Maigret (1960 TV series)

*Maigret*
Maigret
Genre	Crime drama
Created by	Georges Simenon
Written by	Giles Cooper (19 episodes) and 9 others
Starring	Rupert Davies; Ewen Solon; Neville Jason; Helen Shingler;
Theme music composer	Ron Grainer
Opening theme	The Maigret Theme
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of seasons	4
No. of episodes	52, (plus a pilot episode in 1959)
Production
Executive producer	Andrew Osborn
Running time	50 minutes
Production company	BBC
Original release
Network	BBC TV
Release	1960 –; 1963

Maigret is a British television series made by the BBC and which – following a pilot episode broadcast in 1959 – ran for 52 episodes from 1960 to 1963. ^[1]

Based on the Maigret stories of Georges Simenon, the series starred Rupert Davies in the title role.

Unlike most BBC series produced in the 1960s, all episodes (bar the pilot) have survived intact, and are available as a complete set on DVD and Blu-ray.

In 2022 the series was broadcast by UK television channel Talking Pictures TV.

Cast

Main

Rupert Davies as Police Judiciaire detective Commissaire Jules Maigret ^[1]
Ewen Solon as Lucas ^[1]
Neville Jason as Lapointe ^[1]
Victor Lucas as Torrence
Helen Shingler as Madame Maigret

Guests

Rupert Davies took up the role as the Police Judiciaire detective Commissaire Jules Maigret in 1960, after Basil Sydney, who had played Maigret in the pilot episode, was unable to continue. ^[1]

Although staying largely true to the storyline of the books, the series featured only three of Maigret's team of detectives (the "faithful four"^[3]), omitting any casting for Janvier, although the character is mentioned in several episodes.

Rupert Davies

The choice of Davies to play Maigret was enthusiastically approved by Simenon himself. Remembering the role in a 1964 interview Davies said "When Andrew Osborn, the producer of the show, offered me the part on Good Friday in 1960, I knew very little about Maigret. I knew he was a famous French fictional detective, but that was all." Rather than read the books to get the feel for the character, Davies thought it would be better to meet Maigret's creator and hear from him how he saw the character. The BBC agreed and a meeting was arranged between Davies and Simenon in Lausanne.^[4]

"The moment Simenon saw me he shouted: "C'est Maigret, c'est Maigret. You are the flesh and bones of Maigret!" Davies later remembered. "That was a wonderful beginning. Then he drove us to his lovely château in the village of Échandens, where I met his wife. Later he began to coach me in Maigret's idiosyncrasies."^[4]

Simenon himself said of Davies "At last, I have found the perfect Maigret!"^[5]

Production

The series was written by a set of ten writers, each contributing individual episodes; the most prolific being Giles Cooper, credited with nineteen episodes, and Roger East, with twelve.

Directing was similarly shared by sixteen directors, with Gerard Glaister and Terence Williams responsible for eight each, Andrew Osborn seven, and Eric Tayler six. Each episode was shot in black-and-white and lasted 50 minutes, and (as it was made for the BBC) was intended to be screened without commercial breaks. It was shot mainly in studio, though many of the exteriors were filmed on location in Paris. Interior set designer Eileen Diss spent months scouring France for French items to be used on set, including furniture, ornaments, posters, and cigarette packets; she noted in a 1961 interview that, "Half these things may never be in sharp focus on the screen. But when in a close-up you see a terribly French door-knob behind someone's left ear, it does make just that much extra difference."^[6]

Series costar Ewen Solon broke his leg in a stunt while jumping from a wall. Subsequent scripts had to be rewritten to account for the obvious damage which could not be hidden or shot around.^[7]

Theme music and various incidental music was composed by Ron Grainer^[8] for which he won an Ivor Novello award.^[8] Apart from the pilot, all 52 episodes remain within the BBC's archives.^[9]

On Sunday, February 9, 1969, BBC One London aired Maigret at Bay as part of its series BBC Play of the Month.^[10] This feature-length movie was based on the 1964 novel Maigret Defends Himself (Maigret se défend), and featured Rupert Davies, Helen Shingler, and Neville Jason reprising their series roles of Commissaire Maigret, Madame Maigret, and Lapointe, respectively.^[11]

Episodes

(with dates of first broadcast on BBC TV)

