BRITISH TRUE CRIME: “Mrs Biggs” / “Maxine.” / “Lucan.” / “The Hunt for Raoul Moat.”

“Mrs Biggs” (Britbox) British television series based on the true story of the wife of the Great Train Robber, Ronnie Biggs. The series covers Mrs Charmian Biggs' journey from naïve young woman to Biggs' wife and the mother of three young sons. 

       Stand out in this series is Sheridan Smith as Mrs Biggs. Her performance received widespread critical acclaim, and she ultimately won the 2013 BAFTA Television Award for Best Actress. Deserving indeed! Sheridan's lovely face both exuded hard-headed gullibility and love-struck vulnerability. Yet courageously defiant. It is not that hard to believe that that was the real Charmian.

        My main problem with this series though is its length. From a normal 2 to 3 episode British true crime, this series went 5. So it suffers from soap-operatic sequences and redundant character expositions. Yet still, “Mrs Biggs” is a fine watch. 🎥💻📽

“Maxine” (BritBox) British drama miniseries, based on the story of Maxine Carr's involvement in the 2002 Soham murders, where 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman were killed by Carr's boyfriend Ian Huntley. 

       I don’t see anything off in how the suspects were presented, no different from the other British true-crime features that I already saw. But the series was received poorly by UK critics, with a review by Lucy Mangan in The Guardian describing it as "a show about the Soham murders that is both pointless and dangerous,” while The Independent quoted a viewer as labelling it as being in "absurdly bad taste.” 

       Jemma Carlton also delivered a credible portrayal of Maxine Carr. Simple-minded yet defiant, restrained in her panicky vulnerability–those eyes played the viewers as well as the detectives and press. 🎥💻📽

“Lucan” (Britbox) British true crime drama about the disappearance in 1974 of the Earl of Lucan, following the murder of his children's nanny.

       An intriguing real tragedy that is still unanswered with the truth. But the 2-part feature walked us through the gilded yard of the rich and powerful in Britain in those years, which could still be a fact as well these days. 

       What if the Earl is an ordinary man? I bet he'd easily be caught. Hard not to believe that he wasn't aided by his affluent, well-connected friends after the tragic incident. Jeff Pope's script offered those leading insinuations; director Adrian Shergold left us with enough details for an insight. 

       John Bingham or the Earl of Lucan is played by Rory Kinnear, a very competent performer in British cinema. Catherine McCormack is his wife, Veronica. And Christopher Eccleston is John Aspinall, John's wealthy and eccentric friend. Exemplary acting that is the focal allure of “Lucan.” 🎥💻📽

“The Hunt for Raoul Moat” (Britbox) true crime drama. Follows the police operation in 2010 to apprehend fugitive Raoul Moat. He went to Northumbria after killing one person and wounding two others.

       What this series shows that is timely and bizarre is how some people idiotically show support to criminals via social media posts. In this series, feared killer Raoul Moat is glorified just because he targeted police officers. The eerie truth is he isn't even a victim; instead, he victimized people. 

       This short series is typical of British true crime features. Short, no moralizing, almost journalistic. 🎥💻📽