Deadwater Fell

Last updated

Deadwater Fell
Deadwater Fell.jpg
Cush Jumbo and David Tennant
GenreCrime drama
Created by Daisy Coulam
Written byDaisy Coulam
Directed byLynsey Miller
Starring
Composer Natalie Holt
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes4 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
Production locationScotland
Running time45 minutes
Production company Kudos
Original release
Network Channel 4
Release10 January (2020-01-10) –
31 January 2020 (2020-01-31)

Deadwater Fell is a four-part British drama television miniseries written and created by Daisy Coulam. [1] It stars David Tennant as a doctor whose wife and three young children are murdered in a fire. [2] It premiered 10 January 2020 on Channel 4. [3]

Contents

Premise

Tragedy strikes in a remote Scottish village when a fire rages out of control at the Kendrick home, killing a mother and her three young children. Only the father, the village doctor, is pulled out alive, but all five were drugged. Investigators search for a motive as they discover this seemingly ideal family was far from happy. [2]

Cast

Production

Channel 4 commissioned the four-part series in January 2019. It was produced by Kudos, part of the Endemol Shine Group. [5] David Tennant and Cush Jumbo were announced as the leads in June, with Matthew McNulty cast as well. Tennant is also an executive producer. [6]

Filming began in June 2019 in Dunlop, Ayrshire, which stood in for the fictional village of Kirkdarroch. Other filming locations included Culzean Country Park; Gateside Place in Kilbarchan, Cumbernauld House Park in Cumbernauld, North Lanarkshire; [7] Irvine Beach and the Low Green Park in Irvine, North Ayrshire. It was directed by Lynsey Miller of Kilwinning, Ayrshire. [8]

Episodes

No.Directed by  [6] Written byOriginal air dateU.K viewers
(millions)
1Lynsey MillerDaisy Coulam10 January 2020 (2020-01-10)5.83
In the peaceful Scottish village of Kirkdarroch, fire breaks out one night at the home of Tom and Kate Kendrick. Their friends and neighbours, Jess Milner and police sergeant Steve, raise the alarm. Steve drags out Kate, who is already dead, but the three Kendrick children are padlocked in a room. Only Tom, the village GP, is pulled out unconscious but survives. It's discovered that all five were drugged before the fire and one of the girls had pine needles on her. CCTV shows Kate buying the padlock. It quickly emerges that the family was not as happy as it seemed. Kate was on antidepressants and had recently flipped her car while driving Jess and the children, and Jess and Tom were having an affair.
2Lynsey MillerDaisy Coulam17 January 2020 (2020-01-17)5.26
The residents of Kirkdarroch come out in force for the funerals of the girls and Kate Kendrick. Tom gives the eulogy, but there is no mention of Kate. Kate has been cut out of all the photos with her daughters. Jess meets an old friend of Kate's - and is deeply shocked by what she discovers. As the village grieves, Jess wrestles with her part in the tragedy. The investigation takes a new turn when a witness comes forward, and the police home in on their prime suspect. Intimate secrets come to light.
3Lynsey MillerDaisy Coulam24 January 2020 (2020-01-24)5.22
Steve is suspended for interfering with a witness. Armed with new evidence, the case looks cut and dried, but a new revelation raises doubt as the emotional ripple effects of the fire take their toll on those closest to the tragedy. Steve goes to his work-appointed counselling and a past conversation with Kate is revealed. As the truth begins to emerge, everyone questions their role in the tragedy.
4Lynsey MillerDaisy Coulam31 January 2020 (2020-01-31)5.05
As the villagers try to rebuild their lives, they have to learn to be honest with themselves and each other. However, whether they ever get to the truth remains to be seen. Jess and Tom's mother go to the police to report his menacing and threatening behavior. Jess is determined to discover the truth about what happened on that night, while also mending her damaged relationship with her boyfriend Steve and helping his children face their sadness.

