Legends - Netflix May 26

[snowibunni]

Anyone watching? I'm in episode 3.

Excellent so far

Steve Coogan, Tom Burke, Alex Jennings , Charlotte Ritchie amongst a high profile cast.

Steve Coogan is playing a blinder as a handler of the under cover HMRC agents.

Love Tom Burke anyway.

Feels apocryphal.

Welcome to:
Human behaviour (to err is human)
The 1990s!

Im enjoying it and I know it's based on a true story but I agree it's so unbelievable that this could have happened. No one has any experience /training /back up it's not surprising they do risky things , they have no idea what they are doing.

I mean the surveillance stuff with training fine, I could understand that but recruiting Shaun and then actually engaging with organised crime gangs when they were previously searching suitcases? Undercover police have years and years of training for these situations. I know resources and funds were limited but someone should said no, don't be so silly when 'the let's give civil servants a crash course and send them out into criminal gangs' idea was first proposed.

Yes Coogan blagging it in his hi viz jacket is comical but all so very dangerous and silly when lives at risk.

Loving this!
The acting, script, soundtrack.
Agree that it’s making me long for the next Strike tv series and new book!

Ive never seen Strike. Does the bloke playing the lead is this play the same cool almost Michael Caine style character in it?

Absolutely this. @Gloriia i’m sure you are way younger than me, but in my very first corporate job in the early 1990s, I was given accounting responsibility for a product line… And I didn’t even have a GCSE in accounting I was told by my manager that I would pick it up as I went along 😳 I didn’t stay much longer after that😂. If you read the article I posted above from The Times, it confirms they had minimal training. And were absolutely winging it. I’d imagine at the time, most undercover cops were male too which meant that the female officers were less likely to be suspected

Strike was written by J. K. Rowling under a pseudonym of Robert Galbrath. It centres around an ex-army officer who works as a Private eye. It’s on the BBC and it is very compelling! Would highly recommend.

I'm quite enjoying this (up to episode 4) but I really didn't like the Gold and couldn't finish it. This is better though I keep expecting Steve Coogan to start doing impressions.

I worked with the author of the book who's a really lovely bloke IRL ( his wife too). There's a lot of artistic license in the telling of the story but the basics are true and the story is very well told. In the early 90s Customs officers did do UC work with no real training. They professionalised shortly thereafter. Definitely worth a watch Coogan and Burke were excellent.

Finished this and absolutely loved it. If it was a work of fiction we would all say it was too far fetched but often fact is stranger than fiction! Some things that happen in life wouldn’t be believed if they were written.

Also, is it wrong that I now have a slight crush on Steve Coogan? 😳 words I never thought I would type 😂

Never heard of Strike either so adding that to my list

Absolutely brilliant, finished it now.

Absolutely loving this. Hands down, after Slow Horses, possibly some of the best written tv I’ve seen in a very long time. Especially for Netflix which churns out so much tosh.

Does anyone else though just find Steve Coogan is basically Partridge in everything he does?!!! And is it bad that I’m starting to fancy the horrible Liverpool drug boss chap?!!!

When they had to call off the customs spot check 😳 tense tv.

But yes, excellent viewing and another great MN recommendation, thanks!

And yes agree the music is fabulous!

Best thing we’ve watched for a while now. Bloody brilliant!

Pretty much . No disrespect to Tom’s acting ability , love him but the characters share similarities . Nothing not to love there. Strike is one of those series I wait all year for . His relationship with his business partner Robin is a great sub plot . They are magic on screen together.

Really enjoyed it. Very informative.

The Gold is brilliant.

I’m just starting The Gold. Hoping I enjoy it as much as Legend!

I binged this at the weekend. I thought it was great. Off to find The Gold now this weekend. Thanks for the tip.

for anyone invested in The Gold, the Sky documentary on John Palmer is well worth a watch. It fills in the gaps post season 2.

Loved it. So interesting. Great soundtrack. Steve Coogan is hilarious and Tom Hughes is a dish even though his scouse accent was slightly dodgy.

Some info on filming locations

www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/tv/liverpool-locations-netflixs-legends-filmed-33921504?int_source=amp_continue_reading&int_medium=amp&int_campaign=continue_reading_button#amp-readmore-target

I think Hughes is miscast. While Eddie seems like he could snap and kill someone easily Carter looks daft with his hairdo and baby face. They should have chosen a harder looking character. Hughs looks more rom com than organised crime boss imo.

Tom Hughes who plays Carter is very easy on the eye. I thought he was younger. He’s 41!
He must have a picture in the attic!
I enjoyed it, I binge watched yesterday.

I thought the fact he looked younger played into people not taking him seriously.