Maigret (1960 TV series) explained

Genre:Crime drama
Creator:Georges Simenon
Theme Music Composer:Ron Grainer
Opentheme:The Maigret Theme
Country:United Kingdom
Language:English
Num Seasons:4
Num Episodes:52, (plus a pilot episode in 1959)
Executive Producer:Andrew Osborn
Runtime:50 minutes
Company:BBC
Channel:BBC TV

Maigret is a British television series made by the BBC and which – following a pilot episode broadcast in 1959 – ran for 52 episodes from 1960 to 1963.

Based on the Maigret stories of Georges Simenon, the series starred Rupert Davies in the title role.

Unlike most BBC series produced in the 1960s, all episodes (bar the pilot) have survived intact, and are available as a complete set on DVD and Blu-ray.

In 2022 the series was broadcast by UK television channel Talking Pictures TV.

Cast

Main

Guests

Rupert Davies took up the role as the Police Judiciaire detective Commissaire Jules Maigret in 1960, after Basil Sydney, who had played Maigret in the pilot episode, was unable to continue.

Although staying largely true to the storyline of the books, the series featured only three of Maigret's team of detectives (the "faithful four"[2]), omitting any casting for Janvier, although the character is mentioned in several episodes.The choice of Davies to play Maigret was enthusiastically approved by Simenon himself. Remembering the role in a 1964 interview Davies said "When Andrew Osborn, the producer of the show, offered me the part on Good Friday in 1960, I knew very little about Maigret. I knew he was a famous French fictional detective, but that was all." Rather than read the books to get the feel for the character, Davies thought it would be better to meet Maigret's creator and hear from him how he saw the character. The BBC agreed and a meeting was arranged between Davies and Simenon in Lausanne.[3]

"The moment Simenon saw me he shouted: "C'est Maigret, c'est Maigret. You are the flesh and bones of Maigret!" Davies later remembered. "That was a wonderful beginning. Then he drove us to his lovely château in the village of Échandens, where I met his wife. Later he began to coach me in Maigret's idiosyncrasies."[3]

Simenon himself said of Davies "At last, I have found the perfect Maigret!"

Production

The series was written by a set of ten writers, each contributing individual episodes; the most prolific being Giles Cooper, credited with nineteen episodes, and Roger East, with twelve.

Directing was similarly shared by sixteen directors, with Gerard Glaister and Terence Williams responsible for eight each, Andrew Osborn seven, and Eric Tayler six.Each episode was shot in black-and-white and lasted 50 minutes, and (as it was made for the BBC) was intended to be screened without commercial breaks. It was shot mainly in studio, though many of the exteriors were filmed on location in Paris. Interior set designer Eileen Diss spent months scouring France for French items to be used on set, including furniture, ornaments, posters, and cigarette packets; she noted in a 1961 interview that, "Half these things may never be in sharp focus on the screen. But when in a close-up you see a terribly French door-knob behind someone's left ear, it does make just that much extra difference."[4]

Series costar Ewen Solon broke his leg in a stunt while jumping from a wall. Subsequent scripts had to be rewritten to account for the obvious damage which could not be hidden or shot around.[5]

Theme music and various incidental music was composed by Ron Grainer[6] for which he won an Ivor Novello award.[6] Apart from the pilot, all 52 episodes remain within the BBC's archives.[7]

On Sunday, February 9, 1969, BBC One London aired Maigret at Bay as part of its series BBC Play of the Month.[8] This feature-length movie was based on the 1964 novel Maigret Defends Himself (Maigret se défend), and featured Rupert Davies, Helen Shingler, and Neville Jason reprising their series roles of Commissaire Maigret, Madame Maigret, and Lapointe, respectively.[9]

Episodes

(with dates of first broadcast on BBC TV)

