Class of '76

Last updated

Class of '76
Also known asMonroe: Class of '76
Genre Crime drama
Written byJohn Ireland
Directed byAshley Pearce
Starring Robert Carlyle
Daniel Mays
Claire Skinner
Robert Glenister
Sean Gallagher
Tony Haygarth
Anton Lesser
ComposerRichard G. Mitchell
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes2 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerAdrian Bate
ProducerMatthew Bird
CinematographyDominic Clemence
EditorDavid Blackmore
Running time90 minutes
Production companyZenith Entertainment
Release
Original network ITV
Original release3 October (2005-10-03) 
4 October 2005 (2005-10-04)

Class of '76 (also known as Monroe: Class of '76) is a two-part British crime drama, first broadcast on ITV in October 2005. Written by John Ireland and directed by Ashley Pearce, the series starred Robert Carlyle as investigating police officer DI Tom Monroe, who investigates the mysterious deaths of a group of classmates over a period of years from the same 1976 form class. Daniel Mays, Claire Skinner and Robert Glenister also appear in supporting roles. [1] The series attracted respectable viewing figures, with 6.92 and 5.73 million viewers tuning in for each respective episode. [2] Despite good critical reception, no further episodes were produced. The series was released on DVD on 21 May 2007. [3]

Contents

Critical reception

Paul Mavis of DVD Talk said of the series; "Monroe: Class of '76 is an initially interesting, but ultimately too familiar British crime drama. Starring Robert Carlyle as Detective Inspector Tom Monroe, Class of '76 starts off in a promising fashion, with its evocative, eerie depiction of a man committing suicide. But the story continues on in a dreary, sombre tone, with little surprises left as the clichés start to pile up, leading to the obvious finale. Pat Fisher (Stephen Mapes), tormented and guilty about the death of a fellow classmate back in 1976, as well as terrified by what he sees as a pattern of suspicious deaths for his other childhood friends, deliberately runs onto a busy highway and commits suicide by standing in front of a speeding truck. Leaving behind a tape recording of his paranoid ramblings, Fisher's death is written off as a simple suicide by a disturbed mind. Certainly Monroe's superior DS Pritchard (Tony Haygarth), as well as Tom's partner, Steven Grant (Daniel Mays) believe it to be an open and shut case, not worthy of further investigation. However, something about Fisher's tape, as well as some disturbing memorabilia about several crimes years ago, begin to nag at Monroe, who starts to believe that there may be a pattern to these random deaths.

Chief among the evidence that convinces Monroe to continue to dig is Fisher's elementary school class photo that has been marked, indicating three of the children dead. As well, a shadowy, nondescript image of a child has been marked, "Who was he?" On Fisher's confessional tape, he indicates that there were only 32 students in his class, not the 33 that are in the photo. Contacting fellow student Colin Somerville (Sean Gallagher), Monroe learns from the frightened man that he has been tormented over the years by a voice over the phone that says he will be the next to die. Somerville believes as well that the "accidental" deaths of the three students were no accidents, and that Aiden Thompson (Kevin French), a boy who remaining classmates describe as "different," is the killer. After all, Thompson had confessed to Colin that he had murdered the first victim on the list. However, after Colin nearly dies from a hit-and-run attempt, he tries to convince Monroe that perhaps the shadowy, ghostly figure in the class photo is the real murderer.

To tell any more of the plot, or discuss other characters of Class of '76, would be to spoil it for potential viewers, but really, it wasn't very difficult to figure out the end of this promising, but ultimately predictable thriller. While certainly there was an effort to flesh out the clichéd depiction of the emotionally spent police inspector Monroe, too much of the film consists of shots of Monroe, staring off into space, looking tortured and worried, while ominous music wells up in the background. Meanwhile, the viewer just wants to get on with it all, particularly after one becomes aware of the fact that nothing much new will happen. Carlyle, a ferociously talented Scottish actor, does a too-good job of underplaying the haunted Monroe. Compelling clues are thrown out about Monroe's background, but ultimately, little is finally known about Monroe simply because the filmmakers keep too much hidden, too much suggested but not explored, for us to care." [4]

Cast

Episodes

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateUK viewers
(millions)
1"Episode 1"Ashley PearceJohn Ireland3 October 2005 (2005-10-03)6.82
DI Tom Monroe investigates the apparent suicide of a middle-aged man, and uncovers a series of deaths, whose victims all attended the same primary school class in 1976.
2"Episode 2"Ashley PearceJohn Ireland4 October 2005 (2005-10-04)5.73
Haunted by the death of young Amy Irvine, DI Tom Monroe gets closer to the person killing her classmates.

