The casting information for Law & Order UK has already been revealed (here), and now more details are available on the writing team. It looks like the stories will be based on the US plots.
Here’s the scoop from Broadcast Now:
Law & Order:UK lands top writing talent
Published: 10 September 2008
Author: Kate McMahon
Law & Order:UK showrunner Chris Chibnall has unveiled the writing team that will pen the "gritty" British version of the show for ITV1.
Joining Chibnall for the 13 x 60-minute series will be Cath Tregenna (Stick or Twist) and James Moran (Primeval, Spooks: Code 9), who have worked with him on Torchwood, plus Terry Cafolla (Holy Cross and Messiah: The Harrowing).
Chibnall, who has also written for Life on Mars and BBC1's forthcoming Merlin, told Broadcast that scripts would be based on the best plots from the US series.
"The series will very much take American storylines and anglicise them. Obviously not all of the storylines will work for a UK audience, but we have been able to draw a lot from what has already worked," he said.
"Our show will be very faithful to the US version in that respect, and in its style and tone. It is an urban show, very modern and of the streets. It is quite gritty."
He also revealed that lead actors Bradley Walsh and Freema Aygeman would be joined by a slew of special guest stars – playing barristers, family members and criminals in the series.
Chibnall said the format was "one of the most successful in history" and although he was "completely terrified", was confident that it would be well received.
"Viewers should prepare themselves for classic Law and Order drama with a modern, gritty, British twist," he said.
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information,
here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Law & Order: Must Eat TV?
Remember when NBC’s tag line was “Must See TV”? Well now an article on MSNBC’s web site says that Law & Order – and other crime shows – can cause a viewer to eat more. So I suppose now they will have to call it “must eat TV.” Are people becoming so quick to blame others, or some external cause, for a gain in weight that now they blame Law & Order? Puh-leeze! It also says that crime shows can make people shop more too. I suppose that they don’t think the ton of food, clothes, and health and beauty commercials they air doing these shows have nothing to do with it? Pardon my cynicism.
Sorry, but I refuse to blame Sam Waterston, Chris Meloni, Mariska Hargitay, Vincent D'Onofrio et al. for anything except making me a Law & Order addict. OK, that's my own fault too. And by the way, I don't have a weight or shopping problem either, so their theory doesn't hold for me. So there!
Anyway, for what it’s worth, here’s the article:
Eating too much? 'Law & Order' may be guilty
Must-bleed TV fans consumed with thoughts of death — and groceries?By Diane Mapes
MSNBC contributor
updated 3:30 p.m. ET, Mon., Sept. 8, 2008
Crime TV has become a staple of the typical American viewer’s diet. From “Law & Order” and “CSI” — both of which come in three separate flavors — to “Criminal Minds,” “Cold Case” and “The Closer,” it’s hard to avoid the banquet of brutality offered up each week, each day or even each hour if you happen to have cable.
But a new study published in the Journal of Consumer Research may give viewers pause about all the death they’re routinely letting into their living rooms. Apparently, must-bleed-TV may just make you eat and shop more.
In the study, titled “The Sweet Escape,” researchers conducted four experiments revealing that “consumers who have been recently reminded of their own impending mortality” spend more on groceries — and actually eat more of those groceries.
“We found that when people think about the fact that they’re going to die someday — not now, but someday — they want to consume more of everything,” says Naomi Mandel, co-author of the study and an associate professor of marketing at Arizona State University. “We find this with snacks and drinks but also all kinds of different foods: frozen foods, meats, vegetables, everything.”
Shopping, snacking for comfortStruck by the spike in shopping following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Mandel and her colleagues designed experiments to measure consumers’ response to “mortality salience” — that is, the awareness they will die.
In one experiment, the “mortality” group wrote about their own impending deaths while the control group wrote about going to the dentist. Afterward, when each group was given a grocery list for a hypothetical party and asked to check off items they needed to purchase, members of the mortality salience group selected significantly more items than their counterparts in a control group.
In another experiment, two groups were asked to write about either their own deaths or a painful medical procedure and then instructed to taste-test cookies. As before, the mortality salience group consumed more, eating 25 percent more cookies than the control group.
What does this have to do with “Law & Order”?
