Blue Lights - BBC1 - started 27 March 2023 - binge watch spoiler thread

[IwantToRetire]

New police drama set in Northern Ireland is shown on monday 9pm slot.

Also available on BBC iPlayer.

Most newspaper reviews are raving about it, except for one.

Written by the same people who wrote The Salisbury Poisonings.

They first met as local journalists in Belfast.

I dont usually binge watch, but found the first episode intriguing enough that I went onto iPlayer and ended up watching the next 2.

I dont feel I can say whether the reflection of Belfast is right, but have since seen it was written by 2 men who grew up and became local journalists.

Some of the feel of it is a bit like the Responder ie police as social workers, but many, many more guns.

Good and varied roles for women, although I am not that sure that the one outsider, and english woman, is somehow going to break through the years of traditional loyalties to help stop crime linked ot political loyaties.

Also, (sorry really bad at names) but the role played by the actor who I think was in East Enders and others, of the anti-terrorist squad seems a bit far fetched, but what do I know. Not helped that he played nearly an identical role in another recent police drama, cant remember this.

Well I've finished this now, and think it didn't maintained the standards of the early episodes, but still think it is a long way ahead of the other 9pm police/crime dramas that get churned out.

My fear of the outsider (english woman) showing the local people how they should think and behave never happened.

But unfortunately a rather contrived moment of the dramatic loss of a member of the police force, made the ending far closer to the sort of US police dramas where all sorts of moments of heartfelt bonding go a tiny bit smaltzy.

Just in case any one else has binge watched, and will have done quite soon, can you explain why the ex-wife of the main villan went to meet the anti-terrorist officer in the caravan.

Typical of me to get to the end and then miss the meaning of the final scene.

Well not the final scene, as of course they finished with scenes that strongly hint at them hoping for a series 2!

I've watched it all and loved it. I'm from NI and it is very realistic. Will come back to this tomorrow to discuss properly but Tina seems to have done a deal to be spared jail if she becomes an informer.

Thanks! That makes sense her taking on the role of informer. Will be good if there's a second series for her to still have a part.

Will be really interested in your response.

But have to say the series made it seem quite a daunting environment.

I loved the women's team (hurling?) both the humour and the support.

Watched three so far. Cannot see a father allowing his son to be shot like in episode 3. You’d just leave or drive away or take him to safety. Literally sitting drinking whisky, waiting for him to be taken out and kneecapped. Obviously so much more political context but really? Mum and dad sitting and waiting for the attackers to come, rather than helping their 15 year old?!

amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/mar/15/mother-son-kneecapped-northern-ireland-brexit-border

It happens :(

amp.lbc.co.uk/radio/presenters/shelagh-fogarty/shocking-ad-parents-stop-children-paramilitary/ @Chessetchelsea

@MintMa - awful. As that second link shows, parents being complicit is hardly the answer though. In other countries, parents would be prosecuted for enabling abuse!

I think that was part of the power of the programme as it showed life as lived in Belfast, which was why in my OP I referred to the writers having been local journalists.

None of us know what we would do, if our immediate circle of influence (our friends and family) were all part of a culture that allowed this.

For instance families have been complicit in so called "honour killings".

And what the programme also shows is that the police have a sort of balancing act. Responding to crime, but also being told not to inflame tensions.

Think of the schoolgirls right to a secure and safe life, free of sexual exploitation, but local politics (or police laziness) allowed this to happen for years, in the name of not inflaming community tension.

I wonder what reviews have been like in the local media.

they wouldnt have been able to help and would only have got badly hurt themselves

Most of the papers tv reviews are based on episode 1, but did find this from a viewer:

Being from, lived, experienced and witnessed the worst of NI through the troubles., I have just finished watching the complete six episodes of Blue Lights. And contrary to some other reviewers on this page I enjoyed the drama and laughed at the ni humour throughout this series. Naturally, it is a tv series and I suppose you have to allow for a certain amount of 'artistic licence' in these type of programmes. But I have to say the sequence of events on the drugs/gun running and or 'sneaky beakers' is very much a realistic story that occurred quite often in the quest for law and order in our we country N. I. I have to single out the character PC Gerry Cliff played by the excellent actor Richard Dormer. I do hope there is a second series to follow.

