User reviews

Mr P has toned down his usual artificiality, created a time and place that more or less convinces and put together an exciting plot with a real dénouement. He deserves kudos for managing all this after many years of not doing so. Perhaps all the BBC money they have thrown in his direction has started to pay off at last. Toby Stephens is excellent, as is Keeley Hawes (as usual). Everyone else is good too and little Toby Woolf is a delight. There are faults. Yes, there is a coherent dénouement but it's not without clichés (one particularly egregious one involving guns) and some sickly sweetness. Adrian Edmondson's TV shows are embarrassingly unfunny. The subplots, while interesting, are in fact superfluous. There is the one about the missing son, which is included, I guess,to give Keeley Hawes and Clare Bloom things to do. The daughter's daft scenes at Buckingham Palace and the expensive ball with hordes of debs are also of only tangential relevance.

Anything starring Keeley Hawes is going to be worth watching and this little drama is no exception. It's a fun bit of nonsense - very reminiscent of an episode of The Avengers from the late sixties - but far more elaborate. As usual with the BBC, the sub-plots hammer every politically correct stereotype going. The villains are all white, middle-aged, middle class males, the heroes are all either from a minority group or disabled. Of course, the police are racist and the young white men (except for the gay man and the vegetarian) are violent boors. Even the poor little debutantes get a drubbing. All boringly predictable - but it was fun seeing Lily Sacofsky giving one of the nasty young men a taste of her knee! To be fair though, I did enjoy this drama and would recommend it as a lightweight bit of entertainment.

I loved this, mostly for the fabulous production, perfect period setting, faultless acting and just dreamy comfortable escapism. Cleverly positioned humour dampened somewhat by weak satire.

However if you focus too much on the plot then it becomes a bit of a drag, bouncing back and forward and not necessarily going anywhere. It achieves its goal to instill a feeling of paranoia and mistrust, which worked well until the slightly daft ending. A deftly psychological thriller that ended up like an episode of Dad's army or last of the summer wine.

The Anthony story made no sense and wasn't entirely explained.

That aside, I still wouldn't have missed a sparkling performance by Keeley Hawes (Awards Long overdue) the epitome of the English Wife and a masterclass in received pronunciation. Toby Stevens brings an outstanding depth to the lead character Petrukhin as does his hilarious family ensemble.

Definitely recommended for the polished production; a cracking yarn mingled with the menace of espionage and subterfuge.

It was a strange era, the 1950's. The Americans had McCarthyism, and we were affected by it, as the Series demonstrated reasonably well. Civil defence was growing, nobody trusted anybody else, and as Mr Petrukin found out, being Jewish put you right under the radar of MI5. This story captured the feel of the era quite well, and was assisted by some great acting and even thought I found this to be a very slow series, it was fascinating and I had to keep watching.

It was helped considerably by a first class cast, especially Toby Stephens as Samuel. He captured the essence of what it feels like to be the only sane character amongst a company of maniacs, and the rest of the cast including Keeley Hawes as his love interest, were all magnificent. I rather enjoyed Timothy Spall's portrayal of the titled gentleman know it all who tries to manipulate his peer group. Characterisation was what kept this series afloat; the plot meandered and the ending fell flat.

I am not too familiar with Poliakoff's stories but I look forward to watching some of his better works, this was intriguing but not satisfying.

Enough reviews about the series, I enjoyed, excellent, intriguing.

I want to write in response to lots of queries over the ending!

I believe that the daughter had taken part in a make up of the plan that the secret service had inklings about, and that her writer friend was also involved with MI5/6 and had been able to feed in to the comedy episode shown on the TV which brought all the dastardly plans to an abrupt end, after the daughter had unwittingly revealed a conversation with her dad.

So it all makes sense if you take this into account.

The missing son storyline, which again a lot of people were perplexed by, I believe again was that he had provided information to MI5/6 as soon as he had become aware, and had been advised to disappear to protect himself, and his preferred way of vegan life.

Overall, as good as any Agatha Christie. Kept you intrigued and confused right till the end!

I loved the acting, especially the lead lady.

Poliakoff again! A very frustrating writer/director. Production values high... But... As usual... Unconvincing characters, stilted dialogue, and constant creation and maintenance of tension over inconsequential issues. How does he get work!?

Arguably the drama series of 2019, Summer of Rockets is captivating from the start. Poliakoff is a tremendous writer, and even he manages to surprise with this one. Set against a background of cold war paranoia and corruption at the highest level, he manages to give us some enchanting characters. As always it's the characters and their stories that drive the series, more so then the plot. Every character has so much to offer, with stories big and small. Even the dog was fascinating.

Unusual, in the way that the story all hangs around the origins of the pager. At times Poliakoff seemed to crank up the drama more then ever before, with showdowns, and a reenactment scene of a nuclear destination device, that was eerie and chilling. Plenty of plot threads, but all linked well, I never lost it, or felt the least bored.

It's hard to get away from the acting, arguably the show's biggest asset, loaded with dazzling performances, everyone was spellbinding, in some cases, the likes of Stephens and Bases, playing characters similar to ones they've previously done. I must therefore highlight two, Timothy Spall, and Mark Bonnar, both giving us characters, I've not seen from them before, they were both, equally outstanding, showing true versatility.

More please Mr Poliakoff. 10/10

Are you after a typical spy drama, a Harry Palmer or 007? Well if so this isn't for you. But if you want an unusual plot with heaps of period settings and a family centric dynamic that's intertwined with a spy plot then its worth watching.

Made in 2018, which turned out to be the hottest ever summer in England, it was shot in some of the most grand locations including outside shots at Buckingham palace. Sets, costumes, cinematography, music and acting is superbly lush.

