afterlife
The two main stars of Afterlife.
Genre	Drama
Running time	60 minutes
Creator(s)	Stephen Volk
Starring	Lesley Sharp Andrew Lincoln
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original channel	ITV1
Original run	August 16, 2005 (Australia) September 24, 2005 (UK)–Present
No. of episodes	14
Official website
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

afterlife is a British television drama series, produced by independent producion company Clerkenwell Films for the ITV1 network. First broadcast in 2005, the series follows the activities of a psychic medium who appears to have the ability to communicate with the spirits of the dead. Image File history File links Afterlife. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Stephen Volk is a British screenwriter whos first produced work was Ken Russells film, Gothic in 1986. ... Lesley Sharp (born in 1964 in Liverpool, Merseyside, England) is a British actress. ... Andrew Lincoln (14 September 1973) is a British actor. ... ITV1 is a terrestrial, free-to-air television channel broadcast in the United Kingdom by the ITV network. ... August 16 is the 228th day of the year (229th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... September 24 is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Clerkenwell Films is a British television production company, which has produced several drama programmes for the ITV network in the United Kingdom. ... ITV1 is a terrestrial, free-to-air television channel broadcast in the United Kingdom by the ITV network. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Channelling (mediumistic). ...

Overview

The main characters of the series are the psychic, Alison Mundy (played by Lesley Sharp) and the academic who becomes involved with her due to his sceptical interest in the paranormal, Dr Robert Bridge (Andrew Lincoln). Set in Bristol, each of the six one-hour episodes of the first series sees Alison become involved in the appearance of a spirit and attempting to discover why it has come back to haunt the living. Robert becomes involved in the first episode, when Alison first moves to Bristol and her activities inadvertently result in the suicide of one of his students. Lesley Sharp (born in 1964 in Liverpool, Merseyside, England) is a British actress. ... Andrew Lincoln (14 September 1973) is a British actor. ... Bristol (IPA: ) is a city, unitary authority and ceremonial county in South West England, 115 miles (185 km) west of London and located at With a population of 400,000, and metropolitan area of 550,000, it is Englands sixth, and the United Kingdoms ninth, most populous city...

Following this, Robert decided to study Alison for a book. Alison's interest in Robert stems from her ability to see the spirit of his young son, who Robert cannot see. Throughout the series a recurring theme is Alison's attempt to have Robert fully come to terms with the death of his son so that the boy's spirit can be eased and he can fully move on. Alison's powers came to her after she was seriously injured in a train crash several years before, the other survivors of which seek her out to contact their own lost loved ones in the final episode of the first series, almost causing Alison's own death.

The programme was created by experienced television scriptwriter Stephen Volk, much of whose previous work had involved the paranormal, most famously the 1992 Screen One play Ghostwatch for BBC One. Volk also wrote five of the six episodes of the first series, the exception being the fifth episode which was scripted by Charlie Fletcher. The producer was Murray Ferguson, and the directors were Maurice Phillips (episodes 1 & 2), Charles Beeson (episodes 3 & 6) and Martyn Friend (episodes 4 & 5). Stephen Volk is a British screenwriter whos first produced work was Ken Russells film, Gothic in 1986. ... The BFI DVD release cover Ghostwatch was a controversial British horror-mockumentary television programme which was produced by the BBC and aired on BBC One on October 31 (Halloween), 1992. ... BBC One (or BBC1 as it was formerly styled) is the primary channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation. ... A Television producer oversees the making of television penis programs. ... A television director is usually responsible for directing the actors and other taped aspects of a television production. ...

Volk had originally conceived the series during the mid-1990s according to SFX magazine, when "ITV was fleetingly interested in producing a homegrown supernatural series because of The X-Files' success [in the UK]."¹ The series remained unmade until Clerkenwell Films became interested, as did Lesley Sharp, the actress being very keen to star in the series. "She absolutely loved it and actually pestered ITV relentlessly, asking 'When are you gonna commission this series?' Eventually they did,"¹ Volk told SFX. SFX is a British science fiction magazine, published every four weeks. ... The X-Files is an American television series created by Chris Carter. ...

