The Beiderbecke Series

Disc 1
Episode 1:Oh look—it’s average sized Trevor Chaplin
Trevor and Jill are adjusting to family life when Big Al and Little Norm bring a gift for baby Firstborn. It’s an intercom with wires—and strings—attached: Big Al wants them to take in a refugee for the night. Jill assents for political reasons, Trevor because “Ivan” likes jazz. The next day, they drive Ivan to the Lincolnshire border.

Episode 2:Hello Sir, Hello Miss
Ivan returns, but Big Al and Little Norm prove no help at all. Jill and Trevor drop Ivan off at the Lancashire border, and learn that they are under surveillance by two dim policemen. The couple spends the evening at a jazz club, but a surprising new visitor rings their doorbell late that night.

Disc 2
Episode 3:Is he the lodger?
Jill awkwardly explains Trevor’s presence to her ex-husband, Peter, who has some explaining of his own to do. As does Ivan, who turns out to be rather terrible after all. Finally, DI Hobson spills his secret about why the police have been parked outside Jill’s home. The answer involves a nosy neighbor and a video camera.

Episode 4:What do we have on hockey sticks?
DI Hobson learns that a dangerous bank robber has been spotted around town and sees a familiar face on the surveillance video. Meanwhile Ivan, Peter, Trevor, Jill, and Firstborn take a day trip to the seaside. In the end, Trevor concludes, there are only two kinds of people in the world: those who hear the music, and those who don’t.

Packaging: Boxed set
Run Time: 204 minutes
Format: Full screen
Number of discs: 2
Language: English
Subtitles: N/A
Color or B&W: Color
CC: No
SDH: No
Region Code: 1
Aspect Ratio: 4:3
Rating: N/A

"A throwback to the zany mysteries of the ‘40s"—The Courier Mail

"Leisurely, gently humorous mystery series"—The Sunday Times(UK)

BAFTA TV Award Winner for Best Original Television Music (1989)

Disc 1
Part 1
His home demolished for a motorway, Trevor moves in with Jill, bringing along his extensive collection of jazz music. She’s less than thrilled when the bartender at a local pub adds to it even more. But one of the new tapes isn’t music at all: it’s a secret recording that Britain’s top security forces want back—or else. Meanwhile Mr. Wheeler, their headmaster at San Quentin High, insists that Trevor and Jill join a class trip to Amsterdam.

Disc 2
Part 2
Hoping to uncover more about the mysterious tape, Trevor attends the bartender’s funeral and encounters someone unexpected. Back at the flat, six men in gray suits break in and search for the tape. Believing their lives are in danger, Trevor and Jill leave for Holland, with the mysterious men in hot pursuit. A branch of the Ancient Order of Elks comes to the couple’s aid, but the lodge members are looking for a little action of their own.

• Biography of Henry James
• Cast filmographies

Packaging: Boxed Set
Run Time: 154 minutes
Format: Full Screen
Number of discs: 2
Language: English
Subtitles: N/A
Color or B&W: Color
CC: No
SDH: No
Region Code: 1
Aspect Ratio: 4:3
Rating: N/A

"A second helping of the original, delicious meal"—The Sunday Times(UK)

"A throwback to the zany mysteries of the ‘40s"—The Courier-Mail

From award-winning TV writer Alan Plater (Oliver’s Travels, A Very British Coup).

Disc 1
Episode 1:What I don’t understand is this…
All Trevor Chaplin wants is a set of jazz records. All Jill Swinburne wants is to run for election as a Conservation candidate. What starts as Trevor’s simple transaction with a door-to-door saleswoman leads to a kick in the shins, a police inquiry, and a muddy free-for-all at a soccer game.

Episode 2:Can anybody join in?
While Trevor pursues the platinum blonde saleswoman, Jill, Big Al, and Little Norm are held for questioning by newly minted Detective Sergeant Hobson—who views them all as potential criminals. Later, Trevor finds the music he wants in a most unexpected place.

Episode 3:We call it the white economy.
Someone vandalizes Big Al’s garden and calls Trevor and Jill, only to hang up without speaking. While Det. Sgt. Hobson’s suspicions are unfounded, the threats against Trevor, Jill, and Big Al are real.

Disc 2
Episode 4:Um… I know what you’re thinking.
Trevor’s former fiancée, Helen, wants him back. Meanwhile, Big Al must move his business out of St. Matthew’s when someone named McAllister tries to shut him down. Curiously enough, that’s also the name of Helen’s wealthy businessman father and her Jaguar-driving bureaucrat uncle.

Episode 5:That was a very funny evening.
When Helen takes Jill to dinner, they drink quite a lot of champagne and toss a coin for Trevor. Invited to dine with Helen’s parents later, Trevor develops an intense dislike for her father. And as Big Al takes revenge on his whistle-blower, Det. Sgt. Hobson starts to grasp who the real criminals are.

Episode 6:We are on the brink of a new era. If only…
With the election fast approaching, Jill and Trevor turn their efforts to campaigning. But when Det. Sgt. Hobson asks for more help with his corruption case, Jill points him toward a town planner who may have the evidence he needs.

• Bix Beiderbecke biography

Packaging: Boxed Set
Run Time: 300 minutes
Format: Full screen
Number of discs: 2
Language: English
Subtitles: N/A
Color or B&W: Color
CC: No
SDH: No
Region Code: 1
Aspect Ratio: 4:3
Rating: N/A

"Bolam and Flynn play the latter-day Nick and Nora Charles with relish"—The Courier-Mail

"This turned out to be great fun"—DVD Verdict

"Three dimensional, quirky, surprising but satisfying parts for all his actors. And there is a great soundtrack also!"—Exclusive Magazine

"A must for lovers of lighthearted mystery."—Brattleboro Reformer

"The dialogue and characterizations are so pleasantly sharp"—DVD Talk

"Boasting a number of ludicrous twists, and oodles of humorously off-kilter dialogue"—Video Librarian

"A great find"—British Heritage Magazine

"It's a joy, a delight, an unrestrained pleasure."—IGN Digigods blog

"Unmatched in its intelligence, humor, and escapist "—Film Intuition

"If you enjoy British television, check out this forgotten gem."—Needcoffee.com

From award-winning TV writer Alan Plater (Oliver’s Travels, A Very British Coup).