I really enjoyed it. It took a while to get going but the second half was great. Perfect for Sunday nights. I didn't like Ripper Street last week at all so glad I opted for this tonight.
Thought I'd give it one more chance tonight and I'm warming to it.
I enjoyed the first part of Mr Selfridge apart from the Agnes storyline (in the store) which was a direct lift from The Paradise.
I can't help but think they are marketing this more for the American audience.
Your comment has answered the question I was about to ask! I really enjoyed the show, but couldn't help wondering why the series was made about Selfridges rather than Harrods, which is a much older, bigger and more famous store. Perhaps it's because Harrods was founded by an Englishman and as we all know, the Americans do like to see Americans in their dramas (isn't that why Shirley Mclaine was introduced into Downton Abbey).
Quite enjoyed that - similar to The Paradise though in terms of the girl who's obviously going be the heroine of the piece being 'in' with the shop owner and thus being a threat to her immediate line manager.
Funny to see Grégory Fitoussi as M. Leclair, the window dresser - better known to some of us as Pierre Clément in Spiral (on BBC4)!
Your comment has answered the question I was about to ask! I really enjoyed the show, but couldn't help wondering why the series was made about Selfridges rather than Harrods, which is a much older, bigger and more famous store. Perhaps it's because Harrods was founded by an Englishman and as we all know, the Americans do like to see Americans in their dramas (isn't that why Shirley Mclaine was introduced into Downton Abbey).
Now that's a thought but the only thing I could find interesting about Mr Harrod's store was the following...quote
On Wednesday, 16 November 1898, Harrods debuted England's first "moving staircase" (escalator) in their Brompton Road stores; the device was actually a woven leather conveyor belt-like unit with a mahogany and "silver plate-glass" balustrade.[9] Nervous customers were offered brandy at the top to revive them after their 'ordeal'...unquote...
Quite enjoyed that - similar to The Paradise though in terms of the girl who's obviously going be the heroine of the piece being 'in' with the shop owner and thus being a threat to her immediate line manager.
Funny to see Grégory Fitoussi as M. Leclair, the window dresser - better known to some of us as Pierre Clément in Spiral (on BBC4)!
Now that's a thought but the only thing I could find interesting about Mr Harrod's store was the following...quote
On Wednesday, 16 November 1898, Harrods debuted England's first "moving staircase" (escalator) in their Brompton Road stores; the device was actually a woven leather conveyor belt-like unit with a mahogany and "silver plate-glass" balustrade.[9] Nervous customers were offered brandy at the top to revive them after their 'ordeal'...unquote...
There is far more to Harrods than having introduced the first escalator; it is a store famous the world over and will obtain anything a customer wants - even an elephant. I would have preferred to see a drama series about Harrods, which is a great British institution which although now owned by a foreign family, has its roots with several generations of the Harrod family - an English family.
But I imagine Selfridges was chosen as a drama series to satisfy the Americans.
Your comment has answered the question I was about to ask! I really enjoyed the show, but couldn't help wondering why the series was made about Selfridges rather than Harrods, which is a much older, bigger and more famous store. Perhaps it's because Harrods was founded by an Englishman and as we all know, the Americans do like to see Americans in their dramas (isn't that why Shirley Mclaine was introduced into Downton Abbey).
Both The Paradise and Mr Selfridge are co-produced by the same American channel, PBS. Obviously the presence of an American character is not a prerequisite for the US being interested, or else there would be Americans is The Paradise as well as other British shows co-produced by American channels, like Sherlock, Luther and The Hour.
Why does the founder of Selfridges get a series and not the founder of Harrods? Because the founder of Selfridges was a flamboyant man who led a life of severe ups and downs ripe for dramatization. Who knows if there was anything interesting about Charles Harrod other than that he founded a store. The relevant historical and biographical material for the producers of Mr Selfridge is all laid out in the non-fiction book Shopping, Seduction & Mr Selfridge by Lindy Woodhead. Perhaps there isn't a comparably interesting non-fiction book about Harrods and its founder.
