Our new favourite … Boxset

What’s it called?

Babylon Berlin

What’s it about?

It’s essentially a portrait of an epoch, the epoch in question being the jazz-tastic Weimar Republic which flourished in Germany from the end of the First World War until the Nazi takeover in 1933 and which was famous for a cultural renaissance that bred new forms of design, music, art and cinema. Specifically, it takes place in 1929 and follows vice detective Gereon Rath and police clerk Charlotte Ritter as they become embroiled in a far-reaching criminal and political conspiracy.

Who’s in it?

Gereon Rath is played by Volker Bruch, who appeared alongside Claire Foy’s Lisbeth Salander in 2018 Stieg Larsson re-boot The Girl In The Spider’s Web. Berlin-born actress Charlotte Ritter is Liv Lisa Fries and the series was created and directed by Tom Twyker, of Run Lola Run, Cloud Atlas and Sense8 fame, and adapted from Volker Kutscher’s series of crime novels. At a cost of £30 million it’s reckoned to be the most expensive German TV series ever made.

Best bits so far?

A considerable amount of the budget went on the special effects required to recreate pre-Second World War Berlin. The effects are stunning, as are the real locations.

Where can I find it?

It’s on Netflix, though not in the UK, sadly. However it’s available for download now though if you prefer old tech you can buy series one and two in a four-disc DVD boxset from April 1 (Acorn DVD).

Fun fact …

A couple of re-purposed and re-arranged Roxy Music songs appear on the soundtrack and Bryan Ferry has a cameo as a cabaret singer at the end of series one.

For fans of ...

Cabaret songs; Bauhaus architecture; Fritz Lang's M