Pilot episode
Title	First shown	Based on	Notes^[12]
Maigret and the Lost Life	12 April 1959	Inspector Maigret and the Dead Girl Maigret et la Jeune Morte	1954 novel: Starring Basil Sydney as Maigret
Series 1
Title	First shown	Based on	Notes^[13]
Murder in Montmartre	31 October 1960	Inspector Maigret and the Strangled Stripper Maigret au « Picratt's »	1951 novel: Rupert Davies takes over as Maigret
Unscheduled Departure	7 November 1960	Maigret Has Scruples Les Scrupules de Maigret	1958 novel
The Burglar's Wife	14 November 1960	Maigret and the Burglar's Wife Maigret et la Grande Perche	1951 novel
The Revolver	21 November 1960	Maigret's Revolver Le Revolver de Maigret	1952 novel
The Old Lady	28 November 1960	Maigret and the Old Lady Maigret et la Vieille Dame	1950 novel
Liberty Bar	5 December 1960	Liberty Bar Liberty Bar	1932 novel
A Man of Quality	12 December 1960	The Death of Monsieur Gallet Monsieur Gallet, décédé	1931 novel
My Friend the Inspector	19 December 1960	My Friend Maigret Mon ami Maigret	1949 novel
The Mistake	26 December 1960	Maigret's Mistake Maigret se trompe	1953 novel
On Holiday	2 January 1961	A Summer Holiday Les Vacances de Maigret	1948 novel
The Experts	9 January 1961	Inspector Maigret and the Killers Maigret, Lognon, et les Gangsters	1952 novel
The Cactus	16 January 1961	Maigret Takes a Room Maigret en meublé	1951 novel
The Children's Party	23 January 1961	The Crime of Inspector Maigret Le Pendu de Saint-Pholien	1931 novel
Series 2
Title	First shown	Based on	Notes^[13]
Shadow Play	23 October 1961	The Shadow in the Courtyard L'Ombre chinoise	1932 novel
The Simple Case	30 October 1961	Maigret and the Headless Corpse Maigret et le Corps sans tête	1955 novel
Death of a Butcher	6 November 1961	Maigret's Failure Un échec de Maigret	1956 novel
The Winning Ticket	13 November 1961	Maigret's Dead Man Maigret et son mort	1948 novel
Inspector Lognon's Triumph	20 November 1961	Maigret and the Surly Inspector Maigret et l'Inspecteur malgracieux	1946 short story
The Lost Sailor	27 November 1961	Death of a Harbour Master Le Port des brumes	1932 novel
The Golden Fleece	4 December 1961	The Lock at Charenton L'Écluse N^o 1	1933 novel
Raise Your Right Hand	11 December 1961	Maigret in Court Maigret aux assises	1960 novel
The Liars	18 December 1961	Maigret Goes to School Maigret à l'école	1954 novel
A Crime for Christmas	26 December 1961	Maigret's Christmas Un Noël de Maigret	1950 short story
The Reluctant Witnesses	1 January 1962	Maigret and the Reluctant Witnesses Maigret et les Témoins récalcitrants	1959 novel
The White Hat	8 January 1962	Madame Maigret's Own Case L'Amie de madame Maigret	1950 novel
Murder on Monday	15 January 1962	Maigret and the Man on the Boulevard Maigret et l'Homme du banc	1953 novel
Series 3
Title	First shown	Based on	Notes^[13]
Voices from the Past	24 September 1962	Maigret in Society Maigret et les Vieillards	1960 novel
The Madman of Vervac	1 October 1962	The Madman of Bergerac Le Fou de Bergerac	1932 novel
The Countess	8 October 1962	Maigret and the Countess L'Affaire Saint-Fiacre	1932 novel
The Wedding Guest	15 October 1962	Guinguette by the Seine Guingette à deux sous	1931 novel
High Politics	22 October 1962	Maigret and the Minister Maigret chez le ministre	1954 novel
Love from Felicie	29 October 1962	Maigret and the Toy Village Félicie est là	1944 novel
The Dirty House	5 November 1962	Maigret in Retirement Maigret se fâche	1947 novel
The Crystal Ball	12 November 1962	To Any Lengths Signé Picpus	1944 novel
The Crooked Castle	19 November 1962	Maigret at the Crossroads La Nuit du carrefour	1931 novel
Death in Mind	26 November 1962	A Battle of Nerves La Tête d'un homme	1931 novel
Seven Little Crosses	3 December 1962	Sept Petites Croix dans un Carnet	A non-Maigret short story included in the 1951 collection Maigret's Christmas (Un Noël de Maigret)
The Trap	10 December 1962	Maigret Sets a Trap Maigret tend un piège	1955 novel
The Amateurs	17 December 1962	Maigret and the Lazy Burglar Maigret et le Voleur paresseux	1961 novel
Series 4
Title	First shown	Based on	Notes^[13]
Poor Cecile	1 October 1963	Maigret and the Spinster Cécile est morte	1940 novel
The Fontenay Murders	8 October 1963	Maigret Afraid Maigret a peur	1953 novel
The Lost Life	15 October 1963	Maigret and the Dead Girl Maigret et la Jeune Morte	1954 novel: (remake of 1959 pilot)
The Cellars of the Majestic	22 October 1963	Maigret and the Hotel Majestic Les Caves du Majestic	1939 novel
A Man Condemned	29 October 1963	Maigret has Doubts Une confidence de Maigret	1959 novel
The Flemish Shop	5 November 1963	The Flemish Shop Chez les Flamands	1932 novel
A Taste of Power	12 November 1963	Maigret's First Case La Première Enquête de Maigret, 1913	1949 novel
The Log of the Cap Fagnet	19 November 1963	The Sailors' Rendezvous Au rendez-vous des Terre-Neuvas	1931 novel
The Judge's House	26 November 1963	Maigret in Exile La Maison du juge	1940 novel
Another World	3 December 1963	Maigret and the Millionaires Maigret voyage	1957 novel
The Crime at Lock 14	10 December 1963	The Crime at Lock 14 Le Charretier de la Providence	1931 novel
Peter the Lett	17 December 1963	The Strange Case of Peter the Lett Pietr-le-Letton	1931 novel
Maigret's Little Joke	24 December 1963	Maigret's Little Joke Maigret s'amuse	1957 novel

