Life on Mars (TV series)

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Life on Mars is a BAFTA and International Emmy award-winning British television drama series, which was first shown on BBC One in January and February 2006. The second and final series ended on 10 April, 2007.

The format of the series mixes science fiction — specifically, time travel — with police drama. The central character is DCI Sam Tyler of Greater Manchester Police (played by John Simm), who, after being hit by a car in 2006, finds himself in the year 1973. There, he works for Manchester and Salford Police CID as a DI under DCI Gene Hunt (played by Philip Glenister). Over the course of the series, Tyler faces various culture clashes, most frequently regarding differences in his approach to policing compared to that of his colleagues. The series also features a strong ambiguity concerning Tyler's predicament: it is unclear whether he really has travelled back in time, is in a coma in 2006 and imagining his experiences, or if he is mentally unstable.

[edit] Production

Produced by Kudos Film & Television — the makers of Spooks and Hustle — for BBC Wales, the eight one-hour episodes of the first series were broadcast on BBC One on Monday nights at 9pm. The series was created by writers Tony Jordan, Matthew Graham and Ashley Pharoah, who also provided the majority of the scripts. The fourth writer on the first series was Chris Chibnall. For the second series, Graham, Pharoah and Chibnall returned to write episodes, joined by Julie Rutterford, Guy Jenkin and Mark Greig.^[1] The second series transmission day was moved to Tuesday night rather than Monday.

The programme was originally conceived in 1998, when Graham, Jordan and Pharoah had been sent on a break to the seaside resort of Blackpool by Kudos to come up with new programme ideas.^[2] Originally titled Ford Granada,^[3] after the popular car of the 1970s, the series was initially rejected by the BBC. "Back then, broadcasters just weren't comfortable with something like that, something that wasn't set in the real world and that had a fantasy element to it,"^[2] Graham later told SFX Magazine. The initial idea at this time was for a more humorous, pre-watershed series that overtly mocked the styles and attitudes of the 1970s, with comic actor Neil Morrissey envisioned as playing the central character.^[4]

Later, Channel 4 drama executive John Yorke picked up the script and it was substantially redeveloped, with the emergence of the double act between Gene and Sam. However, senior management eventually decided not to pursue the idea. "[Channel 4] people just said 'It's going to be silly',"^[5] Graham told the Radio Times in a feature published the week of the first episode's transmission. However, the series eventually attracted the attention of BBC Wales Head of Drama Julie Gardner who in turn persuaded the overall Head of Drama at the BBC, Jane Tranter, to commission the programme for BBC One.^[2] John Yorke left Channel 4 to rejoin the BBC and together he and Julie Gardner acted as joint commissioning editors on the show for its entire run.

The programme's central character was originally to have been called "Sam Williams", but Kudos felt that this was not striking enough and asked Graham to come up with an alternative surname. (This would later be referenced in the final episode of series two.) Asking his young daughter for her opinion, she suggested "Sam Tyler", which became the character's name. Graham subsequently discovered that his daughter had named him after Rose Tyler from Doctor Who, a programme for which he would later write an episode.^[6] The initial geographical setting was to be London; this was then changed to Leeds, and finally to Manchester, as part of a BBC initiative to make more programmes in that city.^[4]

Filming for a second series for BBC One started in April 2006.^[7] According to Jane Featherstone, the show's executive producer, speaking in February 2006, a film version of the show was also a possibility: "Life on Mars was a very high concept idea and there was no doubt it would work on the big screen... But as yet, we are concentrating on the development and production of the second series for BBC1."^[8]

On 9 October 2006, it was confirmed that the second series of Life on Mars would also be the last, with two possible endings to the programme having been filmed. Matthew Graham stated that "We decided that Sam's journey should have a finite life span and a clear-cut ending and we feel that we have now reached that point after two series."^[9]

The second series had a distinctive style of introduction on BBC One: after a brief collage of momentary images, such as several test cards and the late comedy writer/broadcaster Barry Took, a version of BBC1's 1970s blue-on-black rotating globe ident (with a blue 'BBC1 Colour' caption underneath) was used, although the design had to be modified to fit widescreen sets. This was accompanied by a bass-voiced continuity announcer in the style of that era. Viewers in Wales saw a 'BBC Cymru Wales' globe. Trailers for the show also used the 1970s style, including the slanting BBC logo with rounded edges.

