Broken. Drama starring Anna Friel as a single mum in poverty. BBC1

[HelenaDove]

Starting on the 23rd May. Written by Jimmy McGovern (Cracker Hillsborough. The Street) it also stars Sean Bean as a Catholic priest.

Trailer.

Love the flashing communion dress!

OMG communion day. Mine was 30 years ago this month . It was the day before my birthday so afterwards at the meal there was a big communion cake in the middle and a small birthday cake either side.

I invited two of my schoolfriends along and we ended up singing La Isla Bonita loudly in the loos.

Toddler i would have loved to have seen our Fathers reaction to that back in 1987.

Is Adrian Dunbar the new Tom Bell? It's the sort of part he would have played in the past.

It was more gloomy and self righteous than last time. A good argument for atheism, education and contraception.

Thats what you got from tonights episode where a mentally ill young man was discharged because they needed the bed for someone else as he wasnt quite mentally ill enough.

When my nephew made his FHC, gor the first time they had all children wear the same long brown robes (bit like monks) and the girls could wear flowers in their hair as things had got OTT with one girl turning up in a horse and carriage. I thought it was lovely and the robes were owned by the school and handed out. Some parents didn't like it though and reverted to mini brides again.

It was tough to watch, but well acted from the mum and son.
I am wondering now if the Father will try to find the young girls he mentioned - his flashbacks are a bit disturbing.
He seems a tortured soul.

Broken is superb as always from McGovern. Truly broken people. Broken communities. I have never thought Friel was the best actress, too much pouting. But in this, I think she performed well.

Loving Sean Bean.

Sean bean is actually making religion appeal to me, in contrast to the poster above. Love the way that the priest is at the centre of the community keeping everyone going yet a human with failings himself. Ive never met a grass roots style of priest all the ones I've encountered have been posh. I think I've led a sheltered, or at least a very lucky life.

winewolfhowls

I agree. I love the way the Priest is central to the community. I felt for the woman who had embezzled funds from her employer. She knew she was at the end of her time doing the fraud.

I thought the scenes with Father & his mother singing songs, was truly beautiful.

My mum was C/E all her life - she volunteered at a local church and the vicars they had there were quite eccentric really - they had a lot of problems retaining them - one of them run off with one of the congregation ( she was married!) one was really wealthy, but lived like a pauper and considering it was central to a large east london council estate they were lucky to have about 10 people on a sunday. it was pulled down and smaller one put up in its place and is now a gospel church. I didnt attend a faith school. My dh was a bit surprised at how the young girls were dressed last night - i had to explain that this is what happens in the catholic church, he had no idea at all. I would have loved a priest like this man , but my view of religion as a child was a bit negative really, i think that church near us had too many problems to function properly and my poor mum used to despair at the lack of community or the fact nobody bothered with it!

Jumping on as I'm just watching the first episode now...what night does it usually air on the BBC?

I'm loving it still, so many people come to church when I'm tough times, that's not to say everyone in an area is that bad. Most parents just struggle quietly.

All the flash backs I thought were abuse, but he seems close to his mum. So maybe linked to the birth he saw his mum in the flash back?

The police incident was realistic

I must admit I was a bit at the prospect of Sean Bean as a priest, but I eat my words, he is very good in this and a totally believable 'salt of the earth' type priest. I like the understanding he has of the issues facing his local community.

Well that was...totally coring. Sat here shaking atm. On to episode two...

Magic See if you can find his episode of The Accused. He was excellent in that too. He played a transvestite.

I've been watching and will stick with it, but I'm not a fan of using an exaggerated situation to make a point (even if it's based on something that actually happened) as unfortunately it only serves to devalue important issues by providing easy meat for people to question.

Sean Bean's priest has reminded me of the film Calvary which is definitely worth checking out if still on BBC IPlayer.

I liked this programme a lot, but the shooting of the young man just was not believeable, in the way it was presented. I have absolutely no doubt that mentally ill people brandishing knives are at risk of (have been?) shot dead. But not like that. Not after having been sprayed with pepper spray and with a policeman feet away.

Maybe it doesn't matter that much that it was exaggerated. It's based on real issues, but like you Boswellox, I think there's a risk that it will make people just dismiss the issues.

Made me cry. Today is a very appropriate day to be confronting and considering the issues raised. Sean Bean is excellent.

Could someone clarify, please...I was interrupted in the middle and may have misinterpreted the scene where young Sean Bean walks in on the bedroom birth scene:

I took it to be that his mother had lost (or knew she was losing?) her baby. Or was it purposely left ambiguous?

SB's acting is beautifully understated.
Really conveys how conflicted he feels, having so many people relying on him for support and guidance, whilst, internally, he's struggling as much as all of them .
When he lied to reassure and comfort Vernon's grieving mother (pretending he'd seen her dead son's face looking at peace) was especially touching.

Thalia

I think it was deliberately ambiguous

I wondered if it was an abortion??

Yoda,

That had crossed my mind, too, but if Dad at bottom of stairs was aware of need for such, he would've likely taken himself (and SB) as far away as possible until over with (or, if instructed to stay, be shown in a really distraught state...IIRC, he looked fairly calm?).

Unless the Dad himself was being kept in the dark, and an abortion was to be explained away as foetal death during delivery, maybe?
Though the women would surely make certain neither he nor young SB could stumble in?

You could well be right, though: abortion (especially 50ish yrs ago) would tie in perfectly with the themes of Catholic church/ poverty/ family/ morality etc.
What the Father was then told (and why), on top of SB witnessing his own Mother in that state, could be very interesting/ pivotal.

I'm struggling to understand all the flashbacks etc, but I'm really enjoying this series. It's harrowing though.

Yes. I'm confused by the flashbacks.