“Consumers, especially those with a lower self-esteem, may be more susceptible to overconsumption when confronted with images of death during the news or their favorite crime scene investigation shows,” Mandel concludes in her study.
“If people are watching and thinking something like this could happen to them, it’s likely to cause them to overconsume.”
Dov Eisenberger, a 37-year-old insurance company president from Englewood, N.J., says Mandel’s study might help explain his wife’s summer shopping hiatus.
“My wife is a ‘Law & Order’ junkie plus she watches ‘The Closer,’ ‘Criminal Minds’ and every ‘CSI’ out there,” he says. “And she would dispute this, but I find that her spending habits increase during the regular season and then drop off during the summer. I don’t know for sure that I can connect it to ‘Law & Order,’ but she does watch a lot of shows full of blood and guts during the year and then in the summer, there’s nothing.”
Overconsumption can be complicated
Could other factors be at play? Experts point out that the reasons for overconsumption can be as convoluted as the plots on some of TV’s outlandish crime shows.
Nancy Molitor, a clinical psychologist and assistant professor at Northwestern University, says that while it’s interesting to link eating and shopping to a fear of impending death — a fear that’s been with humans for thousands of years — there are many reasons why people overconsume.
“Overspending can be a sign of mania or part of a bipolar disease condition and there are lots of psychological reasons why people overspend too — anxiety, feeling deprived in their emotional life,” Molitor says. “People spend to distract themselves, to fill themselves up. And overeating is complicated, as well. We know that people who are obese have a long history of overeating that starts in their childhood. It could be anxiety but it’s also a learned habit. They’re bored so they turn on the TV and reach for the potato chips.”
Cindy Rankin, a 46-year-old Seattle writer, says it’s not crime shows that “ring her death bell,” but the evening news.
“The crime shows don’t make me anxious, they’re entertainment,” she says. “There’s not a whole lot of chance that I’m going to pass out at some chichi party in Miami and get eaten by a 40-foot boa constrictor. But when I’m watching the news or thinking of people who have died in my family, it brings up real fears of death. And then, yeah, I might go shopping online or eat things I wouldn’t eat normally or eat more of what I have around.”
Should crime shows come with a warning that the contents may make consumers fat (and/or broke)?
“I wouldn’t suggest that,” says Mandel. “But retailers might think about installing TVs and playing the news in their stores. There’s always something on about murder or terrorism or car crashes. And it might cause people to put more things in their cart. I wouldn’t encourage it, but it might work.”
Diane Mapes is a Seattle freelance writer and author of "How to Date in a Post-Dating World."
© 2008 MSNBC Interactive
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Sorry, but I refuse to blame Sam Waterston, Chris Meloni, Mariska Hargitay, Vincent D'Onofrio et al. for anything except making me a Law & Order addict. OK, that's my own fault too. And by the way, I don't have a weight or shopping problem either, so their theory doesn't hold for me. So there!
Anyway, for what it’s worth, here’s the article:
Eating too much? 'Law & Order' may be guilty
Must-bleed TV fans consumed with thoughts of death — and groceries?By Diane Mapes
MSNBC contributor
updated 3:30 p.m. ET, Mon., Sept. 8, 2008
Crime TV has become a staple of the typical American viewer’s diet. From “Law & Order” and “CSI” — both of which come in three separate flavors — to “Criminal Minds,” “Cold Case” and “The Closer,” it’s hard to avoid the banquet of brutality offered up each week, each day or even each hour if you happen to have cable.
But a new study published in the Journal of Consumer Research may give viewers pause about all the death they’re routinely letting into their living rooms. Apparently, must-bleed-TV may just make you eat and shop more.
In the study, titled “The Sweet Escape,” researchers conducted four experiments revealing that “consumers who have been recently reminded of their own impending mortality” spend more on groceries — and actually eat more of those groceries.
“We found that when people think about the fact that they’re going to die someday — not now, but someday — they want to consume more of everything,” says Naomi Mandel, co-author of the study and an associate professor of marketing at Arizona State University. “We find this with snacks and drinks but also all kinds of different foods: frozen foods, meats, vegetables, everything.”
