Ashes to Ashes (British TV series)

The series tells the story of Alex Drake (Keeley Hawes), a police officer in service with the London Metropolitan Police, who is shot in 2008 by a man named Arthur Layton and inexplicably regains consciousness in 1981.[3]

The first episode of the series reveals that, in the present day, Drake has been studying records of the events seen in the series Life on Mars through reports made by Sam Tyler (John Simm) after he regained consciousness in the present. Upon waking in the past she is surprised to meet the returning characters of Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister), Ray Carling (Dean Andrews) and Chris Skelton (Marshall Lancaster), all of whom she has learnt about from her research, the trio having transferred from the Manchester setting of Life on Mars (Manchester and Salford Police) to Fenchurch CID, London.

Tension between Drake and Hunt is built through the unsatisfactory explanation of Sam Tyler's absence and the perceived underhandedness and shoddy work of Hunt in contrast to the methodical, ethical and modern Drake. Continuing the theme of Life on Mars, throughout the series, it is ambiguous to both Drake and the audience whether the character is dead or alive in the present day and to what extent her actions influence future events.

• Philip Glenister as Gene Hunt
• Keeley Hawes as Alex Drake
• Dean Andrews as Ray Carling
• Marshall Lancaster as Chris Skelton
• Montserrat Lombard as Shaz Granger
• Adrian Dunbar as Martin Summers (series 2)
• Daniel Mays as Jim Keats (series 3)

First series episodes were directed by Jonny Campbell, Bille Eltringham and Catherine Morshead.

Filming for the second series began in 2008. The second series takes place six months after the first, set in 1982 during the Falklands War.[4] The episodes were shot on Super 16 film and mastered in 576p standard definition.[5]

A third, and final, series was commissioned, and filming of the eight 60-minute episodes began in late 2009[6][7] This final series was shot in Super 16 again but telecined and mastered for high definition.[8] In an interview with SFX, series co-creator and executive producer Matthew Graham stated that he was considering making a 3D episode.[9] Once again, the series moved on a year, this time to 1983.[10] Philip Glenister, speaking on the BBC One Breakfast TV programme on 8 June 2009, announced that the third series would be the last.[11] Producers revealed the climax of the show would reveal who the character of Gene Hunt really is.[12] The third series concluded on 21 May 2010.

The Audi Quattro was not available in right-hand drive in the United Kingdom in 1981, only in left-hand drive. The car shown in the TV series is the 1983 model, with slight changes to the headlights and other features.[13] Costume designer Rosie Hackett explained the challenge in not using any eighties fashion not yet available in the year the respective series is set in (1981, 1982 and 1983 respectively). One reason for moving the sequel to London, from Life on Mars' Manchester setting, was because the iconic eighties fashion would not have reached smaller cities at the time.[14]

Throughout the first series, Ashes to Ashes was broadcast weekly on Thursdays on BBC One at 9:00 pm. The second series began airing on 20 April 2009 in the same timeslot. The third and final series premiered on 2 April 2010.

The first series, set in 1981, consists of eight episodes,[18] written mainly by creators Ashley Pharoah (episodes 2 & 8) and Matthew Graham (episodes 1 & 7). Other writers for the series were Julie Rutterford (episode three) and Mark Greig (episodes 4 & 5), who worked on the parent series, Life on Mars. The remaining episode (6) was written by freelance writer Mick Ford. In this series Alex tries to figure out what happened to her parents, whose lives are connected to the political unrest of the time, especially Margaret Thatcher's campaign and Lord Scarman's attacks on the police. Alex is haunted by a mysterious figure who seems to be the Clown from the music video of David Bowie's "Ashes to Ashes", reminiscent of the Test-Card Girl who bedevilled Sam Tyler in Life on Mars. (The clown's identity is revealed in the last episode of the first series.)

The second series of eight episodes is set in 1982, against the political background of the Falklands War. The first episode, written by Ashley Pharoah, deals with the cover-up of the killing of a police officer in a nightclub. As the series progresses, Alex's comatose body is found in present-day 2008. Gene finds himself confronting a corrupted force and Alex begins receiving a string of phone calls from a man called Martin Summers, another patient at the hospital to which she has been moved, and a key figure in the web of corruption Hunt is trying to bring down. Summers proves to be a formidable adversary, whose actions eventually lead to a murder and an extremely tense confrontation between Alex and Gene. The series ends with Alex awakening in what seems to be the present, but she is horrified to find Gene's face on monitors, pleading for help.

