TV Critics: Endeavour; Britain's Got Talent

“Endeavour is a very welcome addition to the Sunday night schedules: well-acted and, much like its predecessors, possessing all the menace of a cup of warm Horlicks… This felt like much-needed escapism after the depressingly long winter.”
Patrick Smith, The Telegraph

“From the very opening shot – an elevated view of an Oxford street packed with every vintage vehicle available in a radius of a hundred miles – Endeavour is very happy to deliver the cosy pleasures of the antique. It has rotary-dial telephones, ten-shilling notes, a Maria Callas LP on a Dansette portable and those engaging police cars with tingly bells instead of sirens. Even the crime is soothingly old-fashioned.”
Tom Sutcliffe, The Independent

“It’s tricky to build on something with such cherished heritage… All the components are there… There’s ale, a Jag, opera and awkwardness. But the heritage is worn delicately, like an extra layer of adult jokes hidden in a children’s cartoon. Shaun Evans, compelling in the lead role, might well get his wish of a new generation joining the old fans.”
Alex Hardy, The Times

“In different, lazier hands this could be just another cash-in (like the mostly dreadful Lewis) and all credit to the makers for avoiding that. It was good at the same time as being standard fare, ending in one of those cheesy moments where a side-kicks’ prattling gave Morse the final, vital clue. A little of what we’d expected, in other words, plus a little of what we hadn’t.”
Matt Baylis, Daily Express

“It’s a fairly standard opener, with the usual dross on stage to start, eye-rolling from Simon Cowell and larking about by Ant’n’Dec in the wings. No dogs, sadly, except a human one – a man who barks, not very well… At least David Walliams brings a few genuine lols to proceedings.”
Sam Wollaston, The Guardian

“Straight from the start of this seventh run, the programme reminded us why it’s still one of biggest ratings-gobblers around. This opening show featured truly talented discoveries, deluded lunatics and moving moments that will have had viewers reaching for their handkerchiefs. Not to mention BBC executives, sobbing in fear for The Voice.”
Michael Hogan, The Telegraph

“I’m probably meant to be sneery but I can’t be… It can take you through the whole gamut of emotions – laughter, tears, both – and on to frustration that you know it is going to manipulate you completely, and you’re going to give in. A Saturday night classic? Not quite. As Simon Cowell would have us say, three trillion per cent, yes.”
Alex Hardy, The Times