The Hour (2011 TV series)
{{short description|2011–2012 British drama series that aired on BBC}}
{{About|the 2011–2012 British drama series that aired on BBC|the 2009–2011 Scottish magazine programme that aired on STV|The Hour (2009 TV programme)|other meanings|The Hour (disambiguation){{!}}The Hour}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2011}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2021}}
{{Infobox television
| image =
| image_alt =
| caption =
| creator = Abi Morgan
| based_on =
| developer =
| writer = Abi Morgan
| director =
| creative_director =
| presenter =
| starring = {{Unbulleted list| Dominic West | Romola Garai | Ben Whishaw | Anton Lesser | Julian Rhind-Tutt | Anna Chancellor | Joshua McGuire | Lisa Greenwood | Oona Chaplin | Vanessa Kirby | Peter Capaldi | Hannah Tointon|Tom Burke | Peter Sullivan }}
| judges =
| voices =
| narrated =
| theme_music_composer =
| opentheme =
| endtheme =
| composer = Daniel Giorgetti
| country = United Kingdom
| language =
| num_series = 2
| num_episodes = 12
| list_episodes =
| executive_producer = Jane Featherstone
Derek Wax
Abi Morgan
Lucy Richer
| producer = Ruth Kenley-Letts
| editor = Gareth C. Scales
Xavier Russell
Nick Arthurs
Paul Machliss
| cinematography =
| camera =
| runtime = 59 minutes
| company = Kudos Film and Television
| network = BBC Two, BBC Two HD
| first_aired = {{Start date|2011|7|19|df=yes}}
| last_aired = {{End date|2012|12|13|df=yes}}{{cite news|title='The Hour axed by BBC2|url=http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2013-02-12/the-hour-axed-by-bbc2|access-date=12 February 2013|newspaper=Radio Times|date=12 February 2013}}
| related =
}}
The Hour is a British television drama series broadcast on BBC. The series was centred on a fictional current-affairs show being launched by the BBC in June 1956, at the time of the Hungarian Revolution and Suez Crisis. It stars Ben Whishaw, Dominic West, and Romola Garai, with a supporting cast including Tim Pigott-Smith, Juliet Stevenson, Burn Gorman, Anton Lesser, Anna Chancellor, Julian Rhind-Tutt, and Oona Chaplin. It was written by Abi Morgan (also one of the executive producers, alongside Jane Featherstone and Derek Wax).
The series premiered on BBC Two and BBC Two HD on 19 July 2011 each Tuesday at 9 pm.{{cite news |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2011/07_july/04/hour.shtml| title=The Hour: introduction |agency=BBC Press Office | date=4 July 2011}} Each episode lasts 60 minutes, with Ruth Kenley-Letts as producer and Coky Giedroyc as lead director. It was commissioned by Janice Hadlow, Controller, BBC Two, and Ben Stephenson, Controller, BBC Drama Commissioning and produced by Kudos Film and Television. Hornsey Town Hall was used for much of the filming.
Following the airing of the final episode of the first series, it was announced that a second series had been commissioned, which was co-produced by American network BBC America.{{cite news | author = Conlan, Tara | url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2011/aug/27/bbc2-the-hour-second-series | title=BBC2's The Hour to Return for Second Series – Channel's Controller Reveals 50s Drama Will Be Back, and Says There Are No Plans to Scrap Newsnight | work= The Guardian|date=27 August 2011 | access-date= 15 August 2012}} It premiered on 14 November 2012 in the UK and on 28 November 2012 in the United States. On 12 February 2013, it was announced by the BBC that the series would not continue.
