Series 2: Episode 6 (Life on Mars)
Encyclopedia
The sixth episode of the second series of the British
time travel
police procedural
television
series, Life on Mars
, was first broadcast on 27 March 2007. It was produced by Kudos Film & Television
for BBC One
.
for the first time, CID and DCI Hunt
want culprits for the smuggling, the dealing and ensuing violence, which becomes difficult when Annie
is kidnapped by the smugglers. As Sam
tries to get to the source of the influx of this deadly drug, he finds himself intractably drawn to a beautiful young woman who was witness to a heroin-related shooting... and who, he later realises, is the mother of his girlfriend in the future. At the same time, Sam's 'visions' reveal that his girlfriend has decided to stop visiting him in hospital, as she can't keep waiting for him to wake up.
Deepak Gandhi, a Ugandan Asian, is found shot in his record shop with heroin in his pocket and taken to hospital in a coma. Sam hears his name called out from another room, only to discover the voice is coming from the present day via a radio transmitter. The voice belongs to Maya and Sam desperately responds to no avail. He then finds a young lady called Layla hiding in the shop. She claims she was just a customer who hid after hearing gunshots.
Sam believes the drugs were planted, but finds that the racial prejudice of his fellow policemen works against his theory. Gene and the gang visit local drug dealer Rocket to learn more. After some testicular torture he confirms to Gene that Deepak was selling heroin from his shop. Sam is still unconvinced.
Layla admits that she was working as Deepak’s accountant. She tells Sam she didn’t speak the truth before because the police don’t care about his race.
Maya pops up in a screening of a Bollywood film whilst Sam visit’s a local community centre. She is saying goodbye to him, that she’s given up and won’t be visiting anymore. Sam searches for the radio to try to make contact.
Meanwhile, at least seven people have recently died due to heroin overdose, with Gene very angry at this. A man named Toolbox - a local enforcer whose work is tolerated by the police - visits Rocket with some ferrets to bully into revealing more information. It works and he says that Deepak’s brother Ravi is behind importing the drugs.
Layla is probed by Gene about Ravi, who was seen with her earlier in the record shop. She admits she is romantically involved with Deepak. This disgusts Gene, but Sam rushes to her aid by saying that he dated a Pakistani woman once because he loved her. This incurs more abuse from Gene. Later, Layla’s house is scrawled with racial abuse so she stays with Sam, with her personality reminding him of Maya. The following morning Annie pays Sam’s flat a visit and is taken aback to find he has female company.
Ravi, taken in for questioning, reveals he saw a white man leaving the shop when he paid his brother a visit, only to find he’d been shot. Chris then enters the room to break the news that Deepak has died. Sam takes issue with Gene for his insensitivity to the news, but the copper retorts by stating that his brother was a drug addict and hadn’t been seen for ten years.
The police take a look at Deepak’s corpse and Sam makes the grim discovery that a fresh stab wound has been made in the hospital, with an attempt to conceal it by knifing him through the gunshot wound. Ray, who was guarding him, says the only person to have paid a visit was Layla. She then confesses that her real name is Lesley Roy - the name of Maya’s mother - and that she is pregnant but planning an abortion.
Sam pays the local Asian community centre a visit only for the place to be attacked by a couple of skinheads. He chases them and catches one, who claims that the Asians are smuggling things into the country and that he knows when and where they do it.
The police investigate the warehouse where they find several Asians unloading items such as carpets and crockery. However, Sam accidentally uncovers bags of heroin stashed away in a secret compartment of one of the crates. Gene calls in Toolbox to explore the matter further.
Sam and Annie track down Ravi, who claims innocence but agrees to come in for questioning rather than face Toolbox. Sam is suddenly struck down from behind and wakes up to find himself bound and gagged with an iron tied to his chest, only being saved by a powercut. Gene arrives on the scene to set him free, but there’s no sign of Annie or the assailants.
The police pay Toolbox a visit, with his Asian rugs alerting Sam to his double dealings. Toolbox’s female accomplice shoots Ravi but Chris puts a bullet in her before she can do any more damage. Rocket, who was also in on the act, is also arrested. They find Annie tied up, but safe.
Sam pays a visit to Layla at the hospital. She has changed her mind about having an abortion and has an ultrasound scan and says she will (after a suggestion from Sam) call the baby Maya if it’s a girl.
