Doctor Finlay

Rating:
Summary: Honk if you love Scotland.....
Review: The Dr. Finlay series was filmed in Auchtermuchty Scotland and stars David Rintoul the fellow who played "Darcy" in the BBC version of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE shot in the 1980s. You may also recall Rintoul from the FIVE RED HERRINGS, a Peter Wimsey tale also dramatized by the BBC. In addition to Rintoul, the cast includes Annette Crosbie and Ian Bannon(??) the recently deceased actor who played the lead in WAKING NED DEVINE.

The series begins as Dr. Finlay returns to his hometown following a stint in the Royal Army Medical Corps during WWII. Finlay arrives just in time to discover his long-time girl friend and ex-fiance involved with an America GI who is about to ship out to the States and wants to take her home as his bride.

Finlay's village has changed dramatically while he was away, and he soon discovers life is just as turbulent in his home town after the war, as it was at his last posting. For one thing, the village has acquired many new inhabitants. In addition to U.S. Army personnel, who are in the process of demobilizing, a collection of German War Prisoners lives in nearby ex-prison encampment. Seems no one has an interest in them any longer, but they still need medical care.

Finlay's private medical practice is about to become part of the National Medical Service, his old friend and partner is about to retire, and a new young doctor has arrived to begin his practice -- literally. On top of everything else, the long-time spinster housekeeper, who has kept everything organized for ages, is about to become a married woman and leave housekeeping permanently.

In some ways, the characterization of three doctors in a small Scotish village in the 1940s is very reminscient of the series ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL where three bachelor veternarians have set up practice in Yorkshire. However, Dr. Finlay was a Masterpiece Theater production based on the book by A.J.Cronin, whom I seem to recall was a Scottish physician himself and probably the basis for the story, just as the CREATURES series about James Herriot was based on a real vet's life in Yorkshire.

This is a great series that depicts life in Scotland more than 50 years ago in a world that has since disappeared. I absolutely loved the stories, and David Rintoul is to die for. If you liked him as Darcy, you will love him as Dr. Finlay. Also, I think this series was BETTER than the CREATURES stories--this from a five star fan of Herriot's tales.

Rating:
Summary: This is a superb series, nicely presented on DVD
Review: This series ranks well with those productions--Hope and Glory, All Creatures Great and Small--which depict a changed and changing British society during and after WWII. The stories focus movingly on how the war affected individuals within virtually every class of society from the very poor to the upper levels, from the indigent (and the dropouts) to the professionals. The principal actors (David Rintoul, Jason Flemyng, Annette Crosbie and the now late Ian Bannon) are beyond praise, as are the scripts by a whole series of writers. And the sound, the photography and the editing are truly wondrous, as are the lush orchestrations of the Scottish National Symphony. This is a superb series, the kind one wishes would never end.

Rating:
Summary: This is a superb series, nicely presented on DVD
Review: This series ranks well with those productions--Hope and Glory, All Creatures Great and Small--which depict a changed and changing British society during and after WWII. The stories focus movingly on how the war affected individuals within virtually every class of society from the very poor to the upper levels, from the indigent (and the dropouts) to the professionals. The principal actors (David Rintoul, Jason Flemyng, Annette Crosbie and the now late Ian Bannon) are beyond praise, as are the scripts by a whole series of writers. And the sound, the photography and the editing are truly wondrous, as are the lush orchestrations of the Scottish National Symphony. This is a superb series, the kind one wishes would never end.