Ship of Fools: Midwinter of the Spirit (Phil Rickman)

Thread: Midwinter of the Spirit (Phil Rickman) Board: Oblivion / Ship of Fools.

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Posted by Eigon (# 4917) on :

Anybody else watching this? It's a three episode adaptation of the book where Merrily Watkins becomes a Deliverance Minister. Quite a few things have changed from the book, and the plot has been been simplified (Lol is a social worker - and black, played by the wonderful Ben Bailey Smith). But it was filmed around Herefordshire - there's the street near the cathedral (Jane and Rowenna go in the Lichfield Vaults), and street scenes in Weobley and Dilwyn. And Merrily (Anna Maxwell Martin), Huw (David Threlfall) and Jane (Sally Messham) are all brilliant.

Posted by Kitten (# 1179) on :

I have been recording it to watch later but am looking forward to it

Posted by Sarasa (# 12271) on :

I recorded the second one, not realsing I'd missed one. I haven't watched it yet, and not sure I will now a friend told me that the character of Lol had been changed.

Posted by leo (# 1458) on :

The woman priest is unintelligent and talks in platitudes.

The whole thing is lightweight rubbish.

Posted by Spike (# 36) on :

Can't say I've heard of it. What channel and what night?

Posted by St. Gwladys (# 14504) on :

I've read the books and enjoyed them. Didn't see the programme, but read the somewhat uncomplimentary review in the Church Times!

Posted by Eigon (# 4917) on :

It's on ITV on Wednesday nights at 9pm.
And, yes, there's been a lot of discussion on Phil Rickman's Facebook page about the changes to the character of Lol - now a social worker rather than a musician, and black - but Phil Rickman has been defending the changes, as the result of condensing the book into a 3 hour TV series. Several other characters have been merged together, too, to simplify the plot.
I haven't seen the review in the Church Times yet.

Posted by Pigwidgeon (# 10192) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Eigon:
Jane and Rowenna go in the Lichfield Vaults...

Great choice -- I love that pub! I had quite a few pints of Adnams Broadside there this summer.
[Yipee]

Posted by Garasu (# 17152) on :

I was going to give this a go, but the more I hear about it the worse it sounds!

Posted by Albertus (# 13356) on :

quote:
Originally posted by leo:
The ...priest is unintelligent and talks in platitudes.

Believable enough, then.

Posted by Pine Marten (# 11068) on :

I'm recording it but have only seen the first ep so far. I've read all the books too and I must admit it irritated me no end that Lol's character had been changed.

Does anyone know if this is a (three-part) one-off? I wonder why they chose this particular story to film..?

Posted by Siegfried (# 29) on :

It's the first of the novels with Merrily as Deliverance Minister (she isn't in the prior novel), and has sex and violence.

Posted by Eigon (# 4917) on :

As far as I know, the idea was to film this one first, and if it went well, maybe go on to the others. So far, I think it's going very well. After all, it was originally going to be broadcast on ITV Encore, and got bumped up to proper ITV.

Posted by Pine Marten (# 11068) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Siegfried:
It's the first of the novels with Merrily as Deliverance Minister (she isn't in the prior novel), and has sex and violence.

This is very true... I hadn't read or heard anything about it, so wasn't sure how many they planned to film.

I still haven't caught up with the episodes, but I'm halfway through Rickman's new novella The House of Susan Lulham, the latest Merrily story, which so far is pretty good.

[ 05. October 2015, 12:44: Message edited by: Pine Marten ]

Posted by Amos (# 44) on :

I haven't been able to sit all the way through either episode: neither the one where Merrilee is seen baptising in a chasuble and stole (with the stole outside the chasuble)--which she then walks home wearing--nor the one where she is snogged by her bishop. The demons aren't nearly as bad as the howlers.

Posted by Spike (# 36) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Amos:
neither the one where Merrilee is seen baptising in a chasuble and stole (with the stole outside the chasuble)

I've seen it done. Some are actually designed to be worn that way.

