Well that was a bit bonkers, wasn’t it?
Eternal Law, ITV1’s new drama about two, er, angel lawyers who crash land near York aired for the first time last night and left a nation bemused. Didn’t catch it? Check our clips below.
The city looked splendid, albeit a bit shadowy due to dawn and dusk shoots. The show looked as though it had been filmed in a parallel York, home to no more than a handful of strangely photogenic residents. No crowds of pasty-munchers or grim-faced shoppers or mad cyclists or blusterous buskers.
So why were our (strangely litter-free) footstreets bestrode by a pair of angels in expensive tailoring? Because “Mr Mountjoy” sent them of course. To pretend to be human lawyers for no readily apparent reason. They didn’t even have a case till an assassin thoughtfully took potshots at people from atop the Mansion House.
It’s always harsh to judge a series by its first episode. But what the hey. This was bunk. Junk. Bunkum. Junkum.
Maybe it’ll all make perfect sense in episode two. And even if it doesn’t, it might attract other film-makers to our beautiful city.
So you don’t have to sit through the whole thing, here are the Yorkiest bits…
Opening: Lovely shot of the Minster, then…
[arve url=”https://youtu.be/LeoxuCgSsn0″ title=”Eternal Law – York’s new market” /]
A motorcyclist zips straight past the No Entry sign down Coney Street, scattering shoppers. Huh – and people complain about cyclists riding around the city illegally.
Next, the grumpy angel, Samuel West, tells the wide-eyed one Ukweli Roach: “This is what we call a market!” To which we reply: No it isn’t. It’s what we call St Helen’s Square.
Imagine the fury of traders holed up in Newgate Market to learn that the council not only sanctioned Parliament Street for continental marketeers, but let hippies set up stall outside Bettys!
Shoppers and gawpers: wherefore art thou?
[arve url=”https://youtu.be/-nURNCihvJk” title=”York’s Shambles, strangely deserted” /]
Shambles has gone downhill. Once thronged with tourists keen to visit England’s finest shopping street, it’s now empty save for a be-cardiganed barmcake and three shouty men running in single file.
Court in the act
[arve url=”https://youtu.be/dIzweHe-uvA” title=”Eternal Law – York court moonlights as hospital” /]
An angel in a hospital? Well, no. Not when the hospital’s actually York Crown Court. But it does look nice at dusk, even with all those ambulances outside.
Wall walk
[arve url=”https://youtu.be/CfzotwBsPak” title=”Eternal Law – walking the York walls” /]
Lots of lovely York to see in the background. And is that one of Yorkshire’s top real ale pubs on the right? I believe it is.
@maltingsyork on ITV #EternalLaw Ok OK its only in the background BUT..!! #yorkbeer
— shaun collinge (@maltingsyork) January 5, 2012