Apparitions is a British supernatural drama series broadcast on BBC One in 2008, following a Roman Catholic priest drawn into the world of exorcism while formally tasked with investigating candidates for sainthood.
Premise and cast
Based on an original idea by actor Martin Shaw, the series was written by Joe Ahearne, who also directed four of its six episodes.[1] Shaw stars as Father Jacob Myers, a priest working for the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, the real Vatican body responsible for examining evidence of miracles ahead of canonisation. Alongside this formal role, Father Jacob is drawn into performing exorcisms, a practice his superiors — chiefly the sinister Cardinal Bukovak, played by John Shrapnel — regard as an antiquated embarrassment to the Church.[2] The series also stars Siobhan Finneran as Sister Ruth, Father Jacob's sceptical secretary, and Rick Warden as Michael/Astaruth, an ex-soldier caught between possession and innocence across the series' ongoing storyline.
The opening episode centres on the death of Mother Teresa in 1997, exploring the possibility that she may have been possessed by a demon during her final days, before the series moves into a series of standalone and continuing cases, including demonic possession within a prison and a young girl seeking Father Jacob's help for her possessed father.[3]
Tone and themes
Unlike contemporaneous British clerical dramas rooted in the Church of England, Apparitions draws explicitly on Roman Catholic ritual and doctrine, and has been compared to The Exorcist and The Omen in tone.[1] The series addresses difficult subject matter beyond possession itself, including the Catholic Church's conduct during the Holocaust, abortion, and homosexuality, generally without imposing a fixed position on the viewer.[1] The production received full cooperation from Church authorities, with much of the filming, including a reverse-exorcism sequence, taking place in real churches.[1]
Broadcast
Apparitions aired weekly on BBC One (simulcast on BBC HD) across six episodes from 13 November to 18 December 2008. The BBC did not commission a second series.
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Apparitions BBC TV Episode Guide."Spooky Isles.
- ↑ "Spirited Away: A Look Back at the Spooky BBC Series Apparitions."skeletonpete.com.
- ↑ "Review: Apparitions 1x1."The Medium Is Not Enough.