Related Research Articles

Detective Chief Inspector Endeavour Morse, GM, is the eponymous fictional character in the series of detective novels by British author Colin Dexter. On television, he appears in the 33-episode drama series Inspector Morse (1987–2000), in which John Thaw played the character, as well as the (2012–2023) prequel series Endeavour, portrayed by Shaun Evans. The older Morse is a senior Criminal Investigation Department (CID) officer with the Thames Valley Police in Oxford in England and, in the prequel, Morse is a young detective constable rising through the ranks with the Oxford City Police and in later series the Thames Valley Police.

City of Death is the second serial of the seventeenth season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor. It was produced by the BBC and first broadcast in four weekly parts between 29 September 1979 and 20 October 1979 on BBC1. The serial was written by "David Agnew" – a pseudonym for David Fisher, Douglas Adams, and Graham Williams – and directed by Michael Hayes.

<i>Spooks</i> (TV series) British television spy drama series

Spooks is a British television spy drama series that originally aired on BBC One from 13 May 2002 to 23 October 2011, consisting of 10 series. The title is a colloquialism for spies, and the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a highly secure suite of offices known as The Grid. In the United States, the show is broadcast under the title MI-5. In Canada, the programme originally aired as MI-5 but later aired on BBC Canada as Spooks.

<i>A Touch of Frost</i> British television detective series

A Touch of Frost is a television detective series produced by Yorkshire Television for ITV from 6 December 1992 until 5 April 2010, initially based on the Frost novels by R. D. Wingfield. Writing credit for the three episodes in the first 1992 series went to Richard Harris.

<i>No Way Out</i> (1987 film) 1987 thriller film directed by Roger Donaldson

No Way Out is a 1987 American neo-noir political action thriller film directed by Roger Donaldson and starring Kevin Costner, Gene Hackman, Will Patton, and Sean Young. Howard Duff, George Dzundza, Jason Bernard, Fred Thompson, and Iman appear in supporting roles. The film is based on the 1946 novel The Big Clock by Kenneth Fearing, previously filmed as The Big Clock (1948) and Police Python 357 (1976).

<i>Taggart</i> Scottish television series

Taggart is a Scottish detective fiction television programme created by Glenn Chandler, who wrote many of the episodes, and made by STV Studios for the ITV network. It originally ran as the miniseries "Killer" from 6 until 20 September 1983, before a full series was commissioned that ran from 2 July 1985 until 7 November 2010. The series revolved around a group of detectives initially in the Maryhill CID of Strathclyde Police, though various storylines were set in other parts of Greater Glasgow and in other areas of Scotland. The team operated out of the fictional John Street police station. Mark McManus, who played the title character Jim Taggart, died in 1994. However, the series continued under the same name. Taggart is one of the UK's longest-running television dramas.

<i>Sons and Daughters</i> (Australian TV series) Australian soap opera

Sons and Daughters is an Australian Logie Award-winning soap opera/drama serial, broadcast by the Seven Network between January 1982 and December 1987 and produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation. It was created by executive Reg Watson, and is distributed by Fremantle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Million Dollar Quartet</span> 1956 recording of Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash performing together

"Million Dollar Quartet" is a recording of an impromptu jam session involving Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash made on December 4, 1956, at the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. An article about the session was published in the Memphis Press-Scimitar under the title "Million Dollar Quartet". The recording was first released in Europe in 1981 as The Million Dollar Quartet with 17 tracks. A few years later more tracks were discovered and released as The Complete Million Dollar Session. In 1990, the recordings were released in the United States as Elvis Presley: The Million Dollar Quartet. This session is considered a seminal moment in rock and roll.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Glenister</span> English actor (born 1960)

Robert Lewis Glenister is an English actor. He is best known for his television roles as Ash "Three Socks" Morgan in the crime drama series Hustle (2004–2012) and Nicholas Blake in the spy drama series Spooks (2006–2010).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Death of Marilyn Monroe</span> 1962 death of Marilyn Monroe by overdose

On the evening of August 4, 1962, Marilyn Monroe, an American actress, died at age 36 of a barbiturate overdose inside her home at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in Brentwood, Los Angeles, California. Her body was discovered before dawn the following morning, on August 5. Monroe had been one of the most popular Hollywood stars during the 1950s and early 1960s, and was a top-billed actress for the preceding decade. Her films had grossed $200 million by the time of her death.

