"Foyle's War" (2002) TV series 2002-????

User Rating:

9.0/10   

Creator:

Anthony Horowitz

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

Release Date:

2 February 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

Tagline:

While the world is at war, one man fights his own battle on the home front.

Plot:

It is 1940 and Britain stands alone against the might of Nazi Germany across the continent. The terrors...

Plot Keywords:

Looting | Murder | Collaboration | Racket | Spy

Awards:

1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

Michael Kitchen	...	Christopher Foyle / ... (19 episodes, 2002-2008)
Anthony Howell	...	Sgt. Paul Milner / ... (19 episodes, 2002-2008)
Honeysuckle Weeks	...	Samantha Stewart (19 episodes, 2002-2008)
Julian Ovenden	...	Andrew Foyle (8 episodes, 2002-2008)

Runtime:

UK:120 min (including commercials)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 (season 4) | Iceland:12 (some episodes) | Iceland:LH (some episodes) | Australia:M (some episodes) | Australia:PG (some episodes) | Singapore:PG | UK:12 (some episodes) | UK:PG (some episodes)

Filming Locations:

Balls Park, Hertford, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

Greenlit Productions

Trivia:

To the considerable mystification and annoyance of Anthony Horowitz (writer) and the cast, Simon Shaps, former Director of Television for ITV, who only stayed in the job for eighteen months, announced in 2007 that he would kill off this well-respected and lucrative series after making one final season of episodes. Horowitz had to abandon several scripts for episodes set in 1944, and jump forwards to episodes covering the end of the war in 1945. However in February 2009 it was announced that this decision has been reversed now Shaps has left his TV executive role, and three more episodes will be filmed in spring 2009.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Foyle is a Chief Superintendent. But the series is set during the Second World War and the rank was not introduced until 1949.

Quotes:

Samantha Stewart: [to Foyle and Milner] What you both need is a jolly good murder!

Excellent Period Piece

These shows do a great job of creating an image of the British Home Front that is very different from the one romanticized in the history books. We get a very real feeling that the British public "knew" the war was lost in the darkest hour, yet still kept a stiff upper lip. This tension, combined with wartime secrecy, energizes the drama. The war is like the weather is in other mysteries; criminals often use it as cover for their activities (blackmarket petrol, draft dodging, burglary, blackmail, and the like hidden by blackouts, bombing raids, and official secrets) and it's the job of the police to uncover all of the layers. In doing so, Chief Inspector Foyle asks hard moral questions - even in wartime, when thousands are being killed every day, is murder murder? The "bigger picture" is often cited as justification by the criminals, and, through association, this paints the leaders of the war with the same brush. A great show for children - this can spark interest in the period while also teaching moral lessons. Unlike some nihilistic modern fare, Foyle's War strives to show moral clarity through the confusion.