Where I lead others follow! Thus, my constant whingeing criticism that actors on TV never speak clearly has been endorsed - big time! - by the viewers of Jamaica Inn produced, if that's quite the word, by the utterly useless BBC. Apparently the complaints have flooded in from viewers forced to use their sub-title facility or to don headphones - which I do constantly. According to The Mail, the BBC lost 2 million viewers after the first episode because nobody could understand the 'Dalek' language being muttered and mumbled. The girlie director involved blamed it all on the sound equipment but, sorry, darling, I don't believe you because the fault was entirely yours. You are the director and that puts you in charge of absolutely everything. The fact is that like many modern directors you simply cannot direct. You lack the nerve to tell a professional actor that he's incomprehensible. You are not alone. Whoever directed the recent True Detective also failed to tell the distinguished Messrs. Harrelson and McConaughy that Louisana hogs grunt more clearly than either of them. Nothing pointed up this irritating laziness more clearly than watching this week's films of Shakespeare productions from The Globe on SKY Arts 2 where the actors have to throw their voices to the top tiers with absolute clarity whilst still mainting emotion and understanding - they were superb!
