Mad Dogs (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Mad Dogs is a four-part British
black comedy
and psychological thriller
television series created by Cris Cole that started broadcast on Sky1 on 10 February 2011. It was produced by Left Bank Pictures
, and co-produced by Palma Pictures. The series stars John Simm
, Marc Warren
, Max Beesley
and Philip Glenister
, with Ben Chaplin
and María Botto serving as additional cast. It follows four long-time, middle-aged friends getting together in a villa
in Majorca to celebrate the early retirement of Alvo, a fifth friend. However, the group find themselves caught up in the world of crime
and police corruption
after Alvo is murdered.
The series was initially a story about a rock band
, but changed after feeling bands have been "done to death." After gaining interest from some terrestrial networks, the series was commissioned by British Sky Broadcasting
. Filming took place on location throughout the island of Majorca starting May 2010, and took around four million euro
s and 44 days to make. The main themes towards the series is about friendship and growing older, while Glenister added it is about ageing and "getting closer to death." Photographer David LaChapelle
directed three 30-second advertisements for the series. Mad Dogs opened with 1.61 million viewers, which became the 17th highest rated programme ever for Sky1, and attracted generally positive reactions from critics. They noted similarities with British gangster films, more predominantly the 2000 film Sexy Beast
. A second series is in development for release in 2012.
, now in their 40s and a mix of single, married and divorced. They have been invited by a fifth friend, Alvo, to his villa in Majorca to celebrate his early retirement, having made his fortune in property. However, their holiday soon turns into a "labyrinthine nightmare of lies, deception and murder."
The primary theme for the series is friendship and "growing older." Philip Glenister elaborated, saying it is not about "a group of blokes hitting their 40s and having a jolly-up. That would have been boring," but "an undercurrent of something a bit darker," and "about reaching a stage in life, looking at what you've achieved and where you go next. It's about how normal people deal with a certain situation and how they can implode." Essentially, it is about ageing and "getting closer to death."
, but decided that making programmes about bands have been "done to death." To write the series, Cole was influenced by the works of David Lynch
and the Coen brothers
as inspiration to the kind of storytelling that is "never quite what you think it is going to be."
The series initially gained interest from major terrestrial networks such as the BBC
and ITV
. However, Max Beesley and Philip Glenister grew frustrated with the comments from the commissioning teams from the networks. Glenister stated "the problem with the BBC and ITV is more people coming in and telling you what to do. We are grown up and big enough to know where the boundaries are." They ultimately settled for Sky
, as the network was "the one that we believed would let us do what we wanted." Head of Sky Drama Elaine Pyke had an immediate interest in the project, as she was "immediately grabbed by how thrilling, scary and funny it is," believing it to be "the perfect show for Sky1." In a separate interview, Beesley stated "Andy [Harries] basically put the show out to a few of the networks and Sky said 'Bang! Here's the money, go and make it and we'll give you notes later on, but really do have the freedom to make it,' which is great, and there's not a lot of that happens nowadays."
Mad Dogs was commissioned as a four-part series by Pyke, with the official announcement made in May 2010. Cole wrote the episodes. It was produced by Left Bank Pictures
, the same production company responsible for other series including BBC One
's Wallander and Sky1's Strike Back
. It continues Sky's commitment to investing in new dramas with all-star casts. The series sees the return of John Simm and Philip Glenister, who previously worked together on the BBC One series Life on Mars
. A casting note once went awry when "Tony Blair" (the armed man in a Tony Blair mask) was misspelled as "Tiny Blair"; as a result six dwarf
s auditioned for the part, and one of them ended up being cast in the role. Filming began in May 2010, and took place on location in Majorca, over a period of 44 days. The series was budgeted at an estimated four million euro
s, with a further €150,000 grant from the Mallorcan Tourism Foundation, who hoped the series would promote Majorca, and was co-produced by Palma Pictures. In one scene, Glenister refused to go nude to shoot the four running to a swimming pool
, citing his age. Half the filming crew were locals. Beesley noted that the Spanish crew were "fantastic," and joked the cast and British crew were given some half-days because of local involvement.
