Passer By (film)

*Passer By*
Passer By
	Title screen
Written by	Tony Marchant
Directed by	David Morrissey
Starring	James Nesbitt; Siobhan Finneran; Emily Bruni; Bryan Dick
Theme music composer	Dario Marianelli
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Production
Producer	David Snodin
Cinematography	Tim Palmer
Editor	John Wilson
Running time	120 minutes
Original release
Network	BBC One
Release	29 March 2004

Passer By is a 2004 British television film broadcast on BBC One in two parts on 28 and 29 March 2004. It was directed by David Morrissey from a script by Tony Marchant and stars James Nesbitt as Joe Keyes, and Emily Bruni as Alice.

Plot

Joe Keys is a man who sees a young woman called Alice accosted by some men on a train one night. Alice looks to Joe for help but he ignores her predicament and gets off the train. A few days later, the police are seeking witnesses to a sexual assault against Alice. Joe unwillingly comes forward but, when giving evidence against the men in court, cannot bring himself to admit that he did nothing to save Alice.

Production

The film was commissioned by the BBC's director of serials Laura Mackie at the outline stage. Marchant did not want to extend the script to any more than two parts because he thought two was the right length. He previously worked with Morrissey and producer David Snodin on the 1997 television series Holding On. The script went through five drafts; refinements included making Joe's wife less judgmental, and seeing other characters in the wider world reacting to Joe.^[1] It was filmed over 30 days.^[2]

Reception

The first part received 6.9 million viewers, and the second part 6.7 million (28% audience share). The second part was the first time BBC One won the 9–10 p.m. timeslot in two months.^[3] Final ratings, accounting for viewers who recorded it to watch later, brought part one up to 7.47 million and part two up to 7.54 million.^[4] Passer By received negative critical reaction from the New Statesman.^[5]

It was repeated by UKTV Drama on 28 December 2004 as a single feature-length film.^[6]

References

^ Madden, John (2 March 2004). "NFT Interviews: David Morrissey". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 1 August 2011. Retrieved 11 December 2008.
^ Fogg, Tom (1999). "Interview with David Morrissey". Netribution. Archived from the original on 27 July 2011. Retrieved 11 December 2008.
^ Deans, Jason (30 March 2004). "Nesbitt delivers Monday night ratings win for BBC". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 11 December 2008.
^ "Weekly Viewing Summary: Terrestrial Top 30". Broadcasters' Audience Research Board. Retrieved 11 December 2008.
^ Billen, Andrew (5 April 2004). "The bad Samaritan". New Statesman. p. 46. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011.
^ "Television: Tuesday 28 December". The Times. 18 December 2004. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011.

External links

[1] Madden, John (2 March 2004). "NFT Interviews: David Morrissey". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 1 August 2011. Retrieved 11 December 2008.

[2] Fogg, Tom (1999). "Interview with David Morrissey". Netribution. Archived from the original on 27 July 2011. Retrieved 11 December 2008.

[3] Deans, Jason (30 March 2004). "Nesbitt delivers Monday night ratings win for BBC". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 11 December 2008.

[4] "Weekly Viewing Summary: Terrestrial Top 30". Broadcasters' Audience Research Board. Retrieved 11 December 2008.

[5] Billen, Andrew (5 April 2004). "The bad Samaritan". New Statesman. p. 46. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011.

[6] "Television: Tuesday 28 December". The Times. 18 December 2004. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011.

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