Cast
{{div col|colwidth=25em}}
- Romola Garai as Isabel (Bel) Rowley, producer of The Hour
- Ben Whishaw as Frederick (Freddie) Lyon, journalist and co-presenter of The Hour
- Dominic West as Hector Madden, co-presenter of The Hour
- Anton Lesser as Clarence Fendley (series 1)
- Julian Rhind-Tutt as Angus McCain, press liaison, Head of Press, for Prime Minister
- Joshua McGuire as Isaac Wengrow
- Lisa Greenwood as Sissy Cooper
- Anna Chancellor as Lix Storm, journalist and head of the foreign desk of The Hour
- Oona Chaplin as Marnie Madden, wife of Hector Madden
- Burn Gorman as Thomas Kish (series 1)
- Juliet Stevenson as Lady Elms (series 1)
- Tim Pigott-Smith as Lord Elms (series 1)
- Vanessa Kirby as Ruth Elms (series 1)
- Andrew Scott as Adam Le Ray (series 1)
- Adetomiwa Edun as Sey Ola, boyfriend of Sissy Cooper and a doctor
- Hannah Tointon as Kiki Delaine (series 2)
- Tom Burke as Bill Kendall (series 2)
- Peter Capaldi as Randall Brown (series 2), Head of News for The Hour
- Lizzie Brocheré as Camille Mettier (series 2)
- Morgan Watkins as Norman Pike (series 2)
- Peter Sullivan as Commander Laurence Stern (series 2)
{{div col end}}
Plot
=Series one=
In the autumn of 1956, Freddie Lyon (Ben Whishaw) is a reporter unhappy with his job producing newsreels for the BBC. Desperate to get onto television, which he feels offers greater immediacy, Freddie is unaware that his best friend Bel Rowley (Romola Garai) has been selected by their mentor Clarence Fendley (Anton Lesser) to produce a new news magazine, the eponymous "The Hour". Rowley selects experienced war correspondent Lix Storm (Anna Chancellor) to head the foreign desk for the programme, leaving Freddie to run domestic news, a position which he considers inferior. For anchor of the programme, Clarence selects the handsome and patrician Hector Madden (Dominic West). They are joined by Thomas Kish (Burn Gorman), a mysterious and taciturn translator for the BBC who helps them cover the developing Suez Crisis.
As the team struggles to put the show together, Freddie is approached by Ruth Elms, the daughter of a member of the House of Lords who had employed Freddie's mother. She asks him to look into the murder of Peter Darrall (Jamie Parker), a college professor whom she knew. Soon after, Freddie finds her dead in her hotel room, an apparent suicide.
As the Suez Crisis escalates, the production team strives to report on British involvement in the crisis, despite pressure from the administration and in particular Angus McCain (Julian Rhind-Tutt) to present a sanitised narrative for the public. Freddie becomes more and more convinced that Peter Darrall and Ruth Elms were killed for some sinister reason. He discovers a secret message that Darrall tried to pass on before he was murdered: "Revert to Brightstone" and finds a movie reel depicting Ruth, Darrall, and Thomas Kish on holiday together. When confronted, Kish intimates that the government is behind the murder of Darrall and Elms, but he kills himself after a struggle with Freddie before the latter can learn more. Bel begins an affair with Hector. Hector's wife, Marnie (Oona Castilla Chaplin) finds out, telling Bel that she wasn't the first woman to have been with him since they married. After Clarence tells Bel that the affair threatens to ruin her career and damage the show, she calls it off.
As the Suez Crisis flares into armed conflict, Freddie learns that Darrall had been a communist spy and had been involved in a program to recruit bright and susceptible young people, referred to as "Bright Stones" to the Soviet cause. Ruth had been one of these Bright Stones and Kish had been sent by MI6 to keep tabs on them. Freddie also discovers that he is marked as a "Bright Stone". As British troops move to seize the Suez Canal, Freddie does a live interview of Lord Elms, Ruth's father, who denounces the government. However, as the interview goes out Clarence, at the insistence of higher-ups in the government, orders it to be taken off air halfway through the show. Bel is then fired by the BBC and Freddie confronts Clarence, who tells him that he had put him on the Bright Stone list, and that he is a Communist spy. He then tells Freddie to run this information as a news story. Freddie leaves the studio with Bel, telling her that they have a story to write.
