Zen | |
---|---|
Genre | Police drama |
Based on | Aurelio Zen by Michael Dibdin |
Written by | Simon Burke Peter Berry |
Directed by | John Alexander (Vendetta) Christopher Menaul (Cabal) Jon Jones (Ratking) |
Starring | Rufus Sewell Caterina Murino Ben Miles Catherine Spaak Stanley Townsend Ed Stoppard Francesco Quinn Anthony Higgins |
Opening theme | Adrian Johnston |
Composer | Adrian Johnston |
Country of origin | United Kingdom Italy Germany |
Original language | English |
No. of series | 1 |
No. of episodes | 3 |
Production | |
Executive producers | Andy Harries, Francis Hopkinson, Raffaella Bonivento, Rebecca Eaton, Anne Mensah |
Producer | Michael Casey |
Production location | Rome |
Cinematography | Tony Miller |
Running time | 90 minutes |
Production companies | Left Bank Pictures, Mediaset, Masterpiece, ZDF |
Original release | |
Network | BBC One |
Release | 2 January – 16 January 2011 |
Zen is a British television series produced by Left Bank Pictures for the BBC, co-produced with WGBH Boston for its Masterpiece anthology series, Mediaset and ZDF. [1] It stars Rufus Sewell and Caterina Murino and is based on the Aurelio Zen detective novels by Michael Dibdin. [2] The series was filmed on location in Italy, but the dialogue is in English. The series, which comprises three 90-minute films, was broadcast in the United Kingdom on Sunday evenings from 2 January 2011 on BBC One. [3] The three films were based on the books Vendetta (1990), Cabal (1992) and Ratking (1988). [4] The series was cancelled by BBC One in February 2011; BBC One controller Danny Cohen later said there were already enough male crime-fighters on TV. [5] Left Bank, the show's producer, tried to find other broadcasters to fund another series but were unsuccessful. [6]
Character | Vendetta | Cabal | Ratking |
---|---|---|---|
Pepe Spadola | Gregg Chillin | ||
Fausto Arcuti | Adrian Hood | ||
Francesco Pirotta | Franco Maria Salamon | ||
Ana Bini | Katrine De Candole | ||
Alessandro Antonioni | Rocky Marshall | ||
Giulia | Selene Rosiello | ||
Rossella Nieddu | Yasemin Samino | ||
Mario | Joseph Long | ||
Giuseppe Bini | Adrian Schiller | ||
Gilberto Nieddu | Francesco Quinn | ||
Eduardo Guerchini | Anthony Higgins | ||
Ernesto Heuber | Michael McElhatton | ||
Sister Anna | Katy Murphy | ||
Tomassini | Massimiliano Ulaldi | ||
Silvia | Cariddi Nardulli | ||
Angeto | Garry Cooper | ||
Arianna von Falkenhayn | Valentina Cervi | ||
Donata | Catherine Spaak | ||
Avel Vasko | Francis Magee | ||
Branco | Daniele Monterosi | ||
Jdg. Corrado Bertolini | Roberto Nobile | ||
Maria | Nathalie Rapti Gomez | ||
Aurelio Zen | Rufus Sewell | ||
Paolo | Roberto Laureli | ||
Mara | Julie Cox | ||
Evie | Susan Duerden | ||
Lucia | Chiara Nicola | ||
Mazzotta | Emil Marwa | ||
Tania Moretti | Caterina Murino | ||
Nadia Pirlo | Cosima Shaw | ||
Amedeo Colonna | Ben Miles | ||
Luca La Guardia | Paolo Mazzarelli | ||
Donatella Pirotta | Zoe Tapper | ||
Moscati | Stanley Townsend | ||
Carlo Fagioli | Callum Blue | ||
Ramizi | Sargon Yelda | ||
Tito Spadola | Peter Guinness | ||
Fellini | Enzo Squillino, Jr. | ||
Giorgio de Angelis | Vincent Riotta | ||
Cinzia Miletti | Sarah-Jane Potts | ||
Michelangelo Gattuso | Allan Corduner | ||
Renato Favelloni | Greg Wise | ||
Vincenzo Fabri | Ed Stoppard | ||
Massimo Colanna | Hilton McRae | ||
Oscar Faso | Alessandro Cica | ||
Silvio Miletti | Sebastian Armesto |
# | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original airdate | UK viewers (million) [7] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Vendetta" | John Alexander | Simon Burke | 2 January 2011 | 6.24 | |
Detective Zen is sent to a remote village to re-investigate a murder, which may spark a political scandal. Zen is under pressure from the politicians and the Chief of Police, but he would rather be spending time with Tania, the Chief's beautiful assistant. Meanwhile, a gangster is after Zen, seeking revenge. | ||||||
2 | "Cabal" | Christopher Menaul | Simon Burke | 9 January 2011 | 5.64 | |
The death of a famous aristocrat, Umberto Ruspanti, leads Detective Zen into the shadowy world of the Cabal—an organisation more powerful and secret than the Mafia. The Ministry want a quick verdict of suicide, but Zen's not so sure. Meanwhile, things are looking up with Tania. | ||||||
3 | "Ratking" | Jon Jones | Peter Berry & Simon Burke | 16 January 2011 | 5.21 | |
Detective Zen works against the clock to recover the kidnapped Ruggerio Miletti, a wealthy industrialist with political ties. The involvement of the manipulative family and a beautiful grieving widow complicate matters. Meanwhile Tania's husband does everything he can to get rid of Zen. |
Series 1 was first shown in the USA on the PBS network: Vendetta, Cabal, and Ratking on 17, 24 and 31 July 2011, respectively.
Sir Michael John Gambon was an Irish-English actor. Gambon started his acting career with Laurence Olivier as one of the original members of the Royal National Theatre. Over his six-decade-long career, he received three Olivier Awards and four BAFTA TV Awards. In 1998, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for services to drama.
Michael Dibdin was a British crime fiction writer, best known for inventing Aurelio Zen, the principal character in 11 crime novels set in Italy.
George Sewell was an English actor, best known for his television roles, but also active on stage and in films.
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Ratking is a 1988 novel by Michael Dibdin, and is the first book in the popular Aurelio Zen series, introducing readers to the Italian police commissario's morally shady world. On publication it won the Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger for fiction.
Vendetta is a 1990 novel by Michael Dibdin, and is the second book in the popular Aurelio Zen series.
Cabal is a 1992 novel by Michael Dibdin and the third entry in the Aurelio Zen series.
Dead Lagoon is a 1994 novel by Michael Dibdin and is the fourth in his Aurelio Zen series. It was published by Faber & Faber in the UK and by Pantheon Books the following year in the US.
Cosi Fan Tutti is a novel by Michael Dibdin published by Faber and Faber in 1996. The fifth in his Aurelio Zen series, it is set in Naples. One strand of the plot plays on the storyline of the Mozart comic opera Così fan tutte; in addition, the chapter titles are all taken from the Lorenzo Da Ponte's libretto for that opera.
A Long Finish is a 1998 novel by Michael Dibdin, and is the sixth entry in the Aurelio Zen series.
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