Plans were underway for a second series as early as January 2011. Citing ratings success for the first series, Sky officially renewed Mad Dogs for a second of four episodes, which would also be written by Cris Cole. Beesley, Glenister, Simm and Warren would reprise their roles, with filming taking place over Summer 2011, and released by early 2012. Later in November 2011, a third series was announced. There were also talks of a spin off series, Mad Cats, featuring a female cast.
Three 30-second films were produced to be used as on-air promotions for the programme on all Sky channels and selected third-party channels. The promotions starred the cast, directed by David LaChapelle
and shot on location in Majorca. Print, outdoor and online promotions were also made. Executive creative director Clare McDonald was impressed by LaChapelle's work because the adverts were "staying true to our vision." Television promotions were first broadcast on Sky1 on 11 January 2011. On 28 January, a preview of the first two episode were screened at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts
(BAFTA) event in London
. This was followed by a questions and answers session by Marc Warren, Cris Cole, Suzanne Mackie and Adrian Shergold.
on BBC Three
, which was seen by 1.061 million. The consolidated ratings for the first episode raised to 1.61 million viewers, which made the episode the second largest multichannel audience in its week, behind an episode of Glee
on E4. It also became the 17th highest rated programme ever for Sky1. The second episode went down slightly to 802,000 viewers, and a 3.1 per cent share. The third episode dropped further to 691,000, and a 2.8 per cent audience share. The finale episode gained in viewership to 938,000, and a 3.9 per cent audience share.
reacted positively towards the series, stating "episode one was enjoyably sinister. It was also, once or twice, quite amusing, in (of course) a blokey way." Deacon liked the beginning of the pilot where the main characters record a video message, stating "this is what Mad Dogs did well – like any competent suspense thriller, it made you ask questions throughout. The episode bubbled with foreboding, right up to the cliffhanger." Deacon also noted at the cliffhanger that "the most disturbing sight wasn't the shower of blood but the gunman's rubber mask, which was of a grinning Tony Blair." John Crace of The Guardian
however, was more mixed, starting "after unsuccessfully fobbing us off with endless series of Ross Kemp looking macho, Sky is now throwing serious money at getting viewers to watch something other than sport." Crace was critical of the set up of the episode, stating "I'm all for allowing a drama time to breathe but we didn't really need a whole hour just to establish that Alvo was a bit dodgy and that the four others had complications in their lives. Rather than building menace, the snail-like pace dissipated it," However, he reacted positively towards the end, as "things did eventually look up," adding "there's hope for Mad Dogs yet."
Jane Simon of the Daily Mirror believed the "setting and the gangsterish plot are both reminiscent of that great British movie Sexy Beast
, and this first instalment of the four part series presses all the right buttons," adding "it has naturalistic performances, an effortless blend of comedy and sinister undertones plus rather more shots of Marc Warren's bum cheeks than might be considered absolutely necessary." Ben Walsh of The Independent
rated the series three stars out of five, having written "there's far too much exposition, a very daft plot, some risible dialogue and yet Sky's ripe four-parter is horribly compelling," and added "it's extremely silly, but Simm and Glenister are always compelling and they make this gamey tale of gangsters, police corruption and 'friendship' work." Reviewing the first two episode, The Stage
believed the first was "a slow-burning exploration" and "all very intriguing and disturbing, with a great performance by Chaplin as the smilingly psychotic host." However, the reviewer criticised the death of Alvo, as he was considered the most "compelling character" and since "sent the plot line spinning off into less original territory," adding the producers took ideas from crime capers such as Sexy Beast and Shallow Grave
. However, the reviewer added "what Mad Dogs lacks in originality it makes up for in energy, verve and humour. The dialogue positively crackles with great lines." In the end, the reviewer stated that Mad Dogs "may be an unapologetic crowd pleaser, but it is a finely made one, with excellent performances from a dream cast. It also offers the only opportunity I have of seeing blue skies, azure waters and sunshine in February, so I am in for the duration."
