MovieChat Forums > The Hanging Gale (1995) Discussion > Great BBC Drama

Great BBC Drama

posted 17 years ago by Throb3214
4 replies | jump to latest

Although slightly flawed- this is a well acted and emotionally wrought drama about the famine in Ireland that many with Irish ancestry will identify with.
I'm a Londoner with Liverpool background and Irish ancestry and this drew me to this serial when it was first aired on the BBC a decade ago.
Like the McGanns (who were passionate about the project and got it rolling) I wanted to know what brought my ancestors from Ireland to Liverpool. The potato famine saw many Irish either perish or have to leave and a lot of Liverpool-Irish people know the history as well as London-Irish.
Paul McGann is one of my favourite actors and his brothers are all good in this too. Aswell as Michael Kitchen and Sean McGinty.
It's episodic and it's truly engrossing.

[–] ocoileain1890 17 years ago

Absolutely powerful drama. Needs to be shown again as proper famine commemoration is lacking on the Island. Great performances, great music. A real little cult gem now as it seems to be largely forgotten!

[–] alitosca 15 years ago

Absolutely brilliant drama that hits you in the face with the horror & starvation of the famine. What a treat - all the McGann's and Michael Kitchen, as well as many other fine actors who became familiar to all of us in Ballykissangel. Very informative about the pressures leading to the Irish diaspora that helped to populate Australia. Only recently found out that Scotland also had a potato famine, which together with the Clearances led to the Scots diaspora (from whence my people came to Oz). Would love to see it again.

[–] 15 years ago

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[–] 15 years ago

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