Home media

In May 2021, Network Distributing announced the Blu-Ray release of the series (to be released August 2021), with a DVD release soon to follow.^[14]

The DVD set of 14 discs does not include the booklet found in the Blu-Ray edition. Sleeve notes inform that the series has been "remastered from original film elements", most likely meaning Kinescope films as distributed world-wide, "original fullscreen TV format".

In 2023, Kino Lorber released the series on Blu-Ray for Region A.^[15]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Pitts 2004.
^ "Maigret (1959-1963)".
^ Maigret's faithful four at trussel.com; retrieved 17 May 2016
^ ^a ^b Maigret (1960) on Television Heaven
^ Winn 2009.
^ Kerridge, Jake (15 August 2021). "Rescued from obscurity: one of TV's greatest ever detective series". Retrieved 23 December 2023.
^ Wise, Arthur (1973). Stunting in the Cinema. London: Constable. p. 205. ISBN 0-09-459090-7.
^ ^a ^b "Ron Grainer". BBC. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
^ "Maigret at lostshows.com".
^ "Maigret at Bay". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 9 February 1969.
^ "Maigret: Classic Mystery Series Starring Rupert Davies Now Available for Streaming". The British TV Place. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
^ Basil Sydney at trussel.com; retrieved 15 May 2016
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Rupert Davies at trussel.com; retrieved 15 May 2016
^ "Maigret: The Complete Series [DELUXE LIMITED EDITION] SOLD OUT".
^ Galbraith IV, Stuart (9 March 2023). "Maiget: Season 1 (Blu-Ray Review)". The Digital Bits. Retrieved 26 December 2023.

Sources

Pitts, Michael R (2004). Famous Movie Detectives III. Scarecrow. p. 89. ISBN 978-0810836907.
Winn, Christopher (2009). I Never Knew That About Wales. Random House. p. 39. ISBN 978-1407028231.

External links

[FOOTNOTEPitts2004-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Pitts 2004.

[2] "Maigret (1959-1963)".

[3] Maigret's faithful four at trussel.com; retrieved 17 May 2016

[tvh-4] Maigret (1960) on Television Heaven

[FOOTNOTEWinn2009-5] Winn 2009.

[6] Kerridge, Jake (15 August 2021). "Rescued from obscurity: one of TV's greatest ever detective series". Retrieved 23 December 2023.

[7] Wise, Arthur (1973). Stunting in the Cinema. London: Constable. p. 205. ISBN 0-09-459090-7.

[bbc-8] "Ron Grainer". BBC. Retrieved 4 January 2020.

[9] "Maigret at lostshows.com".

[10] "Maigret at Bay". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 9 February 1969.

[11] "Maigret: Classic Mystery Series Starring Rupert Davies Now Available for Streaming". The British TV Place. Retrieved 26 April 2023.

[trussel1-12] Basil Sydney at trussel.com; retrieved 15 May 2016

[trussel2-13] Rupert Davies at trussel.com; retrieved 15 May 2016

[14] "Maigret: The Complete Series [DELUXE LIMITED EDITION] SOLD OUT".

[15] Galbraith IV, Stuart (9 March 2023). "Maiget: Season 1 (Blu-Ray Review)". The Digital Bits. Retrieved 26 December 2023.

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