Ryan Lambie of Den of Geek said of the first episode; "In terms of writing and acting, Mad Dogs is good, but not perfect, and much of its knock-about banter is uncannily like any Brit gangster flick you've ever seen," like "Sexy Beast: the series." However Lambie noted "when events push its premise from naff lads' drama into exotic thriller, Mad Dogs gets infinitely better, and if nothing else, it keeps you guessing. As the series progressed, Lambie noted that Mad Dogs was "developing into a nifty TV thriller with an engaging sense of the absurd. Writer, Cris Cole, enjoys picking holes in his characters' machismo as the tension mounts, and the strange billboard posters dotted all over the sun-scorched island, which say "Yenda a ninguna parte," ("Going nowhere") are perhaps a foreshadowing of their imminent fate." However, Lambie was disappointed at the ending for being "unexpectedly flat," adding "the major plot twist that the previous three-or-so hours appeared to allude to never arrives, [...] I couldn't help but feel that, as the closing credits rolled on the whole saga, the tension and intrigue that had gradually built up in previous weeks had been allowed to slip away.
and Blu-ray Disc
in the United Kingdom
on 7 March 2011.
but lost out to the Channel 4
series Any Human Heart
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
black comedy
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
and psychological thriller
Psychological thriller
Psychological thriller is a specific sub-genre of the broad ranged thriller with heavy focus on characters. However, it often incorporates elements from the mystery and drama genre, along with the typical traits of the thriller genre...
television series created by Cris Cole that started broadcast on Sky1 on 10 February 2011. It was produced by Left Bank Pictures
Left Bank Pictures
Left Bank Pictures is an English film and television production company. It was formed in 2007 by Andy Harries, formerly controller of drama, comedy and film at Granada Productions, and Francis Hopkinson and Marigo Kehoe...
, and co-produced by Palma Pictures. The series stars John Simm
John Simm
John Simm is an English stage and screen actor. In recent years he is best known for his roles as Sam Tyler in the detective drama Life on Mars and as The Master in the revival of the science fiction series Doctor Who, but he has also starred in many highly acclaimed award-winning television...
, Marc Warren
Marc Warren
Marc Warren is an English actor, known for his British television roles as Danny Blue in Hustle, Dougie Raymond in The Vice and Dominic Foy in State of Play.-Career:...
, Max Beesley
Max Beesley
Maxton Gig Beesley Jr. , known simply as Max Beesley, is an English actor and musician.Beesley rose to fame for his role of Andy Simpson in Every Woman, Every Man from 1993 to 1998, and has since appeared in a variety of television shows including Bodies, Hotel Babylon, London Ink, Survivors and...
and Philip Glenister
Philip Glenister
Philip Haywood Glenister is an English actor, known for his role as DCI Gene Hunt in British television series Life On Mars and its sequel Ashes To Ashes.-Television and films:...
, with Ben Chaplin
Ben Chaplin
Ben Chaplin , is an English actor.-Early life:Chaplin, the youngest of four children, was born in London, the son of Cynthia , a drama teacher, and Peter Greenwood, an engineer. He took his stage name after his mother's maiden name. He was raised in Windsor, Berkshire, England and attended Hurtwood...
and María Botto serving as additional cast. It follows four long-time, middle-aged friends getting together in a villa
Villa
A villa was originally an ancient Roman upper-class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became small farming compounds, which were increasingly fortified in Late Antiquity,...
in Majorca to celebrate the early retirement of Alvo, a fifth friend. However, the group find themselves caught up in the world of crime
Crime
Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
and police corruption
Police corruption
Police corruption is a specific form of police misconduct designed to obtain financial benefits, other personal gain, or career advancement for a police officer or officers in exchange for not pursuing, or selectively pursuing, an investigation or arrest....
after Alvo is murdered.
