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List Price: $19.98 | | Label: BBC Warner
Salesrank: 54601
Released: May 13, 2003 |
| Our Price: $17.99 |
| Used Price: $12.98 |
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MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Behind his distinctive owlish glasses and gentle, deceptive naivete, Albert Campion conceals a passion for excitement and danger. Peter Davison (All Creatures Great and Small, Doctor Who) plays Margery Allingham's enigmatic sleuth, with Brian Glover as his loyal but slightly shady manservant in these classic mysteries set in the 1930's. In this mystery, we find Campion hob-nobbing with art lovers at the posh estate of his friend Belle Lafcadio. He thought he'd been invited to view a painting but finds himself viewing a body. When another body turns up, Campion must deduce - is it suicide, or a second murder?
Description of Campion - Death of a Ghost:
The normally unflappable sleuth Albert Campion (played by a former Doctor Who, Peter Davison) loses a bit of his objectivity when murder strikes among some good friends, the bohemian enclave that's built up around a deceased artist who decreed that every year after his death one of his 12 last paintings should be unveiled. At the annual event, a sudden blackout gives someone the opportunity to stab an abrasive young artist with a pair of ornate scissors. As is usual with Margery Allingham's murder mysteries, the suspects in Death of a Ghost are a collection of eccentric personalities; their tics and accents are as entertaining as the elaborate unraveling of the improbable murders. This particular mystery is weakened by the small role of Campion's crusty manservant Lugg (Brian Glover), whose earthy attitude generally provides a much-needed counterbalance to Campion's smooth facade. --Bret Fetzer
Campion - Death of a Ghost Reviews:
Campion stumbles in to a mystery 
2009-02-13 - Once again, BBC outdoes its self with adapting books to TV. This time it is with a Margery Allingham mystery, Camion. Screenplay by Elaine Morgan.
Peter Davison as Albert Campion and his faithful companion Brian Glover as Magersfontein Lugg are so good in this 1989 TV series that even when you read the book you think of them. The story is abbreviated and takes a little time to get off the ground; however first time through the program you will notice some standard ploys as a person confessing that has a good chance of actually being the culprit (how many times have we seen this?) By the second viewing, you see the clues that you missed, and you are hooked.
In this installment, Lugg (Brian Glover) gets a peripheral part, which is disappointing. Campion is present for an unveiling of a painting form the deceased artist. Suddenly the lights go out and someone is dispatched; however, this is not the mystery.
Soon the secondary artist that was dispatched is being forgotten as all his paintings are disappearing. What is this, a nefarious plot by some cabal and to what end? Alternatively, are we just paranoid?
My favorite scene is when the lights come on and Rosa (Carole Ruggier) exclaims "Santa Maria"
I could almost hear her saying "Jesus, Mary and Joseph"
Campion - The Complete First Season
"See For Yourself" the special feature also on this disc. 
2008-11-15 - In addition to the annotated biography and filmography (presented as text/lists), the Special Features on the disc includes a wonderful featurette, on the order of 'the making of...' The introduction to the 25 minute item, is this card: "'See For Yourself' is a BBC series that shows how the BBC puts license payer's money to use. BBC is funded by a tax (called the license fee) on each television household in the UK." "The following is an excerpt from an episode [of "See For Yourself"] that originally aired in the UK on January 8, 1989." For years, I've been a fan of Inspector Lynley, and of Peter Davison in his newer series "The Last Detective" and I can almost believe the costs which are quoted in the featurette. Do recall, that the cost is quoted in the year 1989. It is said that drama shows cost the most to produce, costing (in Pounds, Sterling) 408,000 per hour (i.e. 6,800 per minute). I will happily continue to enjoy all the recordings which I am able to put into hand.
Other episodes in this series are better. 
2007-03-12 - I thought this was kind of boring at the beginning. The art theme just didn't grab me. I think it got more interesting towards the end, but it was a while ago that I watched this (borrowed it from the library). Well, I guess there's probably a boring episode or two in every series; we can't love all of them. I own the complete second season of Campion and I enjoyed those episodes more.
