Ashes to Ashes - Bringing the Eighties back to Life
Ranked #27,309 in Entertainment, #336,786 overall
Take a trip back in time with this hit TV drama
Ashes to Ashes is the follow up to the hugely successful TV Drama Life on Mars. It tells the story of Detective Inspector Alex Drake, who was shot in the line of duty. She awakes to find that she's been transported back to 1981. Convinced that she's really in a coma and this is all in her mind, she struggles desperately to find her way back home to the daughter she left behind...
The Opening Sequence from Ashes to Ashes
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Introduction to Ashes to Ashes
When the series opens, Alex Drake is a highly sucessful career woman and single mother. In her role as a police psycologist, she has been researching the experiences of her former colleague, Sam Tyler (Life on Mars), and how he found himself living a fantasy life in the '70s when in reality he was in hospital in a coma.
In the course of duty, Alex confronted a suspect, who claimed to have known her parents. He escaped, but later kidnapped Alex and shot her. She woke up in 1981, wearing different clothes, and with a new boss, DCI Gene Hunt (also from Life on Mars). She realises that she must be in a coma too, and is desperate to wake up. Alex also starts seeing visions of the clown from David Bowie's Ashes to Ashes video, and believes that he must be the key to waking her. However, there is much more in store for her before she can find her way back home...
How it all began
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The Link between Ashes to Ashes and Life on Mars
From Sam himself, Alex learned all about his life in the 1970's, along with all of the characters he interacted with there. She was particularly interested in the relationships he had developed with his colleagues (DCI Gene Hunt, DC Chis Skelton, DC Ray Carling and WPC Annie Cartwright). In fact, she was still analysing Sam's creation of his "world" and the significance of the characters he had created in his mind, when she suddenly found herself in a coma. Although Alex's "world" was in a different era (the early 1980's), she dicovered she had recreated the same characters, with the exception of Annie. In her place was WPC Sharon "Shaz" Granger, and this time the location was London instead of Manchester.
From these characters, Alex learned that in their world Sam Tyler had died the previous year after marrying Annie, and they had all moved to London to stay together as a team.
Some Great 80's Music on MP3
Check out my favorite songs! I've handpicked these MP3s from Amazon. Take a listen. If you like, you can click to buy them on Amazon.
A Preview of Series 1 on the BBC Breakfast Programme
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Why 1981 for Alex?
Probably the most important reason for Alex to be transported back to this era, is that this was a particularly significant time in her life. This was the year that her parents died in a car bomb.Alex gets to meet her parents during series 1, and realises that she may be able to save them. If she can, will this be a chance to find her way back to the 21st century?
It turns out that she is unable to save their lives, but she learns more about what happened to them.
However, if this is all in her mind, how much of what she found out is true?
Cips from the show with the music which inspired it
Alex Drake and Gene Hunt
The love/ hate relationship between Alex Drake and Gene Hunt became a significant factor in the popularity of the show. With Alex, Gene had certainly met his match. Everyone else in the team would follow his orders without question, but she was the one person to stand up to him. Whereas Gene would simply shout and bully everyone to get his own way, Alex made use of her psycological training, and would very often outsmart him. If this didn't work, she would simply ignore him if she was certain he was in the wrong! Either way this would lnevitably lead to some firey battles between the two. Series 1 on DVD
A Classic Scene from Ashes to Ashes
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The Ashes to Ashes Soundtrack
What's New for Series 2?
There are some important developments in store for Alex during series 2. The first few episodes are mainly concerned with uncovering police corruption at the highest level, however there are more significant events to come for Alex personally.Both Alex and Sam before her had experienced links to the real world, via the TV and radio, along with seeing visions and hearing voices. This makes them realise that this world is purely immaginary, and gives them hope of returning home. However, in series 2 of Ashes to Ashes, there is a new twist.
Alex starts to receive phone calls, and single roses from a complete stranger. In fact, this appears to be the same stranger that kidnapps her early on in the series. From then onwards, he seems to be stalking her. He implies that he is like her, a time traveller from the future, but refuses to give her any more information. Who is this mystery man, and will they ever meet? Could he even be Sam Tyler? You'll have to watch to the end to find out!
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