Thanks to my investment in a multiregion player, I can blithely order from Amazon UK sets unavailable in Region 1 like GOODNIGHT, SWEETHEART and DEMPSEY AND MAKEPEACE.

D&M aired over here when REMINGTON STEELE aired so it was easy to make comparisons. Each team had one American and one...well...from the British Isles, let's say. Both teams had good chemistry but I thought D&M had the edge. I'd give the acting edge to the Americans in both teams but the British side provided the sex appeal. Production values differed significantly, but that may have forced D&M to rely alot on location shooting which added considerably to its atmosphere. I think REMINGTON had the better whodunnit plots and better writing overall. REMINGTON had good supporting actors including Doris Roberts -- but D&M had the incomparable Ray Smith, my favorite put-upon police supervisor of any cop show I've seen (it was devastating to see illness overtake him).

This season 1 DVD of D&M has Brandon & Barber providing commentary on the first two episodes. There was a lot of quiet stretches because I think they got so involved with the story, and they just couldn't recall a lot of the details -- such as the names of various actors. The bonus material included a recent interview with the two stars reminicing.

I was surprised to hear the an American network (ABC, I think) had input into the shows production. Surprised because I don't think it got a primetime slot over here. I recall it came on after the evening news at around 11:30 pm. But there were two ardent fans at least (my girl friend at the time and myself).

It was nice to hear the the show enjoyed the success it did elsewhere. And it was nice to see the screen chemistry emerge in reality as a long marriage.

Aw, I used to watch this. :thumbsup:

Da Season 1 DVDs musta dun sumtin to my brain cuz I orded Seasons 2 & 3 of DEMPSEY AND MAKEPEACE. And didnt day arrive quickly! Ova a week earlier dan Amazon of da UK taught it wood.

Season 2 had a number of episodes that stuck in my mind over the years including my favorite of all 3 seasons, "Wheelman" whose only weakness was the guest actor (Tom Georgeson) lacking the personality required by the role as written.

I was surprised to notice how often Makepeace shot a guy and saved the day. In the commentary to the pilot episode and in an interview, Glynis complained of never doing that other than in the pilot. In fact, Makepeace failed to live up to her name and left a trail of bodies rescuing Dempsey or someone else (such as in "Wheelman"). But, I suppose if she remembered all those times she wouldn't be able to revive that old feminist complaint about a woman in a man's world.

In talk show interviews included with the DVDs, it was sad to see how Glynis has tamed Michael Brandon. In a 1997 interview with the two of them, she seemed determine to control what he revealed about them ("I want to vet that story first."). He more or less complied.

They both admitted to not liking each other during the first season. But things changed while they were touring the US promoting the show. But even during the third year, when Glynis was questioned during an interview she was giving alone, she said that they were just very good friends and would probably be for the rest of their lives.

I'm now very surprised that the marriage lasted this long.

Upon review, I think one of the reasons the show didn't get good airing in the US was the production values. The visual quality of the show was pretty poor even by the standards of those days. During the commentary to the pilot, Brandon pointed out the the show was shot in 16mm while 32mm was standard in the US. On American televsions, the image was/is very grainy and the color diffuse.

However, despite the imagery, the shoddy writing, the bickering co-stars, I'm still enjoying revisiting them. So is the woman who was ny girlfriend at the time the show aired. She works near by and we keep in touch. She probably hasn't seen any of the shows since the 80s so naturally, she wanted to borrow the DVDs (she can play Region 2 DVDs on her daughter's laptop). There might be a whole new generation of fans. Especially, if they ever come out on Region 1.

John, did you ever watch The Champions ? That`s out on DVD now, too. :)

amazon.uk clicky

I had never heard of it until I spotted the DVDs at the video place nearby that carries hard-to-find movies and shows. I keep forgetting to check them out.

About the only thing I know Stuart Damon from is the televised musical CINDERELLA with Lesley Ann Warren. He was a pretty good singer but musicals were going out of favor.

^^ I think you might appreciate the charms of Alexandra Bastedo from the Champions. ;)

How about Edge of Darkness ? :)

While THE CHAMPIONS isn't at my online DVD rental service, EDGE OF DARKNESS is. So I'll check it out.