=Series two=
The second series takes place in 1957. A new Head of BBC News, Randall Brown (Peter Capaldi) has taken over, to whom Bel must report while attempting to prevent the programme's now famous and increasingly dissolute presenter Hector Madden from defecting to rival ITV. Freddie, having spent time in France and married a French woman, Camille, is taken back as a co-presenter to the fury of Hector. In trying to hold on to Hector, Bel becomes involved with the ITV magazine producer Bill Kendall. Two big issues dominate the series and join together: vice in London's Soho and the nuclear race.
Despite marital problems, Hector frequents a Soho nightclub run by Raphael Cilenti, El Paradis, whose leading dancer is Kiki Delaine. During a party hosted by Hector and his wife Marnie at their apartment, two policemen arrive to arrest Hector on suspicion of beating up Kiki, which Hector denies. Marnie leaves Hector at the police station and spends the night alone before auditioning for a cookery show. She finally goes to bring him home, but is now determined not to endure his extra-marital affairs, telling him their marriage is now for appearances only. Freddie and Bel pursue the story about the attack on Kiki.
Racial tension is on the rise across London, following the arrival of Commonwealth immigrants, and Freddie is keen to feature the issue. He decides to interview a fascist, Trevor, on the same day that board members come to the studio. Camille suffers xenophobic abuse from fascists. Bel meanwhile decides that The Hour will run on the Wolfenden Report, but she finds it impossible to get participants.
Show-girl Rosa-Maria visits Bel to tell her that Kiki has disappeared; Hector calls Laurie for help, unaware that he has contacted the person who assaulted her. Freddie is sure that he is on track to uncovering the truth about Kiki, despite a warning from Commander Laurence Stern to stay away from the story. An argument with McCain leads to a drunken Hector being escorted home by Stern. Hector then begins to recall an incident from their military past which throws doubt on his friend's character.
Freddie and Bel continue their search for Kiki; they pitch the exposé of Cilenti's criminal activities coupled with anti-nuclear policy, but Randall challenges them to get sources to show that the first story is ready. Bel meets Rosa-Maria, who puts herself in danger, and reveals how Cilenti has power over some of the country's most influential leaders. Meanwhile, Randall and Lix, who had worked together in Spain during the civil war, grow closer over their adopted daughter.
Bel continues her relationship with Bill, to the annoyance of Freddie, who is soon abandoned by Camille. Photos from a recent NATO summit contain a face which Freddie deduces forms the connection between Cilenti and the nuclear stories. Bel's source is murdered. Shaken, she tries to stop the pursuit of the Cilenti story. Freddie and Hector, however, follow the story further to establishment corruption involving a mystery company aiming to profit from nuclear bases. Finally Hector's face hits the tabloids in connection with the vice scandal, making it more difficult for The Hour to cover such a major conspiracy. Freddie's determination to follow the story to the very end puts him in mortal danger.
Episodes
=Series 1 (2011)=
{{Episode table |background=#EBD7A4 |overall=5 |season=5 |title=15 |director=22 |writer=18 |airdate=22 |viewers=13 |viewersR={{cite web|url=http://www.barb.co.uk/viewingsummary/weekreports.cfm?report=weeklyterrestrial&requesttimeout=500|publisher=BARB|title=Weekly Viewing Summary (see relevant week)}} |country=UK |episodes=
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=1
|EpisodeNumber2=1
|Title= Episode 1
|WrittenBy= Abi Morgan
|DirectedBy= Coky Giedroyc
|Aux4=2.99
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2011|7|19|df=y}}
|ShortSummary= It's 1956. At Alexandra Palace, reporters and best friends Bel Rowley and Freddie Lyon are finishing another long day working on the BBC newsreels. Fed up with constantly overlooking the issues of the day in favour of royal engagements and sporting triumphs, both yearn for bigger, bolder stories and a freedom to dictate their own agenda. But on this particular occasion, both are hopeful: Clarence Fendley is assembling a team for a new weekly current affairs programme, The Hour, at the BBC's Lime Grove Studios, and there's a sense that Bel and Freddie may be just about to get the break they need.
