Joe's Palace
Encyclopedia
Joe's Palace is a BBC television drama
, (co-produced by the BBC
and HBO) and written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff
. It was first aired on BBC One
on 4 November 2007. It is linked, by the central character of Joe, to the Poliakoff drama Capturing Mary
which was aired (on BBC Two
) on 12 November 2007.
), a teenager who has just left school and finds himself employed by Elliot Graham, an agoraphobic billionaire.
Joe's task is to act as doorman
/caretaker
for one of Graham's houses, a palatial property in central London
. Graham himself refuses to live in the house and instead resides in a more modest property over the road. Nevertheless Graham employs a whole team of servants (including Joe's mother--how he got the job) to keep the place spotless even though it has no apparent use
. Joe is at first hired to work during the afternoons only but, following the departure of the first caretaker (played by Clive Russell
), Joe takes over the whole day and is also allowed to sleep there at night if he so wishes.
It becomes apparent very early on that the house is associated with bad memories. None of the staff remains for very long--Joe's mother disappears off to Spain with her new lover, the first caretaker smashes most of the plates before very nearly throwing himself off the roof, and even a homeless person whom Joe invites back for company senses the bad vibes about the place. Joe, it seems, is not intelligent enough to have that sort of imagination, so none of this appears to affect him.
Graham appears obsessed with finding out some dark secret concerning his father's wealth (Graham inherited the wealth but his father was self-made) and has hired many accountants and historians to research this. He states that he would like to spend his money to do good, but he has to know where it came from first. He even sends Joe onto the Antiques Roadshow
with a collection of gold snuffboxes worth nearly a million pounds to see if he can glean any more about their origin from the specialist Geoffrey Munn. This dark secret appears to be tied up in the bad vibes concerning the house. Meanwhile Joe, on Graham's permission, allows the house to be used by a Richard, a cabinet minister and friend of Graham's as a place for assignations with his mistress Charlotte. Joe develops a Platonic attraction toward Charlotte, and is perturbed when Richard eventually turns up with a new mistress--though he continues to see Charlotte on occasion as a friend.
Eventually, on Joe's suggestion, Graham hires Tina, a shop-girl from the local delicatessen (which both Joe and Graham frequent) to go through his paperwork, and she does eventually find the dark secret. However, just as Tina is about to reveal this to Graham and Joe at the house, Graham loses his nerve, saying he does not want to put off hearing the secret but does not want to hear it first in that house. Later, Joe joins Graham on a trip to the country castle (represented by Bodiam Castle
) which Graham's father had given him, and there Graham tells Joe what Tina has told him--the first foundations of Graham's father's fortune were in his doing business with German companies in the 1930s. These dealings were not treason
ous and had ceased when war was declared, but this nevertheless made Graham's father complicit in some of the earlier actions of the Holocaust, particularly in his non-condemnatory attitude to the abuse of Jews in a Berlin park during that time and his acceptance of the antiques as gifts from his German business partners (who had stolen them from Jews). Having told Joe, Graham attempts suicide, but Joe prevents him.
The drama ends with Joe himself moving on, and Graham now using his money for good, and having traced the rightful owners of the antiques.
In the linked drama Capturing Mary
, the present-day meeting between Joe and the titular Mary (played by Dame Maggie Smith
in the present and Ruth Wilson
in her youth) presumably happens within the same time-frame as the events in Joe's Palace as Joe is still in his position as doorman/caretaker in the house.
BBC television drama
BBC television dramas have been produced and broadcast since even before the public service company had an officially established television broadcasting network in the United Kingdom...
, (co-produced by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and HBO) and written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff
Stephen Poliakoff
Stephen Poliakoff, CBE, FRSL is an acclaimed British playwright, director and scriptwriter, widely judged amongst Britain's foremost television dramatists.-Early life and career:...
. It was first aired on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
on 4 November 2007. It is linked, by the central character of Joe, to the Poliakoff drama Capturing Mary
Capturing Mary
Capturing Mary is a BBC television drama , written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff. It was aired on BBC Two on 12 November 2007...
which was aired (on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
) on 12 November 2007.
Cast
- Danny Lee WynterDanny Lee WynterDanny Lee Wynter is an English actor best known for his performance as Joe in Stephen Poliakoff's collection of films Joe's Palace and Capturing Mary.-Biography:...
as Joe, the central character - a doorman and caretaker. - Sir Michael GambonMichael GambonSir Michael John Gambon, CBE is an Irish actor who has worked in theatre, television and film. A highly respected theatre actor, Gambon is recognised for his roles as Philip Marlowe in the BBC television serial The Singing Detective, as Jules Maigret in the 1990s ITV serial Maigret, and as...
as Elliot Graham, Joe's employer - a billionaire financier. - Rupert Penry-JonesRupert Penry-JonesRupert William Penry-Jones is an English actor, best known for his role as Adam Carter in the British television series Spooks, also broadcast under the title MI-5.-Family life:Penry-Jones was born in London on September 22, 1970...
as Richard - a cabinet minister. - Kelly Reilly as Charlotte - his mistress.
- Rebecca HallRebecca HallRebecca Maria Hall is an English actress.In 2003, Hall won the Ian Charleson Award for her debut stage performance in a production of Mrs. Warren's Profession...
as Tina - an employee of the local delicatessen.
