Father Brown (TV Series) The Rod of Asclepius (2016) User Reviews

Green for Danger

[Sleepin_Dragon · 9/10 · 24 November 2017]

After a motoring accident, Lady Felicia and Mrs McCarthy Landon hospital, leaving a tyrannical replacement housekeeper, Mrs Steele to look after the Father at the presbytery.

I absolutely loved this episode, about ten minutes in I said it had similarities to the wonderful Green for Danger from 1947 starring Alistair Sim, anyone that's seen that would I'm sure agree that the plot is very similar. I hadn't enjoyed the previous episode (The Daughter of Autolycus ) so much as I felt like they were sending the show up a little, the use of humour in this episode however was smart and funny, it really boosted the episode. The humour was well balanced by the level of threat, dead nurses in cupboards, Mrs McCarthy at death's door.

It has some excellent moments, including a real scare, and a grim discovery. This is Father Brown at its very best.

If I had one criticism it would be that I found Jack Deam a little over the top in this one, I've warmed to his character in recent times, but here he was just irritating.

Cracking, 9/10

Episode needs proper credits

[Kittyman · 7/10 · 7 January 2019]

The previous reviewer is correct. Although seemingly not credited, this episode is basically taken whole cloth from Christianna Brand's 1944 novel Green for Danger, previously filmed under the same title in 1946. Both of which, incidentally, have received much critical acclaim.

Carry on Doctor

[safenoe · 8/10 · 8 September 2023]

Dominic Mafham guest stars as Sir Malcolm Braithwaite and I thought he really likes like David Walliams, which would have been ironic because Mark Williams plays Father Brown so similar surnames and all init as Sid would say.

Anyway, here there's a murder or two in the hospital, a NHS one, and we're kept guessing until the very end as to who the culprit could be. The Rod of Asclepius is worth viewing for the period where the NHS was on the ascendancy. Anyway, I'm enjoying catching up on the early seasons of Father Brown and also Magnum, P. I. as they represent a slice of the times and that init.

Inspector Mallory writes his clues on the blackboard and gets it wrong!!

[coltras35 · 7/10 · 19 March 2023]

Lady Felicia's driving lands her and Mrs McCarthy in the cottage hospital, where elderly Mrs Garrity dies during a routine operation carried out by Sir Malcolm Braithwaite and womanizing Dr Tony Fairfax. A nurse who voiced her suspicions of foul play is murdered and the inept Inspector Mallory believes she was killed by Fairfax, who once worked with her. Father Brown however links a seemingly random comment made by Mrs Garrity to a secret one of the staff is keeping but he must act fast as Mrs McCarthy's sleuthing has put her in danger.

Quite an enjoyable episode with Felicity and Mrs McCarthy ending up in hospital where there's a murder - a nurse ends up in a cupboard with a scalpel in her stomach after airing her view that a patient's death on the operation table was murder - and some fun from my favourite character, Inspector Mallory, who is so over the top, uncouth and thoroughly useless as a detective. He's a spoof of the inept detective like Sherlock's inspector Lestrade.

The Rod of Asclepius

[Prismark10 · 5/10 · 9 February 2017]

Lady Felicia's and Mrs McCarthy end up in the cottage hospital thanks to Lady Felicia's reckless driving. Lady Felicia is shamed by the eminent doctor in the hospital Sir Malcolm Braithwaite to stick with the new fangled NHS and not go to her private surgeon in Harley Street.

However Mrs Garrity in the bed opposite dies during a routine operation. A nurse suspects foul play and Inspector Mallory reluctantly investigates because he wants to join the local golf club and Sir Malcolm Braithwaite is the chairman of the club.

One of the womanising doctor is the main suspect but Father Brown thinks that the deceased and the murderer once might had met innocently some years ago.

It was a hoot to see Lady Felicia all bandaged up, the mystery was not that interesting but it was nice to see Mallory attempt to social climb by trying to stay on the surgeon's good books.

Suspicious deaths in hospital.

[Wbcgs · 4/10 · 27 June 2016]

I am absolutely sick and tired of Inspector Mallory. This incompetent boob drags down every scene in which he appears. Mine cannot be the only observation of this sort. Mystery should be well above this sort of sophomoric scripting. I must say that Father Brown is enormously inconsistent in this regard. His predecessor in this role was quite competent, all the while being a worthy adversary for Father Brown. Mr. Mallory's histrionics bring the teleplay's ratings down at least two full points. The gentleman may well be a competent actor, but with all of the mugging, the viewer might never be aware. The fault must be shared equally among the producer, director, scriptwriter, and at least partly the actor in question. Mr. Williams is indeed competent in the role, the others are marginally effective, but adequate. I do expect more of the BBC, even though I have not paid a license fee in some time. Thank you.

Credit due

[Pimpernel_Smith · 5/10 · 27 March 2022]

Quite agree with a couple of other reviewers that it is very surprising that there is no credit given in this episode since it is heavily inspired by the 1944 Christianna Brand crime novel 'Green for Danger' and the (wonderful) 1946 Sydney Gilliat directed film based on the book. But it's a far inferior version with a completely anachronistic scene at the end between the matron and one of the nurses - I've just taken a star off for that.