I, Jack Wright, U&Alibi, review: a homespun Succession with a dab of Dallas
It's a legal myth created by Hollywood but once upon a time, TV and film were full of wills being read. Beneficiaries would gather solemnly around a long table, often in a spooky mansion, before a lawyer formally read aloud the terms of the deceased's last will. Cue shock revelations, long-buried secrets and all manner of melodrama.
Such theatrical set pieces might have fallen out of fashion but the tradition is revived in I, Jack Wright (U&Alibi). Set in motion by a minted mogul's last will and testament, this gripping family thriller is half-whodunit, half-soapy dynastic drama. A homespun Succession with a dab of Dallas and an Agatha Christie-esque mystery at its heart.
When the titular wealthy patriarch – Wright Snr (Trevor Eve) made his millions in the brick business and we don't mean Lego – died by what appeared to be suicide, his current wife and two eldest sons were outraged to learn they'd been left virtually nothing of his £100m fortune. As well-heeled hell broke loose, police investigated Jack's suspicious demise. Naturally, it turned out to be murder most foul.
Disinherited wife Sally (Nikki Amuka-Bird) launched a legal challenge. Dissolute son Gray (John Simm, sporting an earring, black eye and bloodied nose) was being pursued by loan sharks and badly needed the payday. His brother John (Daniel Rigby) had been groomed to take over as CEO of the brick business but suddenly found himself frozen out, to the fury of his Lady Macbeth-esque wife (Zoë Tapper).
Ruby Ashbourne-Serkis – as the daughter of Lorraine Ashbourne and Andy Serkis, the 26-year-old has impeccable acting genes – impressed as granddaughter Emily, an aspiring tech mogul with an agenda of her own. The dogged detective, DCI Hector Morgan (Harry Lloyd), was refreshingly free of gratuitous quirks, although I suspect his wife recently left him. The reasons will doubtless soon be revealed. He was also partial to a Columbo-style 'Just one more thing…' but who could blame him? Given half a chance, we'd all do it.
In a knowing flourish, episodes were bookended by interviews with key players for what appears to be a true-crime documentary. Flashing forward two years, some were in prison, others had fallen on hard times. Some were haunted by guilt, others defiantly unrepentant. The gimmick added momentum, seeded clues and left the plot intriguingly poised.
Production values were higher than one might expect from a second-tier channel. Action unfolded at country estates, swanky London offices and Parisian apartments. Interiors were enviably stylish, all gleaming parquet floors, chic lamps and designer kitchens. The cast was high-calibre, with the likes of Gemma Jones, Niamh Cusack and James Fleet adding heft in supporting roles.
Created by Unforgotten's Chris Lang, it was packed with treachery and plot twists. This was a propulsive tale of greed, mistrust and dysfunctional family feuds. The script was darkly comic, with teenagers nabbing the best lines – notably one about frozen peas in a bodily orifice which was bound to have set off alarm bells at Birds Eye HQ. The BBC part-funded the series, so one assume it will tip up on terrestrial TV next year. That would be welcome, because it deserves a wider audience.
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