Kingdom

AVERAGE VIEWER RATING:

Episode Guide

Series One

Go to Series two

Episode 1/6

Solicitor Peter Kingdom collects his brother Simon's effects from the police station. Simon's clothes were found on the beach and it appears he went into the water and never returned. At work, Peter puts on a brave face. A local woman's estate is to be divided up following her untimely death in a jacuzzi with a male escort. Out of the blue, Peter's younger half-sister Beatrice (Hermione Norris) arrives, having discharged herself from rehab.

RT Choice (David Butcher, 22 April 2007)

[Peter Kingdom] is a thoroughly nice chap. Which makes him a peculiar character to put at the centre of a TV drama - no fatal flaw, no grumpy exterior, no breaking the rules.
This is the stuff of stolid sidekicks, not leading roles. But what Kingdom does have at least is a personal trauma to nurse: his brother has disappeared in mysterious circumstances and may or may not be dead. That, along with the fact that Kingdom is brought to us in the lovable shape and voice of Steohen Fry, is enough to make this series intriguingly watchable.
The plot of the week is, frankly, feeble and the lectures about emotional shells and underestimating our siblings feel tired. But with a glorious setting (the Norfolk Tourist Board must be cock-a-hoop) and just enough mystery to pique our interest, this is Sunday-night telly at its cosiest.
Episode 2/6

A distressed young Eastern European woman accuses local farmer Jack Thriplow of stealing her baby, but there's far more to the case than first meets the eye. Meanwhile, Beatrice is causing havoc, attaching sticky labels to every object in sight, and shredding important documents. As the town prepares for the 127th Annual Dyke Leaping Championships, Peter delves further into his brother's mysterious death and spots a shadowy figure watching Simon's house.

RT Choice (David Butcher, 29 April 2007)

Flimsy misunderstandings. Very gentle slapstick. The mildest of deceptions. Such are the gambits of the Sunday-night drama and Kingdom uses them with shameless abandon. Little splashes of plinkety music remind us how quirky and humorous [it all is], but it can't make up for the preciousness of the script. As troubled sibling Beatrice, Hermione Norris does her best with a part so underwritten it's almost a mime.
Episode 3/6

When an explosion sinks their trawler, fisherman Tom Case and his son narrowly escape with their lives. The insurance company refuses to pay out and it looks like a saboteur may have been a work. Beatrice pursues attractive local painter Alan McEwan (Paul Kaye) by signing up as a model for his life drawing class. Suddenly, half the population wants to study art. Meanwhile, Christopher Waller's parents have mysteriously come into some money.

RT Choice (Alison Graham, 6 May 2007)

More than eight million people tuned in to the first episode of this picturesque, soft-centred and diaphanous drama, obviously lured by the presence of the blessed Stephen Fry as a sweet-natured country solicitor.
Nothing happens in Kingdom; it just potters along. Fry variously looks bemused, kindly or quizzical, as he's confronted by his deeply irritating sister (Hermione Norris) and locals in a spot of bother. [In this episode], a fisherman's boat blows up, the insurance company won't pay out and there's a bit of fun when Kingdom's cheeky sidekick does comical things in a pair of diver's flippers. And that's about it.
Episode 4/6

The office is in chaos: Gloria hasn't turned up for work, Beatrice is plotting to win Alan back, and there's a rogue squirrel in the attic. Meanwhile, Peter's reunited with his university tutor Professor Geoffrey Barkway (Richard Wilson) after Barkway is accused of discriminating against a prospective undergraduate. Back in Market Shipborough, Peter enlists the help of Gloria's wayward son Scott in trying to trace Simon's body.
Episode 5/6

With Gloria off sick, Beatrice does a surprisingly good job of manning the phones, and even Snell lends a hand. Meanwhile, Lyle is helping Herb Griffiths to lease a nearby field for his prize racehorse, and the whole town has gone gambling mad. Peter's determined to reconcile client Mrs Collins with her husband, whom she has just discovered is a cross-dresser - but he also has to deal with the return of sinister debt collector Hill.

RT Choice (Alison Graham, 20 May 2007)

Can something be excruciatingly gentle, I wonder? Let's say, yes, it can, and apply the description to Kingdom. There's absolutely nothing to take offence at here. It looks lovely, it stars Stephen Fry and, in every episode, everyone learns something.
[In this episode], for instance, we find out that gypsies aren't necessarily tramps and thieves, and transvestites have feelings. Which is all well and good, but we need something else. A decent script, perhaps. But why bother when you can switch to pointless aerial shots of beautiful coastline, have a predictable "comedy" moment with a valuable vase and spend the rest of the time just pottering around.
Episode 6/6

Lyle is feeling undervalued so Peter decides to give him some more responsibility, handing him the case of an old Polish man (Joss Ackland) facing eviction from his home. Beatrice insists on trying to bond with an uncomfortable Gloria over various "fun" activities. A dream about a local legend sends Sidney Snell on an adventure. And as Peter prepares to judge the rudest vegetable contest for the Harvest Festival, Hill arrives with some troubling news.