The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco
ITV, 9.00PM
Any good sequel needs to do one of two things, either spin the original off into an utterly unexpected direction or give fans more of the same but with just enough of a twist. The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco opts for the latter path and there’s indeed enough panache to ensure that the old fans will enjoy the new ride. The new series kicks off in 1956, two years after the original series ended, with Millie (Rachael Stirling), the former codebreaker turned amateur crimefighter, making ends meet as a tutor. Haunted by an unsolved murder involving an American GI and seeing its echo in a spate of killings in San Francisco, she asks Jean (Julie Graham) to travel with her to the USA and investigate (the other original Circle members are “too busy with their lives” to help out). Once there, a tightly plotted story unfolds as Millie and Jean track down a former US intelligence contact and recruit a couple of Americans to their cause. In contrast to the brave women it pays homage to, The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco doesn’t break new ground but its twisting story is well told and it remains particularly good at tackling the change in women’s lives after the Second World War. Sarah Hughes dysfunctions and this episode, which flashes back to a surprise visit from Rebecca’s (Mandy Moore) mother Janet, is a corker. The marvellous Elizabeth Perkins has a ball as the controlling Janet, who manages to put down all three of her grandchildren within minutes of her arrival, much to Rebecca’s despair. SH