The Guardian newspaper's Media Guardian.co.uk website reported that producer David E Kelley was to develop an American version of the series for the ABC network there, which was being targeted for the 2007–08 TV season. "Mr Kelley will write and executive produce a pilot for the 60-minute ABC version of BBC1's hit 70s cop drama, which was likely to be broadcast in autumn next year if it gets a full series commission."^[10] According to a report by The Hollywood Reporter Rachelle Lefèvre had been cast as the female lead of "the lone female detective in the department" that "forges a mystic bond with the mysterious detective and teams with him to track a serial killer".^[11] This report also indicated that the American series will take place in 1972 rather than 1973.^[11]

In December 2006, it was reported that the BBC had commissioned a Life on Mars spin-off series, to be titled Ashes to Ashes after another David Bowie song of the same name. The Times reported that this spin-off would pick up the lives of Gene Hunt and other characters from the series in 1981.^[12] Julie Gardner confirmed that the spin-off was to be produced during an interview for BBC Radio Wales in March 2007.^[13] The series was confirmed by the BBC on the day of the finale's airing. Ashes to Ashes will see Philip Glenister return as DCI Gene Hunt, but this time in London in 1981. He will be joined by female detective DCI Alex Drake from the 21st Century, a new character. She will be a modern woman who has risen through the ranks of the Metropolitan Police by using psychological profiling to capture suspects, producers said. But when she and her daughter are kidnapped, she is injured in a rescue attempt, and finds herself in 1981.^[14]

Jane Featherstone, executive producer for TV production company Kudos, said the search was on for DCI Hunt's new "sexy sidekick". "It's a touch of Moonlighting teamed with a measure of Miami Vice," she said. Filming began in the summer of 2007, and the show will be broadcast on BBC1 in 2008, with Keeley Hawes playing Alex Drake.^[14]

[edit] Music

Main article: Life on Mars (soundtrack album)

The series was named after the David Bowie song "Life on Mars?", which is significant within the show. It plays on the iPod in Tyler's Jeep Grand Cherokee when the accident happens, and on an 8-track tape in a Rover P6 when he awakes in 1973. "Life on Mars?" also features within the final episodes of each series, and is played over the end credits of the last instalment. Matthew Graham admitted that initially there were some worries over whether the production team would be able to license the song, which, had they been denied it, would have necessitated retitling the series.^[15] Another Bowie song, "Space Oddity", is used in BBC trailers for the series. Besides the original score composed by Edmund Butt, many other early 1970s songs were also included.

Another song featured on the soundtrack, in the second episode, was "Live and Let Die" by Paul McCartney and Wings. Kudos were initially refused permission to use the song by the record company but, according to Graham in the Radio Times, "We sent the episode direct to Paul McCartney. Almost immediately, his assistant phoned back and said "Paul loves it. You can go ahead and use it"."^[16]

[edit] Cast

[edit] Episode guide

Main article: List of Life on Mars episodes

[edit] Themes and storyline

A central theme in the series is the conflict in attitudes between Tyler and his 1970s colleagues. Tyler — a product of the more politically correct twenty-first century, where suspects' rights and the chain and preservation of forensic evidence are more stringently observed — frequently clashes with his 1973 counterparts, who work in a police force where sexism, racism, police brutality and institutionalised minor corruption are casually regarded as routine parts of the job. This strongly alludes to the underlying theme of the 1970s police drama The Sweeney, something which becomes more obvious as the show progresses. The series frequently uses dramatic irony, in the form of off-hand jokes about a future the audience already knows, but which the historical characters do not (like Gene Hunt's quote "There will never be a woman prime minister as long as I have a hole in my arse.").

There is also a central ambiguity surrounding the status of Tyler: is he in a coma in 2006 and imagining his experiences? Is he really from 1973 and mentally unstable, albeit with remarkably accurate visions of the future, and why is he seeing the past selves of people from his life in 2006? Or, has he somehow travelled back in time from 2006 to 1973?

This uncertainty is conveyed through a surreal approach, such as when Tyler is addressed directly through his television set late at night by the young girl featured in the Test Card F or Open University lecturers. In episode five of series two, a medication overdose administered to Tyler in 2006 results in an apparent hallucination recalling the 1970s children's series Camberwick Green (an animated sequence produced by Hot Animation).

Tyler also occasionally hears voices and electronic noises — apparently from people and machines around his hospital bed — which lead him to believe that he is in a coma (although other details, such as the remarkable amount of detail and tangibility in the world in which Tyler finds himself, may suggest otherwise). There are also scenes where past and present appear to overlap, such as in episode six, where Sam hears the 2006 voice of his mother saying his life-support machine will be switched off at 2pm, and immediately in 1973 he is called to investigate a hostage-taking where the perpetrator will start killing his victims at 2pm. "No-one will die today," is the repeated response from Sam. The timelines merge again in the first episode of series two, when Sam encounters a suspect in 1973 whom he had arrested in 2006; it appears that this man is also trying to kill him while he is in his coma. The second series also develops the voices that regularly contact him, when we see for the first time that they can hear him. In episode one of the second series, a voice on the telephone tells him he is close to home, but DCI Hunt and the others must not know what he is doing there. Unusually, this call could be traced by the operator to the town of Hyde in the Manchester borough of Tameside, the area where Sam was told he transferred from in Series 1, Episode 1. It later transpires in episode 7 of series 2 that the voice on the telephone belongs to Acting DCI Frank Morgan, also from Hyde, who temporarily takes DCI Hunt's role while Hunt is being investigated for a possible murder. Sam realises this when Morgan is being bid farewell in the lift and tells Sam that "Hunt wiggled out of it this time." He then reassures Sam that it won't be long before Hunt receives his comeuppance and Sam can "come home".

