''Lovejoy'' is a British television comedy-drama

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

series, based on the novels by John Grant under the pen name Jonathan Gash. The show, which ran to 71 episodes over six series, was originally broadcast on

BBC1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

between 10 January 1986 and 4 December 1994, although there was a five-year gap between the first and second series. It was adapted for television by

Ian La Frenais Ian La Frenais (born 7 January 1937) is an English writer best known for his creative partnership with Dick Clement. They are most famous for television series including ''The Likely Lads'', ''Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?'', ''Porridg ...

Overview

The series concerns the adventures of the eponymous Lovejoy, a roguish

antiques dealer An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...

based in East Anglia filmed around

Long Melford Long Melford, colloquially and historically also referred to as Melford, is a large village and civil parish in the Babergh district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It is on Suffolk's border with Essex, which is marked by the River Stour, ...

. Within the trade, he has a reputation as a "divvy", a person with almost unnatural powers of recognising exceptional items as well as distinguishing genuine antiques from fakes or forgeries.

Characters

* Lovejoy, played by

Ian McShane Ian David McShane (born 29 September 1942) is an English actor, producer and director. He is known for his television performances, particularly as the title role in the BBC series ''Lovejoy'' (1986–1994), Al Swearengen in '' Deadwood'' (20 ...

, a less than scrupulous yet likeable rogue antique dealer * Eric Catchpole, played by Chris Jury (series 1–5; guest, series 6), Lovejoy's younger, enthusiastic, but ever so slightly dim, assistant * Tinker Dill, played by Dudley Sutton, "barker" and tout who is friends with Lovejoy * Lady Jane Felsham, played by

Phyllis Logan Phyllis Logan (born 11 January 1956) is a Scottish actress, known for playing Lady Jane Felsham in ''Lovejoy'' (1986–1993) and Mrs Hughes (later Carson) in ''Downton Abbey'' (2010–2015). She won the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer f ...

(series 1–5; guest, series 6), has a friendly, flirtatious relationship with Lovejoy, often helping him with his deals * Charlie Gimbert, played by

Malcolm Tierney Malcolm Tierney (25 February 1938 – 18 February 2013) was an English actor who appeared in many film and television roles. Early life Tierney's father, Ernest, was a boilermaker and trained draughtsman, from Warrington, who worked at Blackpoo ...

(series 1, 4–5), Lovejoy's landlord and the owner of a local auction house, he is also Lovejoy's nemesis within the antiques trade * Beth Taylor, played by

Diane Parish Diane Parish (born 1 November 1969) is an English actress, who has been portraying the character Denise Fox on the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders'' since 2006 Born in Chelsea, London and a graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Pari ...

(series 5–6), Lovejoy's new apprentice following the departure of Eric Catchpole * Charlotte Cavendish, played by

Caroline Langrishe Caroline Langrishe (born 10 January 1958) is an English actress. Early life Born in London, Langrishe is the elder daughter of Patrick Nicholas Langrishe (1932–2022), of The Manor House, Sellindge, Kent, a Lieutenant in the 11th Hussars, late ...

(series 5–6), an auctioneer who becomes Lovejoy's love interest

Broadcast history

The series was notable for its style and pace. Lovejoy would frequently break the

fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...

, revealing his thoughts and motives by addressing the audience directly. The first series was shown on BBC1 in the first half of 1986. It concluded with a two-part special. Despite the first series being a moderate ratings success, ''Lovejoy'' was not brought back until January 1991. The original four cast members returned for the next two series between 1991 and 1992. With the start of the fourth series in 1993,

reprised his first series role as Charlie Gimbert. During the fifth series, several cast changes were made. Phyllis Logan left the show in the second episode and Chris Jury departed in the sixth episode, although both characters returned for the sixth series finale. Two new regular characters were added: Lovejoy's new apprentice, Beth Taylor, and Charlotte Cavendish, who ran a local antiques auction house. The sixth and final series of ten episodes was broadcast between October and December 1994. Two ninety-minute ''Lovejoy'' specials for Christmas were shown in 1992 and 1993. The theme tune used in the opening and end credits, as well as the incidental music for each episode, was composed by

Denis King Denis Andrew King (born 25 July 1939) is an English composer and singer. He is best remembered as a member of a family ensemble, The King Brothers. Early career: the King Brothers King was born in Hornchurch, Essex, England. He began his mus ...

Releases

In the United States, the series was first broadcast on the A&E Network. It was marketed as ''The Lovejoy Mysteries'' on VHS in the United States. The

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

release of the entire series has returned to the title of ''Lovejoy''.

References

External links

*
''Lovejoy''
at British TV Resources *
Filming locationsLovejoy TV show makes a comeback
{{Clement and La Frenais 1986 British television series debuts 1994 British television series endings 1980s British comedy-drama television series 1990s British comedy-drama television series 1980s British mystery television series 1990s British mystery television series BBC television dramas British crime television series English-language television shows Television shows based on British novels