Freddie finds himself reporting from a young debutante's engagement party and realises that she is a childhood friend. There he is drawn into a murky world of subterfuge, intimidation, and political scheming. It is a story which will lead him from a suspicious murder and a coded message into the private dealings of the ruling elite, and ultimately to a conspiracy which has the potential to shatter the society around him. Freddie needs freedom to pursue his story and it seems that freedom will only be realised by joining the team of The Hour, where Clarence has assembled a talented team. New front man Hector Madden brings a charismatic edge; entitled and self-assured, Hector's immediate spark with Bel triggers friction between him and Freddie, and the tempestuous love-triangle which emerges drives their ambitions and fuels the aspirations of The Hour. The team seek the bigger stories and with the looming crisis in Suez they soon find themselves at the heart of a fierce political struggle between the government and the BBC, which will dominate their decisions and test their resolve.
|LineColor=EBD7A4
}}
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=2
|EpisodeNumber2=2
|Title= Episode 2
|WrittenBy= Abi Morgan
|DirectedBy= Coky Giedroyc
|Aux4=2.02
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2011|7|26|df=y}}
|ShortSummary= The Hour is struggling. The ratings are down, the reviews are terrible, and Hector and Freddie are bickering like children. As events escalate in Suez, Bel knows their only hope is to pull off a brave interview with an Egyptian diplomat - but is Hector up to the challenge? Meanwhile, Freddie discovers a mysterious code which may well provide a clue to Ruth's death.
|LineColor=EBD7A4
}}
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=3
|EpisodeNumber2=3
|Title= Episode 3
|WrittenBy= Abi Morgan
|DirectedBy= Harry Bradbeer
|Aux4=1.92
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2011|8|2|df=y}}
|ShortSummary= A weekend invite to a shooting party at Hector's in-laws gives Freddie an opportunity to quiz Adam Le Ray on his relationship with Ruth, whilst Hector struggles with his ailing marriage and his growing feelings for Bel, whom he eventually seduces. At the office, suspicion about Tom Kish is mounting and Isaac is on the case.
|LineColor=EBD7A4
}}
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=4
|EpisodeNumber2=4
|Title=Episode 4
|WrittenBy=Abi Morgan
|DirectedBy= Harry Bradbeer
|Aux4=1.86
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2011|8|9|df=y}}
|ShortSummary=The newsroom crew makes plans to celebrate Freddie's birthday while he visits Tom's widow and questions her about Ruth's film. MI6 is constantly keeping an eye on the newsroom and on Freddie's activities. Freddie accidentally finds out about Bel and Hector.
|LineColor=EBD7A4
}}
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=5
|EpisodeNumber2=5
|Title=Episode 5
|WrittenBy=Abi Morgan
|DirectedBy= Jamie Payne
|Aux4=1.67
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2011|8|16|df=y}}
|ShortSummary=The war in Suez has the country divided and McCain steps up his pressure on The Hour to toe a pro-government line, but with a huge anti-war protest gathering in London, Freddie has other ideas. Meanwhile, pressure mounts on Bel and Hector when news of their affair gets out, and Lix helps Freddie with an important lead.
|LineColor=EBD7A4
}}
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=6
|EpisodeNumber2=6
|Title= Episode 6
|WrittenBy=Abi Morgan
|DirectedBy= Jamie Payne
|Aux4=1.86
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2011|8|23|df=y}}
|ShortSummary=Tensions run high in the newsroom as the team prepares to defy government instructions and air a controversial episode on the Suez crisis, while Freddie is unsure whether his special guest will turn up. As McCain and Douglas keep an eye on proceedings, all their futures hang in the balance.