The series was initially a story about a rock band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
, but changed after feeling bands have been "done to death." After gaining interest from some terrestrial networks, the series was commissioned by British Sky Broadcasting
British Sky Broadcasting
British Sky Broadcasting Group plc is a satellite broadcasting, broadband and telephony services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom, with operations in the United Kingdom and the Ireland....
. Filming took place on location throughout the island of Majorca starting May 2010, and took around four million euro
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
s and 44 days to make. The main themes towards the series is about friendship and growing older, while Glenister added it is about ageing and "getting closer to death." Photographer David LaChapelle
David LaChapelle
David LaChapelle is a photographer and director who works in the fields of fashion, advertising, and fine art photography, and is noted for his surreal, unique, sexualized, and often humorous style.-Early life:...
directed three 30-second advertisements for the series. Mad Dogs opened with 1.61 million viewers, which became the 17th highest rated programme ever for Sky1, and attracted generally positive reactions from critics. They noted similarities with British gangster films, more predominantly the 2000 film Sexy Beast
Sexy Beast
Sexy Beast is a 2000 British-Spanish crime drama film directed by Jonathan Glazer and starring Ray Winstone, Ben Kingsley, and Ian McShane. Produced by Jeremy Thomas, it was Glazer's debut feature film, who had previously been a music video director for videos such as Rabbit in Your Headlights for...
. A second series is in development for release in 2012.
Series overview and themes
Mad Dogs centres on a reunion of four friends who have known each other since sixth formSixth form
In the education systems of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and of Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, Jamaica and Malta, the sixth form is the final two years of secondary education, where students, usually sixteen to eighteen years of age,...
, now in their 40s and a mix of single, married and divorced. They have been invited by a fifth friend, Alvo, to his villa in Majorca to celebrate his early retirement, having made his fortune in property. However, their holiday soon turns into a "labyrinthine nightmare of lies, deception and murder."
The primary theme for the series is friendship and "growing older." Philip Glenister elaborated, saying it is not about "a group of blokes hitting their 40s and having a jolly-up. That would have been boring," but "an undercurrent of something a bit darker," and "about reaching a stage in life, looking at what you've achieved and where you go next. It's about how normal people deal with a certain situation and how they can implode." Essentially, it is about ageing and "getting closer to death."
Cast
- John SimmJohn SimmJohn Simm is an English stage and screen actor. In recent years he is best known for his roles as Sam Tyler in the detective drama Life on Mars and as The Master in the revival of the science fiction series Doctor Who, but he has also starred in many highly acclaimed award-winning television...
as Baxter - Marc WarrenMarc WarrenMarc Warren is an English actor, known for his British television roles as Danny Blue in Hustle, Dougie Raymond in The Vice and Dominic Foy in State of Play.-Career:...
as Rick - Max BeesleyMax BeesleyMaxton Gig Beesley Jr. , known simply as Max Beesley, is an English actor and musician.Beesley rose to fame for his role of Andy Simpson in Every Woman, Every Man from 1993 to 1998, and has since appeared in a variety of television shows including Bodies, Hotel Babylon, London Ink, Survivors and...
as Woody - Philip GlenisterPhilip GlenisterPhilip Haywood Glenister is an English actor, known for his role as DCI Gene Hunt in British television series Life On Mars and its sequel Ashes To Ashes.-Television and films:...
as Quinn - Ben ChaplinBen ChaplinBen Chaplin , is an English actor.-Early life:Chaplin, the youngest of four children, was born in London, the son of Cynthia , a drama teacher, and Peter Greenwood, an engineer. He took his stage name after his mother's maiden name. He was raised in Windsor, Berkshire, England and attended Hurtwood...