[edit] Ending

Having stipulated that the programme would only run for two series, the writers had to create an ending bringing together all the story threads. The final episode centres on a plot by coal miners, who, backed by hardened criminals and led by a psychopathic convicted cop killer, aim to steal a large quantity of money from a train. Frank Morgan, introduced in the previous episode as a police officer more akin to Sam's style of policing, plays a central role. Early in the episode, Sam comes to believe that Frank is the surgeon in the future, who has been talking to him through the television, telephones and in his head. Sam is told that a tumour in his head is keeping him in a coma, and thus in 1973. Sam surmises that Gene Hunt is the manifestation of the tumour in his dream state because Morgan tells him that he must destroy Gene in order to complete the 'operation' and come home. Morgan asks Sam to collect evidence to convict Hunt of gross professional misconduct.

Sam therefore tapes a variety of instances of Hunt abusing his power, including the beating of a suspect and the planning of an illegal sting to stop the train robbery. Sam meets with Morgan, presenting his evidence, and Morgan tells him that he is, in fact, not from the future, that the year is 1973, and that they both are part of an operation codenamed M.A.R.S. (Metropolitan Accountability and Reconciliation Strategy), the purpose of which is to secure better policing for Manchester. Morgan tells Sam that he is undercover inside Hunt's A-division in order to bring his illegal activities to an end. Sam does not believe him, but Morgan tells him that, after his accident, his mind closed down, and he now suffers from amnesia.

He tells Sam that his name is really Williams and that he has replaced this with his undercover persona. He shows Sam the graves of his 'mother' and 'father' and then 'Sam Tyler', all of whom have been dead since the 19th century. Disillusioned, he then looks at his police file and sees the note on his record about his transfer, signed by Morgan. Sam is then given a Burndept police radio by Morgan, told that Morgan will be standing by with armed reinforcements after the sting and all Sam needs to do is call him on the radio for reinforcements and Hunt's arrest, thus destroying Hunt.

Meanwhile, work is progressing on the sting and Sam is disowned by A-division when he tells them that he is working undercover for Morgan. However, he must take part in the sting for it to be a success. Sam and Ray go undercover as security guards on the train, with Chris and Annie posing as BR staff. Gene is undercover as the previously-arrested gang member. Sam takes with him the radio Morgan gave him to call in backup. At the worst possible moment, the radio starts to crackle and falls out of Sam's pocket, where it is seen by the gang members. Annie slams the train door, while Gene removes his mask and thus reveals his true identity.

The gang members open fire on the train trapping the team inside. Sam tries to use the radio to call in Morgan, but without success. He then leaves the train to try and find help. In a tunnel he meets Morgan, who reveals that he would be content to let Ray, Annie and Chris die in order to bring down Hunt. Sam argues, but then is called into a bright white light calling him home. As he leaves, Gene, Chris and Ray are hit by fire from the gang members. Annie screams for help.

Sam then wakes in his hospital room in the present day, to find his mum sat by his bedside and Morgan, the surgeon, looking down on him. Morgan tells him he could not remove the tumour, but that it was entirely benign. Morgan is very self-flattering and congratulates himself for relieving the pressure in Sam's head and thus bringing him out of his coma at last. Sam is soon well enough to leave the hospital's Hyde Ward, room 2612 — explaining the references to 'Hyde 2612', and returns to his life as a 21st-century DCI. He also talks to his mum, telling her that he made a promise to someone. His mum says, "Then you've got nothing to worry about, as you never break your promises."

He returns to work but quickly finds that he cannot relate to any of his colleagues. He even accidentally cuts himself without feeling any pain, reminiscent of when he cut himself with a razor but felt the pain, in 1973. Remembering Nelson's earlier observation that "You know you're alive when you can feel". Sam goes up on to the roof of the station. After looking out over Manchester for a long while (Bowie's Life on Mars? plays almost in full), he takes a running leap from the roof… and appears back in 1973, just in time to gun down the gang leader, saving his colleagues. In the pub afterwards, Sam makes up with Ray, Chris and Phyllis, and goes outside in search of Annie. He asks her, "What do I do, Annie?" and she says, "Stay here forever" (echoing their conversation at the end of episode one of the first series). As they finally kiss, Hunt drives up with details of a new case.

