Father Brown and The Hammer of God. Part Two (Warning-Spoilers)

In 2013, BBC One began airing episodes of a new television adaptation of Father Brown.  According to Wikipedia, these episodes are loosely inspired on G.K. Chesterton’s works, primarily using new stories written for the series.  The show was developed by writers  Rachel  Flowerday  and Tahsin Guner.  Actor Mark Williams portrays the title role.

Williams had been primarily known for playing Arthur Weasley in the Harry Potter films.  He also played Brian Williams in the BBC series Doctor Who, and Olaf Petersen in the British sci-fi comedy Red Dwarf.

In my opinion, Williams possesses the necessary roundness of face and body to portray Chesterton’s wily detective.   Williams as an actor is also totally believable as deceptively intelligent and shrewd, just like his character as written by Chesterton.  If he has any shortcomings, it is that he is…well…perhaps not short enough?  I pictured Father Brown as much shorter than Williams, who is about average height.

The production values of the 2013 BBC One tv series are leaps and bounds above what the 1974 ITV series adaptation of Father Brown was able to bring to the table back then.  The 1974 series would shift from realistic videotape for interior shots, to grainy film for exteriors.  This was apparently common practice for British tv shows in the 1970s, in order to save money.   I can recall watching early Doctor Who episodes on PBS from the 70s as a kid, where they did the same thing.  It was and is particularly disorienting and jarring to watch the transition from film to tv within a single episode.   This is not a problem in the 2013 series-everything is filmed the same way, interior and outdoor shots, for some much-appreciated consistency.

Another huge difference between the Father Brown short stories and the 1974 and 2013 tv versions is the time period and settings.  The short stories of Chesterton’s detective took place in the decades before and after World War I, and took Father Brown all around the globe-England, America, etc.  The 1974 series confined Father Brown to the United Kingdom in the 1920s.  The 2013 series confines Brown even more geographically, to the countryside region of the Cotswolds in South Central England, during the post-World War II 1950s.

This new 2013 series adds several regular characters to Father Brown’s usual acquaintances not seen in either the short stories or the 1974 series, including a parish secretary, housekeeper, and local socialite (all female.) 

The adaption of The Hammer of God for the BBC series strays quite a bit from the original short story and the 1974 version.  There’s a subplot involving blackmail, a homosexual relationship, and a key omission of a certain character’s religious faith.  There’s also an underground gambling circuit, a new sycophant character in place of Mad Joe, and an issue with an Anglican Church’s clock tower.  And there’s heaps more melodrama and action.

These new changes will appeal to modern audiences, no doubt.  If you are a fan of say, the BBC series Sherlock, you’ll probably prefer this new series.  If you would like to watch a series with more similarities to the original short stories by Chesterton, the 1974 series will appeal more to you.