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 BBC
One (Friday September 15th)
Review by Adam Bryson
Sarah Lancashire, who played Raquel in Corrie back when I was a wee
nipper, stars in this gentle, heart-warming tale of miracles and rock
cakes in a grimy Newcastle estate.
Angel Cake, written by Keith Temple (Casualty) comes as part of a series
of five, one-off BBC ‘comedy-dramas’. Yet here, the emphasis is
certainly much more on the drama, with any comedy only subtle, slight
and light-hearted.
Lancashire plays Elaine, a working class housewife who spends her days
baking cakes whilst having to deal with her permanently scoffing best
mate, Jax (Vicky Hall – ‘Teachers’), evasive husband Ed (Michael Hodgson
– ’55 Degrees North’), mithering mother Millie (Rita Tushingham – ‘The
Stretford Wives’) and Casanova son, Todd (Dean Stobbart – ‘Where The
Heart is’).
When Elaine botches a batch of rock cakes that winds up resembling the
Virgin Mary, seemingly miraculous things start to happen to those around
her.
Jax, never without an ice cream or bag of chips in hand, decides it’s
time to kick the junk food and go on a diet, her mum, Millie is freed of
her crippling arthritis and starts cart wheeling all over the show and
Todd ends his womanising ways when he falls hopelessly in love, whilst
his best mate, usually acne-ridden, wakes up one morning with a face as
smooth as a baby’s backside.
However, whilst all a round her are getting hysterical over this
so-called miracle cake, Elaine is looking for a miracle of her own, and
it comes in the form of Jeff (Simon Slater –‘Doctors’), a local
businessman who offers to set her up with her own catering business.
In the end, predictability reigns supreme. The big girl with the huge
appetite devours the sacred baked goods, life returns almost to normal
and everyone lives happily ever after… well, more or less.
Yet despite the surreal set-up and disappointing ending, it’s the stuff
in the middle, much like an angel cake, that makes this hour-long
performance so easy to digest.
Sarah Lancashire is wonderful, displaying superb comic timing as the
apathetic, put-upon Elaine, whilst as Jax, Vicky Hall easily has the
funniest lines. The rest of the cast pull their weight too.
Angel Cake may not be spectacular or cutting edge. It is, however, a
pleasant, enjoyable slice of entertainment.
Recommended Links:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/proginfo/tv/wk37/feature_angelcake.shtml
- A BBC feature on ‘Angel Cake’, featuring interviews with the cast.
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