Eleventh Hour (UK TV series)

Last updated

For other series with this name, see The Eleventh Hour.
Eleventh Hour
EleventhHourDVDartwork.jpg
US DVD release artwork
Genre Crime drama
Thriller
Created by Stephen Gallagher
Starring Patrick Stewart
Ashley Jensen
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original language(s)English
No. of series1
No. of episodes4 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Andy Harries
Producer(s)Ken Baker
Stephen Smallwood
Running time90 minutes
Production company(s) Granada Television
DistributorAcorn Media
Release
Original network ITV
Picture format 16:9
Audio format Stereo
Original release19 January –

9 February 2006
Chronology
Related shows Eleventh Hour (US)

Eleventh Hour (originally entitled Dark Matter) is a four-part British television series developed by Granada Television for ITV, created by writer Stephen Gallagher.

ITV Granada Channel 3 regional service for North West England

ITV Granada is a regional television company in North West England. It is the largest independent television-franchise producing company in the UK, accounting for 25% of the total broadcasting output of the ITV network.

ITV (TV network) TV network in the United Kingdom

ITV is a British free-to-air television network with its headquarters in London, it was launched in 1955 as Independent Television under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to BBC Television, that was established in 1932. ITV is also the oldest commercial network in the UK. Since the passing of the Broadcasting Act 1990, its legal name has been Channel 3, to distinguish it from the other analogue channels at the time, namely BBC 1, BBC 2 and Channel 4. In part, the number 3 was assigned because television sets would usually be tuned so that the regional ITV station would be on the third button, with the other stations being allocated to the number within their name.

Stephen Gallagher is an English screenwriter and novelist. Gallagher was born in Salford, Greater Manchester.

Contents

Plot

The show follows the adventures of Professor Ian Hood (originally Alan Hood), played by Patrick Stewart, a Special Advisor to the government's Joint Sciences Committee, who troubleshoots threats stemming from or targeting "scientific endeavour." He is joined by Rachel Young, played by Ashley Jensen, a Special Branch operative who acts primarily as his bodyguard, as Hood has made powerful enemies through his work. The first episode was broadcast on 19 January 2006. [1]

Patrick Stewart English film, television and stage actor

Sir Patrick Stewart is an English actor whose work has included roles on stage, television, and film in a career spanning almost six decades. He has been nominated for Olivier, Golden Globe, Emmy, Screen Actors Guild, and Saturn Awards throughout his career.

Ashley Jensen actress

Ashley Jensen is a Scottish actress and narrator. She was nominated for an Emmy for her role on the television series Extras, in which she appeared from 2005–2007. She was also a cast member of the ABC series Ugly Betty and the short-lived CBS sitcom Accidentally on Purpose. Jensen is currently the star of the comedy-drama detective television series Agatha Raisin.

Cast

Production

When Eleventh Hour went into pre-production in April 2005, it raised considerable interest and media attention, both because of Stewart's involvement and the budget allocated to the series by ITV, which was reportedly around £4.5 million. Gallagher, himself a two-time writer for Doctor Who , made the distinction that Eleventh Hour will be "science-based," not science fiction or speculative fiction. [2]

Pound sterling Official currency of the United Kingdom and other territories

The pound sterling, commonly known as the pound and less commonly referred to as sterling, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, the British Antarctic Territory, and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence. A number of nations that do not use sterling also have currencies called the pound.

<i>Doctor Who</i> British science fiction TV series

Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC since 1963. The programme depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called "the Doctor", an extraterrestrial being, to all appearances human, from the planet Gallifrey. The Doctor explores the universe in a time-travelling space ship called the TARDIS. Its exterior appears as a blue British police box, which was a common sight in Britain in 1963 when the series first aired. Accompanied by a number of companions, the Doctor combats a variety of foes while working to save civilisations and help people in need.

Science fiction Genre of speculative fiction

Science fiction is a genre of speculative fiction that has been called the "literature of ideas". It typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, time travel, parallel universes, fictional worlds, space exploration, and extraterrestrial life. Science fiction often explores the potential consequences of scientific innovations.

Changing crew

Material was added to the scripts by producer Simon Stephenson after the early episodes went into production, and creator Stephen Gallagher left his role on the series because of it. Gallagher claimed that the reason behind his departure was because his essentially "science-based crime-drama" had unwanted sci-fi material written into it without his consent. [3] The subject matter and direction of the later stories appear to differ from synopsis that were originally announced in April 2005. [4]

