Pilot

I loved this, sadly short lived series. There were some flaws, of course, Samantha Janus' wooden acting and the bad special effects in many episodes most notable of these, but this didn't ruin the show at all.

Ian Richardson was phenomenal as ever, and I was very impressed by Richard Coyle who almost (but not quite) stood up to Richardson in many a scene, acting wise.

A flawed, but well done, slightly comic series, that reminded one of the X-Files but didn't try to be the X-files, which was a good job in itself.

Strange, as a whole, doesn't really succeed in what I believe a quality BBC drama series should be. When I watched the pilot I got the impression that the budget was too small and the story concept was old and moldy. Nonetheless, I soldiered on through the six episodes that made up the series, and I have to say, by the fourth episode, I was hooked.

The writing is solid and only let down by the confines of the concept. Although I got the impression that the visuals were done on a shoestring I cannot say the same for the incidental music. It is orchestral and adds volumes to the suspense of the series. The characters develop well and the two main actors, Richard Coyle and Ian Richardson (well let's face it, anyone who's seen House Of Cards knows Ian Richardson is a joy to watch) give enjoyable performances. Samantha Janus contributes sex-appeal (obviously) but also a believable performance. And it's always good to see Tom Baker in a role.

Although Strange is flawed from the start there are enough good points to make this a very watchable series.

John Strange, a defrocked Priest is attempting to hunt down demons and discover The Devil (Azal,) Nurse Jude Atkins is accidentally drawn into his world after caring for a Priest, Reverend Rutt who in turn had been helping out Strange.

At last I have managed to track down a copy of this show, reading the right up it sounded so good, and I was not disappointed, a genre that has been sadly overlooked for so long. Thankfully Sea of Souls followed not that long after, and more recently we've had Midwinter of the Spirit. I'm so glad a full series followed, and I can't wait to see it.

When you have the gorgeous Samantha Womack, the handsome Richard Coyle, a villainous Ian Richardson, and a cracking script penned by 2.4 Children's creator Andrew Marshall, it was always going to be a winning combination.

8/10.

Strange was a much welcome relief amongst the dross of Saturday night game shows and lame reality TV. It was thought provoking, different and highly entertaining. It's sudden disappearance from our screens remains a mystery in itself, and even an email to the BBC failed to deliver an answer.

Hunting down supernatural beasties is not a new concept, but it was done in a fresh and unique way. The characters had back stories that were slowly drip fed into the series without distracting from the heart of the ghost chasing, unlike the X Files which let subplot complexities ruin the excitement of finding a paranormal explanation.

Seeing the delightful Richard Coyle in a role other than the freakish and sexually disturbed Jeff from Coupling was also refreshing, he certainly proved his talents in Strange. And Samantha Janus in a role that didn't make use of her as just eye candy also gave value for money. Tom Baker made some inspired cameos that harked back to him in his most camp yet genius years on Doctor Who.

If you wanted something that didn't rot your IQ from the moment the opening credits rolled because of its sheer banality, then Strange was the show to watch. I hope it returns. And I also hope it makes it onto DVD.

This series has just surfaced on BBC Canada. Wednesday nights are a bit of a wasteland, so we have been watching it. The stories appear to revolve around a defrocked priest who is on a demon watch in 21st. century England. The wonderful Ian Richardson is a rather mysterious churchman who pops in and out of the various episodes to confuse the viewer.

The special effects are rather cheesy and, quite often, one laughs rather than shivers in terror. However, it is always watchable.