TV Anorak: An American Intro To British TV-The V's

anorak
1. British: A person obsessively interested in a thing or topic that doesn't seem to warrant such attention.

This series of Challenge posts is an introduction to British TV shows for my fellow Americans. For instructions on how to play different region-coded DVD's, please go either here or here to read my previous blog posts that should clear up any confusion. Next up:
a-to-z-letters-v

"V" could possibly be the most important letter next to "D" and "S" for the simple reason it contains this little gem:

Vicar Of Dibley
Dawn French. Richard Armitage. As a couple. Need I say more! Granted, Richard doesn't pop up until the final two specials, but oh, does it make the entire series or what! Based on a real female Vicar, Dibley is a comedy about a woman who takes over as vicar to a small village of pretty much elderly old-school men! Written by Richard Curtis (aka Love Actually, Notting Hill, Bridget Jones, Four Weddings And A Funeral, you get the picture, he's practically the reason why Americans love the Brits so much) and what could be his finest work, Dibley comprises four series and a number of specials and one-off's spread out over almost 15 years. Look out for Hugh Bonneville in the Richard episodes, this is one of my favorite parts of his. I'm still waiting for the next special! It's funny, heartwarming, and just plain good television. If you only manage to get one series from my entire A to Z posts, then get this one!

Here is an actual clip of the day that Geraldine meets Harry:


Vexed
Bronte fans will know Toby Stephens from one of the many incarnations of Rochester from Jane Eyre, but I think this is my favorite of his roles. He often gets typecast as a bad guy, and like Richard Armitage, I don't like him that way. Toby plays a detective that doesn't adhere to the rules much, operating out of a bar instead of the police station. He may be womanizing, but he's a really good detective. There are two series and each one has a different female partner (and I think that Miranda Raison (from Spooks) in the second series is my favorite-they have a lot more chemistry).

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