as Alvo - María Botto as María
- Tomás Pozzi as 'Tiny Blair'
- Eloise Joseph as Lottie
- Tim WoodwardTim Woodward-Biography:Woodward was born in London, England, the son of actors Edward Woodward and Venetia Mary Barrett.He is probably best known for his roles in the 1970s BBC drama Wings, the 1990s ITV soap opera Families and the 2000s ITV police drama Murder City...
as Dominic
Production
The idea behind Mad Dogs came from the friendship between the four main actors, who wanted to work together for a television project, as well as Cris Cole and executive producer Suzanne Mackie. The four initially wanted to make a story about a rock bandRock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
, but decided that making programmes about bands have been "done to death." To write the series, Cole was influenced by the works of David Lynch
David Lynch
David Keith Lynch is an American filmmaker, television director, visual artist, musician and occasional actor. Known for his surrealist films, he has developed his own unique cinematic style, which has been dubbed "Lynchian", and which is characterized by its dream imagery and meticulous sound...
and the Coen brothers
Coen Brothers
Joel David Coen and Ethan Jesse Coen known together professionally as the Coen brothers, are American filmmakers...
as inspiration to the kind of storytelling that is "never quite what you think it is going to be."
The series initially gained interest from major terrestrial networks such as the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
. However, Max Beesley and Philip Glenister grew frustrated with the comments from the commissioning teams from the networks. Glenister stated "the problem with the BBC and ITV is more people coming in and telling you what to do. We are grown up and big enough to know where the boundaries are." They ultimately settled for Sky
British Sky Broadcasting
British Sky Broadcasting Group plc is a satellite broadcasting, broadband and telephony services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom, with operations in the United Kingdom and the Ireland....
, as the network was "the one that we believed would let us do what we wanted." Head of Sky Drama Elaine Pyke had an immediate interest in the project, as she was "immediately grabbed by how thrilling, scary and funny it is," believing it to be "the perfect show for Sky1." In a separate interview, Beesley stated "Andy [Harries] basically put the show out to a few of the networks and Sky said 'Bang! Here's the money, go and make it and we'll give you notes later on, but really do have the freedom to make it,' which is great, and there's not a lot of that happens nowadays."
Mad Dogs was commissioned as a four-part series by Pyke, with the official announcement made in May 2010. Cole wrote the episodes. It was produced by Left Bank Pictures
Left Bank Pictures
Left Bank Pictures is an English film and television production company. It was formed in 2007 by Andy Harries, formerly controller of drama, comedy and film at Granada Productions, and Francis Hopkinson and Marigo Kehoe...
, the same production company responsible for other series including BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
's Wallander and Sky1's Strike Back
Strike Back (TV series)
Chris Ryan's Strike Back is a six-part British television series based on the novel of the same name written by best-selling author and former soldier of the Special Air Service, Chris Ryan. It was produced by Left Bank Pictures for Sky1...
. It continues Sky's commitment to investing in new dramas with all-star casts. The series sees the return of John Simm and Philip Glenister, who previously worked together on the BBC One series Life on Mars
Life on Mars (TV series)
Life on Mars is a British television series broadcast on BBC One between January 2006 and April 2007. The series combines elements of science fiction and police procedural....
. A casting note once went awry when "Tony Blair" (the armed man in a Tony Blair mask) was misspelled as "Tiny Blair"; as a result six dwarf
Dwarfism
Dwarfism is short stature resulting from a medical condition. It is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than 4 feet 10 inches , although this definition is problematic because short stature in itself is not a disorder....
s auditioned for the part, and one of them ended up being cast in the role. Filming began in May 2010, and took place on location in Majorca, over a period of 44 days. The series was budgeted at an estimated four million euro
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
s, with a further €150,000 grant from the Mallorcan Tourism Foundation, who hoped the series would promote Majorca, and was co-produced by Palma Pictures. In one scene, Glenister refused to go nude to shoot the four running to a swimming pool
Swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest is the Olympic-size swimming pool...
