Keep it in the family
Otherwise, the constant comparisons will spoil your enjoyment of what is a promising opening to the new series.
While the transatlanticisation of the Gallaghers and their Chatsworth Estate is obviously going to be fraught with difficulties, there are two important factors which may lead to this show’s success.
First, Paul Abbot — the show’s original creator who mined his own childhood for inspiration — is heavily involved in the process. He’s even kept most of the plotlines and characters’ names intact. One of the few deviations from their original incarnation is that Ian Gallagher wants to become a paratrooper.
The second reason the US Shameless is off to a good start is that it stays pretty faithful to that magnificent first British series from 2005. That was the show that launched the careers of Anne-Marie Duff and James McAvoy, and whose raw energy and hilarious scenes set too high a standard for subsequent seasons to follow.
People will rush to complain about the American version, but recent series from the British stable are just a caricature of its early brilliance.
William H Macy, playing Frank Gallagher, is the big name in the cast, but those who remember the original will recall that it primarily revolved around the eldest daughter Fiona, here a babed-up version played by Emmy Rossum. The other moderately familiar face in the series is Joan Cusack (sister of John) who plays OCD sufferer Sheila.
Given that plenty people in the US are being hit by a recession as bad as anybody in British council estates, the timing of the show is perfect. Overall it got fairly decent reviews in the US, and should keep some of the curious Irish viewers past this first outing.
While Shameless sorts out its own niche audience, the incredible viewing offered by Human Planet (Thursday, BBC One, 8pm) should impress everybody. Over the past two weeks we’ve watched the extremes of human interaction with nature in the oceans and deserts. This week it’s the turn of those who live in extremely cold temperatures, most notably the Inuit of the far north. Arctic inhabitants are already being featured by Bruce Parry at the moment, but the sheer visual appeal of this show reigns supreme.
One of the most enjoyable segments is again the behind-the-scenes stuff, where we watch how a narwhal hunt was filmed at the edge of the sea ice at the height of the warmest springtime ever recorded.
Finally, the power of TV was revealed in the aftermath of Channel 4’s worthy and excellent Fish Fight week. Apparently, the focus on irresponsible fishing practices and other seafood issues by the likes of Jamie Oliver and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall has resulted in soaring sales of more sustainable fish such as sardines, pollock and squid.
