The Detectorist Series 3
Marie Ota
The series is set in the fictional small town of Danebury in north Essex. The plot revolves around the lives, loves and metal-detecting ambitions of Andy and Lance, members of the Danebury Metal Detecting Club. The main filming location for the series was Framlingham, a small market town in Suffolk.
Detectorists won a BAFTA at the 2015 British Academy Television Awards for Television Scripted Comedy.[2] In May 2019, it was voted 19th in a Radio Times list of Britain's 20 favourite sitcoms by a panel that included sitcom writers and actors.[3] The series was filmed using a single-camera setup approach. The show had three series from 2014 to 2017, with Christmas specials airing in 2015 and 2022.[4]
Series 2 commences with a three-minute sequence showing an Anglo-Saxon priest carrying a holy book and an aestel (a pointer stick similar to that associated with the Alfred Jewel) in a sack and fleeing mounted spearmen. He buries the sack near a standing stone. Time lapse then shows the wooden handle of the aestel decaying, leaving only the jewelled section. The shot pans upwards to reveal Andy and Lance walking across the field in the present day, detecting as they go. Having had no success, they decide to look up the hill. The jewel is shown again, still buried, at the beginning of subsequent episodes.
In March 2017, the BBC released a statement confirming the filming of a third and final series.[20] The six-episode third series was filmed in the summer of 2017 and aired weekly on BBC Four from 8 November 2017.[21]
The first episode ends with a historical timeline sequence, backed by the song "Magpie" by The Unthanks.[22] Reviewing the opening episode for The Guardian, Sam Wollaston said: "Mackenzie Crook and Toby Jones shine in the third and final series of this beautifully written and performed slice of life."[23]
Although the series is set in Essex, it was mainly filmed in neighbouring Suffolk, with Framlingham used as a major location.[33][34][35][36] Other locations used in filming include Orford, where Orford Primary School was used as the outside of Becky's school, Great Glemham, where interior pub scenes were filmed, and Ipswich. In series 2, the round-tower church at Aldham was used as a recurring location.[37] One location in Essex was used in Detectorists: the scenes involving Lance's girlfriend Toni's houseboat, 'Elsie', were filmed at Paper Mill Lock, Little Baddow. Locations were sourced by Creative England.[38]
Despite ruling out further episodes at the end of series 3, in December 2020 Crook alluded to the possibility that a fourth series was not out of the question, saying "I'm just starting the process of thinking 'yeah, we should get the old band back together'."[39]
Series one of Detectorists was met with positive reviews from a number of UK and US media outlets. David Renshaw, writing for The Guardian, had particular praise for the "delightful double-act" Mackenzie Crook and Toby Jones. Renshaw points to the "biggest ratings BBC4 has ever had for a comedy" as evidence that "Detectorists has clearly struck the sort of gold that Lance and Andy spend hours sweeping the fields for".[43] Rupert Hawksley, writing for The Daily Telegraph, was particularly impressed with Crook's "first-rate writing" and remarked in his review that series one "has all the markings of a classic sitcom".[44]
The series has also received praise for its authentic portrayal of "a gentler side to maleness and male bonding", with Ben Dowell of The Times describing the show as being "steeped in a gentle kindness that I hadn't seen before".[49]
Detectorists series three is released on DVD by Acorn Media on 18 December 2017, along with a complete series boxset featuring all three series and the Christmas special. Special features on the series three DVD are as follows:
You may recall that last summer I wrote a glowing post about the debut series of the BBC sitcom Detectorists. I touted this mature, gentle BAFTA-award winning show for its appealing characters and smart writing. Triple threat (writer, director and actor) Mackenzie Crook and his co-star Toby Jones brilliantly portray Andy and Lance, two ordinary guys who share their love of metal detecting and quiz shows and, on occasion, provide advice and emotional support to one another. This is quite probably as close to a bromance as two English blokes can ever get.
I was thrilled to hear another series had been ordered and was set to be broadcast in the UK in the autumn of 2015. Finally this week, Acorn TV made the entire second series available to its streaming service subscribers here in the US. And let me tell you, if you loved the series one you will not be disappointed as you reacquaint yourself with the members of the Danebury Metal Detecting Club.
