TotalTelly.co.uk

Devoted to Popular, Cult and Retro TV

Dempsey And Makepeace - The Complete First Series [1985]


RRP: £24.99
Our Price: £7.99 (subject to change)

Editorial
Synopsis

Mis-matched police detective duo James Dempsey and Harriet Makepeace investigate a number of dramatic cases in DEMPSEY AND MAKEPEACE. The series chronicles the exploits of two members of SI-10, an undercover group working out of Scotland Yard. Jim Dempsey is a brash and impetuous New York cop who has been sent to England for his own protection after discovering corruption in the New York force. He is teamed up with Harriet Makepeace, a Cambridge graduate and the daughter of a lord. The unlikely duo embark on a number of exciting adventures, despite their love-hate relationship. Includes the episodes ‘Armed and Extremely Dangerous’, ‘The Squeeze’, ‘Lucky Streak’, ‘Given Acts of Violence’, ‘Hors De Combat’, ‘Nowhere to Run’, ‘Make Peace, Not War’, ‘Blind Eye’, ‘Cry God for Harry’, and ‘Judgement’.


classy!
Review date: 2007-10-01 Rating: 10 out of 10

when LT Jim Dempsey meets Harriett Makepeace it isn't exactly love at first sight. though there is an attraction crackling under the surface. When Dempsey is forced to flee New York after a corruption scandal that nearly catches him in it's path, he joins Scotland yard. dempsey is a no nonsense cop, and when he is teamed with the beautiful Makepeace sparks are bound to fly.

Harriett Makepeace is classy, a rich girl whose dream was to join the police force. I loved this series when it forst aired, and, thanks to this wonderful DVD release have fallen in love with it all over again.One of the classiest dramas of it's day by a long chalk. Plus, there's an all interview with the stars, michael Brandon and Glynis Barber.

Similar Products

Reviews


Would have given it 5 stars in '85
Review date: 2006-11-11 Rating: 8 out of 10

My what a difference 20 years makes. This first series of Dempsey and Makepeace was groundbreaking in the mid 80s. A pretty Englishwoman firing a gun!! Shootouts on London streets!! All that American influence!! Now that we're well into the Noughties and Americana is no longer our cultural aspiration, it's less clear to see quite what the attraction was. And yet, and yet... there's something about the way Glynis Barber puts down Michael Brandon's yankee machismo with one arch of the eyebrow that even now makes me chuckle. Alas, shootouts on London streets are de rigeur these days, and I guess we're all a bit harder to please.

What does strike me now though (I always was a bit protective towards Makepeace, even as a gay 11 year-old) is just how damn mysoginistic this series (in particular) is. Makepeace, make the coffee. Makepeace, you're stupid. Makepeace, take a punch please. Her slightly wistful allusion to the macho production world of 80s British cop shows in the enlightening bonus interview makes you realise just what interesting times Glynis Barber must have had making this first series.

Another point to mention is just how shoddy the show looks technically. Lots of drama club acting, very poor stories, hackneyed scripts and grainy film (seemed to be a problem with LWT series from the period). And yet this first series IS groundbreaking, and knowing what followed in series 2 and, to a slightly lesser extent 3, where the technical aspects improved beyond measure and the roles and characters really developed, you can't help but admire it.

Dempsey and Makepeace takes you back to a time when ITV was more than about just filling the gaps between ad breaks. A good natured, and, for its time, classy show that has long stayed in the memories of those who watched it. Let's hope beyond hope that we've not yet seen the last of D+M!

Loved it then, love it now
Review date: 2006-07-26 Rating: 8 out of 10

I watched this series from the very first, but the American stations just didn't do it justice. The humor was wonderful, the plots average, the chemistry between the characters was electrifying. This is the series that finally forced me to find a multi-region DVD player as I'm in the U.S. where we only play nice with Regions 0 and 1.

The Last Hurrah of the British Action Series!
Review date: 2006-05-06 Rating: 10 out of 10

As a spotty teenager I had a few "TV crushes" in the 1980's: Jane Badler (The evil lizard woman from "V"), Debbie Shore (Children's ITV presenter!) and GLYNIS BARBER from DEMPSEY & MAKEPEACE. Now I can re-evaluate this Anglo-American co-production from a more 'mature' perspective *blush*

DEMPSEY & MAKEPEACE was pretty much the end of an era that began decades earlier with classic ITC series such as THE SAINT, DANGER MAN and other such gems (Evolving via THE SWEENEY and THE PROFESSIONALS along the way). Subsequent to this show, attempts to create a similar format were always ruined with the introduction of borderline soap-antics (when the definition of "characterisation" came to mean "boring domestic angst").

