Death on the Tyne viewers rip into ‘dreadful’ Johnny Vegas film as they slate ‘naff and unfunny’ BBC
DEATH on the Tyne, a movie starring British acting legends about a serial killer on the loose on a ferry from Newcastle to Amsterdam, what’s not to laugh at?
Well, it appears that some BBC viewers did not find the funny side in the movie that stars comedian Johnny Vegas, Call the Midwife‘s Georgie Glen, Line of Duty‘s Taj Atwal, and Bridgerton‘s James Fleet.
Originally released in 2018 on Gold, the movie made its way to BBC Two last night, taking the 9pm prime time slot.
The movie follows Draper’s Tours hostess Gemma (Sian Gibson) and driver Terry (Johnny) as they try to identify the killer before the sabotaged ship sinks.
It was not the pair’s first time dealing with death and mystery, with the duo having a string of TV outings in Murder on The Blackpool Express and Dial M For Middlesbrough.
The titles are parodies of iconic Agatha Christie crime novels.
Despite the movie’s stellar cast, some viewers needed clarification on whether the film was meant to be funny and compared it to an amateur dramatic production.
A confused onlooker tweeted: “Is this a comedy #deathonthetyne,” the social media user later added: “This is naff #deathonthetyne.”
Not believing what they saw, a viewer said: “Jesus this dreadful #deathonthetyne.”
“So bad, is it a training film on how not to do comedy drama? Has it all been done in deliberate slow-motion amdram? Not even bad enough to be funny. Death on the Tyne. @BBCTwo #DeathontheTyne,” another chimed in.
One onlooker thought it might help distract them on a future cruise: “Watching #DeathOnTheTyne – most of it’s not terribly funny, tbh. However, I’m going on a similar trip to Holland from Hull in October, and if it’s as ridiculous as this, then maybe I’ll be distracted from my inevitable travel sickness.”
However, it wasn’t all doom and gloom. Some movie fans were quick to jump online to shout about how much they loved it.
One viewer disagreed and loved that the film was back on TV. They said: “Loved watching this again tonight on TV. #deathonthetyne @BBCTwo”
Another added: “I’m five mins into #deathonthetyne and I’m obsessed already.”
Death on the Tyne is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.