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"London's Burning" (1988)
5 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
A Good Start, 6 December 2004
Author: TheJiveMaster from United Kingdom
London's Burning was a mainstay of ITV's Sunday night scheduling during the late 80's and 90's. The series emerged from the TV film written by the late and great Jack Rosenthal and followed a group of fire fighters belonging to Blue Watch at London's Blackwall fire station.
Initially the series kept a lot of Rosenthal's influence. The humour was lively with station pranks and the loves and lives of the watch being the backbone of the series. In between all this were the fires and other shouts which helped to highlight the diverse work of the fire brigade as their role has changed over the shows lifespan. A few dark moments relating to death or injury of the fire fighters or victims put a dark edge on the show which helped to prevent it from becoming a farce and the whole package made for extremely addictive viewing.
Sadly the last few series beginning in 2000 started the downward spiral. By 2000, most of the original cast had left as they had become disillusioned with the writing or wanted to pursue other opportunities before they became typecast. Their replacements were usually dour characters that had plenty of personal baggage and the humorous aspects were replaced by deep thoughts and crisis in relationships. ITV also tried to increase the number of episodes per year whilst reducing the budget which diminished the number of spectacular fires that the brigade would attend in a series and it became more of a soap rather than the refreshing series that it had been when it first started.
Eventually around 2001 the series was axed and it has now been replaced by Steel River Blues which has all the promise to be like London's Burning was in the early days.
4 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
Consistently Good Drama But The 2002 Series Was Rubbish, 16 December 2002
Author: Big Movie Fan from England
London's Burning was a show about the firefighters of Blue Watch based in London. It was originally a one-off TV movie made in 1986 and this was the series that followed.
London's Burning has provided viewers with some of the best drama/special effects and a fantastic dose of drama in the firefighter's personal lives. From the first series, London's Burning kept topping itself as the firefighters coped with bigger blazes and more and more personal problems. Here in the UK in real life, only one in five calls is for a fire-most firefighters deal with road accidents and rescue operations and London's Burning showed all this.
There have been some memorable characters throughout such as Poison Pearce (nicknamed because of his poisonous tongue) and Sicknote (nicknamed that for obvious reasons). There has been a constant change of characters and senior officers throughout and it has provided many tears at times. It has been a good show.
The 2002 series was rubbish though. Some of the popular characters such as Station Officer Coleman and Divisional Officer Griggs were gone and replaced by some unconvincing characters. There also seemed to be more sex and drama and less fires. The show might as well have been renamed London's Having Love Affairs.
The 2002 series was probably the last and I hope it is. However, videos of the earlier shows are available and worth checking out.
4 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
Another victim of 9/11, 24 July 2003
Author: rainbow-13 from United Kingdom
After 9/11, the producers thought they could cash in on the hero status of firemen. They junked the episodes already made and remade the 2002 series - and it was rubbish! They alienated the existing fan base and failed to attrach new fans, so that it plumetted in the ratings. Yet another example of a long-running favourite being destroyed by producers who "updated" a successful favourite. ITV has done this so often, you wonder why they don't learn!
1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
As good as "Third Watch"... and came first, 18 November 2003
Author: x-lechard from Noisy le sec, France
It took fifteen years for "London's Burning" to be shown in France, but it was worth-waiting. Though it may seem a little outdated in comparison with its more cinematic American equivalent "Third Watch", it still is a very good show with its own strong virtues. No excessive pyrotechnics, no frenetic rhythm, but solid plotlines and convincing, realistic characters. Actors have a great part in success of this series, with a special mention to the excellent Richard "Sicknote" Walsh. A must-see for viewers enjoying stories about heroes that happen to be also human beings.
2 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
One Of The All Time Greats, 2 January 2007
Author: Sometimes1986 from Liverpool - United Kingdom
As it says in the title, London's Burning was one of the greatest drama's to appear on British television. It's mixture of gritty realism and humour made it one of the staples of ITV and was compulsive Sunday night viewing. Action packed story lines and superb acting ensured, in it's heyday, that viewing ratings were in excess of 18-19 million each episode. There were some bad points about the show, namely characters being alive and well at the end of a series, and in the next one not being there at all with no mention of them or explanation to where they went. E:g Carole Webb (Zoé Heyes), Rob Sharpe (Connor Lee). This was reinforced in 1998 when the show had it's first revamp with new opening titles and theme tune. Oh and Jim Alexander joined as well :P (!) Story lines changed and the programme was more focused on the personal lives of the characters (Chris Hammond's gambling debts, Jack's divorce and mental breakdown) Added to that in 2001 Richard Walsh (Sicknote) who was the only original character from the movie/pilot episode was killed off and that left Glen Murphy (George Green) as the only original character from the 1988 series when it first started. 2002 was the final straw as story lines were more sexual and unbelievable (A satellite was going to fall from Outer Space and crush London (!) (!) ) London's Burning was promptly axed and lets be honest, it was ITV/LWT that killed it off with it's new direction. But the show still deserves a 10/10 for the enjoyment and legacy it left behind. Oh and Jim Alexander was in the show as well...... Oh yeah I already mentioned that!! :P
Great series, 27 August 2000
Author: M@rko77 (markohelin@hotmail.com) from Finland
I like the series very much.. Especially the great actors and the great stunts, of course! Here in Finland we follow the series 96-97 season (after Bayleaf´s leaving and Hallam´s death)
0 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
Dated limp drama, 18 January 2007
Author: ian1000 from United Kingdom
*** This comment may contain spoilers ***
I watched LB from the movie to almost the bitter end and if you'd asked me six months ago I would have been hugely complimentary.
However time plays tricks with the memory, and I've recently had the chance to view the early episodes again.
I was shocked at how empty and limp the stories were, though punctuated by increasingly spectacular yet predictable 'shouts' with associated danger, drama and of course death. Death was a major player in LB, and 'Blue Watch' would surely have been renamed 'Death Watch' and would have come to national media attention due to their high attrition rate.
Some of the drama between 'shouts' is incredibly wet, and usually punctuated by sax background music. The stereotyped characters that I had enjoyed any years ago only annoy now, and Josie's lines when she returned to the show during the big 'shout' made a roomful of viewers laugh with embarrassment.
Best remembered and not re-watched - you may spoil your memories.
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
Getting worse by each series..., 29 July 2002
Author: Robert L. Manson from Merseyside, England
The 1980's and 90's were the best years for this but since 2000 it's been going downhill, in the older years i always looked forward to watching it, always a great action-packed storyline and with a comedy theme to it but now it's nothing but a crime ridden, adulterous filth! not to mention that in the current series there is only one member of the original cast left! The storylines today are so bleak and degrading. I can only hope that the current 2002 series is going to be the last.
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