, citing his age. Half the filming crew were locals. Beesley noted that the Spanish crew were "fantastic," and joked the cast and British crew were given some half-days because of local involvement.
Plans were underway for a second series as early as January 2011. Citing ratings success for the first series, Sky officially renewed Mad Dogs for a second of four episodes, which would also be written by Cris Cole. Beesley, Glenister, Simm and Warren would reprise their roles, with filming taking place over Summer 2011, and released by early 2012. Later in November 2011, a third series was announced. There were also talks of a spin off series, Mad Cats, featuring a female cast.
Promotion
David LaChapelle
David LaChapelle is a photographer and director who works in the fields of fashion, advertising, and fine art photography, and is noted for his surreal, unique, sexualized, and often humorous style.-Early life:...
and shot on location in Majorca. Print, outdoor and online promotions were also made. Executive creative director Clare McDonald was impressed by LaChapelle's work because the adverts were "staying true to our vision." Television promotions were first broadcast on Sky1 on 11 January 2011. On 28 January, a preview of the first two episode were screened at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts
British Academy of Film and Television Arts
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
(BAFTA) event in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. This was followed by a questions and answers session by Marc Warren, Cris Cole, Suzanne Mackie and Adrian Shergold.
Broadcast and ratings
Scheduling of the series has been changed over the course of its development. The first announcement of the series in May 2010 stated it would be broadcast during the spring 2011, but by August it was announced it would be moved up to the autumn schedule, before it was ultimately settled to broadcast in February 2011. The series premiere received overnight ratings of 967,000 viewers and a 4 per cent audience share. It became the second largest multichannel audience of the night, behind a repeat of EastEndersEastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
on BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
, which was seen by 1.061 million. The consolidated ratings for the first episode raised to 1.61 million viewers, which made the episode the second largest multichannel audience in its week, behind an episode of Glee
Glee (TV series)
Glee is an American musical comedy-drama television series that airs on Fox in the United States, and on GlobalTV in Canada. It focuses on the high school glee club New Directions competing on the show choir competition circuit, while its members deal with relationships, sexuality and social issues...
on E4. It also became the 17th highest rated programme ever for Sky1. The second episode went down slightly to 802,000 viewers, and a 3.1 per cent share. The third episode dropped further to 691,000, and a 2.8 per cent audience share. The finale episode gained in viewership to 938,000, and a 3.9 per cent audience share.
Critical reception
Michael Deacon of The Daily TelegraphThe Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
reacted positively towards the series, stating "episode one was enjoyably sinister. It was also, once or twice, quite amusing, in (of course) a blokey way." Deacon liked the beginning of the pilot where the main characters record a video message, stating "this is what Mad Dogs did well – like any competent suspense thriller, it made you ask questions throughout. The episode bubbled with foreboding, right up to the cliffhanger." Deacon also noted at the cliffhanger that "the most disturbing sight wasn't the shower of blood but the gunman's rubber mask, which was of a grinning Tony Blair." John Crace of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
however, was more mixed, starting "after unsuccessfully fobbing us off with endless series of Ross Kemp looking macho, Sky is now throwing serious money at getting viewers to watch something other than sport." Crace was critical of the set up of the episode, stating "I'm all for allowing a drama time to breathe but we didn't really need a whole hour just to establish that Alvo was a bit dodgy and that the four others had complications in their lives. Rather than building menace, the snail-like pace dissipated it," However, he reacted positively towards the end, as "things did eventually look up," adding "there's hope for Mad Dogs yet."
Jane Simon of the Daily Mirror believed the "setting and the gangsterish plot are both reminiscent of that great British movie Sexy Beast
Sexy Beast
Sexy Beast is a 2000 British-Spanish crime drama film directed by Jonathan Glazer and starring Ray Winstone, Ben Kingsley, and Ian McShane. Produced by Jeremy Thomas, it was Glazer's debut feature film, who had previously been a music video director for videos such as Rabbit in Your Headlights for...
