TV series

Malice Aforethought

1979 · 1 season

A wry, slow-burning noir that draws you into a suffocating marriage and a chillingly methodical murder, with a darkly comic edge.

Overview: Malice Aforethought is a four-part 1979 BBC Two miniseries by Philip Mackie, adapted from Anthony Berkeley Cox's (pen name Francis Iles) 1931 noir novel of the same name. For ten years, Julia Bickleigh has despised and bullied her husband. For ten years Dr Bickleigh has dreamed of romance ... and escape.
How it feels: Dark, cynical, satirical and melancholic. Slow-burning and needs your attention.
About: Betrayal, obsession, guilt, morality
Content: Mild violence, sexual content and language. No gore.
Note: Written by AI, so it can be wrong. Full breakdown

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Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Full breakdown

Tone: darkstrength 2 of 3
cynicalstrength 2 of 3
satiricalstrength 2 of 3
melancholicstrength 1 of 3
Pacing: slow-burn, 1 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention: engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes: betrayal
obsession
guilt
morality
crime
Places: countryside
small town
Era: period
Audience: adult
Form: serialised
Content intensity: Gore none
Language mild
Violence mild
Sex mild