I’ve just finished watching “Keeping Faith” (the English version downloaded from iPlayer a couple of months ago before it was shown on BBC).
Very enjoyable drama and I can see the comparisons with Broadchurch. I know that its currently halfway through and so don’t want to discuss the plot too much for fear of spoilers…..
One thing that has really stood out though are the songs by Amy Wadge that run through the series – they really get under the skin. Best being the track “We Fall Down”, but I can’t find a Youtube of that so you’ll have to make do with the main theme…..
daff says
The song you mention is available on Spotify – other streaming services are available – it forms part of an E.P.
fentonsteve says
I saw Keeping Faith when it was shown on Welsh iplayer.
I was really pleased to hear from Amy again as in the last interview I read (a few years ago) she said “I can’t afford to perform, so I’m just songwriting from now on”. I suppose the cash from writing for Red Ed comes in handy.
She used to be a regular, not-to-be-missed, on the folk club scene.
Moose the Mooche says
Welsh iPlayer…. isn’t that called DaiPlayer?
…please yerselves, bach.
PS. Eve Myles…. hurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
fentonsteve says
Very good, Moose.
Keeping Faith was filmed in Welsh and English, we watched it in Welsh with subtitles on.
dai says
I have watched the first 3 episodes and thinking of giving up. Bit too formulaic, but the scenery is beautiful (of course!). Have to disagree about the use of the music, I am not enjoying it much. Bit too heavy handed, a little subtlety goes a long way.
Chrisf says
Normally when songs are used in TV / film, they wash completely over me. Maybe because I binge watched this over 3 or 4 days, but in this case I found that the songs stuck in the mind after I had finished watching. Who knows – maybe the context, maybe because they are good songs – all I know is that I enjoyed and bought the EP afterwards.
dai says
So maybe I should give it another try.
Lemonhope says
We watched the first three and couldn’t hack it any longer – but we wanted to see if our instincts were correct, so we watched the last episode: we were not wrong.
It had the feel of a series that was 20 years old and hadn’t dated well.
Started watching ‘Unforgotten’ last night and binged the first 4. It’s everything Keeping Faith [I mean, even the title is dated] isn’t
Colin H says
I’m with Dai – I find the use of music annoying. Often, dramas these days seem to find it obligatory to have three minutes at the end where people look into the middle distance and some dreary singer-songwriter music plays. It started in America and it needs to stop. it’s lazy, annoying and unnecessary. Alas, ‘Keeping Faith’ sometimes uses this device two or three times an episode. It’s as if someone on the production team knows whoever the singer is and is actively trying to boost their career. Just stop it.
Mike_H says
Inclined to agree with Colin.
Just too much music, often used as sort of set pieces accompanying dramatic clichés.
The series itself started off quite well but then pretty quickly deteriorated. I didn’t quite give up on it but I certainly felt like it at times.
For a supposedly very clever lawyer, Faith seemed pretty dumb outside of the courtroom. And that sour-faced vindictive police detective, out to get her for anything at any price, was rather laughably bad characterisation, I thought.
dai says
Those were my thoughts after 3 episodes so looks like I may give up on it after all. Maybe one more episode, how many are there?
Colin H says
After last night’s episode it’s becoming just not believable – and hence annoying – Faith having beach parties one minute then single-handedly driving into gangster territory the next, all the while not telling the police about threats to her and her new evidence of her husband’s dodgy deals etc. There’s something about her pouting and personality (whether acting or real-life, I don’t know – similar to Nicola Walker’s constant tic of pausing and twitchily grinning in between lines as if to give them some heft that probably isn’t there) that’s becoming very annoying too. But I’ll stick with it…
Lemonhope says
Completely agree with your comments about Nicola Walker – just about bearable in ‘Unforgotten’ but infuriating in ‘The Split’
Charlie Barley says
When it first appeared on iPlayer – Christmas/New Year, I watched episodes 1-7 and then the day I was going to watch ep 8, it was taken down!!!
So now I’m keeping an eye out for ep 8 and hopefully I wont be as disappointed as I was with the final episode of Hidden.
dai says
I felt Hidden kind of ran out of story after about 4 episodes and the subplots that were built up went nowhere. A disappointment, but wonderful scenery (again!)
Colin H says
I think I agree with that. It was stretched at least one episode too long, probably two.
Ernest Scribbler says
I quite enjoyed Hidden but agree that the subplots went nowhere. I mean, the district nurse became forgotten after about ep 3. And the whole thing moved at a bit of a snail’s pace until the last 90 minutes. Having said that I liked the character of Cadi and would be pleased to see her return.
Keeping Faith, I lost faith with that (see what I did there?) after ep 2. I wasn’t interested in it enough to devote 8 hours to it despite reading about how it was iPlayer’s most successful show, or whatever the stat was.