ITV1 TONIGHT DRAMA _____"THE CHILDREN" with Kevin Whately &&& Lesley Sharp

[RTKangaMummy]

.Drama
The Children Monday 01 September
9:00pm - 10:00pm
ITV1 London
1/3
There are eerie echoes of the real-life murder of Billie-Jo Jenkins in Lucy Gannon's new three-part ITV1 thriller, when a child is found murdered on the patio of her family home and those that are supposed to care for her come under suspicion. But this is more than just a murder mystery. Gannon casts her net wide to look at how children can get lost in marital break-ups and how moving on to new loves can make adults selfish. Kevin Whately is a headmaster who's dumped his wife (Lesley Sharp) to move in with a younger woman (Geraldine Somerville) and her small daughter. But, caught between his mother's anger and his father's preoccupation with his new family, Whately's teenage son falls through the cracks. As you would expect with the accomplished Gannon at the helm, The Children is a taut, chilling, almost ruthlessly involving story. Told in flashback from the moment the child's body is found, the awfulness of the death is both horribly real and very visceral.

RT reviewer - Alison Graham
VIDEO Plus+: 3826
Subtitled, Widescreen, Audio-described
Cast
Cameron - Kevin Whately
Sue - Geraldine Somerville
Emily - Sinead Michael
Sheila - Francine Morgan
Mary - Georgia Henshaw
Jack - Freddie Boath
Anne - Lesley Sharp
Nicky - Rachael Elizabeth
Kelly - Amy Beth Hayes
Polly - Anna Madeley
Paul - Ian Puleston-Davies
Natasha - Kate Ashfield
Peter - Owen Teale
Becca - Sadhbha Bolger
PC Cardigan - Pascale Burgess
PC Rook - Simon Trinder
PC Yearsley - Karen Bryson
Primary teacher - Regina Freedman
Radio producer - Paul Ireland

how do we know she didnt just fall.
i reckon she tripped over the cat!

the baby sitter is dreadful

I missed tonights episode is it repeated

so (assuming it was murder rather than an accident), who do you reckon did it? My money's on Anne (Lesley Sharp).

I thinks its the babysitter too.

bet there will be a twist though.

also it was a made to look a bit creepy when the son was watching her dance. they focused on him looking her up and down not sure if it is meant to be a red herring tho.

i reckon she trips over the cat too

I was thinking it's her real Dad. But now I'm thinking the babysitter is a stronger contender.

I think the boy's crush is fairly harmless and has nothing to do with the girl's death. A red herring like magic says.
Although, I noticed that he apologises to her quite a lot for what he considers to be overstepping the mark. Maybe she catches him looking at her again and gets a bit hysterical, and he panics and pushes her.
Lesley Sharp is fantastic, a real villain, but I don't think it's her.

Actually, now thinking about it, it's more credible that it could be the boy.

I've been trying to find a spoiler but there aren't any. I'm impatient.

I feel so sorry for Jack. He seems to have been completely abandoned by his mother. He's only 14--still a child himself. I don't think he's doing anything too creepy.

A small technical grouse I have is that people keep telling he's a paedophile but he's underage.

I think it is the babysitter.
Jack is just lonely and desperate for affection,he has no sinister motive towards her I am sure.

The babysitter is really irresponsible, so it could be her. No doubt more clues will unfold in the final part.

Poor lad seems to be last on everyone's list. Not a cute baby or pretty eight-year old (though I think he's a lovely looking lad).

I think it's Cameron's secretary!!!!!
I think she (in her twisted/psycopath way) thinks that the little girl is causing him lots of problems and if she gets rid of her, his relationship will break down and she will be able to step in to console. Far fetched, twisted but plausible don't you think???

Yeah--secretary or babysitter.

OOh it could be the secretary, you may have something there!

I think it is tragic accident but the factors causing the suspicion makes them all complicit and guilty for the breakdown of the families.
So blame by the truckload but no actual crime

lesley sharp i think too. so far

oooo piffle, like in an inspector calls style? What about random psycho just to be a total cop out?

I haven't been watching this but have heard all about it from my Mum. I went to see her yesterday, and she was really outraged about a scene were some teenage girl was mimicking oral sex with a sausage in front of a young child. Did anyone else think this scene went too far? My Mum certainly did.

I can't really comment cos I haven't seen it but I told her it may have been filmed in such a way that the child wouldn't have actually been there, like by the camera just panning in on the teenage girl, so the other girl wouldn't have been needed etc.. My Mum said she hoped this was the case otherwise she would complain to the film-makers, as the young actress would have been too young to see something like that. Anyone care to comment so I can either reassure or further outrage my Mum!!

The sausage scene was most likely filmed in separate parts. The teenager with the sausage was always in shots on her own from what I can remember.

It wasn't anything really. Just a teenage girl messing about, like they do.

No real clues here

The Children Monday 15 September
9:00pm - 10:00pm
ITV1 London
As Emily's petulant demands and accusations continue, those who are most affected by her need for care and attention begin to find the strain unbearable. But while those looking after her are far from sympathetic, one has been pushed to breaking point. But who is it? And as none of the suspects has a decent alibi, will the truth be revealed?
VIDEO Plus+: 5844
Subtitled, Widescreen, Audio-described
Cast
Sinead Michael,Ian Puleston-Davies,Kate Ashfield,Andrew Brooke,Sarah Malin,Kevin Whately

I only just watched this and it is quite straneg. See what you mean about the Billie Jo thing ITV seem to be focusing on real incidents at the mo don't they?

They are making a Bill episode based on the killing of James Bulger too

That Emily is a little witch though... bloody good actress for a child

Does anyone know if this is repeated? I missed this week's!