TitleFirst shownBased onNotes[10]
Maigret and the Lost Life 12 April 1959 1954 novel: Starring Basil Sydney as Maigret
TitleFirst shownBased onNotes[11]
Murder in Montmartre 31 October 1960 1951 novel: Rupert Davies takes over as Maigret
Unscheduled Departure 7 November 1960 1958 novel
The Burglar's Wife 14 November 1960 1951 novel
The Revolver 21 November 1960 1952 novel
The Old Lady 28 November 1960 1950 novel
Liberty Bar 5 December 1960 1932 novel
A Man of Quality 12 December 1960 1931 novel
My Friend the Inspector 19 December 1960 1949 novel
The Mistake 26 December 1960 1953 novel
On Holiday 2 January 1961 1948 novel
The Experts 9 January 1961 1952 novel
The Cactus 16 January 1961 1951 novel
The Children's Party 23 January 1961 1931 novel
TitleFirst shownBased onNotes
Shadow Play 23 October 1961 1932 novel
The Simple Case 30 October 1961 1955 novel
Death of a Butcher 6 November 1961 1956 novel
The Winning Ticket 13 November 1961 1948 novel
Inspector Lognon's Triumph 20 November 1961 1946 short story
The Lost Sailor 27 November 1961 1932 novel
The Golden Fleece 4 December 1961 1933 novel
Raise Your Right Hand 11 December 1961 1960 novel
The Liars 18 December 1961 1954 novel
A Crime for Christmas 26 December 1961 1950 short story
The Reluctant Witnesses 1 January 1962 1959 novel
The White Hat 8 January 1962 1950 novel
Murder on Monday 15 January 1962 1953 novel
TitleFirst shownBased onNotes
Voices from the Past 24 September 1962 1960 novel
The Madman of Vervac 1 October 1962 1932 novel
The Countess 8 October 1962 1932 novel
The Wedding Guest 15 October 1962 1931 novel
High Politics 22 October 1962 1954 novel
Love from Felicie 29 October 1962 1944 novel
The Dirty House 5 November 1962 1947 novel
The Crystal Ball 12 November 1962 1944 novel
The Crooked Castle 19 November 1962 1931 novel
Death in Mind 26 November 1962 1931 novel
Seven Little Crosses 3 December 1962 Sept Petites Croix dans un Carnet A non-Maigret short story included in the 1951 collection Maigret's Christmas (Un Noël de Maigret)
The Trap 10 December 1962 1955 novel
The Amateurs 17 December 1962 1961 novel
TitleFirst shownBased onNotes
Poor Cecile 1 October 1963 1940 novel
The Fontenay Murders 8 October 1963 1953 novel
The Lost Life 15 October 1963 1954 novel: (remake of 1959 pilot)
The Cellars of the Majestic 22 October 1963 1939 novel
A Man Condemned 29 October 1963 1959 novel
The Flemish Shop 5 November 1963 1932 novel
A Taste of Power 12 November 1963 1949 novel
The Log of the Cap Fagnet 19 November 1963 1931 novel
The Judge's House 26 November 1963 1940 novel
Another World 3 December 1963 1957 novel
The Crime at Lock 14 10 December 1963 1931 novel
Peter the Lett 17 December 1963 1931 novel
Maigret's Little Joke 24 December 1963 1957 novel

Home media

In May 2021, Network Distributing announced the Blu-Ray release of the series (to be released August 2021), with a DVD release soon to follow.[12]

The DVD set of 14 discs does not include the booklet found in the Blu-Ray edition. Sleeve notes inform that the series has been "remastered from original film elements", most likely meaning Kinescope films as distributed world-wide, "original fullscreen TV format".

In 2023, Kino Lorber released the series on Blu-Ray for Region A.[13]

Sources

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Maigret (1959-1963).
  2. http://www.trussel.com/maig/quatree.htm Maigret's faithful four
  3. http://www.televisionheaven.co.uk/shows_ma_to_mal.htm#maigret Maigret (1960)
  4. Web site: Kerridge . Jake . 15 August 2021 . Rescued from obscurity: one of TV's greatest ever detective series . December 23, 2023.
  5. Book: Wise, Arthur . Stunting in the Cinema . Constable. 1973 . 0-09-459090-7 . London . 205 . en .
  6. Web site: Ron Grainer. BBC. 4 January 2020.
  7. Web site: Maigret at lostshows.com.
  8. News: Maigret at Bay . February 9, 1969. genome.ch.bbc.co.uk.
  9. Web site: Maigret: Classic Mystery Series Starring Rupert Davies Now Available for Streaming . April 26, 2023 . The British TV Place.
  10. http://www.trussel.com/maig/maigfilm.htm#Sydney,_Basil Basil Sydney
  11. http://www.trussel.com/maig/maigfilm.htm#Davies,_Rupert Rupert Davies
  12. Web site: Maigret: The Complete Series [DELUXE LIMITED EDITION] SOLD OUT .
  13. Web site: Galbraith IV. Stuart. Stuart Galbraith IV. Maiget: Season 1 (Blu-Ray Review). The Digital Bits. 9 March 2023. 26 December 2023.