Gene is busy keeping an eye on Ravi, who is in a hospital bed recovering from being shot. He tells Sam that his brother is dead. Together, they hang around Ravi’s hospital bed and put the music up loud, much to the nurse’s annoyance.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
time travel
Time travel in fiction
Time travel is a common theme in science fiction and is depicted in a variety of media. It simply means either going forward in time or backward, to experience the future, or the past.-Literature:...
police procedural
Police procedural
The police procedural is a subgenre of detective fiction which attempts to convincingly depict the activities of a police force as they investigate crimes. While traditional detective novels usually concentrate on a single crime, police procedurals frequently depict investigations into several...
television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
series, Life on Mars
Life on Mars (TV series)
Life on Mars is a British television series broadcast on BBC One between January 2006 and April 2007. The series combines elements of science fiction and police procedural....
, was first broadcast on 27 March 2007. It was produced by Kudos Film & Television
Kudos (production company)
Kudos Film and Television is a British independent film and television production company. It has produced television series for the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, and its productions include Spooks , Hustle, Life on Mars and its spin-off Ashes to Ashes, The Amazing Mrs Pritchard and M.I. High...
for 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...
.
Synopsis
As heroin hits the streets of ManchesterGreater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
for the first time, CID and DCI Hunt
Gene Hunt
DCI Gene Hunt is a fictional character in BBC One's science fiction/police procedural drama Life on Mars and its sequel, Ashes to Ashes. The character is portrayed by Philip Glenister in both Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes, whereas in the American version he is portrayed by Harvey Keitel.The...
want culprits for the smuggling, the dealing and ensuing violence, which becomes difficult when Annie
Annie Cartwright
WPC/DC Annie Cartwright is a fictional character in BBC One's science fiction/police procedural drama, Life on Mars. The character is portrayed by Liz White...
is kidnapped by the smugglers. As Sam
Sam Tyler
DCI/DI Sam Tyler is a fictional character in BBC One's science fiction/police procedural drama, Life on Mars.In the original British version of Life on Mars, Tyler is played by John Simm and in the American version he is played by Jason O'Mara....
tries to get to the source of the influx of this deadly drug, he finds himself intractably drawn to a beautiful young woman who was witness to a heroin-related shooting... and who, he later realises, is the mother of his girlfriend in the future. At the same time, Sam's 'visions' reveal that his girlfriend has decided to stop visiting him in hospital, as she can't keep waiting for him to wake up.
Plot
Sam dreams about Maya, his girlfriend before his accident, fearful that she is bidding him farewell in the present day.Deepak Gandhi, a Ugandan Asian, is found shot in his record shop with heroin in his pocket and taken to hospital in a coma. Sam hears his name called out from another room, only to discover the voice is coming from the present day via a radio transmitter. The voice belongs to Maya and Sam desperately responds to no avail. He then finds a young lady called Layla hiding in the shop. She claims she was just a customer who hid after hearing gunshots.
Sam believes the drugs were planted, but finds that the racial prejudice of his fellow policemen works against his theory. Gene and the gang visit local drug dealer Rocket to learn more. After some testicular torture he confirms to Gene that Deepak was selling heroin from his shop. Sam is still unconvinced.
Layla admits that she was working as Deepak’s accountant. She tells Sam she didn’t speak the truth before because the police don’t care about his race.
Maya pops up in a screening of a Bollywood film whilst Sam visit’s a local community centre. She is saying goodbye to him, that she’s given up and won’t be visiting anymore. Sam searches for the radio to try to make contact.
Meanwhile, at least seven people have recently died due to heroin overdose, with Gene very angry at this. A man named Toolbox - a local enforcer whose work is tolerated by the police - visits Rocket with some ferrets to bully into revealing more information. It works and he says that Deepak’s brother Ravi is behind importing the drugs.
Layla is probed by Gene about Ravi, who was seen with her earlier in the record shop. She admits she is romantically involved with Deepak. This disgusts Gene, but Sam rushes to her aid by saying that he dated a Pakistani woman once because he loved her. This incurs more abuse from Gene. Later, Layla’s house is scrawled with racial abuse so she stays with Sam, with her personality reminding him of Maya. The following morning Annie pays Sam’s flat a visit and is taken aback to find he has female company.
Ravi, taken in for questioning, reveals he saw a white man leaving the shop when he paid his brother a visit, only to find he’d been shot. Chris then enters the room to break the news that Deepak has died. Sam takes issue with Gene for his insensitivity to the news, but the copper retorts by stating that his brother was a drug addict and hadn’t been seen for ten years.
The police take a look at Deepak’s corpse and Sam makes the grim discovery that a fresh stab wound has been made in the hospital, with an attempt to conceal it by knifing him through the gunshot wound. Ray, who was guarding him, says the only person to have paid a visit was Layla. She then confesses that her real name is Lesley Roy - the name of Maya’s mother - and that she is pregnant but planning an abortion.
Sam pays the local Asian community centre a visit only for the place to be attacked by a couple of skinheads. He chases them and catches one, who claims that the Asians are smuggling things into the country and that he knows when and where they do it.
