Day: July 9, 2021

Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for July 11: Summer slump? No, this night is packed

1) “Masterpiece: Unforgotten” season-opener, 9 p.m., PBS. For three seasons, this formula has worked well: Cassie (Nicola Walker, shown here) and her police team tackle a long-ago murder. We also meet some seemingly unconnected people; over six episodes, the connection becomes clear. This time, however, is different: Emotionally battered by previous cases, Cassie wants to retire; she has to stay three more months, or forfeit her pension. The result brings deep layers of emotion and, at times, pain. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / July 9, 2021
Stories

A poet’s life was enriched by crime

Most poet laureates manage to elude pop-culture fame.
Sure, we’ve heard of a few of them – in England, William Wordsworth and Alfred, Lord Tennyson; in the U.S. some Roberts (Frost, Lowell, Penn Warren). But ask a friend to recite a poem by Colley Cibber or Allen Tate or Randall Jarell.
Still, the late Cecil Day-Lewis (England’s laureate, 1968-72) made two notable contributions: 1) His son, Oscar-winning actor Daniel Day-Lewis; and 2) “The Beast Must Die,” a novel that has become an Argentine movie, a French movie and now a British mini-series, starring Cush Jumbo and Billy Howle (shown here), that debuts at 10 p.m. Monday (July 12) on AMC. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / July 9, 2021