Following the success of the first series, a second run was commissioned, beginning on September 16, 2006 on ITV1 in the UK.² The first run has been released on DVD in the UK, including audio commentaries from the cast and crew. The first series began a repeat run on ITV1 in the UK on Sunday evenings from 9pm from July 23, although this was quickly abandoned and the repeats moved across to the digital television channel ITV3. September 16 is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years). ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... ITV1 is a terrestrial, free-to-air television channel broadcast in the United Kingdom by the ITV network. ... This article is becoming very long. ... A major selling point of DVD video is that its storage capacity allows for a wide variety of extra features in addition to the feature film itself. ... July 23 is the 204th day (205th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 161 days remaining. ... Digital television (DTV) is a telecommunication system for broadcasting and receiving moving pictures and sound by means of digital signals, in contrast to analog signals in analog (traditional) TV. It uses digital modulation data, which is digitally compressed and requires decoding by a specially designed television set or a standard... ITV3 is an entertainment television channel in the United Kingdom owned by ITV plc. ...

Critical reception

Previewing the first episode as one of "Today's Choices" for its day of transmission in the Radio Times listings magazine, television critic Alison Graham praised Afterlife as "[A] highly-promising mystery series... a taut and snappy spine-tingler, even if it does use some old-hat shocker techniques such as creaking floorboards, darkness, inexplicable noises and unexpected taps on the shoulder."³ Reviewing the same episode for The Guardian newspaper two days after its broadcast, critic Rupert Smith was also impressed: "What looked like being a deeply depressing hour was instantly enlivened by the appearance of Lesley Sharp, who has become in recent years television's favourite Everywoman... At last I can put my hand on my heart and give an unqualified cheer to a new primetime British drama series. Afterlife was scary without being over-gruesome, it kept a straight face while gleefully narrating a plot of pure old-fashioned hokum, and it starred actors who are constantly, entirely watchable... afterlife took the best bits of The X-Files, Jonathan Creek and, yes, Most Haunted, and turned them into terrific television."⁴ Current Radio Times logo Radio Times is the BBCs weekly television and radio programme listings magazine. ... The Guardian is a British newspaper owned by the Guardian Media Group. ... Sir Rupert Smith (born 1943) was a general in the British Army until his retirement in 2002. ... Jonathan Creek is a mystery television series produced by the BBC and written by David Renwick. ... Most Haunted is a British television programme based on investigating purported paranormal activity that is shown on the satellite and cable channels LIVINGtv, LIVINGtv2 and Ftn, primarily for the UK market. ...

The response remained positive through to the end of the series, with all subsequent episodes also being included in "Today's Choices" in the Radio Times. Previewing the sixth episode, Alison Graham was again positive, describing the series as a whole as having been "[A] consistently high-quality supernatural drama."⁵

afterlife was also a success for ITV1 in terms of viewing figures. The first episode garnered an overnight average rating of 5.7 million, 25% of the total television audience for the time, winning its timeslot with nearly two million more viewers than the nearest competition on at the same time.⁶ The second episode improved to 6.2 million viewers, 29% of the available audience and again two million higher than its nearest competition on BBC One.⁷ Episode three garnered 5.4 million and a 25% share, which was identical to that gained by the BBC One competition (an edition of the semi-regular Test the Nation interactive quiz series).⁸ Viewing figures remained strong through to the final episode of the first series, which concluded the run by again winning its slot by two million viewers, with 5.8 million and a 28% audience share.⁹ BBC One (or BBC1 as it was formerly styled) is the primary channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation. ... Test the Nation is a television programme, first broadcast by the BBC in the United Kingdom. ...

Episode list

Series One:

Note — although the airdates below refer to the UK broadcasts on the ITV1 network, the series actually had its world premiere on Australia's Nine Network several weeks before the UK showings, on Tuesday nights at 9.30pm from August 16 2005.

1. More than Meets the Eye. Saturday September 24 2005, 9.10-10.10pm.
2. Lower than Bones. Saturday October 1 2005, 9.10-10.10pm.
3. Daniel One and Two. Saturday October 8 2005, 9.10-10.10pm.
4. Misdirection. Saturday October 15 2005, 9.05-10.05pm.
5. Sleeping with the Dead. Saturday October 22 2005, 9.35-10.35pm.
6. The 7:59 Club. Saturday October 29 2005, 9.30-10.30pm.

