Screen One (TV Series) Tender Loving Care (1993) User Reviews

Oooooh Dawn, you're good!!!

[Sleepin_Dragon · 9/10 · 24 August 2020]

I am amazed that The BBC has never decided to release their Screen one and two dramas, most of them are terrific, the most memorable being Tender Loving Care.

I was lucky enough to get hold of a copy, the physical copy may not be brilliant, but the quality of production even now is terrific.

Death on The Nile is on the horizon, and I've read a few remarks about people sceptical about Dawn's ability to act straight, I wish people could access this to see just how utterly incredible she is, she is an angelic monster in this, her character is so incredibly complex, you could write a chapter about her alone.

It's still powerful, and equally unnerving, please BBC get your act together, and make these dramas available for us all to watch and love, this series was superb. You'd think time would have diminished it, it hasn't. 9/10.

It's been a while... can't remember the specifics

[nightjourney90210 · 20 September 2004]

I watched this on telly when it was originally shown. I don't think it has been shown since. Therefore these comments are based on what stuck in my mind from way back in 1993.

Dawn French is known for her comedy roles so this was a change of scene for her as it was for Joan Sims of "Carry On" fame. This is a serious and moving piece with both these actresses delivering a startlingly weighty performance. It stuck in my mind that when Sims died a number of years after this was made her role here was not among her tributes though it would have been a fitting memorial, the way it highlighted her dramatic range. As it did for Dawn French. This came out after the movie version of Stephen King's "Misery" received critical acclaim with its similar themes. Kathy Bates, the Oscar winning actress of that film, was interviewed on "Wogan" and said that she was shocked during her research of the role at how common a thing it is for nurses to murder those under their care.

I also recall how some distressed viewers complained to the BBC, one of which remarked how his elderly mother was due to go into hospital but was frightened to do so after watching this. I think these sorts of comments (even though viewers were warned that this marked a departure for the actresses involved) prevented it from being shown again. In saying that it sparked the idea for a number of series' of "Murder Most Horrid" showcasing the darker side of Dawn.

It is hoped that the BBC will add it to their catalogue, it is something I think deserves a second look. It is a pity that we haven't seen Dawn French in more serious roles. I often think her comedy partner Jennifer Saunders would be interesting in a serious piece too.