The police investigate the warehouse where they find several Asians unloading items such as carpets and crockery. However, Sam accidentally uncovers bags of heroin stashed away in a secret compartment of one of the crates. Gene calls in Toolbox to explore the matter further.
Sam and Annie track down Ravi, who claims innocence but agrees to come in for questioning rather than face Toolbox. Sam is suddenly struck down from behind and wakes up to find himself bound and gagged with an iron tied to his chest, only being saved by a powercut. Gene arrives on the scene to set him free, but there’s no sign of Annie or the assailants.
The police pay Toolbox a visit, with his Asian rugs alerting Sam to his double dealings. Toolbox’s female accomplice shoots Ravi but Chris puts a bullet in her before she can do any more damage. Rocket, who was also in on the act, is also arrested. They find Annie tied up, but safe.
Sam pays a visit to Layla at the hospital. She has changed her mind about having an abortion and has an ultrasound scan and says she will (after a suggestion from Sam) call the baby Maya if it’s a girl.
Gene is busy keeping an eye on Ravi, who is in a hospital bed recovering from being shot. He tells Sam that his brother is dead. Together, they hang around Ravi’s hospital bed and put the music up loud, much to the nurse’s annoyance.
Cast
- Sam TylerSam TylerDCI/DI Sam Tyler is a fictional character in BBC One's science fiction/police procedural drama, Life on Mars.In the original British version of Life on Mars, Tyler is played by John Simm and in the American version he is played by Jason O'Mara....
— John SimmJohn SimmJohn Simm is an English stage and screen actor. In recent years he is best known for his roles as Sam Tyler in the detective drama Life on Mars and as The Master in the revival of the science fiction series Doctor Who, but he has also starred in many highly acclaimed award-winning television... - Gene HuntGene HuntDCI Gene Hunt is a fictional character in BBC One's science fiction/police procedural drama Life on Mars and its sequel, Ashes to Ashes. The character is portrayed by Philip Glenister in both Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes, whereas in the American version he is portrayed by Harvey Keitel.The...
— Philip GlenisterPhilip GlenisterPhilip Haywood Glenister is an English actor, known for his role as DCI Gene Hunt in British television series Life On Mars and its sequel Ashes To Ashes.-Television and films:... - Chris SkeltonChris SkeltonPC/DC Christopher "Chris" Skelton is a fictional character in BBC One's science fiction/police procedural drama, Life on Mars and its spin-off Ashes to Ashes.- Life on Mars :...
— Marshall LancasterMarshall LancasterMarshall Lancaster is a British actor. He has appeared in many television dramas, including Coronation Street, Holby City, The Lakes and Family Affairs, but is probably best known for playing DC Chris Skelton in the BBC time-travel police dramas, Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes.Lancaster is a... - Ray CarlingRay CarlingDC/DS/DI Raymond Milton "Ray" Carling is a fictional character in BBC One's science fiction/police procedural drama, Life on Mars and its spin-off Ashes to Ashes.-Life on Mars:...
— Dean AndrewsDean AndrewsDean Andrews is a British actor.He is most famous for his role as DS Ray Carling in the BBC Television drama Life on Mars... - Annie CartwrightAnnie CartwrightWPC/DC Annie Cartwright is a fictional character in BBC One's science fiction/police procedural drama, Life on Mars. The character is portrayed by Liz White...
— Liz WhiteLiz White (actress)Liz White is an English actress, best known for her regular role as WPC/WDC Annie Cartwright in the BBC time travel drama Life on Mars, which began in January 2006... - Nelson — Tony Marshall
- Phyllis DobbsPhyllis DobbsWPC Phyllis Dobbs is a fictional character in BBC One's science fiction/police procedural drama, Life on Mars. The character is portrayed by Noreen Kershaw, whereas in the American version the character does not exist except for a very minor capacity....
— Noreen KershawNoreen KershawNoreen Kershaw is an English television actress and director.She trained at the Manchester Polytechnic School of Theatre and, at Liverpool's Everyman Theatre, originated the title role of the play Shirley Valentine, later made famous by Pauline Collins... - Test Card Girl — Harriet Rogers
- Maya Roy — Archie Panjabi
- Layla — Alex Reid
- Ravi — Paul Sharma
- Rocket — Tim PlesterTim PlesterTim Plester is a British playwright and actor who lives and works in London.Plester graduated in 1994 with a BA in theatre at Dartington College of Arts in Devon, and went on to obtain an MA in playwriting studies from Birmingham University in 1997...
- Toolbox Terry — Ian Puleston-DaviesIan Puleston-Davies-Early life and career:Born in Flint, Wales, Puleston-Davies has starred in the ITV drama Vincent alongside Ray Winstone, and Ghostboat , alongside David Jason. He has also played the lead roles in Conviction and the BBC Three series Funland.He has starred in long-running dramas such as Holby...