<i>Blade: The Series</i> American superhero television series

Blade: The Series is an American superhero television series that ran from June 28 to September 13, 2006. It was based on the Marvel Comics character and film series, taking place after the events of Blade: Trinity. The show premiered on Spike at June 28, 2006. Sticky Fingaz starred in the title role, alongside Jill Wagner as Krista Starr, Neil Jackson as Marcus van Sciver, Jessica Gower as Chase, and Nelson Lee as Shen. The two-hour pilot was directed by Peter O'Fallon from a script by David S. Goyer and Geoff Johns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stella Crawford</span> Fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders

Stella Crawford is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Sophie Thompson from 7 September 2006 to 23 July 2007.

"Golden Opportunity" is an episode of the long-running police procedural television series, The Bill, broadcast on 16 April 2002. The episode is significant in the show's history, as it features the events of the first Sun Hill Fire, which resulted in the death of six officers. The episode attracted 8.6 million viewers, and was the first of the few times computer generated imagery had been used on the show. With new producer Paul Marquess wanting to change the cast significantly and the station set due to be redeveloped, the decision was made to stage a dramatic explosion and fire on the set, a storyline that led to the axing of eight characters in total during the events of the storyline.

Barry Clark (<i>EastEnders</i>) Fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders

Barry Clark is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera, EastEnders, played by Gary Hailes from 18 November 1986 to July 1988, returning for one episode on 23 February 1989. Hailes reprised the role in December 2022 for the funeral of Dot Cotton.

<i>The Hearse</i> 1980 American film

The Hearse is a 1980 American supernatural horror film directed by George Bowers and starring Trish Van Devere and Joseph Cotten. It follows a schoolteacher from San Francisco who relocates to a small town in northern California to spend the summer in a house she inherited from her deceased aunt, only to uncover her aunt's past as a devil worshipper, which seems to trigger a series of supernatural occurrences.

<i>Thirteen Reasons Why</i> 2007 novel by Jay Asher

Thirteen Reasons Why is a young adult novel written by Jay Asher in 2007, that follows the story of Hannah Baker, a high school freshman, and the thirteen reasons why she kills herself. Following her death, Hannah leaves behind a series of 7 double-sided cassette tapes detailing the 13 specific people and events that she blames for her demise. Two weeks after her death these cassette tapes are mailed out with directions to pass the tapes on to the next person on the tape. Hannah's life story is conveyed through these tapes, which are narrated by Hannah herself, and through the point of view of Clay, her classmate and the ninth person to receive the tapes. The inspiration behind the main character, Hannah Baker, comes from author Jay Asher's close relative who attempted suicide.

<i>13 Reasons Why</i> 2017 American teen drama television series

13 Reasons Why is an American teen drama television series developed for Netflix by Brian Yorkey and based on the 2007 novel Thirteen Reasons Why by author Jay Asher. The series revolves around high school student Clay Jensen and the aftermath of the suicide of fellow student Hannah Baker. Before her death, she leaves behind a box of cassette tapes in which she details the reasons why she chose to end her life as well as the people she believes are responsible for her death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hannah Baker</span> Fictional character

Hannah Baker is a fictional character created by American author Jay Asher. She is the subject of his 2007 young adult fiction mystery novel Thirteen Reasons Why, which was adopted by the media company Netflix as 13 Reasons Why. Hannah is introduced as a sophomore at the fictional Liberty High School, where she is sexually labelled, abused and assaulted in the struggle to adjust to living in an unsympathetic school environment. She, later on, ends up committing suicide.

References

  1. "Class of '76".
  2. "Weekly top 30 programmes | BARB".
  3. "Amazon.co.uk". Amazon UK.
  4. "Monroe: Class of '76".