Rosemary & Thyme

The women in this series appear as if they're having fun and they take us along for the ride.

The relationship between Felicity Kendal & Pam Ferris is like salt and pepper. One is spicy, sharp and speaks her mind. Sometimes this places her in a 'dangerous' situation but she's willing to take the risk.

The other is more diplomatic and a tad cautious. This makes a good blend which will reach most of us (women, that is).

You know at the outset there's little chance of real danger but it's a pleasure to have a cup of tea while enjoying their adventures.

Sugar and spice make a good combo. The Brits really show us up -- almost all the time. Watched them from the outset. Delighted they keep coming back.

I love this show. This is my Sunday night tradition, Watching Rosemary and Thyme. I have seen them all and a few times over. I had been waiting patiently for a new season only to find out the show had been canceled by an English company. If there is any way to get them to listen, please do. The 2 actresses playing Rosemany and Laura are wonderful. So believable, and fun to watch. The stories are wonderful also. I am an Agatha Christie fan, and these stories are as good. I am devastated, please make some more episodes. I love the gardens, the stories, and the actresses. There are so few good mystery series on TV now. Especially one, like this show, where you can tell care has been taken to have beautiful scenery, likable characters, interesting plot lines, and not a lot of gratuitous violence. I love it.

...and it has real women in it, Felicity Kendal and Pam Ferris, two dynamite actresses.

Rosemary & Thyme is about two women, Rosemary Boxer and Laura Thyme who are in the gardening business together. Everywhere they go to work, they become involved in a murder mystery.

In order to enjoy the show, you have to accept two conceits. The first is, both these women are incredibly nosy. They come into a situation to fix, put in, or expand a garden and before you know it, they're sneaking around roofs and attics and asking outrageous questions.

The second conceit is that the solutions are sometimes really out there and you wonder how they ever figured them out. Hidden messages on trees, that sort of thing. Wild.

Nevertheless, I like it. Sorry to hear it was canceled.

I was saddened to hear that last night's episode of this show was the last of the series. I found the platonic chemistry between Felicity Kendal CBE and Pam Ferris to be very entertaining. Felicity's Rosemary Boxer is more down to earth, sensible, and smart while Pam's Laura Thyme is quite charming to watch as well. They work very well together and it would be a terrible shame to end the series now. Granted, two female gardeners working on grand estates where murders occur is unlikely to happen in reality but it's not real. It's television after all and I hope that they would bring them back together for another series. Last night's episode featured one of my favorites like Anne Lambton as Queenie and the storyline was not magnificent but worth watching. In one hour, they solved a double homicide with twists and turns but also kept me guessing and entertained at the same time. The British love their gardens and murder mysteries now they have combined two hobbies into one for an entertaining show to be shown for years on television.

This wonderful "who done it" British TV series lasted only three seasons and was canceled because of budget concerns. As it is, 22 episodes are available on DVD.

Basic plot has Rosemary Boxer (Felicity Kendal) who's been fired from her job as a university lecturer in plant pathology, and Laura Thyme (Pam Ferris) a housewife (and former police woman) dumped by her husband. The two meet by chance and form a fast friendship that leads them to start a business as gardeners. But they get more than they bargained for when they get involved in local politics, family squabbles, and (invariably) in murder.

The two women use their natural curiosity and knowledge of plants to help the cops solve the murders.

The show is notable for never showing the actual violence of murder and for having two women of a certain age who are not involved in relationships or with cutesy kiddies. Another big bonus is the gorgeous location filming at various estates around the UK and a few trips to the continent. The viewer can also pick up bits and pieces of garden lore and tips.

Kendal is of course a major TV star with hit series like THE GOOD NEIGHBORS and SOLO to her credit. Ferris also has a long list of TV credits. They work perfectly together. These women are smart, independent, and funny.

The series boasts a lot of familiar faces as guests like Anthony Andrews, Phyllida Law, Suzanne Bertish, Belinda Lang, Michael Cochrane, Mel Martin, Crispin Bonham-Carter, Margaret Tyzack, Tilly Blackwood, Julian Firth, Murray Head, Diana Hardcastle, Christopher Bowen, and Neil McDermott.

Terrific!