Shopping, snacking for comfortStruck by the spike in shopping following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Mandel and her colleagues designed experiments to measure consumers’ response to “mortality salience” — that is, the awareness they will die.
In one experiment, the “mortality” group wrote about their own impending deaths while the control group wrote about going to the dentist. Afterward, when each group was given a grocery list for a hypothetical party and asked to check off items they needed to purchase, members of the mortality salience group selected significantly more items than their counterparts in a control group.
In another experiment, two groups were asked to write about either their own deaths or a painful medical procedure and then instructed to taste-test cookies. As before, the mortality salience group consumed more, eating 25 percent more cookies than the control group.
What does this have to do with “Law & Order”?
“Consumers, especially those with a lower self-esteem, may be more susceptible to overconsumption when confronted with images of death during the news or their favorite crime scene investigation shows,” Mandel concludes in her study.
“If people are watching and thinking something like this could happen to them, it’s likely to cause them to overconsume.”
Dov Eisenberger, a 37-year-old insurance company president from Englewood, N.J., says Mandel’s study might help explain his wife’s summer shopping hiatus.
“My wife is a ‘Law & Order’ junkie plus she watches ‘The Closer,’ ‘Criminal Minds’ and every ‘CSI’ out there,” he says. “And she would dispute this, but I find that her spending habits increase during the regular season and then drop off during the summer. I don’t know for sure that I can connect it to ‘Law & Order,’ but she does watch a lot of shows full of blood and guts during the year and then in the summer, there’s nothing.”
Overconsumption can be complicated
Could other factors be at play? Experts point out that the reasons for overconsumption can be as convoluted as the plots on some of TV’s outlandish crime shows.
Nancy Molitor, a clinical psychologist and assistant professor at Northwestern University, says that while it’s interesting to link eating and shopping to a fear of impending death — a fear that’s been with humans for thousands of years — there are many reasons why people overconsume.
“Overspending can be a sign of mania or part of a bipolar disease condition and there are lots of psychological reasons why people overspend too — anxiety, feeling deprived in their emotional life,” Molitor says. “People spend to distract themselves, to fill themselves up. And overeating is complicated, as well. We know that people who are obese have a long history of overeating that starts in their childhood. It could be anxiety but it’s also a learned habit. They’re bored so they turn on the TV and reach for the potato chips.”
Cindy Rankin, a 46-year-old Seattle writer, says it’s not crime shows that “ring her death bell,” but the evening news.
“The crime shows don’t make me anxious, they’re entertainment,” she says. “There’s not a whole lot of chance that I’m going to pass out at some chichi party in Miami and get eaten by a 40-foot boa constrictor. But when I’m watching the news or thinking of people who have died in my family, it brings up real fears of death. And then, yeah, I might go shopping online or eat things I wouldn’t eat normally or eat more of what I have around.”
Should crime shows come with a warning that the contents may make consumers fat (and/or broke)?
“I wouldn’t suggest that,” says Mandel. “But retailers might think about installing TVs and playing the news in their stores. There’s always something on about murder or terrorism or car crashes. And it might cause people to put more things in their cart. I wouldn’t encourage it, but it might work.”
Diane Mapes is a Seattle freelance writer and author of "How to Date in a Post-Dating World."
© 2008 MSNBC Interactive
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Law & Order SVU Production Blog Update
The latest information from the NBC’s SVU Production blog gives some information about how you can apply to be an intern for the show, and also provides a link to their Facebook page. Here’s the info:
Production Updates from SVU
Hi Everyone,
We are back in production and rolling along. We are just about done filming four episodes for Season 10. Keep an eye out for guest star: Ellen Burstyn who plays someone very significant is Stabler's life: HIS MOTHER!
Glad you liked the photos and I'll keep them coming if you keep the replies coming.
While I have a moment let me answer some questions:
Alexa Cooper asked "Please let us know how to apply for an internship with SVU?"
To apply to work as an intern at any show or department at NBC you need to apply online at NBC.com. Here's the link: http://www.nbcunicareers.com/internships/la_ny_area/
Carly in MS asked: "In an interview, Neal said that Olivia goes out on a date with an actor named James Brolin. Is it true?????"
All I can say is don't miss the episode airing on 10/14 called "Lunacy"
Sorry for the short post, but I'm working on putting something very special up on the site for you guys!
