Cilla 3-Part TV Drama Coming

Here's the ITV trailer.



From the ITV feed:
‘Cilla’ tells of her rocky rise to fame and will capture the essence of 1960s Liverpool, the atmosphere of promise and excitement as the Merseybeat music scene was on the verge of exploding in a blaze of tight-fitting skirts, stiletto heels, and beehives.

 

Oh god I can't think of anything worse! Well I can but there are limits.

 

Might make a good thread topic - What's Worse Than a Cilla Biopic/Series?

 

Ugh.

 

I wonder if it'll touch on her legendary popularity among airline cabin crews.

 

Sounds like a lorra, lorra crap.

What next? A mini-series on how the Germans bombed Stan Boardman's chippy?

 

What's the subtitle? "How You Too Can Make A Career of Mediocrity"?

 

Oh and also "Hey dey bombed our church too!"

 

Oh and also "Hey dey bombed our church too!"

 

How's come I fear that George Martin may not come out of this show as loved as he is right now?

 

Sorry, but I hope this goes to video quickly so we here in the States will get to see it. Cilla was never very big here but I like some of her early stuff and always enjoy these mid-sixties bio-pics. They're fun to nitpick.

 

They do this, but no one does The Pete Best Story? That the one that would be incredibly interesting.

 

Shudder!

 

I watched episode 1 last night and thoroughly enjoyed it! Sheridan Smith is great (as always) and they nicely created the feel of the early 60s, The Cavern, etc.
Obviously the portrayal of The Beatles makes one wince (is that mean't to be John!? Is that mean't to be Epstein??) but it didn't spoil what is an enjoyable TV drama.

 

It received a positive review in The Guardian today, and, apparently, garnered seven million viewers, which is a lot for a drama such as this.

Still can't bring myself to watch it, mind.

 

Part two tonight if you are brave enough. I'm in.

 

I'm in also.

Part 1 was excellent.

I guess the more you know about the story, the more you can pick holes in it.

And many people in this country will only know Cilla as a TV host.

 

Watched all three episodes and thoroughly enjoyed it!
Perhaps the first portrayal of Epstein's descent?

 

I enjoyed it too, as did my wife and daughter. Nice early 60's feel.

Sheridan Smith was excellent as Cilla, the only weak role for me was Lennon, hardly any scouse accent and lacking in aggression which meant his acerbic comments were half heard and half appreciated.

 

I thought it was excellent. Every scene was authentic to the time period. Including the New York scenes. The acting was reasonably good.
...And Sheridan Smith sang all the material herself. Good performance.
The only gripe I had was that the Brian Epstein character looked NOTHING like the real Brian Epstein, to the point of WTF.

 

Totally enjoyed all three parts. Sky+'d 'em, then watched it as a film (fast-forwarding all the ads). Managed to avoid all the reviews and teaser clips so it was absorbed fresh. Sheridan Smith put in a cracking performance, but I feel that John Henshaw (as her dad) stole the show. Too funny. "I've been to sea..." has fast become a catchphrase in our house. 'Cilla' did the previously-unthinkable; I've actually considered buying a compilation of Cilla's 60s stuff.

 

This is the one I purchased about six years ago and I admit enjoying a good two thirds of it. Worth it alone for the demo of Step Inside Love with Paul McCartney on acoustic guitar and humming. The track actually sounds like a White Album demo. Really neat.

I just noticed that the price had gone up like crazy. A shame as this was available for less than a tenner a year or two ago.

 

I am shocked at the negativity on this thread. I just watched all three episodes over the weekend and I loved it! I have several Cilla Black CDs and I thought Sheridan Smith did a fine job giving a slight similarity to Cilla's voice without trying to match it. Also, Sheridan's look and portayal certainly has the essence of Cilla. The portrayal of Brian Epstein was also well done. The actor who played Ringo was also very well cast. The re-creation of the Burt Bacharach "Alfie" session looked uncannily like the real video of it. This has inspired me to spin lots of Cilla in the last couple of days.

 

Now on DVD, for those who can't get enough Cilla:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00MFVHO24/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1416900988&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SY200_QL40

I'm going to wait until they release a comprehensive box set of this, along with every episode of Blind Date and Surprise Surprise.