The Midwich Cuckoos, review: steel yourself for Creepy Keeley and the zombie kids
Telegraph Reporters
2 min read
The Midwich Cuckoos, review: steel yourself for Creepy Keeley and the zombie kids
When Keeley Hawes delivered a career-transforming performance in Line of Duty, she was dubbed “Steely Keeley”.
She’s since been “Steamy Keeley” in Bodyguard, “Weepy Keeley” in The Missing, “Dreamy Keeley” in The Durrells and “Touchy-Feely Keeley” in Finding Alice.
Well, The Midwich Cuckoos (Sky Max) heralded the arrival of “Deeply Creepy Keeley”. This shiny new adaptation of John Wyndham’s 1957 sci-fi novel wasn’t to be recommended for anyone of a nervous disposition. Certainly not if they’re also currently pregnant.
The chocolate-box commuter village of Midwich – it appeared to be near Aylesbury, if you want to check property prices – was plunged into panic when the power was cut off and people started passing out. Upon waking, every woman of child-bearing age was inexplicably pregnant. It fell to local child psychologist Dr Susannah Zellaby (Hawes) and police chief
DCI Paul Haynes (Max Beesley) to figure out what was going on.
Seven months later (not nine, note), the babies were born at exactly the same time. They had intense stares, telepathic gifts and grew at an alarming rate. What were these parasites planning? Why so much gazing out of windows? And why wear such unconvincing wigs?
David Farr, writer of The Night Manager, updated Wyndham’s Cold War classic into a present-day parable about parenthood and mental health, community pisions and the enemy within. The feeling of something awry was enhanced by unearthly visual flourishes: a silent disco, flickering lights, stray horses galloping down the high street. Hawes was the standout performer, although Samuel West later lent class as a government spook who arrived to conduct secret experiments.
This was folk horror meets domestic noir, with the enviably pristine interiors of those “kitchen island dramas” which are all the rage nowadays. As the townsfolk fell under the children’s spell, it all went a bit Stepford Wives. Echoes, too, of French drama The Returned, which also featured zombie children.
These devilish little darlings were suitably unsettling, even if their glowing eyes and grown-up haircuts did much of the heavy lifting acting-wise. All seven episodes are available to watch now. No spoilers but suffice
to say, after a mid-series slump, the show blossoms into a captivating conspiracy thriller with an enjoyably explosive finale. Arise, Creepy Keeley, queen of cuckooland.
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