As they drive off, Sam hears, over the radio, voices saying they are losing him, and the sound of an ambulance siren, suggesting that perhaps in 2006 he is unconscious in an ambulance following his leap from the building. However, the symbolism of his turning the radio off and saying "I never liked that channel anyway" suggests that he is giving up on "life" and that he is now dead, and spending the afterlife in "1973". He changes the channel to hear Life on Mars? once again and, as the car drives off, Sam and Gene bicker as usual (Sam: "It's the law!" Gene: "I am the law!" Sam: "In your dreams!"). At the very end, children run past and the girl from Test Card F follows them on to the screen, stops, and looks directly into the camera, before reaching out with her hand and "switching off" the television we are watching — it leaps back into a white dot in the manner of a 1970s set.

It is debatable whether or not this signifies Sam's death, or simply the end of the television series (the writer Matthew Graham has indicated the latter in an interview,^[17] although the former has widely been inferred). In the interview, Graham makes it clear that Sam is now in the afterlife, where time lasts an eternity compared to the few seconds of the suicide jump: "The truth is, when I wrote it, what I was trying to say is that he's died, and that for however long that last second of life is going to be, it will stretch out for an age, as an eternity for him. And so when he drives off in that car, he's really driving off into the afterlife.")

Ultimately the viewer is left with ambiguity as to which to emotionally accept as real: Sam's life in the present day or his life in 1973. Has he really reawoken, and then thrown himself off a high building, presumably to his death? Writer Matthew Graham suggests so.^[17] Or, as actor John Simm suggests, might this too merely be another one of his coma dreams?^[17] Back in 1973 Sam can still hear the voices come through the radio that suggest he is in a coma or dying — "It's no good, he's slipping away from us" — but now he chooses to ignore them, and changes the radio channel.

[edit] Cultural references

• The character of Frank Morgan, introduced in the penultimate episode of Series Two as the officer behind the operation to reveal Gene Hunt's gross professional misconduct, shares his name with the actor Frank Morgan, who played the title character in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. When Sam wakes up from his coma in the final episode of Series Two, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's acoustic version of "Over the Rainbow" is played over the following scenes. This is also linked to Gene Hunt's continual referral to Sam as 'Dorothy', the heroine of The Wizard of Oz, throughout the two series ('friends of Dorothy' being a slang expression for gay men, due to the popularity of Judy Garland in gay culture).
• Furthering the "Wizard of Oz" theme, in the final scene of the last episode when Sam and Annie kiss, a rainbow can be seen in the distant sky, indicating that once more, Sam is "over the rainbow" — i.e., in the fantasy land. A rainbow can be faintly seen in the opening credits when we see multiple images of Sam's face. Two panels at the lower right have a prismatic rainbow splash superimposed over them as a result of an artificial lens flare added to the images.
• When Sam Tyler hears voices, they are reminiscent of the dream sequences in Terry Gilliam's Brazil, which repeat the main character's name (also Sam) in a similar manner. In the final sequence of that movie, Sam enters a permanent dream-like state to avoid torture at the hands of his former colleagues at the fictitious Ministry of Information Retrieval, prompting Mr Helpmann to say, "You've gotten away from us, Sam."
• In the final episode, just before Sam is visited by the girl from the Test Card, a green pulse appears on the television, exactly the same as the one used in the inside cover of Pink Floyd's album The Dark Side of the Moon. It has a close association with The Wizard of Oz and was released in 1973.
• Other Wizard of Oz references include in episode one of Series One, when Sam decides to walk until his mind can't think up any more, he says, "Follow the yellow brick road". In episode two of Series One, Sam asks Hunt if he can go back. Hunt picks up the phone and says "Is that the Wizard of Oz? The Wizard will sort it out. It's 'cause of the wonderful things he does." In episode two of Series Two, the closing credits is set to "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road".
• The character of Frank Morgan also shares his name with the actor who plays DI Regan's boss in the TV series The Sweeney. In that programme, DI Regan’s boss is Frank Haskins played by Garfield Morgan. Frank Morgan’s dress style also bears a strong resemblance to that of the Haskins character.
• In the final episode, When Sam Tyler tells Gene Hunt that he isn't above the law, he says, "I am the law", a catchphrase of Judge Dredd in the Judge Dredd comic book series.
• Matthew Graham used the East Manchester town of Hyde as Sam's former police division as a clue that his 1973 self is an alter ego, as in Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.^[15]
• In several episodes, DCI Gene Hunt refers to himself as "the Gene Genie", referencing another famous David Bowie song, "The Jean Genie", which is played at Warren's night club in episode 4, series 1.

