The Pale Horse (TV series)

The Pale Horse is a BBC One mystery miniseries television serial broadcast in 2020 in two episodes. Written by Sarah Phelps, the serial is loosely based on Agatha Christie's novel of the same name. It is Phelps' fifth adaptation of a Christie work for the BBC. Directed by Leonora Lonsdale,[1] it stars Rufus Sewell and Kaya Scodelario.[2]

The Pale Horse
Genre
Based onThe Pale Horse
by Agatha Christie
Written bySarah Phelps
Directed byLeonora Lonsdale
Starring
ComposerAnne Nikitin
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes2
Production
Executive producers
  • Basi Akpabio
  • Tommy Bulfin
  • Sarah Phelps
  • James Prichard
  • Damien Timmer
  • Helen Ziegler
CinematographyJarin Blaschke
Production companies
Release
Original release9 February (2020-02-09) –
16 February 2020 (2020-02-16)

Cast

Main

Supporting

Production

Filming took place in Bristol.[4] The car driven by Rufus Sewell's character is a Lagonda 3-Litre drophead coupé.[5]

Episodes
No.EpisodeDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateUK viewers
(millions)
1Episode 1Leonora LonsdaleSarah Phelps9 February 2020 (2020-02-09)[6]7.00
A year after discovering his first wife, Delphine, electrocuted in the bath, antique dealer Mark Easterbrook is summoned by the police when a woman, Jessie Davis, is found dead in the street. Hidden in her shoe is a list of names that she had written on a piece of paper. Among the names are those of Mark and Mark's paramour, Thomasina Tuckerton, whom Mark later finds dead in her bed. Mark discovers that Delphine and Jessie Davis had both visited the village of Much Deeping to consult a trio of women living there. Another person on the list, shopkeeper Zachariah Osborne, who had employed Jesse Davis, tells Mark that the women are witches, and responsible for the deaths.
2Episode 2Leonora LonsdaleSarah Phelps16 February 2020 (2020-02-16)[7]5.74
Mark's hair begins to fall out, as had Jesse Davis's and Thomasina Tuckerton's before they died. He succumbs to a growing paranoia towards the witches and their supposed power. He suspects that his second wife, Hermia, is plotting against him. Mark's godson, David Ardingly, admits to having enlisted the trio to bring about the death of his Aunt Clemency, so that he could inherit sooner. Inspector Lejeune disputes Mark's version of Delphine's death. Mark visits Osborne, who tells him that he can only be cleansed by fire. Mark then visits the witches and asks them to remove the threat posed by Hermia and Lejeune. Mark discovers Hermia in a coma, and while at the hospital where she is being treated, he sees the dying Lejeune brought in. Mark's flashbacks reveal that he caused Delphine's death and covered it up. He confronts Osborne, who confesses to having poisoned the other victims. He taunts Mark, who kills him and sets fire to his workshop. Hermia wakes up in the hospital with the three witches at her side and the three women tell her what Mark has done. Mark returns to his house and reads the morning paper. The headline is the announcement of his own death. Mark is now reliving Delphine's death over and over again in his nightmares, which he had been plagued with previously.

Reception

Rotten Tomatoes reports an approval rating of 80% based on 25 reviews, with an average rating of 6.71/10. The site's critics' consensus reads: "Though The Pale Horse bristles with brutal thrills, it's [sic] convoluted mystery at times sedates the suspenseful proceedings."[8] Metacritic reports an aggregated score of 69 out of 100 based on 6 reviews, indicating "Generally favorable reviews".[9]

The Guardian gave the first episode four stars and praised the writing and direction.[10] The Independent deemed the second episode "satisfying" and said that the updates to the material and language worked.[11] In their review of the second episode, The Telegraph was less complimentary, awarding three stars and saying "writer Sarah Phelps was chucking the rat-filled kitchen sink into this rewrite of Agatha Christie."[12]

As with her previous adaptations, some viewers criticized the numerous and significant changes Phelps made to the original novel; and some criticized the ending, which they found confusing.[13] A Radio Times feature admitted that "the ending is deliberately ambiguous".[14]

References
  1. Tommy Bulfin, Commissioning Editor, BBC Drama (31 July 2019). "Casting announced for BBC One's The Pale Horse - Media Centre". BBC. Retrieved 22 January 2020. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. Nancy Tartaglione (30 July 2019). "Rufus Sewell, Kaya Scodelario To Star In 'The Pale Horse' BBC Mystery – Deadline". Deadline.com. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
  3. "The Pale Horse Cast". Agatha Christie. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
  4. "BBC One drama The Pale Horse wraps filming at Bristol spots". www.bristolpost.co.uk. 18 September 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
  5. Palmer, Katie (17 February 2020). "The Pale Horse: What is the car Mark Easterbrook drives?". Express.co.uk.
  6. "The Pale Horse - Episode 1". BBC Media Centre. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  7. "The Pale Horse - Episode 2". BBC Media Centre. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  8. "The Pale Horse: Miniseries". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  9. "The Pale Horse - TV Show Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  10. Mangan, Lucy (9 February 2020). "The Pale Horse review – dread so thick you'll need a scrub down". The Guardian – via www.theguardian.com.
  11. "The Pale Horse, episode 2 review: Satisfying conclusion despite traditional whodunnit thrills". The Independent. 16 February 2020. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022.
  12. Singh, Anita (16 February 2020). "The Pale Horse, episode 2 review: Sarah Phelps chucked the rat-filled kitchen sink into this rewrite of Agatha Christie". The Telegraph – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
  13. "The Pale Horse viewers left confused by ending". Digital Spy. 16 February 2020.
  14. Eleanor Bley Griffiths (16 February 2020). "Has the BBC drama changed the ending of Agatha Christie's The Pale Horse?". Radio Times. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
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