Somewhere in Scotland, on a gloomy Western Isle, a lone woman runs. Chased or chasing? Neither, it turns out. She’s training, for the Iron Woman. In Manchester, meanwhile, in the rain (of course), a digger scrapes at the soil. “Whoa,” someone shouts. “Whoa whoa whoa.” The digger has unearthed something other than earth, a piece of clothing hangs from one of the bucket’s teeth. In the ground, a shoe – red, heeled – and what look like bones.
How are the two connected, the viewer of From Darkness (BBC1, Sunday) wants to know. The remains in the rain are of two sex workers, later three (yes, more murdered prostitutes, I’m afraid). They disappeared from the streets of Manchester around 15 years ago.
The Iron Woman is Claire Church (Anne-Marie Duff), formerly PC Church of the Manchester police. She worked on the case of the disappearing sex workers 15 years ago. There’s the connection.
DCI John Hind (Johnny Harris), who now heads the case, tries to get Claire reinvolved, heads to the Hebrides with his comedy Oxbridge sidekick DS Boyce (Luke Newberry). But she’s not keen to leave her simple, idyllic life in the Hebrides, running and swimming and making biscuits with her lovely hunky husband and daughter. Stuff happened back then, bad stuff. There are more skeletons to emerge, from the ground, from the cupboard. Is ex-PC Claire just training for the Iron Woman, or also running from the past? She seems to have a panic attack every time she even thinks about it. Or just stares moodily into the distance.
Plus she’s got history with Hind, professional and personal – partners in the bedroom as well as the squad car. Judging by her reaction to him showing up on her island paradise, it didn’t end smoothly: “Look at you,” she says. “Fat, embittered, heavy-drinking, middle-aged male detective. Do you know how much of a cliche that is?”
It’s a brave line. Bold and self-aware, included, maybe, to fend off potential flak. But also perhaps a little foolhardy, as it alerts us cliche police to further crimes. Quick, jump in this hackneyed carriage, follow that old chestnut. And frankly, it’s not the hardest chase: a former cop with demons is dragged reluctantly from isolated retirement for one last case; the bad dreams and the flashbacks; the difficult partnership; sex workers murdered and mutilated; the rain in Manchester … well, I’m not so bothered about that one – it does, literally all the time.
From Darkness is intriguing. I want to know what happened, and what will happen. It’s well performed. I’m a big fan of Duff, but is starey Claire just a bit too starey? Out to sea, from a cliff, from the ferry, out of the car window, into the darkness, into the past … I want to click my fingers in front of her face, oi, I know it’s been tough, but focus on the job in hand. The west coast of Scotland looks lovely.
I’m going to drop the D-bomb, though – D for derivative. I think it’s trying to be too many things. I’m getting Denmark (The Killing, The Bridge), The Fall, even a hint of Endeavour, with young DS Boyce; plus everything else that involves reluctant, unretiring cops with demons and difficult partnerships etc. It doesn’t have a strong enough personality of its own. Not yet, anyway.
Paul Hollywood has another passion, apart from baking. Cars. Specifically Aston Martins, which he has adored ever since getting a Corgi James Bond DB5 when he was five. Licence To Thrill: Paul Hollywood Meets Aston Martin (BBC2, Sunday) is an opportunity for him to indulge that passion. It’s lovely, especially for Hollywood.
He now has his own full-size Aston, a DBS Volante. But here Paul gets to have a spin in a whole lot of others. Like a DB5 (the name’s Hollywood, Paul Hollywood) and a rare DBR1 worth £20m. He’s taken for a ride, in that and the new Bond DB10. And he qualifies as a racing driver so he can get involved on the track at Le Mans.
Racing has changed a bit. There’s some terrifying old footage of an open-topped car flipping, and the driver’s arm hanging lifelessly out of his overturned car while the others whizz past unconcerned. Four men stroll over, in no particular hurry, roll the car back over, and oh, the chap’s fine – now there’s a stroke of luck. He probably carries on.
Paul doesn’t crash his car but someone else does and the race is cancelled (boo, health and safety gone mad). He was getting very hot in there though, in his race suit and 40C heat. Who’s got a soggy bottom now?