[edit] Reception

[edit] Series one

Previewing the first episode for the Radio Times, the magazine's television editor, Alison Graham, described the series as "a genuinely innovative and imaginative take on an old genre... This sounds silly, but writers Matthew Graham, Tony Jordan and Ashley Pharoah give the drama wit and heart."^[18] The series was also featured on the front cover of that week's issue of the magazine, with a publicity photograph of Simm and Glenister. In a preview behind-the-scenes feature for SFX, Steve O'Brien declared that "it looks like BBC One has — and we'll lay large bets on this — a monster hit on its hands... It's funny... and dramatic and exciting, and we're really not getting paid for saying this."^[19]

Reaction following the broadcast of the opening episode was also generally positive. Reviewing the opening instalment in The Guardian the day after transmission, Sam Wollaston wrote: "For anyone of 40 or over, it's fabulous fun... But Life on Mars was more than just a jolly, tongue-in-cheek romp into the past... Once there, in 1973, we find ourselves immersed in a reasonably gripping police drama — yes, The Sweeney, perhaps, with better production values... Or put another — undeniably laboured — way, as poor Sam Tyler walks through his sunken dream, I'm hooked to the silver screen. And yes, I know it's actually a small screen."^[20]

Other newspaper critics gave the series similarly positive reviews, with James Walton of the Daily Telegraph saying that "Theoretically, this should add up to a right old mess. In practice, it makes for a thumpingly enjoyable piece of television — not least because everybody involved was obviously having such a great time."^[21] Peter Paterson of the Daily Mail did, however, reflect the views of many other commentators when he wondered "can its intriguing conceit be sustained over eight one-hour episodes?".^[21]

The first episode was also a success in terms of viewing figures, with an average audience of seven million in the overnight ratings.^[22] This was enough for the programme to win its timeslot with a 27% share of the total television audience for the hour from 9pm, one million viewers ahead of its nearest rival, Soapstar Superstar on ITV1.^[22] In the following weeks, the competition on ITV1 came from the comedy-drama series Northern Lights, which gained a marginally higher overnight rating for its first episode against Life on Mars's second, 6.1 million (24% of the available audience) against 6 million.^[23]

In subsequent weeks, however, Life on Mars fared better against Northern Lights. Episode three gained 6.2 million viewers and a 24% share against the second of Northern Lights which fell to 5.4 million (21%).^[24] The trend continued in the following weeks, with Northern Lights not managing to beat Life on Mars again, and the series even managing a highest viewing figure since the first episode for episode five, which gained 6.7 million viewers and a 26% share.^[25]

Critical reaction to the series also continued to be positive. Reviewing episode four in The Guardian, Nancy Banks-Smith wrote that: "Life on Mars was an inspired take on the usual formula of Gruff Copper of the old school, who solves cases by examining the entrails of a chicken, and Sensitive Sidekick, who has a degree in detection... No profession has changed more dramatically in the last 30 years than the police (I wish I could force more enthusiasm into my voice) but old coppers still make the best jokes."^[26]

The final episode gained 7.1 million viewers in the overnight figures, a 28% audience share which placed it well ahead of the nearest competition, the first episode of the two-part drama Love Lies Bleeding on ITV1, which gained 5.4 million (23%).^[27]

In November 2006, the first series of Life on Mars won the International Emmy Award for Best Drama Series.^[28] In January 2007 it won the Best New Programme category at the Broadcast Magazine awards.^[29] In March 2007 it won two categories, Best Drama Series and the Writers' Award, at the Broadcasting Press Guild Awards.^[30] On April 11 2007, the day after the transmission of the series' last-ever episode, it was announced that series one had been nominated for a British Academy Television Award (BAFTA) in the Best Drama Series category. John Simm was also nominated as Best Actor for his work on the show.^[31] However, neither won, being defeated by The Street and Jim Broadbent respectively. The programme did however win the audience-voted Pioneer Award.^[32]

[edit] Series two

The first episode of the second series gained an overnight rating of 5.7 million on BBC One,^[33] winning its timeslot, with the closest opposition being Trial and Retribution on ITV1, which gained 5.5 million.^[33] However, this was over a million lower than the 6.8 million average Life on Mars gained for its first series episodes.^[33] The premiere of the second episode immediately afterwards on BBC Four gained 747,000 viewers, the best audience of the day for a digital television-only channel.^[34]

The first episode was praised by the Radio Times's television editor Alison Graham in her preview, who wrote: "Sam Tyler and Gene Hunt are shaping up nicely as one of the great TV detective partnerships... It's vastly enjoyable and manages to stay just about believable thanks to some strong writing and, of course, the two marvellous central performances."^[35] However, Nancy Banks-Smith in The Guardian felt that the time-paradox aspect of the episode was somewhat confusing.^[36]

The final episode of series two gained the largest audience figure for the second run, with an average of seven million people, a 28% audience share, in the overnight ratings.^[37] This was despite competition from UEFA Champions League football on ITV1; the audience for Life on Mars rose from 6.6 million for the first half-hour to 7.7 million for the second once the football coverage had ended.^[38]

Two days after the final episode's transmission, Life on Mars was attacked in the British press by the National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers, who claimed that Gene Hunt's use of homophobic insults in the programme could encourage copycat bullying in schools.^[39] The BBC responded to the suggestion by pointing out that Life on Mars was targeted at an adult audience, and that Hunt's characterisation was "extreme and tongue-in-cheek".^[39]

In October 2007, series two was nominated as the Most Popular Drama at the 2007 National Television Awards.^[40]

[edit] Filming locations

Parts of the filming took place in or around the following locations.

