Stars: John Simm, Emma Cunniffe, Mary Jo Randle, Robert Pughe, Clare Holman

Director: Bill Anderson

Summary: Danny Kavanagh moves from Liverpool's dole queues to work in a Lake District hotel and finds that it's not just the scenery that is pretty and available. When he falls in love and has to marry he still thinks that things could be worse. A tragedy, however, sees Danny as a scapegoat. Includes the complete first and second series.

Acknowledged as one of the best drama series of the Nineties', THE LAKES is the dark, bitter-sweet tale of Danny Kavanagh (JOHN SIMM) a typical inner-city wide-boy who leaves the grime and crime of Liverpool for the a (hopefully) better life in the Lake District. However, his attempts to fit in do not go down will with the locals, leading to tragic consequences.

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The Lakesbrought writer Jimmy McGovern and actor John Simm a great deal of critical praise in 1997. Following a particularly dry period for British TV drama, the show's realistic characterisations and their painfully honest decisions hit audiences hard. Simm is a twentysomething trapped in a life of compulsive gambling, theft and being on the dole in Liverpool. On a whim he heads north to the Lake District. He expects to find the countryside quietude where his hidden poetical leanings might find a home, but instead gets caught up in a community like any other. Lies, temptation and tragedy beset every household just as much as the big city.

The focus of Series 1 is Danny's relationship with Emma (Emma Cunniffe) and the consequences of having a child. As time races by, his link to the Lakes becomes an exercise in torment when the eyes of blame fall easily upon him after the accidental deaths of four schoolgirls. Stoking the flames of a series of secondary explosions in waiting are a pair of affairs, one adulterous, the other complicated by religion.

In the far longer sequel series that came two years later, these back-stories would come to the fore. Although exploring Danny's tortured soul might have been the obvious continuation, instead an almost Hitchcockian murder scenario occupies far more screen time. But by stretching things out, this second series does not have the same self-contained impact of the original. Additional writers only served to drag out Danny's boy-to-man journey. Ultimately, lessons are learned, including the realistic conclusion that life is without a poetical status quo. Despite the tail-off in overall quality, you'd be hard pressed to identify a better British drama in the years since.

On the DVD:The Lakescomplete series 1 and 2 box set comes with two separate commentary tracks for the very first episode. In interviews, John Simm fondly recalls how cold the lake water was and director David Blair recalls putting him in it. It's a shame the two weren't recorded together. It's also a shame that's all there is in this package. Even a few cast biographies would have been welcome. Picture is 4:3 and stereo sound is as you'd expect from 1990s UK TV. --Paul Tonks

Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 0
Special Features:	Commentaries
Year:	1994
Release Date:	October 6, 2003
Runtime:	612 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	2 N D V D 3059
Label:	B B C
Keywords:	First, Jimmy, General, Four, Series, Second, Tv, Drama, Lakes, Complete, Discs, Mcgovern
Genre:	Drama