I’ve been binge-watching the excellent Brit TV show Kingdom, which stars Stephen Fry as the eponymous market-town lawyer.
I don’t know what I was expecting, but it’s one of those gentle shows the Brits do so well — drama mixed with comedy — and some genuinely touching moments.
And as always with shows like this, it contains some wonderful character parts, played by a good selection of my favorite Brit actors: the always-brilliant Hermione Norris as his demented sister:
…the late Tony Slattery as the perpetually-litigious (and malodorous) client:
…Phyllida Law (Emma Thompson’s late mum) as his elderly (and sexually-forthright) aunt:
…and Celia Imrie as his long-suffering secretary:
(played straight, with no comedic bits; amazingly so, because Imrie is as good a comedic actress as can be found).
It will come as no surprise, however, that the real star of the show for me is Peter Kingdom’s car, the exquisite 1967 Alvis TE21 Drophead:
…with its powerful-for-the-time 3.0-liter straight-six engine and sublime interior:
…and of course it too plays a role in the show, often breaking down at critical moments (as they were all wont to do). (It’s one of those tourers common for that glorious late 50s-to-mid-60s era, like the Maserati 3500 GT, the Lancia Aurelia B24 and the Lamborghini 400*.)
Anyway, I’m currently at Episode 4, and counting.
Quote of the series (so far) is from Phyllida Law on living in an elder-care home with its addled occupants: “It’s like living in the midst of people all on LSD.”
*in order, the Maserati, Lancia and Lambo:
…and I’d still take any one of them in a heartbeat