For now, make sure to check SVU's Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Law-Order-Special-Victims-Unit/9840307932
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Production Updates from SVU
Hi Everyone,
We are back in production and rolling along. We are just about done filming four episodes for Season 10. Keep an eye out for guest star: Ellen Burstyn who plays someone very significant is Stabler's life: HIS MOTHER!
Glad you liked the photos and I'll keep them coming if you keep the replies coming.
While I have a moment let me answer some questions:
Alexa Cooper asked "Please let us know how to apply for an internship with SVU?"
To apply to work as an intern at any show or department at NBC you need to apply online at NBC.com. Here's the link: http://www.nbcunicareers.com/internships/la_ny_area/
Carly in MS asked: "In an interview, Neal said that Olivia goes out on a date with an actor named James Brolin. Is it true?????"
All I can say is don't miss the episode airing on 10/14 called "Lunacy"
Sorry for the short post, but I'm working on putting something very special up on the site for you guys!
For now, make sure to check SVU's Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Law-Order-Special-Victims-Unit/9840307932
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Law & Order UK News Casting Update
More news is coming out about the UK version of Law & Order. I already told you on this blog about about Jamie Bamber and Freema Agyeman joining tha cast.
Here is a casting update and more information and backstory about the show from Offthetelly.co.uk:
Here is a casting update and more information and backstory about the show from Offthetelly.co.uk:
Law & Order: UK casting news
September 8, 2008 by Graham Kibble-White
ITV1 has announced the cast for the upcoming Law & Order: UK.
September 8, 2008 by Graham Kibble-White
ITV1 has announced the cast for the upcoming Law & Order: UK.
Bradley Walsh
The 13-part series, based on the US franchise, will be co-produced by Kudos Film and Television, Wolf Films and NBC Universal. And those stars? Let’s cut to the press release…Bradley Walsh is DS Ronnie Brooks, a real East End, copper’s copper, friend and partner to the charming DS Matt Devlin, Jamie Bamber whose approach to policing is part seduction part force. Both report to DI Natalie Chandler (Harriet Walter) a working mum who would back them to the end.
While the CPS team comprises Freema Agyeman as hard working, strong-willed young prosecutor Alesha Phillips; Ben Daniels as dedicated Senior Crown Prosecutor James Steel, a man on a mission for justice; and Bill Paterson as their respected boss CPS director George Castle, a man trying to balance his ideals with the bigger picture.
Ben Daniels
ITV Director of Drama, Laura Mackie says: “Kudos have put together the perfect cast to deliver a quintessentially modern British take on a highly successful crime format. The breadth of the acting talent involved will build on the strength of Chris Chibnall’s lively and complex scripts.”
Hmmm. "Senior Crown Prosecutor James Steel, a man on a mission for justice." Must be the UK version of Jack McCoy, without Sam Waterston's eyebrows.
I hope that some day we’ll get to see this series in the US!
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
ITV Director of Drama, Laura Mackie says: “Kudos have put together the perfect cast to deliver a quintessentially modern British take on a highly successful crime format. The breadth of the acting talent involved will build on the strength of Chris Chibnall’s lively and complex scripts.”
Hmmm. "Senior Crown Prosecutor James Steel, a man on a mission for justice." Must be the UK version of Jack McCoy, without Sam Waterston's eyebrows.
I hope that some day we’ll get to see this series in the US!
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Friday, September 5, 2008
Law & Order Third Season Cast Photo Array
Well, we’ve hit the slow period with Law & Order news, so I reached into my double-secret video archive to dig up what I call a short “photo array” from the third season, with Jerry Orbach, Chris Noth, Dann Florek, Richard Brooks, Michael Moriarty, and Steven Hill.
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Law and Order SVU “Trials” Air Date September 23, 2008 Season Premier
The season premier of Law & Order SVU is only a few weeks away. NBC has released some information about the new episode, which is scheduled to air on September 23. I previously posted some information and pictures from the filming of this episode, here
My recap and review of “Trials “ can be found here.