In the third and final series, set yet another year forward in 1983, DCI Gene Hunt, DI Alex Drake and the rest of the team all return, joined by a new addition, DCI Jim Keats, a discipline and complaints officer.[19] Alex returns to the 1980s after being brought round by Gene, and she comes to believe the 2008 she woke up in was only a dream. Her connection to the present seems weaker than before, while Hunt is trying to stop his department crumbling from within due to Keats' presence. Although Jim is ostensibly friendly with Hunt's officers, he makes no effort to conceal his hatred of Gene when the two are alone, and attempts to turn Alex against him. Prompted by the haunting of a dead policeman and visions of stars, Alex becomes suspicious of the role Gene played in Sam Tyler's death following his return to the past, and, urged on by Jim, she eventually discovers the truth of Gene Hunt, her colleagues and the world she has been transported to.

In addition, the main cast appeared in short sketches for Children in Need 2008 (with Richard Hammond as himself) and Sport Relief 2010 (with Dickie Davies, Daley Thompson, Duncan Goodhew, Steve Cram, David Gower, Michael Parkinson, Sam Torrance, Tony Hadley, Paul Daniels and Debbie McGee as 1983 versions of themselves).

The soundtrack features contemporary songs by British groups of the period such as punk period survivors The Clash and The Stranglers, New Romantics such as Duran Duran and Ultravox, synthpop such as Jon & Vangelis, OMD, later period Roxy Music and The Passions' sole hit single, "I'm in Love with a German Film Star", from 1981. A scene in the second episode, "The Happy Day", set at The Blitz features Steve Strange playing himself performing "Fade to Grey" by Visage. The last episode in Series 1 ends with "Take the Long Way Home" from Supertramp's Breakfast in America 1979 album. Episode 2 also contains the classic Madness song "The Prince". The final episode of Series 3 plays out to David Bowie's "Heroes". Philip Glenister said that one of the reasons the series moved on to 1982 was due to running out of good songs and feared that they'd end up having to use Bucks Fizz's "The Land of Make Believe" (a brief snippet of the song is indeed used in the second series, as well as the same group's "Making Your Mind Up" being used in series one).[20]

A CD soundtrack, Ashes to Ashes (Original Soundtrack), from the first series of the show was released on 17 March 2008.[21] A CD soundtrack, Ashes to Ashes – Series 2 (Original Soundtrack), from the second series of the show was released on 20 April 2009.[22] A CD soundtrack, Ashes to Ashes – Series 3 (Original Soundtrack), from the third series of the show was released on 12 April 2010.[23]

During the second and third series, 1980s background music (some of which had been used during the show) was available to UK digital TV viewers by using the red button immediately after the show. Clips from Top of the Pops, The Old Grey Whistle Test and other 1980s BBC TV music programmes, introduced by Philip Glenister in his guise as DCI Gene Hunt, were looped for the remainder of the evening of transmission.

In 2010, the Labour Party used an edited image of Gene Hunt on the Quattro with David Cameron's face as part of its general election campaign, with the words "Don't let him take Britain back to the 1980s".[54] The slogan links the Conservative leader with memories of social unrest and youth unemployment. In response to this, the Conservatives posted a slightly modified version of the image with the words "Fire up the Quattro. It's time for Change. Vote for Change. Vote Conservative."[55] Subsequently, Kudos Productions—which owns the copyright to the Gene Hunt character—wrote to both parties requiring them to cease using the image.[56]

Philip Glenister was introduced to David Cameron, future UK Prime Minister, at the 2009 Police Bravery Awards.[57] Glenister explained that Gene Hunt was popular with real police officers because he spent his time catching criminals rather than doing paperwork. He later quipped 'Six months later, he's (Cameron) on Radio 5 Live saying exactly what I've just said. Bastard nicked my line!"[58]

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ashes to Ashes (UK TV series).

• Ashes to Ashes at BBC Online
• Ashes to Ashes – Series 1, Episode 1 – Script
• Ashes to Ashes at IMDb
• Ashes to Ashes at epguides.com