From across the pond, a steady stream of excellence
When a TV series features cast members drawn from the UK, whether it’s a BBC import or American-made, one thing is virtually guaranteed: The acting will be topnotch.
That dependably high quality stems at least partly from the rigorous training that actors receive across the pond. Another factor, I’ll bet, is the frequency with which they return to the stage, even after establishing themselves on TV or in film.
They’re perpetually honing their craft, and that translates to a certain ready-for-anything versatility. So when premium cable channels like HBO and streaming platforms like Netflix began to offer the kind of showcases and challenges that the best actors are always seeking, they leaped at the opportunities.
For them, it’s a shot of career adrenaline. For us TV viewers, it’s a feast of excellence in action. We get to savor the likes of Brian Cox (from Scotland) and Matthew Macfadyen (England) in HBO’s “Succession”; Idris Elba (England) in “The Wire’’ and “Luther”; Suranne Jones (England) in HBO’s “Gentleman Jack”; Gary Oldman (England) in Apple TV Plus’s “Slow Horses”; and Kate Winslet (England) in HBO’s “Mildred Pierce” and “Mare of Easttown.’’ Just to name a few.
To name another: Consider “Last Tango in Halifax,’’ a BBC series that launched in 2012 and wrapped up (after taking a break for several years) in 2020. Currently streaming on Netflix, it was not a cultural phenomenon in the United States on the level of “The Crown” and “Downton Abbey.’’
But “Last Tango in Halifax,” created by Sally Wainwright, had an engrossing story to tell about the interwoven lives of two families, and told it well.
It featured Derek Jacobi, one of the greatest Shakespearean actors of his generation, as widower Alan Buttershaw, and Anne Reid as Celia Dawson, also now widowed. Having been smitten with each other when they were young, they are reunited after 60 years, and embark on a romance so ardent that it led a critic for The Daily Telegraph to describe “Last Tango in Halifax” as “a triumph against TV’s ageism.’’
Their relationship results in a friendship between their middle-aged children: Sarah Lancashire (currently playing Julia Child in “Julia) as Caroline, Celia’s daughter, an educator who dumps her adulterous husband and embraces her identity as a lesbian; and Nicola Walker as Gillian, Alan’s daughter, a sheep farmer who is harboring a very big, very dark secret.
As the series goes on, Caroline and Gillian grow steadily closer as confidants and allies, standing by each other through major life changes (and mutual aggravation from their parents).
By the end, “Last Tango in Halifax” had begun to spin its narrative wheels. But it’s notable that at no point did the performances flag.