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Luther (TV series)

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Luther
Luther's opening title screen
GenrePsychological crime drama
Created byNeil Cross
StarringIdris Elba
Ruth Wilson
Steven Mackintosh
Indira Varma
Paul McGann
Saskia Reeves
Warren Brown
Dermot Crowley
Opening theme"Paradise Circus" by Massive Attack
Country of originUnited Kingdom
No. of series2
No. of episodes10 (list of episodes)
Production
ProducerKatie Swinden
Running time60 minutes
Production companyBBC Drama Productions
Original release
NetworkBBC One, BBC HD
Release4 May 2010 (2010-05-04) –
present

Luther is a British psychological crime drama television series starring Idris Elba as the title character Detective Chief Inspector John Luther. A first series of six episodes was broadcast on BBC One from 4 May to 8 June 2010. The second series of four episodes was shown on BBC One in summer 2011. During the Edinburgh TV Festival, BBC One controller Danny Cohen announced there will be a third series as well. [1]

Plot

John Luther is a Detective Chief Inspector working for the Serious Crime Unit in series 1, and the new Serious and Serial Crime Unit in series 2.[2] A dedicated copper, Luther is also a genius. He is obsessive, possessed, and sometimes dangerous in the violence of his fixations. But Luther has paid a heavy price for his dedication; he has never been able to prevent himself from being consumed by the darkness of the crimes with which he deals. For Luther, the job always comes first. His dedication is a curse and a blessing for him and those close to him.

Cast and characters

Main article: List of Luther characters

Episodes

Main article: List of Luther episodes
SeriesEpisodesOriginally airedAvg. UK viewers
(millions)
First airedLast aired
164 May 2010 (2010-05-04)8 June 2010 (2010-06-08)4.83
2414 June 2011 (2011-06-14)5 July 2011 (2011-07-05)6.43
342 July 2013 (2013-07-02)23 July 2013 (2013-07-23)5.98
4215 December 2015 (2015-12-15)22 December 2015 (2015-12-22)7.92
541 January 2019 (2019-01-01)4 January 2019 (2019-01-04)9.45
Film24 February 2023 (2023-02-24)–

Production

Inspiration

Creator Neil Cross has said that Luther is influenced by both Sherlock Holmes and Columbo: the nature of Luther's intellect and its application to solving crimes is comparable to Holmes', whereas the show's use of the inverted detective format (wherein the audience is aware of the identity of the criminals but not of how they will be caught, as opposed to the conventional format of the audience discovering the criminal as the characters do) was inspired by Columbo.[11]

Filming

The first series was filmed in and around London, England and produced by BBC Drama Productions. Brian Kirk, Sam Miller and Stefan Schwartz each directed two episodes. Series creator Neil Cross wrote all six of the episodes. Leila Kirkpatrick was the line producer for the entire series and Katie Swinden was the producer for a number of episodes. Tim Fleming provided series cinematography for two episodes. Katie Weiland and Victoria Boydell were involved in the series' film editing, with Weiland editing two episodes. Andy Morgan was responsible for the entire series' casting, Paul Cross provided production design and Adam A. Makin was behind the series' art direction.[citation needed]

Second series

The BBC announced on 28 August 2010 it had recommissioned Luther for a second series for 2011 and filming started in late September/early October 2010.[citation needed] Originally planned to be broadcast as two two-hour long episodes,[12] it is shown as four episodes. The first episode of series two was shown on BBC One on Tuesday 14 June.[13]

Third series

BBC One controller announced in August 2011 that a third series had been commissioned.[14][15] Previously Idris Elba, when asked about whether a third series is likely, had said, "We’ll have to see what the appetite is like for it at the end of this series. If it’s a good, healthy appetite then we’ll figure out how we’re going to do some more."[16]

Reception

The Guardian's Stuart Heritage was initially critical of the show,[17] comparing it to the American series FlashForward in that both series arrived with a large amount of hype but delivered an anticlimactic end product. However, by the fifth episode Heritage updated his views, calling it a "slightly sillier Silence of the Lambs" and calling it Idris Elba's best work since The Wire.[18]

Serena Davies in The Daily Telegraph called it "formulaic"[19] and Tom Sutcliffe in The Independent thought "Luther is more a loose constellation of cop-show clichés than a fully formed character, but Elba brings the clichés to life..."[20]

Ratings steadily decreased over the course of the series. The fifth episode drew the lowest of the series thus far. However, fellow BBC programmes Holby City and EastEnders also suffered on the night as they were up against ITV's Britain's Got Talent and Coronation Street.[21]

International broadcast

The first series of the show premiered in Australia on ABC1 on 15 October 2010[22] and in the United States on BBC America two days later. It is also broadcast in Germany where it is dubbed and cut.

Accolades

References

  1. ^ BBC1 boss unveils comedy/drama plans Broadcast
  2. ^ Luther on BBC website
  3. ^ "DCI John Luther". BBC.
  4. ^ "Alice Morgan". BBC.
  5. ^ "Zoe Luther". BBC.
  6. ^ "DS Justin Ripley". BBC.
  7. ^ "DCI Ian Reed". BBC.
  8. ^ "DSU Rose Teller". BBC.
  9. ^ "Mark North". BBC.
  10. ^ "DSU Martin Schenk". BBC.
  11. ^ Cross, Neil (30 April 2010). "Introducing Luther - with love to Detective Columbo". BBC. Retrieved 19 September 2010.
  12. ^ "Sherlock and Luther recommissioned for BBC One". BBC Press Office. 28 August 2010. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
  13. ^ "Luther, Series 2, Episode 1". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  14. ^ "BBC One orders 3rd season of Idris Elbas Luther". IndieWire. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 2 September 2011.
  15. ^ "BBC1 Boss unvieil comedy/Drama Plans". Broadcastnow.co.uk. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 2 September2011. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  16. ^ Idris Elba Interview Cultbox
  17. ^ Heritage, Stuart (10 May 2010). "How long should you stick with a disappointing TV show?". guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 19 September 2010.
  18. ^ Heritage, Stuart (2 June 2010). "Have you been watching … Luther?". guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 19 September 2010.
  19. ^ Davies, Serena (5 May 2010). "Luther, BBC One, review". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 19 September 2010.
  20. ^ Sutcliffe, Tom (5 May 2010). "Last Night's TV - Luther, BBC1; True Stories: Erasing David, More 4". The Independent. Retrieved 19 September 2010.
  21. ^ Deans, Jason (2 June 2010). "TV ratings: BBC1 hit by double blow from rival". guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 19 September 2010.
  22. ^ "ABC Television - Luther". ABC. 15 October 2010. Retrieved 22 November 2010.

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