The Beiderbecke Affair

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The Beiderbecke Affair was a television series produced in the UK by ITV during 1985, written by the prolific Alan Plater, whose lengthy credits to British Television since the 1960s included the preceding 4 part mini series Get Lost! for ITV in 1981. The Beiderbecke Affair has a similar style to Get Lost!, with Neville Keaton (played by actor Alun Armstrong) and Judy Threadgold (played by actress Bridget Turner) in the ensemble cast. Although The Beiderbecke Affair was an intended as a sequel to Get Lost!, Alun Armstrong proved to be unavailable, and the premise was reworked. Two sequel series were made, The Beiderbecke Tapes (1987, 151 min.) and The Beiderbecke Connection (1988, 201 min.).

[edit] Plot

The plot is initially unclear, moving from one seemingly unrelated event to another, all of which are eventually shown to be interconnected. However, the clever interplay between the characters is the main interest here.

Geordie Trevor Chaplin (played by James Bolam) teaches woodwork, enjoys football and likes to listen to jazz. Jill Swinburne (played by Barbara Flynn) is interested in neither football nor jazz, but teaches English and wants to help save the planet, standing in a local election as "your Conservation candidate". After Jill left her husband, colleague Trevor began giving her lifts to school and from there a relationship blossomed. They have an easy-going relationship where half the words seem to be left unspoken but the viewer is never in any doubt as to the subtext.

Trevor tries to buy some jazz records from a "dazzlingly beautiful platinum blonde" who calls at the door raising funds for the local Cubs’ football team. When the wrong records are delivered, a hunt begins that draws the pair into unforeseen intrigue. Thrown in to the mix are Sgt Hobson (Dominic Jephcott), a suspicious yet seemingly incompetent graduate police detective, and a pair of local black economy tradesmen, "Big Al" (Terence Rigby) and "Little Norm" (Danny Schiller), who agree to help "average-sized" Jill and Trevor with their school supplies problems. There are elements of political and social commentary, whilst bureaucracy (within the Police and Local Government) and the educational system are frequent targets of ridicule.

It all unravels to a soundtrack of jazz music in the style of Bix Beiderbecke performed by Frank Ricotti with Kenny Baker as featured cornet soloist. Extensive use is made of leitmotifs for the various characters.

[edit] DVD Availability

All three series are available on DVD as individual boxed sets, and as a Collection DVD Set (the Beiderbecke Trilogy), with an additional 6 Disc Set, the Beiderbecke Trilogy 21st Anniversary Edition (containing the Beiderbecke Trilogy plus Get Lost!, CD Soundtrack, cast interviews and commemorative booklet as special features) released for Region 2.

The Beiderbecke Tapes is not available on DVD in the US.