• Manchester's Northern Quarter, Castlefield, the Canal and Ancoats area.
• Stockport, including Stopford House Council Offices (the Police Station in the series,) The Plaza Theatre and the old shopping areas.
• Gorton, in south east Manchester.
• Mancunian Way Flyover (Episode 1)
• Stretford Rd Bridge (series 2 episode 8)
• Victoria Baths The boilerhouse complex was used as the old waterworks (end of Episode 2) and the Turkish Baths appear as a morgue (Episode 7). Both reappear in episode two of the second series; this time, the boilerhouse complex was Malone's base. The Turkish Baths continues to serve as the morgue in Episodes 4 and 5. In Episode 3, the Irish centre was in the Turkish Baths Rest Room, with the Angel of Purity stained-glass window.
• Rochdale Currently closed nightclub, formerly Liquid Rock, was used as Warren's nightclub in series 1.
• Bury Arts & Crafts Centre, Broad Street, Bury, Greater Manchester, used as the bank location in Series 2, episode 3.
• The Mills around Ancoats, Manchester
• Queen Street Textile Mill Harle Syke, Briercliffe, Burnley (Lancashire) (Episode 3)
• The rear of "The Angel" public house, Shaw Road, Royton was used as the fictional exterior of the pub (Episode 4) where the stars of the show are seen to drink each week (the interior of the pub was a set).
• Brook Mill No.2 (Oldham Twist Co.) Hollins, Oldham (Episode 3)
• Universal House, Head office of Great Universal Stores Building Manchester (Episode 6)
• Press Club Central Manchester: The Casino, (Series 2 Episode 1)
• Tiger Lounge, Cooper Street, Manchester: The Casino, (Series 2 Episode 1)
• Dolphin Street, Ardwick Green, Manchester: The Casino exterior/street scenes, (Series 2 Episode 1)
• Hoghton Tower, Chorley, Lancashire: Broadmoor hospital, (Series 2 Episode 2)
• Queen street school Farnworth Bolton (Series 2 Episode 3)
• Bolton, various streets used throughout the series due to their "unspoiled" appearance.
• Fallowfield, Manchester: Appleby Lodge. A 1930s apartment block that was once residence to ex-Hallé Orchestra conductor, Sir John Barbirolli.
• East Lancashire Railway, Bury, Greater Manchester (Series 2 Episode 8)

[edit] Anachronisms

Some minor anachronisms occur in episodes of Life on Mars. Interviews with the creators have shown that at least some of these were unintentional.^[41] Others were deliberately inserted to confuse the issue of whether Sam Tyler was in a dream or had gone back in time, or out of artistic licence.

• The first of these anachronisms was in episode one, occurring after Sam Tyler wakes up in 1973. On a building site for the Mancunian Way, Sam looks at a sign proclaiming the building of a new motorway at the heart of Manchester. In reality, this motorway was completed in 1967. According to Matthew Graham, writing in the Radio Times, this particular anachronism was definitely deliberate. "We knew that this road was built in the 1960s, but we took a bit of artistic licence."^[42]
• After Sam arrives in 1973 in the first episode, he looks in his car and "Life on Mars?" can be heard playing inside on the 8-track player. The tape in the deck is Aladdin Sane, which was released in 1973, but "Life on Mars?" was not on that album. It originally appeared on Hunky Dory (1971).
• At the very end of episode one of series one, there is a scene where Sam is standing on the roof of the police station wanting to jump off. When WPC Annie Cartwright climbs on to the roof, the Stockport Pyramid can be seen in the background. The Pyramid however was not built until the mid-1990s. Also visible are the words "HAT MUSEUM" on the Stockport Hat Works chimney (formerly the Stockport Hat Factory, now a museum). These words were not put up until the early 2000s.

• In an episode in series one Sam encounters the pop star Marc Bolan, who was to die in a car crash in 1977. Sam turns to Bolan and says, "Drive carefully, especially in Minis." Although Bolan was in a Mini when he died, he never learned to drive and his girlfriend, Gloria Jones, was driving the car when it crashed on Barnes.