Families absolutely allow their children to be kneecapped. The terrorist groups are more about drugs than anything else these days - there's a big feud going on between rival loyalist gangs in Newtownards at the moment, you can read about it on bbc news Northern Ireland, but it's all to do with drugs. Even the protocol situation is to do with drugs - the loyalist gangs (who rule the DUP) aren't happy that shipments coming into NI from the mainland are subject to customs checks. Staff at Larne port need extra protection because they all got death threats. Terrorism (apart from the drugs side) is very much still active though, DCI John Caldwell, a prominent investigator into dissident republican groups, was shot several times a few weeks ago.

The show did a great job I thought. Policing in NI isn't just about policing, there are multiple complexities as seen in the show. Informers are protected. Has anyone seen the story of Noah Donahoe mentioned? Large amounts of information in the police file has been redacted or not released - a PII certificate was issued (public interest immunity) which is what was used to release the intelligence offers in Blue Lights. This is done when someone involved in a crime is a tout. There are people in this country who can literally get away with murder.

There are people in this country who can literally get away with murder.

Thanks for your post MeinKraft. I have seen and read stories about this, but have let them fade from my mind.

So disturbing to think this is happening in part of the UK but nothing (can?) is done.

But how many weeks is it now without a functioning NI Assembly? And theimpact of that all through sections of society, such as women's refuges now not able to apply for funding for the coming year.

But also makes you think who would join the police.

And going back to the tv series, I did enjoy the humour, though not sure I caught all of it.

I've just watched it & enjoyed it overall although did nearly give up after part way through the first ep.

Loved Gerry!

I'm actually gutted that Gerry won't be back if there's a series 2.
I actually sent the BBC a compliment on their feedback page such is my strength of feeling that we need another series

I liked the way the relatively weaker early episodes laid the groundwork for a harder hitting conclusion.

Some of the storylines were interesting - just a pity the directing and acting was variable. I didn’t believe the affair story at all - dreadfully superficial and amateur script and performances there. Stylistically it was all over the place, too.

Still, I watched the whole thing over two days, so they must have been doing something right!

It was well done with some new stylistic touches. Violence not as extreme as Line of Duty thank goodness. Binge-watched it this last week.
Why did the top woman cop say the next resignation had to be the top male cop in the station? Was it because of his sleeping with her daughter or because he had been working too closely with the MI5 bods and playing along with all their Out of bounds areas?
Why did Gerry go into the out of bounds area..I know he was following up the Dublin licence plates but he must have known it was dangerous to do so. Unfair to drag top bosses' daughter in on sth against the 'rules' and leading her to have to shoot someone dead.
Definitely better than Bloodlands with James Nesbitt which was also set in NI.

I didn't have high hopes for this series after the first couple of episodes but actually I really enjoyed it.

I thought this was excellent. Definitely improved as it went on. Great storyline and interesting characters. Looking forward to the second series already.

Fantastic series and really hope there's a series 2!

As the daughter of an RUC officer growing up in the 80s & 90s, it was very true to life, including the threat to life that Anna was given!

Totally agree with @MeinKraft 's comments and I thought of Noah Donahue too, especially with the racism around Grace's son. That was my only bugbear, that we didn't see the 'conclusion' to that storyline as Grace didn't seem to take her leave once Gerry got shot.

Gutted Gerry won't be back for season 2 but loved seeing the police woman replace Jonty as Inspector.

All very believable & really hope the real life PSNI officer who was shot a few weeks ago at his sons football training pulls through.

'Why did the top woman cop say the next resignation had to be the top male cop in the station? Was it because of his sleeping with her daughter or because he had been working too closely with the MI5 bods and playing along with all their Out of bounds areas?'

Both really. The MI5 guy had been blackmailing Jonty because he knew about his affair with Jen

Was Gerry in a relationship with the woman who did the booking in for the police cells - Sandra?

Gerry & Sandra were married, I think

Thanks @MaudGone - that’s what I thought.
Great username