The Beiderbecke Connection (mini-series) - Conclusion to Beiderbecke Trilogy Planned for 2010

"Leisurely, gently humorous mystery series" —The Sunday Times (U.K.)

Trevor Chaplin and Jill Swinburne have settled down. Teachers at a run-down school in Leeds, they're new parents to a son they call Firstborn. Trevor (James Bolam, New Tricks) is a jazz fan; Jill (Barbara Flynn, Cracker) wants to save the planet. One day a friend asks a favor: will they look after a refugee? His name is Ivan, but he's not that terrible. Soon Trevor and Jill are harboring criminals, under police surveillance, and trying to convince the headmaster that their new school supplies aren't stolen goods.

The conclusion to award-winning playwright Alan Plater's Beiderbecke trilogy sees the return of beloved characters: Big Al, Little Norm, Detective Sergeant Hobson (now Detective Inspector Hobson, Ph.D.), and Mr. Pitt, former town planner. The banter is easy and the humor wry in an offbeat adventure set to a jazzy, BAFTA-winning soundtrack.

Acorn Media has announced the release of The Beiderbecke Connection, a 2-disc set which includes all 4 episodes (204 mins) of the mini-series presented in Full Frame (1.33:1) with English stereo audio. The set is available on March 2, 2010 and retails for $39.99 US, or $52.99 CAN. You can preorder it from Amazon.com for $27.99. Here's a list of the episodes included in the set:

Episode 1: Oh look—it's average sized Trevor Chaplin
Trevor and Jill are adjusting to family life when Big Al and Little Norm bring a gift for baby Firstborn. It's an intercom with wires—and strings—attached: Big Al wants them to take in a refugee for the night. Jill assents for political reasons, Trevor because "Ivan" likes jazz. The next day, they drive Ivan to the Lincolnshire border.

Episode 2: Hello Sir, Hello Miss
Ivan returns, but Big Al and Little Norm prove no help at all. Jill and Trevor drop Ivan off at the Lancashire border, and learn that they are under surveillance by two dim policemen. The couple spends the evening at a jazz club, but a surprising new visitor rings their doorbell late that night.

Episode 3: Is he the lodger?
Jill awkwardly explains Trevor's presence to her ex-husband, Peter, who has some explaining of his own to do. As does Ivan, who turns out to be rather terrible after all. Finally, DI Hobson spills his secret about why the police have been parked outside Jill's home. The answer involves a nosy neighbor and a video camera.

Episode 4: What do we have on hockey sticks?
DI Hobson learns that a dangerous bank robber has been spotted around town and sees a familiar face on the surveillance video. Meanwhile Ivan, Peter, Trevor, Jill, and Firstborn take a day trip to the seaside. In the end, Trevor concludes, there are only two kinds of people in the world: those who hear the music, and those who don't.