The Beiderbecke Connection

There aren't too many television shows which feature a down-to-earth, sweet couple. A man and a woman who genuinely like one another and have a dear, comfortable, happy life together. Pie in the Sky is one which comes to mind. And here is another - well actually three others: The Beiderbecke Affair, The Beiderbecke Tapes, and The Beiderbecke Connection, known as The Beiderbecke Trilogy. The first two are pleasant and enjoyable but the third one really shines. I happen to own it, and watched the four episodes recently and felt pure happiness. The name Beiderbecke comes from Bix Beiderbecke, the 'first great white jazz musician' says our hero Trevor Chaplin, who is a self-proclaimed 'jazz freak.' One wall of his living room is devoted to record albums and tapes. Trevor's love is Jill Swinburne, a woman who wants to save the planet. Both are teachers at the local school in Leeds; a place with so little money that there are only three Tess of the D'Urbervilles for Jill's English class and no wood for Trevor's woodworking class. There are various and sundry characters who pop in and out of their lives. Some are kindly criminals, some are policemen - one of whom seems to model himself after a character in Miami Vice. A great pleasure is the appearance of Dudley Sutton as a fellow teacher, an actor I know from Lovejoy. The Beiderbecke Connection takes place in the 1980s, and we see the students in the fashions and hairstyles of that time. The show was such fun for me to watch, and I'm happy to own it so I can see it again and again. It stars the wonderful James Bolam and Barbara Flynn as our lovely couple who in one scene are reading in bed - he, Dr. Spock's baby book (they have a new baby they call Firstborn since they haven't decided upon a name yet) and she, something by Maya Angelou. The shows are filled with gentle humor and terrific jazz music done by Frank Ricotti. The trilogy was written by the late Alan Plater.