is evasive, painting a saintly picture of Isla when she was loose living and a drinker, to protect Aiden. Having been fleeced by his girlfriend Charlotte, whom he learns is a professional con artist, Jackson bumps into old flame Julia, now heavily pregnant and who inadvertently gives him a lead which results in the arrest of Isla's killer. Jackson also tracks down recalcitrant Egyptian teenager Samira Minyawi, on behalf of her controlling father as Minyawi helped in the German kidnap. Having rescued Samira from her violent boyfriend Jackson dates the recently divorced Louise Munroe but feels he cannot commit to a relationship with her and goes home, eventually ending up delivering Julia's baby. | |||||||
In the United States, series 2 was broadcast on 12, 19, and 26 October 2013.
References
edit- ^ Millar, Paul (26 July 2010). "Jason Isaacs to star in new BBC drama". Digital Spy.
- ^ Doyle, John (12 October 2011). "When good books are adapted for TV, expect mixed reviews". The Globe and Mail.
- ^ "Case Histories". BBC One.
- ^ Wiegand, David (15 October 2011). "'Case Histories' review: Rogue PI in Scotland". San Francisco Chronicle.
- ^ Lloyd, Robert (15 October 2011). "Television review: 'Case Histories'". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ a b "Victoria Wood joins BBC One's Case Histories cast alongside Jason Isaacs". BBC Media Centre. 2 September 2012. Archived from the original on 17 October 2018. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
- ^ Fletcher, Alex (13 October 2011). "Jason Isaacs 'Case Histories' to return to BBC One". Digital Spy.
- ^ "Case Histories – The acclaimed BBC One drama returns for a second series – Episode synopses" (Press release). BBC. 14 May 2013. Archived from the original on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 21 May 2013.
- ^ "Case Histories – Series 1-2". Amazon. 7 October 2013.
- ^ a b "Weekly Viewing Summary (see relevant week)". BARB. Archived from the original on 18 April 2007.
External links
edit- Case Histories at BBC Online
- Case Histories on PBS, as part of Masterpiece Mystery!
- Case Histories at IMDb
