Jeff is still recovering from neurosurgery, but all in all is pleased he went through with the operation. I am still tired after not quite sleeping enough, and all that. This afternoon we watched most of the Duke of Edinburgh`s funeral, which was genuinely moving – the absence of large crowds gave it an eerie almost surreal atmosphere.
This evening Jeff flicked back and forth on Netflix and found himself back watching the very start of Shtisel. Had I watched that first episode ever? Perhaps I had, and it had somewhat annoyed me, using, as it did, that perennial ubiquitous plot motif – let`s tell a story in which the mother has just died, or gone away, or there simply never was one to be seen. I mean for goodness sake. It just goes on and on.
However, in mellow mood, I managed to stay calm, and retreated to my study to work on a new short story The Book Group. (It`s about a book group.) But then I became distracted, and found myself flicking through facebook. I was pleased to see actor David Fleeshman mentioning that he is in Budapest filming a new TV series, and clicked the link to see what it was. David was well-known in the Northwest, and we watched him in countless excellent performances at the Octagon Theatre, Bolton, and the Library Theatre, in Manchester. In addition he was in my second radio play, `Fat.` That was fun. So, in a benevolent mood, I clicked on the link he gave, and here is what I read.
“Stage and screen actress Sheridan Smith will play the lead role of Jenna, a teacher whose life unravels after being accused of a drunken sexual encounter with one of her pupils. With no memory of the night in question, Jenna’s only hope of redemption lies in uncovering the truth about a dark event in her past that returns to haunt her.
Samuel Bottomley plays the pupil at the centre of the drama, while Kelvin Fletcher, Cecilia Noble and Sharon Rooney star as teaching colleagues of Jenna. Meanwhile, David Fleeshman plays the role of Jenna’s father, with Ian Puleston-Davies also featuring.
Teacher is created by Barunka O’Shaughnessy (Motherland, Alabama, Hitmen) and Mike Benson (Cold Call). O’Shaughnessy will also serve as lead writer and Dominic Leclerc (From Darkness, The A Word, Babs) will direct with Benson as executive producer. Entertainment One (One) will manage international distribution for the series…”
In vain I reread the above, to see whether it might be the case that Jenna has a mother as well as a father, or some reference to this personage who will have given birth to her once….Yes, you have guessed. So far no mother. Still – I mustn`t jump to conclusions. Will wait and see, and watch at least the first episode.