Plot
"The action" revolves around the character of Joe (who is also the narratorNarrator
A narrator is, within any story , the fictional or non-fictional, personal or impersonal entity who tells the story to the audience. When the narrator is also a character within the story, he or she is sometimes known as the viewpoint character. The narrator is one of three entities responsible for...
), a teenager who has just left school and finds himself employed by Elliot Graham, an agoraphobic billionaire.
Joe's task is to act as doorman
Doorman (profession)
A doorman is an individual hired to provide courtesy and security services at a residential building or hotel. They are particularly common in urban luxury highrises. At a residential building, a doorman is responsible for opening doors and screening visitors and deliveries...
/caretaker
Property caretaker
A Property caretaker is a person, group or organization that cares for real estate for trade or financial compensation, and sometimes as a barter for rent-free living accommodations...
for one of Graham's houses, a palatial property in central London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Graham himself refuses to live in the house and instead resides in a more modest property over the road. Nevertheless Graham employs a whole team of servants (including Joe's mother--how he got the job) to keep the place spotless even though it has no apparent use
White elephant
A white elephant is an idiom for a valuable but burdensome possession of which its owner cannot dispose and whose cost is out of proportion to its usefulness or worth...
. Joe is at first hired to work during the afternoons only but, following the departure of the first caretaker (played by Clive Russell
Clive Russell
Clive Russell is a British actor.Clive was born in Reeth, England and brought up in Fife, Scotland.He is a familiar face on British television and has appeared in numerous television series including Boys From the Black Stuff ,Hope And Glory, Neverwhere, Great Expectations, The Mists of Avalon,...
), Joe takes over the whole day and is also allowed to sleep there at night if he so wishes.
It becomes apparent very early on that the house is associated with bad memories. None of the staff remains for very long--Joe's mother disappears off to Spain with her new lover, the first caretaker smashes most of the plates before very nearly throwing himself off the roof, and even a homeless person whom Joe invites back for company senses the bad vibes about the place. Joe, it seems, is not intelligent enough to have that sort of imagination, so none of this appears to affect him.
Graham appears obsessed with finding out some dark secret concerning his father's wealth (Graham inherited the wealth but his father was self-made) and has hired many accountants and historians to research this. He states that he would like to spend his money to do good, but he has to know where it came from first. He even sends Joe onto the Antiques Roadshow
Antiques Roadshow
Antiques Roadshow is a British television show in which antiques appraisers travel to various regions of the United Kingdom to appraise antiques brought in by local people. It has been running since 1979...
with a collection of gold snuffboxes worth nearly a million pounds to see if he can glean any more about their origin from the specialist Geoffrey Munn. This dark secret appears to be tied up in the bad vibes concerning the house. Meanwhile Joe, on Graham's permission, allows the house to be used by a Richard, a cabinet minister and friend of Graham's as a place for assignations with his mistress Charlotte. Joe develops a Platonic attraction toward Charlotte, and is perturbed when Richard eventually turns up with a new mistress--though he continues to see Charlotte on occasion as a friend.
Eventually, on Joe's suggestion, Graham hires Tina, a shop-girl from the local delicatessen (which both Joe and Graham frequent) to go through his paperwork, and she does eventually find the dark secret. However, just as Tina is about to reveal this to Graham and Joe at the house, Graham loses his nerve, saying he does not want to put off hearing the secret but does not want to hear it first in that house. Later, Joe joins Graham on a trip to the country castle (represented by Bodiam Castle
Bodiam Castle
Bodiam Castle is a 14th-century moated castle near Robertsbridge in East Sussex, England. It was built in 1385 by Sir Edward Dalyngrigge, a former knight of Edward III, with the permission of Richard II, ostensibly to defend the area against French invasion during the Hundred Years' War...
) which Graham's father had given him, and there Graham tells Joe what Tina has told him--the first foundations of Graham's father's fortune were in his doing business with German companies in the 1930s. These dealings were not treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
ous and had ceased when war was declared, but this nevertheless made Graham's father complicit in some of the earlier actions of the Holocaust, particularly in his non-condemnatory attitude to the abuse of Jews in a Berlin park during that time and his acceptance of the antiques as gifts from his German business partners (who had stolen them from Jews). Having told Joe, Graham attempts suicide, but Joe prevents him.
The drama ends with Joe himself moving on, and Graham now using his money for good, and having traced the rightful owners of the antiques.
In the linked drama Capturing Mary
Capturing Mary
Capturing Mary is a BBC television drama , written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff. It was aired on BBC Two on 12 November 2007...
, the present-day meeting between Joe and the titular Mary (played by Dame Maggie Smith
Maggie Smith
Dame Margaret Natalie Smith, DBE , better known as Maggie Smith, is an English film, stage, and television actress who made her stage debut in 1952 and is still performing after 59 years...
in the present and Ruth Wilson
Ruth Wilson (actress)
Ruth Wilson is an English actress, perhaps best known for her performance in the title role of Jane Eyre.-Early life and education:...
in her youth) presumably happens within the same time-frame as the events in Joe's Palace as Joe is still in his position as doorman/caretaker in the house.
External links
- Joe's Palace at the BBC website.