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2017 British TV series or programme From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Quacks, created by James Wood, is a BBC sitcom about four Victorian era doctors.[1] The series combines satire, absurdist comedy and traditional slapstick, with stories often being based on real history.[2] Despite generally favourable reviews it was cancelled after one series.[3]
| Quacks | |
|---|---|
The title card, which shows the main four characters moving whilst a photograph is being taken, leading to it being blurred | |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | James Wood |
| Starring | |
| Composer | Ian Arber |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 6 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Justin Davies James Wood |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company | Lucky Giant |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC Two |
| Release | 15 August – 19 September 2017 |
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Duke's Tracheotomy" | Andy De Emmony | James Wood | August 15, 2017 | N/A | |
| 2 | "The Lady's Abscess" | Andy De Emmony | James Wood | August 22, 2017 | N/A | |
|
Caroline meets Charles Dickens. Meanwhile, Florence Nightingale attempts to take over Robert's surgery. | ||||||
| 3 | "The Madman's Trial" | Andy De Emmony | Mathew Baynton | August 29, 2017 | N/A | |
|
William attempts to cure a mentally ill patient who fears being guillotined by French Revolutionaries as a nobleman.[11] John resorts to selling toothbrushes and snake oil to clear his debt, Caroline disguises herself as a man to sneak into male-only lectures, and Robert attempts to gain the patronage of a wealthy Duchess.[12][13] | ||||||
| 4 | "The Indian Mesmerist" | Andy De Emmony | James Wood | September 5, 2017 | N/A | |
|
Robert invents a device to remove William's bladder stones.[14] Caroline hires a charlatan Indian hypnotist to treat Robert's nightmares and insomnia.[10] | ||||||
| 5 | "The Bishop's Appendix" | Andy De Emmony | James Wood | September 12, 2017 | N/A | |
|
The Bishop needs his appendix removed, but refuses to take anaesthetic. John falls in love with the apothecary's daughter Nicola, and William attempts to impress the visiting hospital inspector by pretending to cure an actor whom he had paid to feign insanity.[7] | ||||||
| 6 | "The Physician's Hernia" | Andy De Emmony | James Wood | September 19, 2017 | N/A | |
|
Dr Hendricks is suffering from a hernia and a rival team of doctors are called in. | ||||||
Chatham Dockyard in Kent doubled as streets of Victorian London. It was also used as the location of the apothecary and bareknuckle boxing fight featured in the series.[15]
The series has received positive reviews, with many critics comparing it with Blackadder.[8]
The first episode, which aired on BBC 2 at 10pm on 15 August 2017,[16] received positive reviews from The Independent and The Guardian.[2] Critics like Gerard Gilbert praised the series' originality, and particularly the performance of Lydia Leonard and Rupert Everett.[17] Radio Times noted the similarities to Monty Python and Blackadder, and praised the scriptwriters' ability to weave the series' surreal humour with anecdotes of bizarre real historical events.[18][8] Reviews generally remained favourable by the time the final series episode aired, with Sean O'Grady of The Independent calling for a second series.[19]
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