Episodes

No.TitleDirected byWritten byRatings (in millions) [5]
Sourced by BARB.		Original airdate
1"Resurrection" Terry McDonough Stephen Gallagher & Simon Stephenson5.0419 January 2006 (2006-01-19)
After the discovery of a large number of malformed fetuses in a field, Ian Hood (Patrick Stewart) and Rachel Young (Ashley Jensen) are called in to help with the police investigation to find the perpetrator. Hood thinks that the discovery is the latest act of 'Gepetto', an unidentified culprit responsible for a black market human cloning experiment across Eastern Europe. Young befriends a cocky DS, Doug Cook (Jack Pierce), who provides her and Hood with confidential information on the case. Hood interrogates the caretaker of the farm where the fetuses were found, and his questioning leads him to discover a makeshift laboratory and delivery suite on an industrial estate, being run by a doctor who was struck off from the medical register nine months ago for malpractice. As Hood suspects that a local businessman, Peter Gifford (Clive Wood), devastated at the death of his son, may be behind the operation, Cook receives a call to say that a 19-year-old mother, Kelly Fox (Joanna Horton), whom they suspect is the latest surrogate for Gepetto (Jane Lapotaire), has been admitted to a local hospital. Hood faces a race against time to save the young girl from harm, whilst bringing his prime suspect to justice.
2"Containment"Terry McDonoughStephen Gallagher & Simon StephensonTBA26 January 2006 (2006-01-26)
The discovery of the decomposed body of excavator Christopher Fisher in a church construction site leads the police to suspect an outbreak of the plague, having stemmed from the rotten bodies discovered beneath the church floor. Hood, however, realises that it is something much more serious, and along with colleague Martin Callan (Nicholas Woodeson), orders a quarantine of the excavation staff working on the site. Junior staff member Ned (Michael Begley), desperate to attend his son's fifth birthday party, breaks out of the quarantine, forcing Hood and Young to give chase. Meanwhile, tests on the Fisher's body show that he was infected with a hybrid of both the Smallpox and Tanapox viruses. Hood realises that he was infected long before working on the site. Young discovers that Fisher was moonlighting at a funeral home, where he came into contact with a factory engineer who fell to his death while repairing a refrigeration system. Tests show the engineer was also infected with the virus. The trail leads the team to a hostel where a number of illegal chinese workers from the factory are living. However, it soon transpires that factory owner Ellis Gibson (Jack Deam) is harbouring a dangerous secret.
3"Kryptos"Roger GartlandStephen Gallagher, Simon Stephenson & Mike CullenTBA2 February 2006 (2006-02-02)
Hood is called upon to help an old friend, Richard Adams (Donald Sumpter), who has recently been fired from his job at the Institute of Environmental research due to his increasingly erratic behaviour. Company boss Destrano (Tom Mannion) is glad to see the back of Adams, worried that if his 'flawed' research were to be leaked, it could have a damning effect on the reputation of the institute. As Adams continues to try and get his research into print, Hood meets with one of his colleagues, Martin Godley, who claims that Adams' research was intriguing and possibly just the tip of a major environmental iceberg. When Adams later disappears, suspected of having committed suicide, Hood tries to decrypt a file sent to him by Adams, which contains an encoded file. Meanwhile, Godley is killed in a suspicious hit-and-run accident, and Hood suspects that a serial killer - linked to Destrano - is trying to silence anyone connected with Adams' research. As Hood begins to crack the code, Young follows a trail of clues which lead her to suspect that Adams is still alive. But with Destrano's hitmen now on the trail of both men, it becomes a race against time to get the research into print - before it is lost forever.
4"Miracle"Roger GartlandStephen Gallagher & Simon Stephenson4.279 February 2006 (2006-02-09)
Following the miraculous cure of a young boy who is suffering from cancer, Hood and Young travel to his home town to investigate claims that he has been cured by local spring water, just as the area becomes a focal point for cancer sufferers desperately seeking a cure. When these victims start to experience even worse symptoms, Hood becomes convinced that there must be something in the water. All of the tests prove to be negative, however, and it appears increasingly likely that the boy's surgeon, Dr. Williams (Clare Holman), has made the entire story up. But shortly after Hood reaches this conclusion, Williams is found dead in a nearby reservoir, having been the victim of an apparent suicide. A chance phrase in the suicide note referring to a Geiger Counter, a term Williams would never use due to Hans Geiger's known Nazi sympathies, leads Hood to begin an investigation into her death, and he uncovers a Government conspiracy to produce heavy water, which he is able to demonstrate is found in the spring. By blackmailing leading government figure Drake (Roy Marsden), Hood is able to clear Williams' name, but is not able to expose the secret service's involvement in the affair.

Home media

The complete series was released on Region 1 DVD on 26 September 2006. [6] It was re-released on 24 May 2016 with new cover artwork, additional features and subtitles. [7]

Remakes

An American remake, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and starring Rufus Sewell as Hood (now known as Jacob Hood), aired on CBS from 2008 to 2009. [8] American actress Marley Shelton co-starred as FBI Special Agent Rachel Young. The series aired on Thursdays at 10 pm (ET/PT). [9] The remake was a joint venture between Jerry Bruckheimer Television, Granada Television International and Warner Bros. Television.

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References

Notes
  1. ↑ https://itvstudios.com/programmes/eleventh-hour--2
  2. ↑ "Itv Now Goes Sci-fi".
  3. ↑ "Eleventh Hour - We're Cancelled". 19 May 2009.
  4. ↑ "Ashley Jensen: Don't call me babe". 21 December 2005.
  5. ↑ "Viewing Data — Top Tens". BARB . Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  6. ↑ https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000GYI3CC?psc=1
  7. ↑ https://www.amazon.com/Eleventh-Hour-Ashley-Jensen/dp/B01BEDN03K/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1480358123&sr=8-4&keywords=eleventh+hour
  8. ↑ "Don't Blow It". 25 August 2008.
  9. ↑ "CBS PressExpress - Eleventh Hour - About the Show". CBS . Retrieved 10 October 2008.
Bibliography
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