Walk Away and I Stumble

There have been mixed reviews about Walk Away and I stumble, but I have to say that I enjoyed it.

The first part was a bit fast paced, moving the story along too quickly, and there was no chemistry between Claire and Andy. But, the concluding part made up for all of that! It was a heartbreaking story and you end up having sympathy for all the characters. I had tears strolling down my face at the end. There are no bad guys in this, and thats what makes it different to other dramas... Fantastic acting all round, especially the two leading ladies; Tamzin Outhwaite and Julie Graham, when they were together. Kate Bush's song 'This Woman's Work' was a good touch too, it fit in perfectly with Claire's situation.

It was a nice dedication to Tamzin's younger cousin, James Balwdin, who passed away with Cancer earlier in the year.

Well.....I have never given a TV Drama an 8 before EVER.

This I feel warrants it, as I don't think that I have ever watched such an emotive, powerful Drama that most people in their late 20's/30's will associate with almost immediately.

In my opinion, this is Outhwaite's strongest performance to date, and she is well supported by Julie Graham and Mark Strong. Hard to believe that this was the Ditzy Blonde from Eastenders not a million years ago.

All set in Wiltshire, which makes a pleasant change from London or Manchester as location goes, it tells the story of a happily married, family man who's head is turned by a single girl. The result is that he starts to view life completely differently, and puts everything on the line in the process.

Unfortunately, the girl, Claire (Outhwaite)is diagnosed with Cancer not long after they get together, and this forces some painful and at times heart-rending decisions by BOTH parties.

It stirs a lot of emotions, and for the more sensitive WILL end in tears.

There is a fantastic Soundtrack to this Drama, with classics from UB40, Led Zeppelin and most notably, Kate Bush. For anyone wondering what the Track was (and I've noticed some Bulletin Boards questioning it already!)the Track is This Womans Work, taken from the Album The Sensual World.

Whilst not renowned for it, I am hoping that ITV release this Drama onto DVD, or at the very least, re-run it in the near future.

Fantastic!!

This all started off quite promising but after the first hour it quickly descended into farcical melodrama. Mark Strong gave a somewhat wooden performance and was really acted off the screen by Julie Graham. Unfortunately she was hampered by a lousy script and and a daft incomprehensible plot line. Tamzin played her usual self. The scene where she dreamed she was drowning was a genuinely powerful moment but was soon lost in the overall tangled storyline. The whole thing was unbelievable and a waste of three hours viewing time.The sort of melodrama that leaves you feeling cheated.

Deeply disappointing.

I had to be the first to get in a comment on this programme and let everybody know what I have just witnessed. Quite simply, it is the worst television drama I have watched this year so far. It was shown in two parts, and after the appalling first extract I have no idea why I sat through the second. I must be a budding masochist at heart. Anyway, this is car-crash TV at its best, with some truly horrible acting and direction combined with some of the most inexplicable character writing I've ever seen. To see it is to believe it.

Tamzin Outhwaite plays a 30-something woman who has an affair with a married man. His wife of 14 years in understandably devastated by this, as is his teenage daughter with the tragic haircut. But, when our Tammy finds out she has an inoperable brain tumour (Yep, that staple of TV weepies) and only a few months to live, she decides she is being selfish and sends him back to his partner. Then she decides, (for reasons unknown) to marry her slimy, cheating ex, but then has a last minute change of heart. What will she do next? There now follows a real shaggy dog story over 3 hours of drama, where nobody acts like a human being and the performances are even worse than the wretched dialogue (though it is a close run thing).

There will always be a market for this brand of undemanding soap-opera melodrama, which is guaranteed to have middle age women and soft hearted blokes tuning in in their droves. But in this particular case, the long list of flaws that come along with the blubbering make it beneath even the most lenient of expectations. A longer, more tedious mess of a production you'd be hard pressed to find, and if you ever watch this believe me.. you'll stop looking. Apparently Tamzin has dreams of Hollywood, but after seeing her in this I'd be surprised if she can get a walk-on part in Neighbours. She is expressionless, her delivery is as flat as roadkill, and when it comes to her crying scenes she looks like she's broken a nail, rather than dying of a terminal disease. Anna Friel she ain't.

Some people with very low standards may decide to hold for the ending, under the hope that they can have a good cry and forget all the other faults. But seeing as these are individuals we couldn't care less about due to their nutty personalities and unsympathetic actions, why should we give a damn? Believe me, I can be as emotional as the next guy. I got a bit teary eyed at the end of The Shawshank Redemption, and Titanic set me off completely. But then, those are in an entirely different universe of quality compared to this. So please believe me: the only sobbing you'll be doing at the end will be due to the loss of 180 minutes of your life that you'll never recover. Don't say I didn't warn you.. 0/10

The preview to the film was great, so I just had to watch it. The use of Kate Bush' 'this womens work' was well suited to the film. A gripping few hours, of intense acting and well directed performance. I only wish it was on for longer. I would recommend this film to anyone with a heart. A true masterpiece, that will be remembered in many years. The actors were clearly well chosen, and I believe in giving credit where credits due. I would only like to see more talented work like this on a screen as there is a great lack of it. Walk away and I stumble is one of the best pieces of work I have seen in a long time, and its shouldn't be missed.