Reception

The first episode of Deadwater Fell received positive reviews from critics. David Craig of Radio Times gave it four out of five, calling it a "complex and fascinating mystery". He praised screenwriter Daisy Coulam for fleshing out the characters, particularly Kate Kendrick (Anna Madeley): "While Deadwater Fell might initially sound like another case of 'disposable woman' in the crime genre, writer Daisy Coulam deserves recognition for elevating the character of Kate above such a trope." [9]

Lucy Mangan of The Guardian likewise rated it four out of five, comparing it positively to Broadchurch : "Whether it will catch the public imagination like Broadchurch did is anybody's guess. It feels far more solidly engineered, easily as convincing in its portrait of a small community suddenly shattered by an awful event, and it elicits more emotional investment from the off. I'm finding it an irresistible treat, but these things are essentially alchemical and unpredictable. Broadchurch with freckles – think of it like that if it'll help. Come on in; the Deadwater's lovely." [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Tennant</span> Scottish actor (born 1971)

David John Tennant is a Scottish actor. He is best known for portraying the tenth incarnation of the Doctor in the sci-fi series Doctor Who. He returned to the show as the fourteenth incarnation of the character from 2022 to 2023. His other notable screen roles include DI Alec Hardy in the crime drama series Broadchurch (2013–2017) and its 2014 remake, Kilgrave in the superhero series Jessica Jones (2015–2019), Crowley in the fantasy series Good Omens (2019–present) and various fictionalised versions of himself in the comedy series Staged (2020–2022).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Euros Lyn</span> Welsh film and television director (born 1971)

Euros Lyn is a Welsh film and television director, best known for his work in Doctor Who, Sherlock, Black Mirror, Daredevil, His Dark Materials and Heartstopper.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Mangan</span> English film and stage actor (born 1968)

Stephen James Mangan is an English actor, comedian, presenter and writer. He has played Guy Secretan in Green Wing, Dan Moody in I'm Alan Partridge, Seán Lincoln in Episodes, Bigwig in Watership Down, Postman Pat in Postman Pat: The Movie, Richard Pitt in Hang Ups, Andrew in Bliss (2018), and Nathan Stern in The Split (2018–2022).

Anna Madeley is an English actress. She performed for three seasons with the Royal Shakespeare Company and has appeared in three off-West End productions. She has starred in productions on each of the main British television channels and has also worked in radio and film. Madeley has appeared as Kate Kendrick in Deadwater Fell and as Audrey Hall in the remake of All Creatures Great and Small.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vicky McClure</span> English actress (born 1983)

Vicky Lee McClure is an English actress, model and presenter. She is known for her roles as Detective Inspector Kate Fleming in the BBC series Line of Duty (2012–2021) and Lol Jenkins in Shane Meadows' film This Is England (2006) and its Channel 4 sequel mini-series This Is England '86 (2010), This Is England '88 (2011), and This Is England '90 (2015). Before This is England, she appeared in another of Meadows' films, A Room for Romeo Brass (1999), where she played Ladine. She won the RTS Award and British Academy Television Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Lol in This is England '86 in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cush Jumbo</span> British actress and writer (born 1985)

Cush Jumbo is a British actress and writer. She is best known for her leading role as attorney Lucca Quinn in the CBS drama series The Good Wife (2015–2016) and the Paramount Plus spin-off series The Good Fight (2017–2021).

Gregory A. "Greg" Hersov is a British theatre director. Hersov was educated at Bryanston School and Mansfield College, Oxford.

<i>Broadchurch</i> British crime drama TV series, 2013-2017

Broadchurch is a British crime drama television series broadcast on ITV for three series between 2013 and 2017. It was created by Chris Chibnall, who acted as an executive producer and wrote all 24 episodes and produced by Kudos in association with Imaginary Friends Productions Ltd. The series is set in Broadchurch, a fictional English town on the coast of Dorset and focuses on Detective Inspector Alec Hardy and Detective Sergeant Ellie Miller. Other members of the ensemble cast appearing in all three seasons are Jodie Whittaker, Andrew Buchan, Arthur Darvill, Carolyn Pickles, Jonathan Bailey, Matthew Gravelle, Charlotte Beaumont and Adam Wilson.

<i>Broadchurch</i> (series 2) Season of television series

The second series of the British crime drama Broadchurch began airing on the ITV broadcast network in the United Kingdom on 5 January 2015. The eight-episode series focused on the continuing fallout of the murder of 11-year-old Danny Latimer in the fictional, close-knit coastal town of Broadchurch in Dorset, England. The series focuses on the effect of Joe Miller's trial on his wife, former DS Ellie Miller ; the Latimer family's struggle to achieve a normal life during Joe's trial; and new revelations that former DI Alec Hardy is protecting a witness in the failed Sandbrook child murder case.

