The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco

The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco is a television drama series that premiered in the United Kingdom on ITV on 25 July 2018 and in the United States on BritBox on 26 July 2018.[1][2] A British and Canadian co-production, the series is airing on ITV in the United Kingdom,[3] and Citytv in Canada,[4] with international streaming distribution on BritBox as their first commissioned original series in the United States.[1][5]

The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco
GenreCrime, Mystery
Created byGuy Burt
Directed by
Starring
ComposerJames Jandrisch
Country of origin
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes8 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
  • Michael MacLennan
  • Brian Hamilton
  • Jake Lushington
  • Soumya Sriraman
  • Reemah Sakaan
  • Roderick Seligman
  • Paulo De Oliveira
  • Michael Chechik
  • Gabriela Schonbach
ProducerGigi Boyd
CinematographyKamal Derkaoui
EditorsGordon Rempel
Nicole Ratcliffe
Running time45 minutes
Production companies
DistributorKew Media
Release
Original networkITV (United Kingdom)
BritBox (United States)
Citytv (Canada)
Picture format4K
Audio formatStereo
Original release25 July 2018 (2018-07-25) –
present
Chronology
Preceded byThe Bletchley Circle
External links
Production website

A spin-off of the miniseries The Bletchley Circle, the new series follows Millie (Rachael Stirling) and Jean (Julie Graham) as they travel to San Francisco and continue to use their code-breaking skills to solve murders.[3][6][7] The series is produced by Canada's Omnifilm Entertainment, in association with United Kingdom's World Productions.[8] It was shot principally in Vancouver, British Columbia.[9] Kew Media handles international distribution of the series.[10]

The complete first series was released on Region 2 DVD via Acorn Media on 20 May 2019.[11] Following a successful debut season, Rachael Stirling and Julie Graham confirmed during an interview with Total TV Guide in April 2019 that a second series had been commissioned, with filming set to commence in late 2019 for broadcast in 2020.

Cast

Episodes

Series 1 (2018)
No.Title [12]Directed byWritten byOriginal air date [12]U.K. viewers
(millions)
1"Presidio"Gary HarveyDaegan Fryklind25 July 2018 (2018-07-25)4.28[13]
(Part 1/2). 1942, London, England. Code-breaker Claire Hopkins, on the eve of being transferred to Bristol after purposely disposing of an American communication, is found murdered with her tongue cut out and a mysterious symbol drawn on her hand. Fast forward fourteen years, and former colleagues Millie and Jean learn of the murders of two women in San Francisco in identical circumstances. Jean and Millie travel to San Francisco to try to make contact with a former American codebreaker, 'Major Sixth', whom Jean had been in regular communication with during the war. Jean learns that 'Major Sixth' is in fact Iris Bearden, wife of honoured US Armed Forces sergeant Marcus Bearden. Iris introduces Jean and Millie to Hailey Yarner, one of the youngest codebreakers at the time of the Americans joining the war. As the four women meet to try and work out the killer's pattern, a third victim is discovered and Iris begins to fear for her son, Dennis, a civil rights activist, who is part of a group opposing property developers bull-dozing their district, Fillmore — which just happens to be the killer's next target.
2"Wake"Gary HarveyMichael MacLennan1 August 2018 (2018-08-01)3.58[13]
(Part 2/2). With San Francisco in the grip of a serial killer, the four allies work together to expose a sinister conspiracy at the highest levels - and in the process, forge a powerful bond.
3"Charlotte’s Web"Michael RohlDamon Vignale8 August 2018 (2018-08-08)3.19[13]
(Part 1/2). Newly-weds driving on a country road find a body, apparently the victim of a hit and run. She was the unhappy wife living the country club life. Iris, Millie, Jean and Hailey investigate the discovery of an apparent code book, and discover a nest of lies and deceit.
4"Madhouse"Michael RohlRachel Langer15 August 2018 (2018-08-15)3.21[13]
(Part 2/2). The apparent code book isn't what it seems to be, but it still provides clues. Detective Bryce makes an arrest and Millie has a date.
5"Not Cricket"Alexandra La RocheMichael MacLennan22 August 2018 (2018-08-22)
26 April 2019 (2019-04-26) (UK)		N/A
(Part 1/2). When a bloodied and bruised stranger collapses on Jean and Millie's doorstep, they find themselves drawn into a complex maze of problems involving a gang of violent drug dealers and a secret group of 'homophile' men communicating through the newspaper small ads. But as they try to figure out how the two organisations could be connected, Millie's cousin Edward becomes the next victim. As she and Jean stake-out the drug dealers' secret hideout, Millie is shocked to witness Detective Bryce liaising with their leader.
6"Iron in War"Alexandra La RocheDaegan Fryklind29 August 2018 (2018-08-29)
3 May 2019 (2019-05-03) (UK)		N/A
(Part 2/2). Unsure of who they can really trust, Jean and Millie are shocked to discover they are facing deportation, and suspect that Detective Bryce may have been instrumental in ensuring their fate. Hailey tries to convince her former boss to place a further ad in the newspaper in an attempt to flush out the dealers. As the gang manage to convince Rusty to help them, the two warring factions finally meet during a showdown at the Big Bop club.
7"Fog of War"David FrazeeDamon Vignale5 September 2018 (2018-09-05)
10 May 2019 (2019-05-10) (UK)		N/A
(Part 1/2). Iris and Hayley's attendance at a soirée involving a world-renowned cellist ends in unexpected disaster when a Russian diplomat collapses and dies right in front of Iris' eyes. Meanwhile, Jean is pleased to discover than an old acquaintance from England, Nigel Beamish, is in San Francisco working for the British consulate. But after meeting Nigel for a romantic afternoon picnic, Jean discovers she has picked up the attention of some unwanted admirers.
8"In for a Pound"David FrazeeMichael MacLennan & Laura Good12 September 2018 (2018-09-12)
17 May 2019 (2019-05-17) (UK)		N/A
(Part 2/2). Iris, Hailey and Millie ask Olivia for help cracking the cipher which could potentially reveal where the Russians are holding Jean. Hailey realizes she has been betrayed and watches on in horror as her cipher machine disappears in the arms of the mysterious Ilyia. Iris is forced to choose between her head and her heart when the girls track the Russians to a private airfield and find that Deborah has secretly been in league with them all along.

Reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 25% approval rating from an average of 13 both well-known and lesser known critics (of whose reviews 4 were positive, 9 were negative) and on Rotten Tomatoes a 55% audience approval rating. Examples of critical reviews: "The Bletchley Circle does not fare well when it relocates to San Francisco, unable to convincingly capture its period setting and hobbled by an outlandish murder mystery that fails to enthral."[14] Reviewers comment on the poorly written scripts, clichéd characters, and heavy-handed approach to issues such as racism and sexism.[6][7]

References
  1. White, Peter (4 June 2018). "The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco: BritBox Offers First Glimpse Of Its First Original, Set To Launch In July". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  2. Munn, Patrick (11 July 2018). "ITV Sets Premiere Date For The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco". TVWise. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  3. Clarke, Stewart (11 January 2018). "The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco Is Best-of-British Service BritBox's First Original". Variety. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  4. "Citytv picks up Jordan Peele's The Twilight Zone and Murphy Brown reboot". Times Colonist. Canadian Press. 5 June 2018. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  5. "BritBox and Omnifilm Entertainment Begin Production on Original Drama Series The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco with Returning Stars Julie Graham and Rachael Stirling and New Cast Leads Crystal Balint, Chanelle Peloso, Jennifer Spence, and Ben Cotton | Press Releases | BBC Studios - Americas Press Room". Retrieved 15 September 2019.
  6. James Walton (28 July 2018). "A proper old-fashioned stinker: ITV's The Bletchley Circle – San Francisco reviewed". The Spectator. Retrieved 16 September 2018. Now, rather like all those 1970s British films in which the characters in a sitcom went on holiday to Spain, it’s changed its location and… well, not much else.
  7. Lucy Mangan (25 July 2018). "The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco review – period drama spin-off is admirably awful". The Guardian (UK). Retrieved 16 September 2018. In the middle of what we must surely now be able to call without fear of contradiction the golden age of television, raising character and narrative development on screen to the state of high art, there is a certain thrill and sneaking admiration for a channel that sees paper dolls exchanging deathless dialogue and runs towards it all, arms outstretched.
  8. Clarke, Stewart (4 June 2018). "First Look at The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco". Variety. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  9. Pinto, Jordan (21 March 2018). "Filming underway in Vancouver on BritBox's Bletchley Circle revival". Playback. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  10. Productions, World. "The Bletchley Circle : San Francisco - World Productions". World Productions. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  11. "The Bletchley Circle : San Francisco - Complete [DVD]". Amazon. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  12. "The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco - Episode List". Premiere Date. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
  13. "Barb".
  14. "The Bletchley Circle San Francisco: Season 1 (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
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