Law & Order SVU “Trials” Air Date September 23, 2008
AN ABUSED FOSTER CHILD LEADS DETECTIVE OLIVIA BENSON (MARISKA HARGITAY) TO REEXAMINE A COLD CASE INVOLVING A TRAUMATIZED RAPE VICTIM (GUEST STAR SARA GILBERT).
After a young boy, Christopher Ryan (guest star Jae Head), is caught driving a runaway van, Detective Elliot Stabler (Chris Meloni) and Detective Benson take the seven year-old into questioning. When Christopher claims his foster parents, Gwen and Noah Sibert (guest stars Julie Bowen and Luke Perry), bribe him in exchange for abusive medical testing, the detectives investigate his allegations. As Detective Benson continues to study the boy’s accusations, she is led back to a former unsolved rape case involving Kaitlyn Murphy (guest star Sara Gilbert). After reviewing both cases, Benson uncovers a common factor, and with help from new A.D.A Kim Greylek (Michaela McManus) she just might be able to solve the cases. Also starring: Also guest starring: Mary Beth Evans
Cast: Chris Meloni, Mariska Hargitay, Dann Florek, Richard Belzer, Ice T, Tamara Tunie, Michaela McManus, and B.D. Wong.
Photos from “Trials”
Video Previews of New Season and “Trials”
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
My recap and review of “Trials “ can be found here.
Law & Order SVU “Trials” Air Date September 23, 2008
AN ABUSED FOSTER CHILD LEADS DETECTIVE OLIVIA BENSON (MARISKA HARGITAY) TO REEXAMINE A COLD CASE INVOLVING A TRAUMATIZED RAPE VICTIM (GUEST STAR SARA GILBERT).
After a young boy, Christopher Ryan (guest star Jae Head), is caught driving a runaway van, Detective Elliot Stabler (Chris Meloni) and Detective Benson take the seven year-old into questioning. When Christopher claims his foster parents, Gwen and Noah Sibert (guest stars Julie Bowen and Luke Perry), bribe him in exchange for abusive medical testing, the detectives investigate his allegations. As Detective Benson continues to study the boy’s accusations, she is led back to a former unsolved rape case involving Kaitlyn Murphy (guest star Sara Gilbert). After reviewing both cases, Benson uncovers a common factor, and with help from new A.D.A Kim Greylek (Michaela McManus) she just might be able to solve the cases. Also starring: Also guest starring: Mary Beth Evans
Cast: Chris Meloni, Mariska Hargitay, Dann Florek, Richard Belzer, Ice T, Tamara Tunie, Michaela McManus, and B.D. Wong.
Photos from “Trials”
Video Previews of New Season and “Trials”
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Law & Order CI France: Paris Enquêtes Criminelles
Here’s one more addition to the list of opening credits for the Law & Order franchise. This one is a Dick Wolf' created, Law & Order Criminal Intent-inspired version of the show from France, called Paris Enquêtes Criminelles. The show opened on the French TV channel TF1.
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Monday, September 1, 2008
Bobby Goren: Where Will He Go From Here?
Vincent D’Onofrio has had his work cut out for him in the last two seasons of Law & Order Criminal Intent as Detective Robert “Bobby” Goren. Goren’s mother, who had mental problems, died of cancer. He finds that his biological father is a serial killer. Goren goes undercover to help his brother Frank’s son Donny, is tortured, and gets suspended for 6 months for the unauthorized undercover work. His brother Frank was murdered, apparently at the hand of Goren’s nemesis, Nicole Wallace. Nicole Wallace is apparently missing her heart and is presumed dead, and his mentor Declan Gage is going off the deep end. It begs the question: Where will Bobby go from here?
To highlight the high points of Vincent D’Onofrio’s work in telling the story of an increasingly troubled Bobby Goren, I’ve prepared this video (below). Since he won’t be rewarded with an Emmy for his efforts, the least I can do is honor his work in my own way.
Bobby Goren: Where Will He Go From Here?
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
To highlight the high points of Vincent D’Onofrio’s work in telling the story of an increasingly troubled Bobby Goren, I’ve prepared this video (below). Since he won’t be rewarded with an Emmy for his efforts, the least I can do is honor his work in my own way.
Bobby Goren: Where Will He Go From Here?
Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information, here.
Also, see my companion Law & Order site,These Are Their Stories.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)