The Singing Detective 

Tormented and bedridden by a debilitating disease, a mystery writer relives his detective stories through his imagination and hallucinations.

Stars:

Michael Gambon, Patrick Malahide, Joanne Whalley

6 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Michael Gambon	...	Philip Marlow 6 episodes, 1986
Patrick Malahide	...	Mark Binney / ... 6 episodes, 1986
Joanne Whalley	...	Nurse Mills 6 episodes, 1986
David Ryall	...	Mr. Hall 6 episodes, 1986
Gerard Horan	...	Reginald 6 episodes, 1986
Leslie French	...	Mr. Tomkey / ... 6 episodes, 1986
Ron Cook	...	First Mysterious Man 6 episodes, 1986
George Rossi	...	Second Mysterious Man 6 episodes, 1986
Sharon D. Clarke	...	Night Nurse 6 episodes, 1986
Lyndon Davies	...	Philip (aged 10) 6 episodes, 1986
Geff Francis	...	Porter 6 episodes, 1986
Janet Suzman	...	Nicola 5 episodes, 1986
Alison Steadman	...	Mrs. Marlow / ... 5 episodes, 1986
Jim Carter	...	Mr. Marlow 5 episodes, 1986
Imelda Staunton	...	Staff Nurse White 5 episodes, 1986
Janet Henfrey	...	Schoolteacher 5 episodes, 1986
Bill Paterson	...	Dr. Gibbon 4 episodes, 1986
William Speakman	...	Mark Binney (aged 10) / ... 4 episodes, 1986
Simon Chandler	...	Dr. Finlay 4 episodes, 1986
Charles Simon	...	George Adams 4 episodes, 1986
Wally Thomas	...	Grandad Baxter 3 episodes, 1986
Kate McKenzie	...	Sonia 3 episodes, 1986
Trevor Cooper	...	Cloth Cap / ... 3 episodes, 1986
Charon Bourke	...	Amanda 2 episodes, 1986
Mary MacLeod	...	Sister Malone 2 episodes, 1986
Thomas Wheatley	...	Registrar 2 episodes, 1986
Ken Stott	...	Uncle John 2 episodes, 1986
Jo Cameron Brown	...	Aunt Emily 2 episodes, 1986
Niven Boyd	...	First Soldier 2 episodes, 1986
Angela Curran	...	Mary 2 episodes, 1986
David Thewlis	...	Second Soldier 2 episodes, 1986

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 ...

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Plot Keywords:

detective | hallucination | disease | private detective | hospital | 

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Genres:

Drama | Musical | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Country:

Australia UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 November 1986 (UK)

Also Known As:

The Singing Detective

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min (6 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Potter originally planned to drop the noir thriller aspect of the plot after the first episode as he felt that it wouldn't hold the audience's attention.

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Quotes

Philip E. Marlow: I've not seriously doubted since that afternoon that any lie will receive almost instant corroboration, and almost instant collaboration, if the maintenance of it results in the public enjoyment of someone else's pain, someone else's humiliation.

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Connections

Referenced in The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

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Soundtracks

Peg o' My Heart
(uncredited)
Music by Fred Fisher
Performed by Max Harris & His Novelty Trio during the credits

User Reviews

Greatest television ever made

Dennis Potter was the master of the teleplay and this is the pinnacle of his art. Clever and intelligent dialogue, a brilliant use of non-linear narrative, and a faultless cast all contribute to making this a modern masterpiece.