As the opening episode of The Long Shadow begins, there are multiple news reports such as The Beatles getting back together and the British people voting to remain a member of the European community. Wilma McCann (Gemma Laurie) leaves home in the middle of the night. In the morning, Sonia McCann (Alexa Goodall) wakes up Richard (Dylan Hall) to tell him she hasn’t come home yet. They leave home and wait for a bus in Leeds. When Wilma doesn’t get off the bus, Sonia says she’ll get off the next one. Two cops approach them moments later. DCS Dennis Hoban (Toby Jones) watches over the scene of the discovery. At home, the cops question Sonia and Richard.
DCS Hoban arrives and learns that Wilma had been slipping out through the back at night so no one would see her leaving the kids. They talk about the kids. Hoban suggests the little ones just missed her when they went to the bus stop to wait. Sydney Jackson (Daniel Mays) returns home and talks about going out with his wife Emily (Katherine Kelly) tomorrow night. Emily isn’t interested though. Sydney reminds her it is Eric Owen’s 40th. Emily shows him a bill and says it is the third this week. He’ll have to tell Eric they can’t go because they can’t afford it. Sydney argues that they’re going because Eric is his oldest mate. At the police station, DCS Hoban tells the others about the discovery.
Wilma’s body was found in the Prince Philip playing fields behind Scott Hall Avenue in Chapeltown. She had been stabbed 15 times and had two lacerations on the back of her head. DC John Nunn (Kris Hitchen) believes she died because she was a prostitute. He points out that she has been arrested for drunk and disorderly. Regardless, Dennis Hoban insists no one deserved to die like Wilma did. Once Hoban goes into his office, DCS Jim Hobson (Lee Ingleby) begins giving orders to the other officers. Once Jim joins Dennis Hoban, Dennis admits he is worried about perception. He gets in touch with Mike Duffield (John Henshaw) because he may have something for his photographers.
After that, Jim and Dennis meet the photographer and go into Wilma’s house to speak to the kids. Dennis has to break the news that their mom is not coming because she is in heaven. He wants to take photos of them with their toys. Dennis whispers to Jim that this has to be the message if they’re going to get any help from the public. He wants to make sure prostitution isn’t brought up. On the second day, authorities search for evidence on their hands and knees. Jim Hobson tells Dennis that the last sighting of Wilma was on Meanwood Road. Dennis suspects the killer was driving, but Jim says he could’ve followed her home after seeing her at the club. Dennis asks who goes to a pub with a spanner and a knife.
Dennis looks through a dresser and finds a notebook containing names and numbers. Sydney drags Emily out to the pub for Eric’s party. She realizes she is only there to drive him home. Emily dances for a bit before a man joins her. Then, they go outside and he claims to have seen her before. He thinks she is a prostitute. Emily goes back inside and sits next to Sydney. Dennis tells the media that the last sighting of Wilma was on the corner of Meanwood Road at 1 AM. He asks anyone with information to come forward for the sake of the kids. On day 20, Dennis learns that Chief Constable Gregory (Michael McElhatton) is there to see him. Gregory says he is dropping in to make sure Dennis has everything he needs.
Dennis says they have a list of 29 suspects found in a notebook. Gregory admits he dropped by to make sure Dennis doesn’t duck Christmas drinks for the third year. There are chaps he’d like Dennis to meet. Emily looks at her family’s overdue bills. Despite having very little, they give money to charity when a woman comes by. Sydney complains about her decision in private. DCS Jim Hobson tells DCS Dennis Hoban that they spoke to all 29 suspects and they’ve all been cleared. The only new witness is a guy who sold Wilma chips and curry sauce just after one. Dennis says they have to keep going and it needs to happen now before it fades from people’s minds.
Emily tells Sydney about the man at Eric’s birthday party. She argues they never do anything since Derek died. She didn’t do anything with him because he offered her money. Emily reveals that they’ve sent a summons and someone has to provide for the children since it is Christmas. Police continue questioning locals about Wilma. Jim calls Dennis moments later to tell them they have a witness who is a lorry driver. Sydney drops Emily off and says he’ll wait for her in the bar. Emily waits by the road to see if anyone will pick her up. The lorry driver tells Jim and Dennis that he thought the woman was soliciting. The man admits he was thinking about picking her up and even parked.
When she came over to his window, he realized she was too drunk for it. By the time he pulled away, she already had another punter. He says the guy was driving a Corsair or a Fastback. Dennis questions why it took him so long to come forward. The man says he lives in Rochdale so this is the first he’s heard of it. Emily is approached by Steve Rawton (Brian McCardie) who learns she wants five. Emily takes him back to the van before getting his money. Then, the man has sex with her. Dennis goes to the event where he tells Gregory that they got a good turnout. He is introduced to DCS George Oldfield (David Morrissey) who thinks it is an uphill struggle if a case isn’t solved in the first few days. Dennis believes George primarily covers farmland and rural areas.
Later, Dennis tells Jim that he has a list of all Corsairs and Fastbacks, but there are 700 Corsairs and 900 Fastbacks in Leeds. Jim thinks he should enjoy his drink since it is Christmas. Emily and Sydney celebrate Christmas with their kids. A bit later, they learn that Pat is getting married to Ken. Dennis enjoys Christmas with his wife, Betty (Dorothy Atkinson). When the phone rings, Betty asks him to leave it. Dennis answers it and heads to the station. Once he gets there, he tells WPC Jenny Bush (Chloe Harris) that she fulfilled her end of the deal by calling him at three. Before she can leave, she takes a call about Wilma’s case. After the call, Jenny tells Dennis he is a Chapeltown regular and he drives a green Land Rover.
Sydney and Emily talk about money for the bridesmaid’s wardrobe. He suggests they can sell the television, van, or television. He says he can’t take it anymore. Emily slaps him. She says three times would give them 15 quid. She’ll get it tonight and it’ll be over for good. While Emily waits for men, police look for the vehicle in question. The other woman tells Emily that this guy is a regular and she isn’t keen on him. Emily ends up going with him instead. After she finishes with him, John and his partner stop the man’s vehicle. They get the man out of his vehicle. Emily is picked up again.
The Long Shadow Review
The opening episode of The Long Shadow did a good job of introducing one of the first victims and starting the investigation into a prior murder. Besides being a different murderer and different victims, The Long Shadow falls in line with so many other British dramas based on real crimes. On the surface, this would be perfectly fine if there weren’t so many true crime shows being released. On top of that, there has been an overload of fictional detective dramas.
Just recently, we had Steeltown Murders and The Sixth Commandment. While there are slight deviations here and there, they’re all so similar and The Long Shadow fits the familiar formula. Will the series do enough to distinguish itself from others? At this point, we have the dedicated detective who will put the case before everything else including his wife, a list of suspects, and thousands of vehicles.
We’ve even got David Morrissey playing a similar role that he played not too long ago. As usual, some scenes are too dark, the camera almost always shakes, and the pacing crawls. The latter is very concerning considering there will be seven episodes. Viewers have complained about the audio, but I always use subtitles anyway. However, it doesn’t seem necessary for the camera to shake when two characters are having a mundane conversation in their bedroom.
The casting is obviously a bright spot with so many reliable actors and actresses on the list. Again, the seven-episode count will be my biggest concern because even this episode was a bit slow. However, the series feels like a typical true crime drama that once again promises to focus on the victims while instead focusing more on the detectives. While it was good overall, it is questionable how many of these shows can be pumped out before viewers become numb to them.
The opening episode scores a 6 out of 10. Recaps of The Long Shadow are available on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent work at this link. Learn more about advertising on Reel Mockery here.