|LineColor=EBD7A4
}}
}}
=Series 2 (2012)=
{{Episode table |background=#8FD8D8 |overall=5 |season=5 |title=15 |director=22 |writer=18 |airdate=22 |viewers=13 |viewersR= |country=UK |episodes=
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=7
|EpisodeNumber2=1
|Title= Episode 1
|WrittenBy= Abi Morgan
|DirectedBy= Sandra Goldbacher
|Aux4= 1.68
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2012|11|14|df=y}}
|ShortSummary= It's late 1957, one year since The Hour was taken off air. With Freddie gone, Bel struggles to keep The Hour afloat as the new Head of News arrives. |LineColor=8FD8D8
}}
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=8
|EpisodeNumber2=2
|Title= Episode 2
|WrittenBy= Abi Morgan
|DirectedBy= Sandra Goldbacher
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2012|11|21|df=y}}
|ShortSummary= Bel bristles as newlyweds Freddie and Camille steal the limelight at a party. Fascism is topical. The Hour is controversial and Hector's drunken late nights at El Paradis catch up with him. |LineColor=8FD8D8
}}
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=9
|EpisodeNumber2=3
|Title= Episode 3
|WrittenBy= Nicole Taylor
|DirectedBy= Catherine Morshead
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2012|11|28|df=y}}
|ShortSummary= Bel and Freddie are determined to get to the bottom of who beat up Kiki, but dredging up the arrest angers Hector, whose drinking begins to spiral out of control. Wartime bonds of loyalty become strained. |LineColor=8FD8D8
}}
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=10
|EpisodeNumber2=4
|Title=Episode 4
|WrittenBy= George Kay
|DirectedBy= Catherine Morshead
|Aux4= 1.27
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2012|12|5|df=y}}
|ShortSummary= Bel and Freddie pitch the developing story of an expose of Cilenti's vice network and related police collusion. This story is in competition with a political story of rising tensions related to British nuclear missile policy. Cilenti seems to be orchestrating many of the unfolding developments. |LineColor=8FD8D8
}}
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=11
|EpisodeNumber2=5
|Title=Episode 5
|WrittenBy=Abi Morgan
|DirectedBy= Jamie Payne
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2012|12|12|df=y}}
|ShortSummary= When a source's body is found, a shaken Bel commands the team to halt their pursuit of the dangerous Cilenti while Freddie tracks a new lead. |LineColor=8FD8D8
}}
{{Episode list/sublist|The Hour (BBC TV series)
|EpisodeNumber=12
|EpisodeNumber2=6
|Title= Episode 6
|WrittenBy=Abi Morgan
|DirectedBy= Jamie Payne
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|2012|12|13|df=y}}
|ShortSummary= Scandal hits The Hour as Hector's face hits the tabloids, and Bel and Freddie cross a line that threatens their relationship. |LineColor=8FD8D8
}}
}}
Cancellation
The show was officially cancelled by the BBC on 12 February 2013. The BBC commented: "We loved the show but have to make hard choices to bring new shows through."{{cite web|url=http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2013-02-12/the-hour-axed-by-bbc2|title=The Hour axed by BBC2|author=Jack Seale|work=RadioTimes}} It was commented that while the show had received good reviews, its viewing figures were low and therefore a third series was not merited. The second series only managed to muster an average of 1.24 million viewers per episode, compared to the first series which managed an average of 2.02 million.average figures based on tables above For BBC2, primetime shows normally require an average audience of at least 1.75 million to be recommissioned. Producers commented that they were upset to see the show cancelled, as they had plans for a third series. On 18 April 2018, The Hour writer Abi Morgan revealed in an interview with RadioTimes that she was trying to resurrect the series for a third series set in 1960s London. The Hour's Executive producer Jane Featherstone also said that she would be keen to revive the show.{{cite web | url = https://www.radiotimes.com/news/2018-04-18/the-hour-writer-wants-to-revive-the-show-for-a-third-series-set-in-the-1960s/ | title = The Hour writer wants to revive the show for a third series set in the 1960s | publisher=RadioTimes | first=Ben | last=Dowell | date=2017-04-18 | access-date = 2018-10-08 }}
Reception