- Big Bird — Lorraine CheshireLorraine CheshireLorraine Cheshire is a British actress from Wythenshawe, Manchester.Date of birth: 4 September 1958 -Credits:*Massive 2008*Life on Mars 2007*Tittybangbang 2006*Early Doors 2003*Mrs Meitlemeihr 2002...
- Skinhead - Paul Oldham
Cultural references
- Sam says "Well, it's better than even I expected. Copper leaps to a conclusion, then finds the evidence to fit. Birmingham Six, here we come." The Birmingham Six were convicted of the Birmingham pub bombingsBirmingham pub bombingsThe Birmingham pub bombings occurred on 21 November 1974 in Birmingham, England. The explosions killed 21 people and injured 182. The devices were placed in two central Birmingham pubs – the Mulberry Bush and the Tavern in the Town . Although warnings were sent, the pubs were not evacuated in time...
of 21 November 1974 and sentenced to life imprisonment. At a third appeal against the convictions, in 1991, the Court of Appeal considered that new evidence discredited both the men's confessions and critical forensic evidence against them, making the convictions unsafe. The case has subsequently been held up as an examplar of corrupt police work. - As Gene drives down the streets and then knocks over a bin Sam says "Starsky and Hutch have a lot to answer for". This is a reference to the TV show Starsky and HutchStarsky and HutchStarsky and Hutch is a 1970s American cop thriller television series that consisted of a 90-minute pilot movie and 92 episodes of 60 minutes each; created by William Blinn, produced by Spelling-Goldberg Productions, and broadcast between April 30, 1975 and May 15, 1979 on the ABC...
who drove in a similar style. However since Starsky and HutchStarsky and HutchStarsky and Hutch is a 1970s American cop thriller television series that consisted of a 90-minute pilot movie and 92 episodes of 60 minutes each; created by William Blinn, produced by Spelling-Goldberg Productions, and broadcast between April 30, 1975 and May 15, 1979 on the ABC...
won't air until 1975, Gene replies "who ?".
Music
- Dance With The Devil - Cozy PowellCozy PowellColin Flooks , better known as Cozy Powell, was an English rock drummer who made his name with many major rock bands.-Early history:...
- Breathless - Atomic RoosterAtomic RoosterAtomic Rooster were an English progressive rock band, composed of former members of the The Crazy World of Arthur Brown. Throughout their history, keyboardist Vincent Crane was the only constant member, and wrote the majority of their material. Their history is defined by two periods, in the early...
- Snow Flower - Ananda ShankarAnanda ShankarAnanda Shankar was a Bengali musician best known for fusing Western and Eastern musical styles. He was married to Tanusree Shankar.-Early life:...
- Rocket Man - Elton JohnElton JohnSir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
- I Had A Dream - AudienceAudience (band)Audience is a cult British art rock band which existed between 1969 and 1972, and reformed in 2004.The original band consisted of Howard Werth on nylon-strung electric acoustic guitar and vocals, Keith Gemmell on tenor...
- Hot Sand - Shocking BlueShocking BlueShocking Blue was a Dutch rock band from The Hague, the Netherlands, formed in 1967. Their biggest hit, "Venus", went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1970, and the band had sold 13.5 million discs by 1973, but the group disbanded in 1974.-Members:...
- Traveller In Time - Uriah HeepUriah Heep (band)Uriah Heep are an English rock band formed in London in 1969 and regarded as a seminal classic hard rock act of the 1970s. Uriah Heep's progressive/art rock/heavy metal fusion's distinctive features have always been massive keyboards sound, strong vocal harmonies and David Byron's operatic vocals...
- Whiskey In The JarWhiskey in the Jar"Whiskey in the Jar" is a famous Irish traditional song, set in the southern mountains of Ireland, with specific mention of counties Cork and Kerry, as well as Fenit, a village in county Kerry. It is about a Rapparee , who is betrayed by his wife or lover, and is one of the most widely performed...
- Thin LizzyThin LizzyThin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Two of the founding members, drummer Brian Downey and bass guitarist/vocalist Phil Lynott met while still in school. Lynott assumed the role of frontman and led them throughout their recording career of thirteen studio albums...
External links
- Episode 6 at bbc.co.ukBbc.co.ukBBC Online is the brand name and home for the BBC's UK online service. It is a large network of websites including such high profile sites as BBC News and Sport, the on-demand video and radio services co-branded BBC iPlayer, the pre-school site Cbeebies, and learning services such as Bitesize...
- Episode 6 at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- Episode 6 at TV.comTV.comTV.com is a website owned by CBS Interactive. The site covers television and focuses on English-language shows made or broadcast in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Japan...