There is far more to Harrods than having introduced the first escalator; it is a store famous the world over and will obtain anything a customer wants - even an elephant. I would have preferred to see a drama series about Harrods, which is a great British institution which although now owned by a foreign family, has its roots with several generations of the Harrod family - an English family.
But I imagine Selfridges was chosen as a drama series to satisfy the Americans.
If you look at the history of the founding of Harrods it simply would not have worked as a drama - nothing much occurred until the place burned down 20 years after it opened:D. It began in a single room employing two assistants and a messenger boy?
It may be the bigger store - but it wouldn't have made as good a drama as it took 20 years to build up whereas Selfridges opened at its current site straight away. And Mr Selfridge as a character played by Jeremy Piven sounds a lot more exciting too!
"Harrods founder Charles Henry Harrod first established his business in 1824, aged 25. The business was located south of the River Thames in Southwark. The premises were located at 228 Borough High Street. He ran this business, variously listed as a draper, mercer and a haberdasher, certainly until 1831.[3][4][5] During 1825 the business was listed as 'Harrod and Wicking, Linen Drapers, Retail',[ but this partnership was dissolved at the end of that year. His first grocery business appears to be as ‘Harrod & Co.Grocers’ at 163 Upper Whitecross Street, Clerkenwell, E.C.1., in 1832.[8] In 1834 in London's East End, he established a wholesale grocery in Stepney, at 4, Cable Street, with a special interest in tea. In 1849, to escape the vice of the inner city and to capitalise on trade to the Great Exhibition of 1851 in nearby Hyde Park, Harrod took over a small shop in the district of Brompton, on the site of the current store. Beginning in a single room employing two assistants and a messenger boy, Harrod's son Charles Digby Harrod built the business into a thriving retail operation selling medicines, perfumes, stationery, fruit and vegetables. Harrods rapidly expanded, acquired the adjoining buildings, and employed one hundred people by 1880. However, the store's booming fortunes were reversed in early December 1883, when it burnt to the ground:"
You could always have checked the listings though - it's not difficult. It took me 30 seconds to search on the Radio Times website. Just saying.
I did check the Radio Times website, and I saw nothing. The TV announcer could have said something at the end of the programme about a possible repeat, or they may be something listed on another website. That's all.
Both The Paradise and Mr Selfridge are co-produced by the same American channel, PBS. Obviously the presence of an American character is not a prerequisite for the US being interested, or else there would be Americans is The Paradise as well as other British shows co-produced by American channels, like Sherlock, Luther and The Hour.
Why does the founder of Selfridges get a series and not the founder of Harrods? Because the founder of Selfridges was a flamboyant man who led a life of severe ups and downs ripe for dramatization. Who knows if there was anything interesting about Charles Harrod other than that he founded a store. The relevant historical and biographical material for the producers of Mr Selfridge is all laid out in the non-fiction book Shopping, Seduction & Mr Selfridge by Lindy Woodhead. Perhaps there isn't a comparably interesting non-fiction book about Harrods and its founder.
Thanks for taking the time to respond to my post. Your points are very valid, Mr Selfridge certainly sounds like a very complicated character, ripe for television drama and it no doubt helped that there was a book in print from which to draw inspiration.
Perhaps this should inspire a writer to seek out and write the story of Harrods. Three generations of the family developed the store and they have an equally fascinating very patriotic story. The store started as a tiny shop and grew into this massive beautiful building on the Brompton Road. At one stage it burnt to the ground, but was rebuilt.
The Royal Family and many celebrities were encouraged to shop there.
Although I really enjoyed this first episode, I just found some of it slightly misleading as the suggestion came over that it was the first big department store in London - but at the time it was founded, Harrods had already been in existence for decades.
