DVD in US?
Does anyone know if this show will ever be available in the US?
shareI believe it aired on the cable station BBC America - BUT there is a new TV pilot being produced by Hugh Jackman's production company that will air on CBS, presumably this fall. Hugh is not only Wolverine in the X-Men movies but he also has a Tony Award on Broadway for Best Actor in a Musical for The Boy from Oz. It's being directed by the director of Will Smith's movie "The Pursuit of Happyness".
http://www.movieweb.com/tv/news/54/16854.php
CBS also has given a pilot order to the musical, Viva Laughlin! from Bob Lowry and Hugh Jackman.share
It's based on the BBC miniseries Viva Blackpool!, and described by The Hollywood Reporter as a rollicking musical about Ripley Holden and his family as they attempt to run a casino in Laughlin, Nevada. Jackman is not only executive producing, he's also set to guest star in the pilot and in other episodes.
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Don't know if it's on DVD but I know if you are in the US and have cable and get BBC America, it did air on there at one point. Plus there's clips on YouTube - www.youtube.com and put "blackpool" in the search engine.
Still no word on a US DVD for Blackpool. As far as I know, it was only released in the UK and Australia. Here's a link to the UK disc:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blackpool-David-Morrissey/dp/B0009WL922/ref=pd_bowtega_1/203-6588356-0699143?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1175098697&sr=1-1
There is a new UK disc coming out in May that includes the miniseries and it's sequel, Viva Blackpool (a confusing title since the original Blackpool was titled Viva Blackpool when it aired on BBC America but, rest assured, the "real" Viva Blackpool is a totally different program that runs about 90 minutes):
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blackpool-%2B-Viva-Disc-Set/dp/B000NTPGSE/ref=pd_bowtega_2/203-6588356-0699143?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1175098697&sr=1-2
So, if you have an all-region DVD player, you can buy one of the above discs but, if not, you've kind of screwed. Well, I won't be that harsh. There were US DVDs made for promotional purposes (not for sale) when it was nominated for an Emmy award. Those discs pop up on ebay fairly regularly, although they are edited (just like they were when they aired on BBC America) and seem to become expensive (anywhere from $20 to $40, last time I checked.)
Flynn
Yes the American versions were edited--they took out important scenes--not worth the price. I ordered the DVD from the UK. I just haven't ordered the multi-region DVD player yet. I think the later UK version described in this post doesn't have the Kenny Rogers version of the Gambler. I watched the original version on Youtube and loved it. I can't wait till I finally get my multi region DVD player so I can see all my UK David Tennant films:)
You're fearless when you recognize why you should be scared of things, but do them anyway--CB
It was released in the UK, and if you have a DVD player that will play Region 2 discs, you can order it via amazon.co.uk.
Compared to the hacked edits shown on BBC-A (where ten minutes are chopped out of each episode), it's worth seeing the originals. The only problem with the DVDs is that they had to re-record The Gambler (for licensing issues), and it's just not right when you hear someone other than Kenny Rogers singing that song. :)
I wonder if the 2005 edition--available on Ebay and used from Amazon.com.uk or is it Amazon.uk.com has the original Kenny Rogers song? anyone know? I have the 2007 edition but I have to get my region free DVD player.
shareNow I understand why Viva Laughlin wend so wrong. Despite being written by the same person, TPTB didn't understand why the UK version worked--Blackpool was not a "rollicking musical" it was a gritty story with some desparate folks and the city of Blackpool was not a sun-filled, Miami type setting as Laughlin seemed to create. Also, it's different if everyone is driving every where as opposed to walking or taking the bus.
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