Last year CultBox attended a screening of Quirke‘s first episode, ‘Christine Falls’, at the BFI which included a Q&A with Banville, Andrew Davies (who adapted the story for television), director John Alexander (Exile) and actress Aisling Franciosi (The Fall).

Banville was keen to address the issues of child abuse within the Catholic church, saying: “I think Ireland changed when we learnt that a very popular and a very good bishop called Bishop Casey [Eamon] had an American mistress and had a seventeen year old son with her and he had ‘borrowed’, quote/unquote, seventy thousand pounds of parish funds.

“When that story came out, the floodgates opened, and all kinds of wriggling worms came out. Which was good for the country and the church, in the end. There were a lot of good people, but a lot of bad people too – Rome had essentially covered up for them.”

Screenwriter Andrew Davies, known for such hits as Pride and Prejudice and South Riding, spoke about just how close his adaptation of Banville’s work was: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. It seemed fine to me. I would just put the book down and copy it out! It’s all there in the book. It’s rare to find a crime novel so beautiful, deep and complex.”

Quirke follows the titular Irish pathologist, who isn’t averse to the odd drink and cigarette, as he uncovers a gruesome plot involving new born babies being shipped off for a new life in the US. Gabriel Byrne makes for a hugely engaging and enigmatic leading man, as you would expect from the Usual Suspects actor, and though tremendously serious, he adds much warmth and humour to the austere character.

Likewise Aisling Franciosi, who plays young troublemaker Phoebe (and who also has a thing for the older man), and Michael Gambon are both terrific in their respective roles. Quirke also looks stunning – director John Alexander has done a wonderful job in recreating Dublin in the 1950s whilst also performing the neat task of envisioning Boston without any actual overseas filming.

Sadly, Quirke does not feel like a show made for 2014. There are a few revelations presented as if they are terribly clever and shocking, and they’re not. In a television landscape which is now dominated by crime works such as Broadchurch, The Fall and Sherlock, viewers will see what’s coming very early on, and this somewhat deflates the drama. However, its old-fashioned story-telling and style still entertains.

> Order Quirke on DVD on Amazon.

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