Blankety Blank was a TV game show equivalent to our Match Game in the States. Celebrity panelists would be read a sentence by the host with a word or phrase left out. The panelists would fill in the blank and two contestants would compete to see how many of the celebrities answers they could match. The one with the most matches at the end of the show won and the loser apparently received the lovely consolation prize above.
We are shown an idyllic English landscape haunted by past events: fields of early medieval battle in a commonplace Essex field. The ghosts of battle echo on the wind, while the silence and stillness of the present is visualised by the prancing of deer.
Detectorists constitutes a modern-day Anglo-Saxonism. The show takes us to the land of RAF Lakenheath, West Stow, Rendlesham, Ipswich, Sutton Hoo, and the 2022 Special affords us an East Anglian/East Saxon counterpart to the Staffordshire Hoard.
Even more than the three series and earlier Christmas special, this 2022 episode tackles through comedy drama more real connections between the ethics and practice of metal detecting, its potentials for discovery, especially to contribute to the story of early England but also its pitfalls of focusing on stray metal finds in the plough soil. Despite concerns regarding the implausible cursory, almost incompetent, disinterest in the discovery of the cup and first pommel, I otherwise consider it a stand-alone joy and triumph that through comedy touches on contemporary issues surrounding attitudes and practices to early Anglo-Saxons and the contemporary landscape.
Besides metal detecting, the series also tells us about the private life of the two main characters. It tells their struggle to find jobs, partners and friends. In an interview, Mackenzie Crook, who plays Andy Stone, has written and directed the series, tells us that the motivation for the series was the interest in other peoples pastime. It is indeed fascinating also to me how people can spend their whole free time detecting. But while watching the series I started to see why.
It might not only be the search for treasure as rather having a calm outside activity. Watching the series actually immerses you into the flow of metal detecting. In parts, I actually understood how doing the work can be calming and fulfilling. In my opinion, Crook did an amazing job picturing the activity of metal detecting, although I have never done it myself.
Archaeologists rather play an underpart in the series, which is fine. Nevertheless, one thing stroke me while watching the series. When actually excavating, archaeologists have to pay special attention on where to dig. We do have methods to look into the ground first, but a running gag on excavations is always the missing trench. Imagine there is a richly decorated grave in the ground, but your excavation trench is just 3 meters to the side. You will never find it.
The TV series Detectorists satirically shows us how this can be the case. While metal detecting, Lance and Andy decide to call it a day and go to the pub. If they only knew that a couple meters further would be the find of their life. Also (this is a spoiler!) while searching for a ship burial, they also give up. While the camera moves up to capture the leaving detectorists and the sunset, we as the audience can see a ship-shaped deformation on the ground, right besides where they were detecting. So close!
I think this series is one of the funniest made in the last couple of years, if you are into British humour. There is no action, monsters or weapons and the narrative is very calm. The stories told however, with the eccentric characters and the general British middle class is picture perfect. This series is definitely not only for archaeologists.
Hi! My name is Sebastian. I am an archaeologist, a university lecturer, freelancer, guitarist, and father. You could say I am quiet busy, so I learned to manage my time and energy to build good habits and still have space for myself and my family. Sounds difficult? Read here how I do it. (Nearly) Every Friday.
Dectectorists is written, directed by and stars the talented Mackenzie Crook, and co-stars Toby Jones. It is currently midway through its third series, broadcast on BBC4, and can be viewed on catch-up on the BBC iPlayer.
A challenge that the characters in the series portray in their amusing way is remaining firmly here in the present with their companions while spending hours alone out detecting trinkets from the past, wondering whether the items came from shipwrecks or were simply lost or buried on the spot.
Anyone watching the new series? I only recently realised why Diana Rigg was in it; her daughter plays Mackenzie Crookes wife. The end of episode one, with the singing etc sent shivers down my spine; it was magical.
So glad it's back. Never known half an hour go so quickly with this gentle comedy(?) and I agree the about the ending .. it was worthy of an 'end of series' scenario. I hadn't heard the song about the magpies but it was spine tingling. Thinking back over series 1 and 2 there have been hints that Church Farm hides a huge horde ... I sort of hope so, just so the boys get their reward for all their hard work, but that will mean no series 4
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