There is far more to Harrods than having introduced the first escalator; it is a store famous the world over and will obtain anything a customer wants - even an elephant. I would have preferred to see a drama series about Harrods, which is a great British institution which although now owned by a foreign family, has its roots with several generations of the Harrod family - an English family.
But I imagine Selfridges was chosen as a drama series to satisfy the Americans.
But that was later in it's history and it certainly would not supply an elephant now. I remember Christian the lion who was bought from there, who was eventually taken back to Africa with the help of Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers.
It is how it was founded that makes the story and from what I have read it would not make exciting TV.
The escalator came later around the time that the store was floated on the Stock Exchange. The reason used that quote was because I thought it was quite amusing to be offered a stiff drink when you got to the top..
I can't help but think they are marketing this more for the American audience.
That almost certainly would have been a consideration in the project going ahead. International sales are vital when you're making a programme that is expensive to undertake, just like 'Downton Abbey'.
Thought I'd give it one more chance tonight and I'm warming to it.
I enjoyed the first part of Mr Selfridge apart from the Agnes storyline (in the store) which was a direct lift from The Paradise.
If anything, The Paradise lifted it from Mr. Selfridge; Mr. Selfridge is based on a non-fiction book while The Paradise is based on a fictional novel. I presume Agnes is in the book (though I cannot guarantee it); if so, no doubt the author of The Paradise had heard about the Selfridge history and thought it would be a good human interest angle.
Also, Mr. Selfridge was filmed before The Paradise; the BBC even rushed The Paradise to air before they had finished the final episode to beat ITV to the punch. Rumours were ITV had lined up Mr. Selfridge for the autumn schedule.
Comments
I enjoyed the first part of Mr Selfridge apart from the Agnes storyline (in the store) which was a direct lift from The Paradise.
Ha ha, yes I know what you mean! It's so annoying when you get a strong image in your head, very off putting!
Your comment has answered the question I was about to ask! I really enjoyed the show, but couldn't help wondering why the series was made about Selfridges rather than Harrods, which is a much older, bigger and more famous store. Perhaps it's because Harrods was founded by an Englishman and as we all know, the Americans do like to see Americans in their dramas (isn't that why Shirley Mclaine was introduced into Downton Abbey).
Funny to see Grégory Fitoussi as M. Leclair, the window dresser - better known to some of us as Pierre Clément in Spiral (on BBC4)!
Now that's a thought but the only thing I could find interesting about Mr Harrod's store was the following...quote
On Wednesday, 16 November 1898, Harrods debuted England's first "moving staircase" (escalator) in their Brompton Road stores; the device was actually a woven leather conveyor belt-like unit with a mahogany and "silver plate-glass" balustrade.[9] Nervous customers were offered brandy at the top to revive them after their 'ordeal'...unquote...
There is far more to Harrods than having introduced the first escalator; it is a store famous the world over and will obtain anything a customer wants - even an elephant. I would have preferred to see a drama series about Harrods, which is a great British institution which although now owned by a foreign family, has its roots with several generations of the Harrod family - an English family.
But I imagine Selfridges was chosen as a drama series to satisfy the Americans.
Both The Paradise and Mr Selfridge are co-produced by the same American channel, PBS. Obviously the presence of an American character is not a prerequisite for the US being interested, or else there would be Americans is The Paradise as well as other British shows co-produced by American channels, like Sherlock, Luther and The Hour.
Why does the founder of Selfridges get a series and not the founder of Harrods? Because the founder of Selfridges was a flamboyant man who led a life of severe ups and downs ripe for dramatization. Who knows if there was anything interesting about Charles Harrod other than that he founded a store. The relevant historical and biographical material for the producers of Mr Selfridge is all laid out in the non-fiction book Shopping, Seduction & Mr Selfridge by Lindy Woodhead. Perhaps there isn't a comparably interesting non-fiction book about Harrods and its founder.
See my comment above.
Anyone?
