upfront
Y GWYLL / HINTERLAND
S4C’s brand new cinematic drama Y Gwyll / Hinterland takes the brutal
coastal scenery of West Wales to a whole new level, with murder and
mystery abound. Rhodri Jones investigates what the show is all about.
S
taying in has never been so entertaining. When Badfinger suddenly
have the most downloaded song on iTunes and chunky knitted
sweaters become the latest must-have fashion wear, it’s hard to
doubt the power, and quality, of TV series such as Breaking Bad and
The Killing. While homegrown series of two episodes over consecutive nights
are still popular, they pale in comparison to the heavyweight productions from
America or continental Europe. But if Denmark can do it, why not Wales? And
it was with some excitement that it was announced that DR Denmark, the
company responsible for The Killing, had already bought the rights to a new
S4C series Y Gwyll / Hinterland.
The flurry of activity which greeted this news on Twitter does not guarantee
success for the Fiction Factory production, but the omens are good. Some
fine actors are involved. Richard Harrington, who has appeared previously in
programmes as different as Spooks and Lark Rise To Candleford, is a wonderful
actor and he has the brooding, dark edge that will surely suit his role as a
detective in this crime drama.
Harrington plays Tom Mathias, a renowned Metropolitan police officer who
is drafted in to help a smaller, provincial force. Alongside him is Mali Harries
who plays DI Mared Rhys, a diverse and able actress while Hannah Daniel, who
might well be a star in the making, also appears.
The actors are not the only characters however. Shot in the wild countryside
of Ceredigion, the landscape itself promises to be one of the protagonists. The
beautiful but rugged, and often isolated, landscape around Aberystwyth was
clearly central to creators Ed Talfan and Ed Thomas.
Thomas, who is also the programme’s executive producer, said that while they
originally thought of Aberystwyth as the location, they soon realised that the
hinterland around the coastal town, the mountains in particular, gave the series
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its identity.
Y Gwyll / Hinterland promises to be a gritty crime drama with the essential
ingredients required to support a sprawling eight one-hour episodes, to
be shown on Tuesday and Thursday nights on S4C. The double episode on
Sunday nights again suggests the ambition of this production. All episodes are
subtitled, while the series has been filmed in both Welsh and English, and will be
broadcast on BBC Cymru Wales and BBC Four in 2014.
Starting with S4C seems a shrewd move though. If the plot, characters and
script are strong enough, programmes such as Wallander and The Bridge
have shown that there is an audience willing to commit to a series of this type.
Indeed, it gives the viewing an added dimension, a strangeness and dislocation
which adds to the pleasure of the crime drama itself. That should also be apt for
a series that goes under the Welsh title, Y Gwyll, meaning darkness.
There is a school of thought which believes that the long drama series is the
closest television gets to the novel. This production certainly has that scope;
while Scandinavian crime drama has clearly enabled such a project to get off the
ground, Y Gwyll / Hinterland is strong enough and different enough to stand
on its own.
While the Ceredigion landscape is harsh, it is also striking. It will be interesting
to see what this series will do for that stunning piece of Welsh coastline as well
as the fortunes of S4C. For now however, there’s plenty of entertainment to
be had by going nowhere. Y Gwyll / Hinterland promises to be well worth
staying in for.
Y Gwyll / Hinterland, S4C, Tues 29 Oct, 9.30pm. Then every
Tues and Thurs. Double episode on Sunday nights. English
subtitles available on all transmissions.