Agatha Christie's Marple

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  • Returning Series
Welcome to the Agatha Christie's Marple guide at TV.com. Geraldine McEwan (series 1-3) and Julia McKenzie (from series 4) star in the latest TV adaption of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple. Following in the footsteps of Gracie Fields, Margaret Rutherford, Angela Lansbury, Helen Hayes and Joan Hickson, Geraldine McEwan brought the part of the elderly amateur sleuth Jane Marple with an extraordinary knack of solving crimes back to the small screen in 2004, broadcast on ITV1. The series is based on the Miss Marple stories by Agatha Christie, who's novels have also been adapted for Agatha Christie's Poirot, as well as adapting other Christie novels introduces the character of Miss Marple to them. Despite mixed reviews as to McEwan's suitability to the role and adaptions made to the stories to give a more modern edge, the series has proved highly popular and attracted large viewing figures in the UK and around the world. After the completion of filming of series 3, it was announed that Geraldine McEwan would be retiring from the role. From series 4, for which four new episodes have been produced, Julia McKenzie will be taking on the role. The series is due to air in the UK some time during 2009. The novels that have been adapted by ITV are: The Murder At The Vicarage (1930) The Sittaford Mystery (1931) [non-Marple] Why Didn't They Ask Evans? (1934) [non-Marple] Murder is Easy (1939) [non-Marple] The Body In The Library (1942) The Moving Finger (1943) Towards Zero (1944) [non-Marple] A Murder Is Announced (1950) They Do It With Mirrors (1952) A Pocketful of Rye (1953) 4:50 From Paddington (1957) Ordeal By Innocence (1958) [non-Marple] At Bertram's Hotel (1965) By The Pricking Of My Thumbs (1968) [non-Marple] Nemesis (1971) Sleeping Murder (1976) TV tie-in versions of the four novels in the first series have been published. The novels of the first two films in the second series (the two Marple novels) have also been republished as TV tie-in novels. The second series also featured two non-Marple novels by Agatha Christie being adapted with Miss Marple added in. For the third series, another two Marple and two non-Marple novels were adapted. The pattern is set to continue with the fourth series. A documentary entitled Behind The Scenes: Agatha Christie's Marple was shown on ITV3 after the final episode of the first series. The documentary is available on the DVD release of the first series.moreless
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Episode Guide

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S 5 :  Ep 4 Aired 1/2/11
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S 5 :  Ep 3 Aired 12/29/10
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S 5 :  Ep 2 Aired 12/27/10
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S 5 :  Ep 1 Aired 8/30/10
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S 4 :  Ep 4 Aired 6/15/11
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Fan Reviews (6)

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  • Geraldine McEwan tries but can't quite redeem a series with bad writing and apalling character changes.

    6.5
    "Fair"
    By mysteryfan427, Jul 04, 2010
    When I first heard that there was going to be another Miss Marple series, I rejoiced. After looking at pictures of Geraldine McEwan, I thought that she very much looked the part. Then came the announcement about the episodes. The first four would be "The Murder at the Vicarage," "A Murder is Announced," "4:50 From Paddington," and "The Body in the Library." Four of the best novels. Great. But then came word that they would be tweaking Miss Marple's character so that she had an affair with a married man in her past. No, this can't be true, I said! Just a rumor!

    Sadly it was not. And the changes just don't work. There's even a lesbian twist in "The Body in the Library." McEwan tries her best, and I enjoyed her performance. The Marple of this series is very sprightly and energetic. McEwan's performance is fun and engaging. I give tremendous credit to this fine actrss.

    Yes, it has fantastic production values. Yes, the score is lively and upbeat. Yes, the acting is terrific all around. But the bad writing and horrible changes can't save this show from drowning.moreless

  • Good... but... not Hickson.

    7.6
    "Good"
    By ccomley, Jul 04, 2010
    I love Geraldine McEwan, and I have no problems with her as Miss Marple. And yes, Joanna Lumley is inspired as Dolly Bantry. The scripts are well adapted, the acting is good, it should all come together nicely.

    But.