• In series one there was a reference to "Wednesday the 16th of March 1973", whereas that date was actually a Friday.
• Several episodes include street furniture and other items in the background which while they would not have been present in the 1970s, would also be difficult for a TV show to have removed. Green cable television cabinets, satellite television dishes, 'dome' and regular type CCTV cameras, external air-conditioning units, double-glazed uPVC window frames and mobile phone masts are visible in a number of outdoor scenes. In a number of residential street scenes, it can be seen where burglar alarm boxes have been digitally masked in post-production.^{[citation needed]} In the DVD commentaries for series one, although the programme makers acknowledge these errors, they also point out they are perfectly feasible, given Sam's situation.^[15]
• In series two episode 6, much was made of heroin as a 'new drug' on the streets of Manchester. Heroin was already well-known as a hard drug in the 1960s. In a United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime report called Opioid Users Attending a Special Drug Dependence Clinic 1968–1969 dated January 1 1971, the following assertion was made: "The rising incidence of heroin misuse among young people led to the Second Interdepartmental Report (1965) which confirmed that the addict be treated under a medical rather than a criminal label." Heroin use was neither widespread nor common in the north-west of England at this time with most use being restricted to London, therefore the description of heroin as a "new drug" in early 1970s Manchester is accurate.

[edit] Police service

• In an interview John Stalker, Deputy Chief Constable of Greater Manchester in the early 1980s, and himself a Detective Inspector in 1973, has stated that the depiction of the police "has got nothing to do with real policing in the 1970s. It could not be more inaccurate in terms of procedure, the way they talk or the way they dress. In all the time I was in the CID in the 1970s I never saw a copper in a leather bomber jacket and I never heard an officer call anyone 'guv' [A much later adoption from London forces; in Manchester the preferred term at the time would have been 'boss']... Actually, there were a few police officers in London who started to behave like Regan and Carter in The Sweeney, but that was a case of life following art, not the other way round."^[43] Journalist Ray King, who interviewed Stalker, notes that this depiction of the police can be defended if we assume that Sam is indeed in a coma, and that we are seeing his imaginary idea of 1973, filtered through 70s cop shows.^[43]
• Some of the vehicles, such as the green Transit van UJA 943K, feature new style plastic number plates with condensed lettering, which were introduced in 2001.
• In episode 5 of series 2 there was a scene in which Sam Tyler and Gene Hunt raid a house. Outside in the street was parked a Mini Clubman estate. Whilst these cars were in production in 1973 the colours, either ‘Russet brown’ or 'Mace', were not introduced until 1976 and 1982 respectively. Also, the Mini features the revised full length double stripe which was also a later addition.
• The tunics worn by the uniformed male police officers should have had a cloth belt. The more 'relaxed' style without the belt was not introduced until the 1980s in most UK police forces.

[edit] Technology

• The Russian Zenit E camera used in series 2 episode 4 during the car dealer surveillance scene is the SLR camera that was produced at least as early as 1971.
• In series 2 episode 6, the mother of Sam's 21st-century ex-girlfriend Maya is seen having an ultrasound scan of a baby. She explains that she is "only the 17th woman in Manchester to have [a scan]". The image of the baby on the screen is anachronistic because both the probe and the screen image (with annunciators rendered in a raster character set, for example) are fairly modern.
• The Austin Allegro was not yet released. In series 1 episode 4 there is a sweepstake for the Grand National horse race that Saturday. The Grand National is held in early April and the Allegro was not introduced until 17 May 1973[1].
• In both series the police use Pye Pocketphone PF1[2] personal radios, these have separate receiver and transmit units but only the transmitter unit is seen.
• Telephones used in the series, whilst being of standard Post Office issue of the time, had an American-style long ring instead of the usual British-style double ring. The writers have stated that this was intended to echo the sound of the studio telephone faintly audible at the end of David Bowie's "Life on Mars?"^[17] The phone ringing at the end of the Bowie track is in fact the British style — the song having been recorded at Trident Studios in Soho, London.
• Another anachronism was Sam's dual-display LCD watch. In 1973, the only widely available digital watches used red light-emitting diodes, which required the press of a button to light them. LCDs did not become common until much later. A watch like Sam's, with both a dial and an LCD, would not have been available until the 1980s.
• The only bus seen during the two series was "EX1", an experimental 1-door rear-engined Leyland Atlantean double-decker in the (then) new orange and white livery of operator SELNEC (South East Lancashire/North East Cheshire). In 1973 many buses in Manchester were still in the old red Manchester Corporation or green Salford Corporation colours and had open rear platforms and conductors in the style of London's Routemaster buses.
• The last episode referred to the "NUM payroll". The miners would have been employed and paid by the National Coal Board (NCB), not the National Union of Mineworkers, which was their trade union. British Rail had secure bullion vans for the transit of large amounts of money. There were very few, if any, coaches in 1973 that were maroon: the standard livery was blue and grey.
• The handpumps used to dispense beer in the detectives' regular pub sat on a raised rectangular wooden plinth. This is a modern concept: before the 1980s they were fitted directly through a hole in the bar counter.

[edit] Overseas sales

Between July 24, 2006 and September 11, 2006, the first series aired in the US on BBC America,^[44] to favourable critical reviews.^[45] The American version is edited for the insertion of commercials and omits some nudity and language that is present in the original BBC One version. The second series began airing on BBC America on December 11, 2007.

