The Madame Blanc Mysteries

I like Sally Lindsay as an actress. She's great at comedy, drama and comedy drama. I particularly loved her in Sky series Mount Pleasant. I also think she's great in the Madame Blanc Mysteries which she also created and produced.

In this show she plays Jean White, an antiques dealer whose husband has died in a car accident in the south of France. She travels to the village of St Victoire to initially pick up his belongings and do the usual after-death admin, but begins to suspect it wasn't a car accident. It also comes out that he may have been leading a double life whilst away seemingly on antique buying trips. Alongside this, Jean manages to get involved with the local Gendarme when various incidents - murders, theft, art forgeries and more occur in this beautiful French (actually filmed in Malta and Gozo but who cares? It makes for a beautiful sunny backdrop) village.

The supporting characters include Dom, a fellow Brit single dad who becomes her sidekick and friend, as well as a mixture of "Brits Abroad" - Sue Holderness and Robin Askwith as the posh owners of the chateau are particularly funny, the local garage owner and her son, the Irish pub landlord and his wife, as well as native locals all adding their quirks and dramas of their own to the mix.

If you're looking for gritty and dark murder drama this show isn't for you. To me its kind of a mix of Death in Paradise and Agatha Raisin, but also has its own thing going on. The mysteries are engaging enough, and there are some quite interesting twists, and there is plenty of humour mixed in along the way.

This show kind of slipped under the radar until I saw a promo for it whilst streaming another show from Channel 5 and decided to give it a go. I don't regret it. Its one of those shows that's just fun to watch and I hope we get more series.

Might not be everyone's cup of tea but my wife and I both loved it! Beautiful setting filmed in Malta although it supposedly takes place in western France but easily overlooked. Some of the characters are definitely quirky to the point of being corny although lovable nonetheless. This is not serious drama certainly and the story is very predictable with occasional one liners that are classic British humor. It's lighthearted, enjoyable entertainment that doesn't require apt attention or puzzling over whodunnit. Good change of pace.

While the film location, protagonist, and Dom are watch worthy, the two J characters are garish caricatures who detract from the series. Surely Ms Lindsey has given them enough screen time in the first two seasons.

Their drivel makes no sense failing to fit into the plots and ensemble, and their physicality resembles in a tortured way, the 70's, which that era doesn't deserve. I have to fast forward through their scenes. Supplant their characters with more Cooper-like ones to keep the fence sitters for a third season.

P S The opening music is far too dated-sappy-which doesn't go with the mystery theme.

If you can get through the first episode and like it, you're probably good for the season. As characters are introduced, we are taken into a world where there's not much room for believability or a truly plausible mystery.

Instead, this show is more of the Matlock/Murder She Wrote/Charlie's Angels school, which is simple, easy, stagy, and at times making attempts to be mildly humorous. I appreciate the advanced age of the cast, because old people have adventures too, although one might speculate perhaps the star/creator/writer chose her cast in part because so many are obviously older than her.

One might wonder, though, why the characters of Judith and Jeremy, both played by actors in their seventies, are so broadly and loudly portrayed. Evidently the two actors are TV veterans, not the stage, and yet they play their parts like community theater actors trying to get noticed by someone in the back row. They need to rein it in a little, imo.

My wife and I are both fans of British crime dramas such as Line of Duty, Dalgliesh and Manhunt, maybe some Grantchester thrown in as well, but we found this more frivolous variety of "mystery" unwatchable. It is to mysteries what Doc Martin is to medical shows, except that Doc Martin is quite entertaining, well written and very well acted.

Where to begin?!? It's as if Sally Lindsay has taken Midsomer Murders, Rosemary and Thyme, 'Allo 'Allo, Lovejoy and A Year in Provence, thrown them into a blender, given them a damn good 'zizzz', and then poured out the script for Madame Blanc!!! The resolution of the first episode was 'swift' to say the least and wouldn't have strained the talents of Insp Clouseau, never mind Sherlock Holmes!! Oh yes, Clouseau...there's another who was popped in the blender!!! Line of Duty it ain't, but it's enjoyable enough for a Saturday night with a glass (or two) of Sauvignon Blanc!!! 'Chewing gum for the eyes' as my old Boss would put it!!!