Foyle’s War is an immensely popular British mystery series created and largely written by Anthony Horowitz, who also had a hand in screenwriting for Poirot and Midsomer Murders, two other British mystery series I also enjoy. The British commercial television network ITV commissioned the series at around the time the Inspector Morse series was wrapping up back in 2000. (Note that U.S. distributor Acorn combined Series Three and Four, so that these episodes aired as Series Six in the U.K.)
Foyle’s War is set during World War II and adheres closely to the timeline of war-related events that affected life in the southeast England town of Hastings. For example, ‘The White Feather’ (Series One) effectively depicts the evacuation of British troops from Dunkirk; ‘The Funk Hole’ (Series Two) deals with citizens of means who fled the cities to live in rural guest houses where they felt safer from the threat of bombing raids; ‘Invasion’ (Series Four) concerns the arrival of American soldiers to boost the war effort; ‘All Clear’ (Series Six) takes place as residents of Hastings prepare to celebrate V-E Day.
Mind you, the series takes a few liberties with historical accuracy, such as the use of streptomycin to treat an infectious disease in 1942, a year before the antibiotic was discovered. I don’t have a problem with the use of such strategies in a television series that is clearly presented as historical fiction, not documentary.
At its core, Foyle’s War is a mystery series. Each episode finds the members of its relatively small ensemble cast unraveling a case that typically involves at least one suspicious death not related to the war itself. Veteran actor Michael Kitchen is the star of the series, playing Detective Chief Superintendant Christopher Foyle, an acerbic but kind-hearted veteran of World War I. He is joined by two regular characters, the conscientious and deferential Sergeant Paul Milner (played by Anthony Howell) and the silly but good-hearted Samantha Stewart (Honeysuckle Weeks), who serves as Foyle’s driver for the duration.
A few other characters make appearances across episodes, including Christopher’s fighter pilot son Andrew (Julian Ovenden); the only real comic relief in the entire series, Sergeant Ian Brooke Jay Simpson); and Hilda Pearce from the Special Operations Executive (Ellie Haddington). There is just enough continuity across the entire series to justify a commitment to viewing all the episodes in sequential order; however, the mysteries themselves are contained within each 100-minute episode.
Overall, I found the series highly enjoyable. The main characters are all believable and generally sympathetic (well, sometimes Sam struck me as just a little too naïve). Although I recognized quite a few of the actors who appear in individual episodes from other British mystery series I’ve watched, I was easily able to set those memories of them aside because of the strong writing and careful attention to historical detail in the settings of this series. I particularly appreciated the period accuracy of the costuming, the motor vehicles, and the interiors (the map room in ‘Plan of Attack’ is remarkable in this regard).
‘All Clear’ takes place as the war in Europe is winding down. This episode also serves to wrap up several continuing plot lines and to disperse the main characters to new life situations. At the time it was produced, Horowitz and company clearly thought that they were completing the series. Since then, largely in response to viewer support and interest, ITV has decided to reprise the series with the original cast. As of the time of this writing (February 2009), it’s not yet evident what the new series will be called or how the writers will bring the characters back together. I am looking forward to seeing the resolution of these uncertainties.
As we have found with all the Acorn boxed sets, the special features don’t add a lot to the value of the package. But then you probably wouldn’t be buying or renting these for the special features. It’s the writing, the setting, and the acting that will attract and hold your attention.
(ITV and PBS, 2001-2008; Acorn Media, 2002-2008)