, and this first instalment of the four part series presses all the right buttons," adding "it has naturalistic performances, an effortless blend of comedy and sinister undertones plus rather more shots of Marc Warren's bum cheeks than might be considered absolutely necessary." Ben Walsh of The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
rated the series three stars out of five, having written "there's far too much exposition, a very daft plot, some risible dialogue and yet Sky's ripe four-parter is horribly compelling," and added "it's extremely silly, but Simm and Glenister are always compelling and they make this gamey tale of gangsters, police corruption and 'friendship' work." Reviewing the first two episode, The Stage
The Stage
The Stage is a weekly British newspaper founded in 1880, available nationally and published on Thursdays. Covering all areas of the entertainment industry but focused primarily on theatre, it contains news, reviews, opinion, features and other items of interest, mainly to those who work within the...
believed the first was "a slow-burning exploration" and "all very intriguing and disturbing, with a great performance by Chaplin as the smilingly psychotic host." However, the reviewer criticised the death of Alvo, as he was considered the most "compelling character" and since "sent the plot line spinning off into less original territory," adding the producers took ideas from crime capers such as Sexy Beast and Shallow Grave
Shallow Grave
-Track listing:# Leftfield – "Shallow Grave" – 4:38# Simon Boswell – "Shallow Grave Theme" – 3:30# Nina Simone – "My Baby Just Cares for Me" – 3:38# Simon Boswell – "Laugh Riot" – 3:02# Leftfield – "Release the Dubs" – 5:45...
. However, the reviewer added "what Mad Dogs lacks in originality it makes up for in energy, verve and humour. The dialogue positively crackles with great lines." In the end, the reviewer stated that Mad Dogs "may be an unapologetic crowd pleaser, but it is a finely made one, with excellent performances from a dream cast. It also offers the only opportunity I have of seeing blue skies, azure waters and sunshine in February, so I am in for the duration."
Ryan Lambie of Den of Geek said of the first episode; "In terms of writing and acting, Mad Dogs is good, but not perfect, and much of its knock-about banter is uncannily like any Brit gangster flick you've ever seen," like "Sexy Beast: the series." However Lambie noted "when events push its premise from naff lads' drama into exotic thriller, Mad Dogs gets infinitely better, and if nothing else, it keeps you guessing. As the series progressed, Lambie noted that Mad Dogs was "developing into a nifty TV thriller with an engaging sense of the absurd. Writer, Cris Cole, enjoys picking holes in his characters' machismo as the tension mounts, and the strange billboard posters dotted all over the sun-scorched island, which say "Yenda a ninguna parte," ("Going nowhere") are perhaps a foreshadowing of their imminent fate." However, Lambie was disappointed at the ending for being "unexpectedly flat," adding "the major plot twist that the previous three-or-so hours appeared to allude to never arrives, [...] I couldn't help but feel that, as the closing credits rolled on the whole saga, the tension and intrigue that had gradually built up in previous weeks had been allowed to slip away.
Home media release
The series was released on DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
and Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on 7 March 2011.
Award nomination
Mad Dogs was nominated for the British Academy Television Award for Best Serial Drama at the 2011 ceremonyBritish Academy Television Awards 2011
The 2011 British Academy Television Awards were held on 22 May 2011. The nominations were announced on 26 April.Graham Norton hosted the ceremony.-Nominations:*Actor**Jim Broadbent — Any Human Heart...
but lost out to the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
series Any Human Heart
Any Human Heart (TV series)
Any Human Heart is a 2010 BAFTA award–winning TV adaptation of the novel Any Human Heart by William Boyd. It was announced in April 2010 and broadcast in four parts from 21 November to 12 December 2010 on Channel 4 in the UK and in three parts during February 2011 on the PBS series Masterpiece in...
.
Episodes
| # | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (million) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
External links
- Mad Dogs at Sky1