Series Two: The Nine Network is an Australian television network, available in major markets across Australia. ... August 16 is the 228th day of the year (229th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... September 24 is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years). ... October 1 is the 274th day of the year (275th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... October 8 is the 281st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (282nd in leap years). ... October 15 is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years). ... October 22 is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 70 days remaining. ... October 29 is the 302nd day of the year (303rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

1. Roadside Bouquets. 16th September 2006, 9.00-10.00pm.
2. The Rat Man. 23rd September 2006, 9.20-10.20pm.
3. Lullaby. 30th September 2006
4. Your Hand in Mine. 7th October 2006
5. Mirrorball. 21st October 2006 (No episode on 14th October due to boxing)
6. Mind the Bugs Don't Bite. 28th October 2006
7. Things Forgotten. 4th November 2006
8. A Name Written in Water. 11th November 2006

(Redirected from 16th September) September 16 is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years). ... (Redirected from 23rd September) September 23 is the 266th day of the year (267th in leap years). ... September 30 is the 273rd day of the year (274th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 92 days remaining, as the final day of September. ... October 7 is the 280th day of the year (281st in leap years). ... (Redirected from 21st October) October 21 is the 294th day of the year (295th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 71 days remaining. ... (Redirected from 28th October) October 28 is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 64 days remaining. ... November 4 is the 308th day of the year (309th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 57 days remaining. ... (Redirected from 11th November) November 11 is the 315th day of the year (316th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 50 days remaining. ...

Overseas sales

In addition to broadcasts in Australia and the United Kingdom, the series has also been seen in Canada on the BBC Canada cable television network. People+Arts, a cable television station for Latin America, also aired the show in early 2006. It also aired in New Zealand on TV One in early 2006 and the first series was aired in Spain on Cuatro during August 2006. BBC Canada is a general entertainment Canadian category 2 digital cable television channel. ... Coaxial cable is often used to transmit cable television into the house. ... People+Arts is an arts television channel broadcasting to Spain, Portugal and Latin America. ... Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ... Note: Radio 1 is the primary service of several broadcasters. ... Cuatro TV logo. ...

References

1. ↑ . "Ghost Watching: Afterlife is about to bring the supernatural to ITV...". SFX. Issue dated March 2005.
2. ↑ . "SF TV Round-Up...". SFX. Issue dated December 2005.
3. ↑ . Graham, Alison. "Today's Choices: Afterlife". Radio Times, volume 326, number 4252, issue dated 24–30 September 2005, page 60.
4. ↑ . Smith, Rupert. "The weekend's TV" (subscription link). The Guardian. Monday September 26 2005.
5. ↑ . Graham, Alison. "Today's Choices: Afterlife". Radio Times, volume 327, number 4257, issue dated 29 October-4 November 2005, page 68.
6. ↑  Plunkett, John. "The X Factor gets its biggest audience yet" (subscription link). MediaGuardian.co.uk. Monday September 26 2005.
7. ↑  Day, Julia. "ITV talent spoils BBC1's swingtime" (subscription link). MediaGuardian.co.uk. Monday October 3 2005.
8. ↑  Deans, Jason. "Viewers stay loyal to drab England" (subscription link). MediaGuardian.co.uk. Monday October 10 2005.
9. ↑  Deans, Jason. "The Saturday night revival" (subscription link). MediaGuardian.co.uk. Monday October 31 2005.

SFX is a British science fiction magazine, published every four weeks. ... Current Radio Times logo Radio Times is the BBCs weekly television and radio programme listings magazine. ... (Redirected from 24 September) September 24 is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years). ... September 30 is the 273rd day of the year (274th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Guardian is a British newspaper owned by the Guardian Media Group. ... September 26 is the 269th day of the year (270th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 96 days remaining. ... October 29 is the 302nd day of the year (303rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... November 4 is the 308th day of the year (309th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 57 days remaining. ... Front page of Guardian Unlimited from August 16, 2005 Guardian Unlimited is a British website owned by the Guardian Media Group. ...

External links

• itv.com - afterlife
• Official site at the Clerkenwell Films production company website.
• Interview with Steven Volk - Writer of afterlife Includes preview and details of Series 2
• afterlife at the Internet Movie Database
• afterlife at TV.com