Critical reception of the first episode was mixed, with Sam Wollaston of The Guardian expressing scepticism over a popular comparison with Mad Men, calling the episode a "slower starter" and "a bit of hotchpotch – Drop the Dead Donkey meets Spooks", but overall stating that "there's enough intrigue there to whet the appetite for more".{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2011/jul/19/tv-review-the-hour|title=TV Review: The Hour – The Hour Isn't a British Mad Men – All It Has in Common Is Smoking and Drinking|date=19 July 2011|author = Wollaston, Sam |work=The Guardian | access-date = 15 August 2012}} However, AA Gill in The Sunday Times called it "{{sic|hide=y|Self| satisfied}} guff" with "a script that would shame a Bruce Willis movie", and Michael Deacon of The Telegraph criticised it as "an exercise in upbraiding the past for failing to live up to the politically correct ideals of the 21st century", although he praised Morgan's writing and concluded by stating "I wouldn't want to give up on The Hour too soon".{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/8648104/The-Hour-BBC-Two-episode-1-review.html|title=The Hour, BBC Two, Episode 1, Review – Michael Deacon Isn't Convinced by the BBC's New Drama Series, Set in a 1950s Newsroom, That's Being Touted as the British Mad Men|date=19 July 2011|author= Deacon, Michael|work=The Daily Telegraph | access-date = 15 August 2012}} Even so, there were some criticisms of the script as being riddled with anachronisms,For example, A. A. Gill in the Sunday Times, 24 July 2011Belle and Freddie affectionately call each other "James" and "Moneypenny", referencing a relationship that only happens in the James Bond films which began in 1962, and not in Ian Fleming's novels: http://jamesbondmemes.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/another-anachronism-in-bbcs-hour.html with the show's writer Abi Morgan admitting some lines "haven't worked".{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/shes-on-it-scriptwriter-of-the-hour-admits-some-lines-havent-worked-2341651.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220618/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/shes-on-it-scriptwriter-of-the-hour-admits-some-lines-havent-worked-2341651.html |archive-date=18 June 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=She's on It: Scriptwriter of The Hour Admits Some Lines 'Haven't Worked' – Abi Morgan Responds to Charges of Linguistic Anachronism in 1950s-Era BBC Drama|date=22 August 2011|author= Graham, Georgia |work=The Independent | access-date = 15 August 2012}}
The show was well received in its American premiere on BBC America, receiving an 81 on Metacritic, indicating "Universal Acclaim".{{cite news|url=http://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-hour-uk/season-1|title=The Hour (UK) | publisher = Metacritic}} Reviewing it for The New Yorker magazine, Nancy Franklin wrote that it is "almost absurdly gratifying. With its casting, its look, its unfolding mysteries, its attention to important historical events, its sexiness, The Hour hits every pleasure center."{{cite magazine|url=http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/television/2011/09/12/110912crte_television_franklin#ixzz1XwjPbENF|title=On Television: Empire State of Mind – The World of the BBC in the Fifties|author= Franklin, Nancy|magazine= The New Yorker | access-date = 15 August 2012 }} In the full printed version of the same article, she adds "[It is] as if it were a space containing chocolate, gold, a book you've always wanted to read, your favorite music, and the love of your life, who desires you unceasingly."[http://archives.newyorker.com/?i=2011-09-12#folio=086]. The New Yorker. Mary McNamara in the Los Angeles Times writes that the second season "improves its already stellar cast and grows in sophistication", and notes that, during its first season, "critics were divided – mostly by the Atlantic."{{cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/showtracker/la-et-st-the-hour-20121128,0,7297606.story|title=Television review: BBC's 'The Hour' is time well spent|date=28 November 2012|author= McNamara, Mary |work=Los Angeles Times | access-date = 11 December 2012}} Alyssa Rosenberg wrote in The Atlantic: "The Hour is not the British Mad Men: it's better."{{cite news|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/08/the-hour-is-not-the-british-mad-men-its-better/243741/|title='The Hour' Is Not the British 'Mad Men': It's Better|author= Rosenberg, Alyssa |work=The Atlantic | access-date = 7 January 2013}}
Founder member of ITN Lynne Reid Banks criticised the series for putting a more recent modus operandi into the 1950s.[https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2011/jul/24/the-hour-travesty-tv-news The Hour is a travesty of 50s TV news], Lynne Reid Banks, The Guardian, 24 July 2011[https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2011/jul/26/the-hour-season-one-episode-two The Hour: season one, episode two], Rebecca Nicholson, The Guardian, 26 July 2011
Awards and nominations
The series has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards and four BAFTAs.
| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;"
|+ Awards and nominations | |||
| Award | Category | Recipients | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| 64th Primetime Emmy Awards
| Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special | {{nom}} | |||
| rowspan=3 | 69th Golden Globe Awards
| Best Miniseries or Television Film | | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film
| {{nom}} | |||
| Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film
| {{nom}} | |||
| rowspan=1 | Art Directors Guild Award
| Art Directors Guild Award for Best Production Design – Miniseries or TV Film |Eve Stewart (production designer), Leon McCarthy (art director), Beverley Gerard (art director), Amy Merry (graphic designer), Heather Gordon (assistant graphic designer), Julia Castle (set decorator) | {{nom}} | |||
| rowspan=6 | 1st PAAFTJ Television Awards
| Best Miniseries or TV movie | Ruth Kenley-Letts, Jane Featherstone, Abi Morgan, Noelle Morris, Lucy Richer, Patrick Schweitzer, Derek Wax, Cahal Bannon, Producers (BBC) | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Writing for a Miniseries or TV movie
| Abi Morgan | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Production Design in a Miniseries or TV movie
| Eve Stewart | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Editing in a Miniseries or TV movie
| Gareth C. Scales & Xavier Russell & Nick Arthurs & Paul Machliss | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Main Title Theme Music
| | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Main Title Design
| | {{nom}} | |||
| rowspan="4" |2012 British Academy Television Awards
| Best Photography and Lighting: Fiction | Chris Seager | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Sound (Fiction/Entertainment)
| Jamie Caple (dialogue editor) | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Sound: Fiction
| Marc Lawes | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Supporting Actress
| {{nom}} | |||
| rowspan="4" |Broadcasting Press Guild Awards
| Best Actor | {{won}} | |||
| Best Actress
| {{nom}} | |||
| Best Drama Series
| {{nom}} | |||
| Writer's Award
| {{nom}} | |||
| rowspan="2" |2nd Critics' Choice Television Awards
| Best Movie/Miniseries | | {{nominated}} | |||
| Best Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie
| {{nom}} | |||
| 70th Golden Globe Awards
| Best Miniseries or Television Film | | {{nom}} | |||
| rowspan="5" |2013 British Academy Television Awards
| {{nom}} | |||
| Best Sound: Fiction
|Nigel Squibbs (re recording mixer) | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Original Television Music
| {{nom}} | |||
| Best Editing
|Gareth C. Scales | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Production Design
| {{nom}} | |||
| rowspan="3" |3rd Critics' Choice Television Awards
| Best Movie/Miniseries | | {{nom}} | |||
| Best Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie
| {{nom}} | |||
| Best Actress in a Miniseries or TV Movie
| {{nom}} | |||
| rowspan="2" | 65th Primetime Emmy Awards
| Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special | {{won}} | |||
| Outstanding Casting for a Miniseries, Movie, or a Special
| Jill Trevellick | {{nom}} |
Broadcast