The story features an inventor with a Russian background; all based on the true story of the writers family and father Alexander Poliakoff OBE.

And what is it all about? well I'd say that's a secret! Or more accurately how many secrets, all interlinked, impact on each other with twists and turns along the way.

A real delight, with wonderful performances from Kiely Hawes and Timothy Spall especially. For the first five episodes the suspense and intertwining sub plots built nicely, but the ending was limp in comparison. If it was truly based on a true story, then I'm guessing that's just how it was, but something of a disappointment. But we'll worth watching nonetheless.

I am surprised that this enchanting and luxuriating series has been given several bad reviews: weak plot; convoluted; tiresome and distracting sub-plots, uninteresting; cheesy ending etc. etc. I feel that they have completely missed the many valid themes and issues it raises (most of which are equally relevant today). I am however edified that a significant number praised the almost faultless representation of selected sights and scenes of the period in which it is set. The acting is superb and fundamental human needs, fears, desires, and desperation of loss are sympathetically and sensitively explored. Filmography and non-diegetic sound all add to the very pleasurable experience. I found the leimotifs of 'secrets'and 'surprises' (a Poliakoff trade mark) - however seemingly trivial to some perhaps - a delight. Similarly, the writer's hallmark of using photographic and visual imagery to help define identity, sense of place and the relentless passage of time very poignant. I was immediately hooked and remained so throughout. A truly beautiful production and ultimately optimistic and uplifting. It was worth every penny of my licence fee! Those who gave the series bad reviews appear to have watched all six hours. I wonder why when they must have found it such a tedious chore?!

I give this series two stars for good production values in costume and scenery design. In every other aspect it is dreadful Toby Stevens constant overacting worked ok in the cartoonish Black Sails, but has failed in everything else. The plot of summer of rockers is unengaging, and frankly juvenile. Lastly the heavy and forced political correctness puts the final nail in this mess.

Summer Of Rockets

When I started watching this I wanted to scream, perhaps it was the time and the subject matter, the script seemed so stilted and forced and bearing in mind it's only 1953 the situations are really quite ridiculous.

I am a fan of Steven Poliacoffs work but this was really most challenging.

What was good,

1, the acting was first rate, the characters were well developed, and we warmed to them.

2, whilst this was a slow burn it gathered momentum and ended up quite gripping.

3, it was pure entertainment it kept away from liberal authoritarian condemnation of a less liberal past, this gave it some historical accuracy.

4, the styling was brilliant it was worth watching for this alone.

5, the comprehensive atmosphere of 50's claustrophobia and restrictive rule was comprehensively realised.

What was less good,

1, it was so slow, drama must be a compression of reality over conflict.

2, drama is a contrivance necessarily but we felt so many scenes were contrived and this needs to be more invisible.

3, accents were over clipped and we had quite a deal of stereotyping. Perhaps this was over directed.

Whilst I overall enjoyed this but I think the day has gone when you can do Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy on a BBC reduced budget.

BBC no more of this please!

I was not sure what to expect from the title. Post war and people are still suspicious and coming into the Cold War period if not already in it. Space travel is new and so is nuclear weaponry. Women are still wives and pretty girls who do not have the power of men or any kind of equality. The boy of the family is treated differently and groomed for a different future from his sister. Invention would be highly prized at this time and a man who could make hearing aids could possibly be capable of making other things. The characters are interesting and politics play a part in this scenario of suspicion and technology. The actors inhabit their characters perfectly and it is interesting to watch their development. I always like children included in these stories because they bring a flavour of innocence and naivety that is charming. There is already a build up of mystery and hint of spying providing us with a taste of what is to come. One hour has been utilised well and different themes and plots have been introduced as well as an array of characters. Not long to wait for episode two thankfully!

Without wishing to spoil the story for those that haven't seen this yet I shall just say that this was a great drama up until the last 20 mins. The ending is utterly ridiculous and unbelievable which is such a shame as the acting is superb as one would expect with such a cast. I'm actually baffled how Poliakoff managed to write such an appalling ending. it really is quite an achievement.

Absolutely loved this, compulsive viewing from start to finish. Great cast and some brilliant characters.

This series had so much potential but the ending was ridiculous and the explanations to various events (such as the missing son) were completely unbelievable. Such a shame as the story was excellent up until the end and the actors and setting were wonderful but all was ruined by the bizarre ending.

Did not expect to enjoy this but it grabbed me in and was hooked , a few mistakes but only for the real picky , the story moves back and forth which makes you think it's him no it's her etc , great spy espionage watch , BBC at its best with amazing acting and writing .

Exquisite acting by Hawes. A great ensemble cast alone makes it worth watching but she is incredible. The spy & technology Cold War era components are icing on the cake. Enjoyed it very much / so far. Haven't finished but I am a fan at this point about halfway in. IF YOU LIKE SLOW HIRSES, I think you will appreciate this series.

Dealing with the unbearable ravism/anti-semitism is a timely reminder that we are still not that far from it - the series is set right after WW2 & biggest historical genocide & murderous tragedy of the modern era.

The cinematography, sets, settings, landscapes.are luscious- Downton Abbey fans will also appreciate.

Elements of the Lindbergh baby kidnapping if you look for it.

But again, Keeley Hawes- outstanding & lovely.

Toby Stephens Keeley Hawes, Linus Roache, and Timothy Spall star in this totally captivating television series.

As a side issue it was endearing to hear the English language spoken so well compared to the man on the street today.

Keeley Hawes and Toby Stephens carried each episode superbly.

Well done to all connected with this superb series.