Posted by Roseofsharon (# 9657) on :

Quite a lot I didn't like about it - but tonight it was mostly inaudible, so difficult to tell. I kept turning the volume up, but I missed most of the things Merrily said.
The ending seemed rushed, and I couldn't hear/follow the conversation on the leads so couldn't quite grasp the connection between the various conspirators. Presumably something to do with Joy and his associates

Posted by Enoch (# 14322) on :

I saw the series, but it comes from a set of novels I've not heard of and don't know anything about. I can't say it lit any candles for me. It was curiosity that kept me going to the third episode. The bishop, though, turning out to be a secret satanist at the end was a bit of a surprise.

I agree with the comment that one couldn't hear when the loose ends were being tied up on the tower. That's become all too prevalent in television series recently.

I think the bishop said he'd been one of the people involved in the crucifixion in the wood. I assume the creepy woman with the wine bar had been there too, but didn't hear whether this was so. Did he mention that? Did he say whether their victim was already dead when they strung him up? And did he confess to murdering the previous exorcist or was it left uncertain whether hd been killed or committed suicide.

I didn't find the heroine very convincing as a diocesan exorcist. And I think that's in the writing, not the way it was acted. I know it's part of the plot and all there to create more dramatic excitement. But I don't think a real one would be able to do his/her job if he/she was that emotionally all over the place.

I found it very unconvincing.

[ 09. October 2015, 08:10: Message edited by: Enoch ]

Posted by Penny S (# 14768) on :

I haven't watched it yet. But am I right that the bishop is black? Unlike the book one. A bit of a dubious choice, I would have thought. Given the worms that have crawled out, like the ones in my potatoes, over the winner of the Great British Bake Off.

Posted by Pine Marten (# 11068) on :

Indeed, the bishop is black, and so is Lol - I'm still annoyed at the way his character is completely changed. No sign of Nick Drake's influence yet... [Frown]

I'm going to try watching the second part of ep 2 and the final ep this afternoon, if I can. So far I would say that it's not a patch on the book.

Posted by rolyn (# 16840) on :

We enjoyed the series, it delivered a reasonable amount of suspense in the last episode.
I think my partner was a bit spooked by it and probably would'nt have wanted to watch it on her own.

Posted by Eigon (# 4917) on :

Enoch - during the conversation on the cathedral roof, Merrily points out that the bishop appointed her thinking he'd get a poodle rather than a rottweiler - so he deliberately chose someone he thought would be bad at the job. The bishop also admitted to killing Canon Dobbs.

Posted by Roseofsharon (# 9657) on :

It seemed odd to me that anyone would take on that task in their own strength - and I couldn't see that Merrily had any thought of seeking strength from a spiritual source.

Posted by Penny S (# 14768) on :

I'm pretty sure she does pray for help in the books - but am going to check that.

We could do with some sensible women clergy on the box (OK, and sensible men as well). Dibley wasn't any help, despite there having been conversations with the genuine article. Sort of female Rev. With normal problems.

[ 11. October 2015, 15:49: Message edited by: Penny S ]

Posted by Drifting Star (# 12799) on :

She prays a lot in the books, both formally and informally.

I watched the first episode, and thought at first that the actress was a good choice, and the relationship between her and her daughter was a pretty good reflection of the one in the books.

However, like others, I felt really let down by Lol being turned into a social worker - I think that changes a lot of things.

I didn't watch parts two and three because they clashed with other things and our technology will not currently let us record something on a channel we're not watching. I'm finding it interesting that I haven't rushed to ITV Player to catch up.

Posted by Roseofsharon (# 9657) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Drifting Star:
She prays a lot in the books, both formally and informally.

I have read Wine of Angels and thought, but wasn't sure, that she prayed in that. Not sure if I will read any more, as this one seemed to have more horror in it. Is that how the later books are plotted - or was it hyped up for the TV?
I quite liked Merrily in Wine of Angels.

Posted by Drifting Star (# 12799) on :

It's a while since I read most of them, but my memory tells me that Midwinter of the Spirit is the nastiest of them. I find it interesting that they chose to start with that one rather than the first in the series - and it will make me very wary of television adaptations of any of the others.

I've just started reading The Magus of Hay (currently a bargain on Amazon Prime!)

Posted by Eigon (# 4917) on :

I don't know - Wine of Angels starts with a man blowing his own head off with a shotgun at a wassailing party! But I did find Midwinter on TV to be much scarier than the book, even though the book included a girl using a dead crow as a glove puppet and someone with their throat cut in a bath.

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