    I'm afraid I just can't watch these without thinking how it doens't really match up to the standard, set still comparativly recently, by the most amazing Joan Hickson. If you're going to re-make Marple mysteries you either need to wait for the Hickson ones to be *so* old that no-one watches them any more, or even remembers them much, or you need to have something which is not just good, outstandingly and unmistakably better.

    And this, sadly, isn' it.

    moreless

  • Unravel the puzzles of the criminal mindset and the human condition in the adventures of Agatha Christie's stalwart sleuth.

    9.4
    "Superb"
    By Lokar, Jun 03, 2006
    I never can figure out what it is with detectives: does trouble follow them, or vice versa?

    Whatever it is, the great ones leave a mark on our collective memory not only because of their skills in matching fingerprints and figuring out who stands to get rich from wills, but because of their insights into what makes people tick. Geraldine McEwen is the sixth individual (in this show's overall history) to walk in the shoes of Miss Jane of literary legend, and she is a worthy addition to the class.

    My favorite episode of the new series is still "A Murder is Announced," with its tale of a killing ripped from the headlines--the headlines of a country town not used to such horrors, that is--but it's a pleasure to see the show will be with us for a good time to come.

    Make it your mystery movie of the week.moreless

  • It's good, but the old Joan Hickson version on BBC2, beats it by far.

    7.0
    "Good"
    By aleksengland, Mar 16, 2006
    This programme is good and I think it is sometimes worth watching, but in my opinion, the Joan Hickson version on BBC2 was better. It might have been in technicolour, but it was much more realistic and Geraldine McEwan, in my opinion, has a very high standard to reach and she doesn't quite give the same effect as Joan Hickson. But some people might prefer this version, because at least it does feature some good features. It has bright colours and modern photography, not to mension the long list of famous actors who appear in verious episodes. So overall, it is good and can be interesting to watch, but I don't find it as good as the BBC2 version, featuring Joan Hickson. On the other hand, they show the Joan Hickson version very rarely on BBC2 nowadays. (P.S. This review refers to BBC2 in the UK.)moreless

  • Good, but could be better ...

    8.0
    "Great"
    By xGowronx, Jan 23, 2006
    You have to feel for Geraldine McEwan, she had some big shoes to fill when stepping in to the role. Joan Hickson is the definitive Miss Marple, with a loyal fanbase even to this day.

    While so far McEwan has "made" the recent adaptations of Christie's classic series, the rest of the new series is definitely lacking the fervor of it's predecessor.
    The supporting cast hasn't been the best, actually they have been downright lackluster - with very few exceptions like that of Sir Derek Jacobi in The Murder at the Vicarage.

    The writing is dull, and overall the show needs a major tweeking.

    I still plan on giving this new version a proper chance, but I hope that in the near furture they make some major changes before they lose the fanbase and end up getting axed.moreless
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  • At Bertram's Hotel
    I didn't even know it was until I was checking my Satellite guide.  I taped it and plan to watch it soon. ;)  It aired on CBC Ca...
    By robinepowell, Apr 04, 2007
    11/30/11
    7
    Reply
  • Miss Marple: Joan Hickson
    I think that Joan Hickson portrays a much better version of Miss Marple than Geraldine McEwan. Do you agree? I think that Miss Ma...
    By aleksengland, May 31, 2006
    11/30/11
    4
    Reply
  • Why Didn't They Ask Evans?
    It was shown on ITV1 on the 15th June 2011 and is currently on the ITV player (only for two more days though). Just thought I'd sh...
    By theportal, Jul 13, 2011
    07/13/11
    1
    Reply
  • The New Miss Marple?
    Just wanted to canvass opinion about Julia Mackenzie.I've never seen her in anything where she is the lead character,so I'm not su...
    By sajwest, Mar 12, 2008
    07/07/09
    4
    Reply
  • Does anybody know...
    ... what stories will be treated in season 4?I've tried to search the web, but so far it led me to a dead end. Is there any tv gui...
    By ellewoodspower, Jan 02, 2008
    04/04/09
    5
    Reply

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Comedy, Suspense

Themes

altruistic behavior, cerebral, characters with hidden agendas, fish out of water, for the aarp crowd

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