In the United States, this programme commenced screening on BBC America from 17 August 2011 each Wednesday at 10 pm E/P (9pm C).{{cite web|url=http://press.bbcamerica.com/program.jsp?id=32986 |title=BBC America Program Details: The Hour |publisher=BBC America Media Room |access-date=16 November 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110827014517/http://press.bbcamerica.com/program.jsp?id=32986 |archive-date=27 August 2011 }} The programme commenced screening in Australia on ABC1 from 21 November 2011 each Monday at 8:30 pm, with episode one and two combined into a première movie-length airing.{{cite web | url=http://www.abc.net.au/tv/guide/abc1/201111/programs/ZX6318A007D2011-11-21T203000.htm?program=The%20Hour| title=ABC1 Programming Airdate: The Hour (episode one) | publisher=ABC Television Publicity | access-date=16 November 2011 }} In Canada, this programme became available through Netflix in January 2012.{{cite web | author = Press release | date = 5 December 2011 | url=http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/889841/media-alert-critically-acclaimed-series-the-hour-debuts-on-netflix| title=Media Alert - {{sic|hide=y|Critically|-acclaimed}} series, The Hour, debuts on Netflix | publisher= Canada Newswire | access-date= 15 August 2012 }} In South Africa, this series has been acquired by M-Net to screen from 25 December 2012 at 8.30PM .{{cite web |title=The Hour comes for Shine Int'l|url=http://www.c21media.net/archives/79562|work=C21Media|
first=Michael |last=Pickard |date=30 March 2012 |access-date=2 May 2012 }}
Kudos Film and Television produced a four-DVD set of the complete two BBC series (with a 15 age certificate), along with 'extras' such as features behind the scenes and the art design of the programmes, and with interviews with members of the cast, in 2012.
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{BBC programme}}
- {{IMDb title|1778108|The Hour}}
- {{Rotten Tomatoes|tv/the_hour|The Hour}}
- {{Cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2011/jun/29/ben-whishaw-the-hour |title=Ben Whishaw: Hold the front page – Ben Whishaw Is Putting the Poets and Dreamers Behind Him, and Playing a Ruthless 1950s Hack – He Talks to Amy Raphael About Roles, Trolls – and What Gets Him Angry |first=Amy |last=Raphael | work = The Guardian |date=29 June 2011 |access-date= 15 August 2012}}
- {{cite news|author=Godwin, Richard|url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/theatre/article-23965453-details/Romola+Garai+on+sex+and+power+games/article.do|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130505071808/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/theatre/article-23965453-details/Romola+Garai+on+sex+and+power+games/article.do|url-status=dead|archive-date=5 May 2013|title=Romola Garai on Sex and Power Games|date=29 June 2011|work=Evening Standard|location=London|access-date=15 August 2012}}
- {{Cite web |url=http://www.london24.com/news/hornsey_town_hall_star_of_new_bbc_newsroom_drama_1_969104 |title=Hornsey Town Hall Star of New BBC Newsroom Drama |first=Emma |last=Youler |work=London 24 |publisher=london24.com |date=20 July 2011 |access-date=25 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160202083843/http://www.london24.com/news/hornsey_town_hall_star_of_new_bbc_newsroom_drama_1_969104 |archive-date=2 February 2016}}
- {{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/last-nights-tv--the-hour-bbc2-britain-through-a-lens-the-documentary-film-mob-bbc4-2316964.html|title=Last Night's TV - The Hour, BBC2; Britain Through a Lens: the Documentary Film Mob, BBC4 – They Made the Real News of the World|date=20 July 2011|author= Sutcliffe, Tom|work=The Independent | access-date = 15 August 2012}}
{{Abi Morgan}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hour (2011 TV series), The}}
Category:2010s British drama television series
Category:2011 British television series debuts
Category:2012 British television series endings
Category:BBC television dramas
Category:British English-language television shows
Category:Primetime Emmy Award–winning television series
Category:Television series about television
Category:Television series about journalism