Country of origin United Kingdom | No. of series 1 | |
Written by Julian FellowesTina PeplerRichard MonksJulie Dixon Starring Michael FassbenderChristina ColeDavid SchofieldDavid CalderStella Gonet | ||
Julian Fellowes Investigates: A Most Mysterious Murder is a British five-part docudrama series produced by Touchpaper Television (part of the RDF Media Group), which premièred on BBC One on 16 October 2004.
Contents
Overview
The series presents dramatised accounts of five distinct unsolved murders from British history. Actor and Academy Award-winning screenwriter Julian Fellowes appears as a "historical detective," who guides the audience through the events leading up to the murder, and proposes a solution to each case.
Fellowes presents and narrates each episode, sometimes walking into the action to explain a point. He appears again at the end to conclude the case, putting forward his theory on the identity and motivation of the murderer.
Fellowes co-wrote all five episodes of the series.
Reception
Reviewing The Case of Rose Harsent, The Stage’s Harry Venning commented that: "What makes the show more than just a costumed Crimewatch is the quality of the drama at its heart. The period is beautifully evoked, real effort is made to create characters that are more than just a parade of Cluedo cut-outs and the performances are excellent." He added: "There is a disappointing absence of modern policing methods or forensic science in the process, with Fellowes drawing conclusions based on guesswork and speculation." Sam Wollaston in The Guardian was critical of the Suffolk accents in the episode but described it as: "Quite good fun – like a cross between Crimewatch and Midsomer Murders."
The Case of the Earl of Erroll was condemned by Juanita Carberry, whose stepmother was a friend of Diana Delves Broughton, as "littered with inaccuracies". She criticised Fellowes’ pronunciation of Kenyan place names, and challenged his assertion that Delves Broughton had been present during the shooting of Lord Erroll. Fellowes responded: "I am sure she’s right when she says I mispronounced place names – it was the first time I had been in the country." He added: "As for Diana being at the scene, I have a source whom I believe is equally as sturdy as Juanita...she asked me never to reveal her identity."