<i>Gracepoint</i> American crime drama television series

Gracepoint is an American crime drama television series created by Chris Chibnall. It is a remake of Chibnall's UK drama series Broadchurch, and stars that series' lead, David Tennant, along with Anna Gunn, as two detectives investigating the murder of a boy in a small, tightly knit coastal town.

<i>Broadchurch</i> (series 1) Season of television series

The first series of the British crime drama Broadchurch originally aired on the ITV broadcast network in the United Kingdom from 4 March 2013 to 22 April 2013. The eight-episode series began with the murder of an 11-year-old boy in the fictional, close-knit coastal town of Broadchurch in Dorset, United Kingdom. The series depicted the impact that suspicion and media attention have on the community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Georgina Campbell</span> English actress (born 1992)

Georgina Alice Campbell is an English actress and model. She won the 2015 BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for Murdered by My Boyfriend (2014). Her other television credits include Flowers (2016), Broadchurch (2017), the Black Mirror episode "Hang the DJ" (2017), and Krypton (2018). She starred in the films Barbarian (2022) and Bird Box Barcelona (2023).

<i>Broadchurch</i> (series 3) Season of television series

The third and final series of the British crime drama Broadchurch began airing on the ITV broadcast network in the United Kingdom on 27 February 2017 and is set three years after the events of series two. The eight-episode series follows the rape of a local woman in the fictional, close-knit coastal town of Broadchurch in Dorset, England. The return features series stars David Tennant and Olivia Colman and many other actors from the first two series.

Charlotte Beaumont is an English actress known for portraying Chloe Latimer in the ITV crime drama Broadchurch, as well as for her roles in Waterloo Road and the film Jupiter Ascending.

Lewis Arnold is an English director working in television. He is best known for the shows Time, Sherwood and Des.

<i>The Bay</i> (TV series) British crime drama series

The Bay is an ITV crime drama series produced by Tall Story Pictures and distributed worldwide by ITV Studios Global Entertainment that first aired in March 2019. The first two series starred Morven Christie as a detective sergeant family liaison officer. Marsha Thomason took over the leading role from series three as DS Jenn Townsend. The first series centred around an investigation into teenage missing twins from a family living in Morecambe. The name of the series derives from Morecambe Bay, in the county of Lancashire in the north-west of England.

Daisy Coulam is a British television producer and screenwriter known for creating of the long-running murder mystery series Grantchester for ITV in 2014.

Ty Peter Tennant is a British actor. He is known for his roles as Tom Gresham in the science fiction series War of the Worlds (2019–2022) and young Aegon II Targaryen in the HBO fantasy series House of the Dragon (2022).

Anneika Rose is a Scottish actress. She is known for her roles in the Channel 4 series Ackley Bridge (2017) and Deadwater Fell (2020), the BBC series Line of Duty (2020) and Crossfire (2022), and the crime drama Shetland (2021).

References

  1. ↑ "Deadwater Fell: Interview with Writer and Creator, Daisy Coulam". Channel 4 . Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 Mangan, Lucy (10 January 2020). "Deadwater Fell review – it's the new Broadchurch ... but more irresistible". The Guardian . Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  3. ↑ Carr, Flora (10 January 2020). "When is Channel 4's Deadwater Fell starring David Tennant on TV?". Radio Times . Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Craig, David (10 January 2020). "Meet the cast of Channel 4 drama Deadwater Fell". Radio Times . Immediate Media Company . Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  5. ↑ "Channel 4 commissions Deadwater Fell (w/t)". Channel 4. 31 January 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  6. 1 2 Clarke, Stewart (5 June 2019). "David Tennant, Cush Jumbo Join Channel 4 Drama 'Deadwater Fell'". Variety . Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  7. ↑ Greig, Finlay (3 January 2020). "Deadwater Fell: release date, cast and trailer for new David Tennant crime drama on Channel 4". The Scotsman . Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  8. ↑ Dunn, Ross (9 January 2020). "Ayrshire to provide backdrop for new murder drama starring David Tennant". Daily Record . Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  9. ↑ Craig, David (10 January 2020). "Review: Dark Channel 4 drama Deadwater Fell packs an emotional punch". Radio Times . Retrieved 11 January 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.