I certainly won't insist that DEMSPEY & MAKEPEACE was "quality television", but I will say it was always a lot of fun to watch. Snobby critics hated it of course, but the show was still a huge hit with the viewers. This is mainly thanks to the personalities of the two leads - Michael Brandon slips into the shoes of a NYPD cop with ease - It's a clichéd role that should fall flat, but thanks to Mr. Brandon's performance we do actually find ourselves liking the character.

Glynis Barber is of course the "glam" role, but despite the scripts playing off her (considerable) good looks a little too often (Getting her stripped to her undies or ogled/groped while undercover) she carries it off well. Despite being there "for the lads", it's to her credit that the character is as memorable - When MAKEPEACE has to land a pilotless plane in one episode I actually started to share her panic, so convincing was Glynis' performance!
I have to mention Ray Smith as "Spikings", their chief. Once again a potentially clichéd role is given extra dimension in the hands of a good actor. Gordon Spikings is a "Guv'Nor" for this series in every sense of the word.

This series has pace, excitement and some crazy plot notions, but all of these fit into the old "action thriller" universe with surprising ease (With the exception of the worst female impersonator ever apparently fooling Dempsey in the episode MAKE PEACE NOT WAR!) - It's never meant to be profound or world-changing, just enjoyable and glossy, something television doesn't really do anymore.
If I have to criticise the show it's purely for the fashions. 80's clothes had the uncanny ability to make the most attractive people look amazingly tacky (The normally lovely & classy Catriona MaColl in HORS DE COMBAT looks awful thanks to the clothes she's forced to wear!) but that isn't a complaint specific to this series. Having said that, Glynis Barber transcends her wardrobe and looks stunning in just about anything they put her in (But then I'm biased!)

Apart from this stumbling block, DEMPSEY & MAKEPEACE stands up pretty well and is just as much fun today (More so perhaps, thanks to the lack of anything similar on screens now!).
This boxset is good value, with all ten season 1 episodes on three discs. The quality is a little grainy compared to modern standards of film, but I find that adds to the atmosphere.
There isn't much in the way of extras, but a nice 15 minute interview with the two stars (Still married after 20 years!) demostrates that they both had a lot of fun making it and Glynis Barber still looks great!

THE crime-fighting duo of the 80's finally out on DVD
Review date: 2006-04-09 Rating: 10 out of 10

The 80's British hit-series Dempsey and Makepeace have finally arrived on DVD, courtesy of NetworkDVD. Running only three series and a total of 30 episodes, D&M was shortlived, but what a show it was! Starring Michael Brandon as Jim Dempsey and Glynis Barber as Harriet "Harry" Makepeace, the series combined fast car-chases, big explosions, gun-ho policework and martini-dry humor with the awesome chemistry between Brandon and Barber. The result: the best British crime-fighting TV series ever.
This first release has all ten episodes of the first series. The first two episodes can be run normal or with bonus commentaries by Brandon and Barber. An added bonus is an 18 minute interview with Barber and Brandon, on how they lived through Dempsey and Makepeace. This interview shows the lead actors having aged extremely well (with Brandon possibly looking even better than he did back then) and telling great tales about the making of the show and more. Even the fourth main character of the show (Dempsey's .357 Magnum) turns up again and Brandon ends the interview pointing it at the camera and telling the viewer (in very much's 'Jim Dempsey' style) to FREEZE!
Highly recommended!

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Michael Brandon
Glynis Barber
Ray Smith

Creators:
Michael Brandon (Primary Contributor)
Glynis Barber (Primary Contributor)

Recording label: Network
Manufacturer: Network
EAN: 5027626226848
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 3
Format: PAL,
Release date: 2006-02-27
Audience rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 550 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1985
Language: English (Original Language)

Add to Cart

© 2006 Darren Hester, DesignsByDarren.com, Some Rights Reserved.
Valid XHTML 1.0 Transitional