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S1.E2
After 10 or 11 weeks in the hospital, Marlow has a session with a psychiatrist, Dr. Gibbon, that does not go well. Gibbon believes that the root of Marlow's skin disorder is psychological and that he...
S1.E3
Marlow recalls the last days of World War II and a train journey with his mother when they visited her family. He again recalls his mother going into the woods and having sex with a man they know, ...
S1.E1
Writer Philip Marlow is in hospital being treated for a severe skin affliction, something he has suffered from for 25 years but is now worse than it has ever been. He finds himself in a general ward ...
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Title: The Singing Detective (1986)
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6 wins & 8 nominations.
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Storyline
Reworking material from his first novel, "Hide and Seek" (1973), and folding this into a prismatic blend of autobiographical details, popular music and 1940s film noir, Dennis Potter delivered a drama now regarded as a 20th-century masterwork. Detective novelist Philip Marlow (Michael Gambon) suffers from the crippling disease of psoriatic arthritis. Confined to a hospital bed, Marlow mentally rewrites his early Chandleresque thriller, "The Singing Detective," with himself in the title role, drifting into a surreal 1945 fantasy of spies and criminals, along with vivid memories of a childhood in the Forest of Dean. As past events and 1940s songs surface in his subconscious, Marlow's voyage of self-discovery provides a key to conquering his illness, while his noir-styled hallucinations evoke the Philip Marlowe of Chandler's "Murder, My Sweet" (1944), starring Dick Powell, who later became a "singing detective" on radio's "Richard Diamond, Private Detective" (1949), crooning to ... Written by Bhob Stewart <bhob2@aol.com>
Certificate:
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Details
Language:
EnglishRelease Date:
16 November 1986 (UK) See more »Also Known As:
Az éneklő detektív See more »Company Credits
Production Co:
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC),Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) See more »
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Technical Specs
Runtime:
(6 episodes)Sound Mix:
MonoColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1
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Philip Marlow: Money, you're paying me money. Why put "good" in front of it? Who knows its virtue? I don't know where it's been. Do you?
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(uncredited)
Music by Fred Fisher
Performed by Max Harris & His Novelty Trio during the credits
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Did You Know?
Trivia
The scene where a delusional old patient climbs into bed with Marlow, thinking that he is his wife, actually happened for real to Dennis Potter during one of his innumerable stays in hospital. See more »Quotes
Mark Binney: Mr Marlow, you can't deny I'm paying you good money...Philip Marlow: Money, you're paying me money. Why put "good" in front of it? Who knows its virtue? I don't know where it's been. Do you?
See more »
Soundtracks
Peg o' My Heart(uncredited)
Music by Fred Fisher
Performed by Max Harris & His Novelty Trio during the credits
See more »
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This is a masterpiece of unique proportions. Dennis Potter appears everywhere in the plot through his characters. Amazing soundtrack, a match to the surreal plot! Don't look for answers, just take the trip that Potter suggests and don't miss a single detail. Switch off the light, stop eating popcorn and pay attention to each and every scene. It will reward you.