Oh dear. An absolutely awful TV series. Except for one thing: John Michie's lustrous flop-top hairdo, a classic of the 1990s! ,-) (. . . Not even George Clooney in 'ER' did this hairstyle so well!)
The storylines are lame, and there are numerous plot holes in many of the episodes. Plus there are frequent chronological gaps between scenes. Not to mention the muddled script of the general conversation between the characters: this often simply makes no sense. Then there are the sections of the script that refer to the astrological/psychic/New Age work of the two lead characters: these are ridiculously detailed. No one except a fan of that type of 'gubbins' would be interested in such data, or be able to follow what they're saying. Although kudos to Millicent Martin and John Michie for being able to reiterate the lines!
The fault is that the drama is badly put together, not that the actors perform poorly. Martin is excellent in the role of a slightly cheeky psychic, and mum to Michie, and Michie does well as her son. Martin fits this role perfectly, her twinkling/crinkling eyes seeming to say she could do or say far more than she is. And Michie just looks grand as the younger, male, half of the psychic team. But his character has less 'flesh' on it than Martin's character, and seems to lollop about, a bit lost as to his purpose. Again, this is the fault of the way the show is badly assembled; it is NOT the actor that is to blame. Artists can only work with the material they get given.
And the poor output of the TV series isn't helped by the fact that there are dark elements to the characters: Martin's character is holding her son 'hostage' to working with her, due to a condition of the dead father's will (if you watch an episode you'll see what I mean). This makes the relationship deeply manipulative and coercive, and not in tune with decent parenting. And makes Martin's character less likeable by a hundredfold. It also makes Michie's character seem less positive and active, as why on earth he doesn't just leave and, being a gifted psychic in his own right, set up business on his own . . . ?! Frankly the construct is a poor reason for a mum and son to work together. (Presumably they wrote this aspect in, so as to explain why the son was 'stuck' with his mother . . . And a reason as to how the series was initiated!) Lame premise . . .
This dent in each of the lead characters' nature is a shame, as more likeability might have helped rescue the series from failure. We do like to LIKE our TV detectives! Or at least not be near-revolted by them! ,-)
The female love interest for Michie, played by a French actress, does not spark with Michie's character at all. A lot of the plot sees the leads cross the Channel in repeated journeys, as they seem to like touting their fortune-telling business in French marketplaces as much as Folkestone. In light of the date of the broadcast of the series, this feature looks to be cashing in on the start of the European Union: this new Common Market between continental Europe and Britain was about to land in the UK. So France - and the in-process Channel Tunnel - was a big topic of interest in 1992. But this Euro-connections element to the plot is egged on with no real purpose.
There are several guest actors who are always good to watch, well-known British performers, so a bit of talent appears there. But their characters are badly moulded, as well as their script lines. And several of the deaths the two leads investigate are quite mentally challenging. One has a genuinely gifted faith healer being murdered by someone who had harboured revenge for years, incorrectly blaming the lovely man for causing the suicide of his sister. And there was no reference to this sad element of the death at any time. Another episode has a lady - a completely innocent onlooker - falling from a train to her death, for which the policemen who inadvertently caused this by chasing the innocent woman, don't even apologise for it let alone get punished. They just admit to it as if it's just a fait accompli.
It's not the deaths per se that are disturbing (how could it be, in a series about investigating murder-mysteries!), but the often heartless way they're niched into the storylines. The heavy and disturbing nature of some of the deaths in the series rather jars with the spiritual side of the drama - tarot cards/crystal balls/etc. A more humane element would have warmed us to the leads.
I hadn't heard of the series before I came across it at an online player, so was delighted to see John Michie's name on a drama after so many years of watching him in TV's 'Taggart'. So I watched this 1992 drama in 2025, many years after it was released. But it wasn't worth the wait or the watch. As it was, I skipped watching 3 episodes, as I simply couldn't bear spending (= wasting!) any more of my time on this poor drama. Thank goodness there were only 13 episodes made, before the series was ended.