You could always have checked the listings though - it's not difficult. It took me 30 seconds to search on the Radio Times website. Just saying.
If you look at the history of the founding of Harrods it simply would not have worked as a drama - nothing much occurred until the place burned down 20 years after it opened:D. It began in a single room employing two assistants and a messenger boy?
It may be the bigger store - but it wouldn't have made as good a drama as it took 20 years to build up whereas Selfridges opened at its current site straight away. And Mr Selfridge as a character played by Jeremy Piven sounds a lot more exciting too!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrods
"Harrods founder Charles Henry Harrod first established his business in 1824, aged 25. The business was located south of the River Thames in Southwark. The premises were located at 228 Borough High Street. He ran this business, variously listed as a draper, mercer and a haberdasher, certainly until 1831.[3][4][5] During 1825 the business was listed as 'Harrod and Wicking, Linen Drapers, Retail',[ but this partnership was dissolved at the end of that year. His first grocery business appears to be as ‘Harrod & Co.Grocers’ at 163 Upper Whitecross Street, Clerkenwell, E.C.1., in 1832.[8] In 1834 in London's East End, he established a wholesale grocery in Stepney, at 4, Cable Street, with a special interest in tea. In 1849, to escape the vice of the inner city and to capitalise on trade to the Great Exhibition of 1851 in nearby Hyde Park, Harrod took over a small shop in the district of Brompton, on the site of the current store. Beginning in a single room employing two assistants and a messenger boy, Harrod's son Charles Digby Harrod built the business into a thriving retail operation selling medicines, perfumes, stationery, fruit and vegetables. Harrods rapidly expanded, acquired the adjoining buildings, and employed one hundred people by 1880. However, the store's booming fortunes were reversed in early December 1883, when it burnt to the ground:"
I did check the Radio Times website, and I saw nothing. The TV announcer could have said something at the end of the programme about a possible repeat, or they may be something listed on another website. That's all.
Thanks for taking the time to respond to my post. Your points are very valid, Mr Selfridge certainly sounds like a very complicated character, ripe for television drama and it no doubt helped that there was a book in print from which to draw inspiration.
Perhaps this should inspire a writer to seek out and write the story of Harrods. Three generations of the family developed the store and they have an equally fascinating very patriotic story. The store started as a tiny shop and grew into this massive beautiful building on the Brompton Road. At one stage it burnt to the ground, but was rebuilt.
The Royal Family and many celebrities were encouraged to shop there.
Although I really enjoyed this first episode, I just found some of it slightly misleading as the suggestion came over that it was the first big department store in London - but at the time it was founded, Harrods had already been in existence for decades.
But that was later in it's history and it certainly would not supply an elephant now. I remember Christian the lion who was bought from there, who was eventually taken back to Africa with the help of Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers.
It is how it was founded that makes the story and from what I have read it would not make exciting TV.
The escalator came later around the time that the store was floated on the Stock Exchange. The reason used that quote was because I thought it was quite amusing to be offered a stiff drink when you got to the top..
That almost certainly would have been a consideration in the project going ahead. International sales are vital when you're making a programme that is expensive to undertake, just like 'Downton Abbey'.
Harrods (and F&M etc) would be good for a documentary
I will give it another chance. Maybe it will improve.
Did they have automatically opening and closing doors on the lifts?
Were plate glass display windows of the size seen, available at the time?
If anything, The Paradise lifted it from Mr. Selfridge; Mr. Selfridge is based on a non-fiction book while The Paradise is based on a fictional novel. I presume Agnes is in the book (though I cannot guarantee it); if so, no doubt the author of The Paradise had heard about the Selfridge history and thought it would be a good human interest angle.
Also, Mr. Selfridge was filmed before The Paradise; the BBC even rushed The Paradise to air before they had finished the final episode to beat ITV to the punch. Rumours were ITV had lined up Mr. Selfridge for the autumn schedule.