"Kavanagh QC" (1995) TV series 1995-2001

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Creators:

Ted Childs
Susan Rogers

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

Release Date:

3 January 1995 (UK)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

Plot:

A crusty barrister oversees difficult criminal cases while dealing with the demands of his family life.

Plot Keywords:

Courtroom | Character Name In Title

Cast

John Thaw	...	James Kavanagh QC / ... (27 episodes, 1995-2001)
Nicholas Jones	...	Jeremy Aldermarten QC / ... (24 episodes, 1995-1999)
Oliver Ford Davies	...	Peter Foxcott QC (23 episodes, 1995-1999)
Cliff Parisi	...	Tom Buckley (22 episodes, 1995-2001)
Lisa Harrow	...	Lizzie Kavanagh / ... (16 episodes, 1995-1997)
Tom Brodie	...	Matt Kavanagh (15 episodes, 1995-1999)
Daisy Bates	...	Kate Kavanagh / ... (12 episodes, 1995-1999)
Anna Chancellor	...	Julia Piper / ... (11 episodes, 1995-1997)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Australia:MA | New Zealand:M (series 3&4) | Australia:M | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Parkol Marine Engineering, Eskside Wharf, Whitby, North Yorkshire, England, UK

Company:

Carlton Television

Another Good Series with John Thaw

Kavanagh Q.C. is a British Series about a barrister with the designation of Queen's Counsel (hence the title) which stars John Thaw, Thaw is likely best known to most for the "Inspector Morse" series or "The Sweeney". In both of these other two series Thaw played police officers although decidedly different ones. With Kavanagh we again have another character very different than either Morse or Jack Regan.

I found it somewhat refreshing to see a series both for Thaw and of this type where the lead character has a home life and a family. I find it unfortunate that later in the series they decided to curtail this approach which I thought brought a nice balance to the series.

Overall the series has a few flaws including some supporting characters that are thinly developed or caricatured (although the performances are by and large good) and the writing fails to give us many memorable courtroom moments. But I found that it was counterbalanced by a well developed lead character (with a strong performance from Thaw) as well as some interesting subject manner and social commentary. Another reason I found this intriguing is because the courtroom drama on TV still hasn't as overdone as other genres, and this was the only example I have seen from Britain.

This is also another British series with some very good guest stars including a young Ewan McGregor in the first episode.

Unfortunately not all the episodes of the series have been released on DVD for Region 1. Hopefully this will be rectified at some point in the future.