Life on Mars also began airing on BBC Canada on September 13, 2006, followed in November by broadcasts on the Canadian network Showcase. While not edited for nudity or language specifically, the Canadian broadcasts of series one episodes were slightly edited for commercials (Showcase premiered the episodes in a 75-minute slot (one hour plus commercials), then repeated them in a 60-minute timeslot). BBC Canada then started running series two uncut on February 28, 2007.

On January 14, 2007 the series started to air in Sweden, broadcast by SVT 2. SVT was given the cut version intended for BBC America, angering fans of the series.^[46] SVT later stated that they had been given the cut-down version due to the fact that the BBC had not cleared all the music rights internationally.^[47] On January 7, 2007 the series began in the Netherlands, shown by NPS on Nederland 3.

In Germany, private network station Kabel 1 aired the first series of the show from 3 February, 2007 to 25 February, 2007 with two episodes being broadcast each Saturday evening in prime time. The series is subtitled Gefangen in den 70ern ("Trapped in the 70s").^[48] For the first airing assorted scenes of varying importance for the plot were edited out to make room for commercials and severe translation errors occurred.^[49] A voice-over in the final scene of series one announced that series two will be shown in autumn 2007.

In New Zealand the series started with a double bill of episodes 1 and 2, shown on February 20, 2007 by TVNZ on TV ONE. There, the website stuff.co.nz described it as "sensationally well-made".^[50]

In France, private satellite and cable network station 13ème rue aired the first series of the show from March 20, 2007 to April 10, 2007 with two episodes being broadcast each Tuesday evening in prime time.^[51]

In Israel the cable network Hot aired the first series in 2006, and started airing the second series at August 2007.

In Australia the first series began airing May 20, 2007 on ABC TV.

In Ireland, RTÉ Two began broadcasting Series 1 on June 19, 2007 in a late evening slot, following RTÉ News on Two.

In Finland, SubTV will begin broadcasting Series 1 some time in the summer of 2008.

[edit] Soundtrack

Season 1 - Episode 1

• David Bowie - "Life on Mars?"
• Blue Öyster Cult - "Stairway to the Stars"
• Lou Reed - "I'm So Free"
• The Who - "Baba O'Riley"
• Deep Purple - "Rat Rat Blue"
• Deep Purple - "Fireball"
• Cream - "White Room"
• Uriah Heep - "Easy Livin'"

Season 1 - Episode 2

• Wings - "Live and Let Die"
• Deep Purple - "No One Came"
• Willie Lindo & The Charmers Band - "Drum Song"
• Thin Lizzy - "Saga of the Aging Orphan"
• Deep Purple - "Lazy"
• Pink Floyd - "One of These Days"
• The Upsetters - "Dream Land"

Season 1 - Episode 3

• Uriah Heep - "Gypsy"
• Free - "Wishing Well"
• Atomic Rooster - "Head in the Sky"
• Sweet - "Ballroom Blitz"

Season 1 - Episode 4

• Hawkwind - "Brainstorm"
• David Bowie - "The Jean Genie"
• Jethro Tull - "Cross Eyed Mary"
• Hawkwind - "Silver Machine"
• Slade - "Gudbuy T'Jane"
• The Rolling Stones - "Wild Horses"
• Sweet - "Blockbuster"
• Roger Whittaker - "I Don't Believe in If Anymore"

Season 1 - Episode 5

• Thin Lizzy - "Call the Police"
• Status Quo - "Good Thinking"
• Thin Lizzy - "The Rocker"
• Cream - "White Room"
• T. Rex - "Jeepster"
• Roxy Music - "Would You Believe"
• Hawkwind - "Urban Guerilla"
• Hawkwind - "Ejection"
• Colloseum - "I Can't Live Without You"
• Roxy Music - "Mother of Pearl"
• Nina Simone - " I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free"

Season 1 - Episode 6

• Louis Armstrong - "What a Wonderful World"

Season 1 - Episode 7

• The Hollies - "I Can't Tell the Bottom from the Top"
• Britney Spears - "Toxic"
• Peters and Lee - "Welcome Home"
• Pulp - "Disco 2000"
• Nina Simone - "Sinnerman"

Season 1 - Episode 8

• Atomic Rooster - "Friday 13th"
• Atomic Rooster - "The Rock"
• John Kongos - "Tokolshe Man"
• Atomic Rooster - "In the Snow"
• Atomic Rooster - "Devil's Answer"
• Wizzard - "See My Baby Jive"
• David Bowie - "Life on Mars?"
• Lindisfarne - "Meet Me on the Corner"
• Free - "Little Bit of Love"

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Life on Mars at bbc.co.uk
• Life on Mars: The Album
• Life on Mars at Digital Spy
• Life on Mars at the Internet Movie Database

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