Product Details

• Actors: Frankie McCafferty, Joe Savino, Deirdre Donnelly, Gary Whelan, Aine Ni Mhuiri
• Directors: Chris Clough
• Writers: Jimmy Doyle, Jonathan Critchley, Kieran Prendiville
• Producers: Chris Clough
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: 20th Century Fox
• VHS Release Date: April 27, 1999
• Run Time: 50 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6305320683
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #342,055 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

When Father Peter Clifford (Peter Tompkinson) comes from Manchester to the small Irish village of Ballykissangel, he knows he will be facing some opposition. After all, what is an English priest doing in Ireland, of all places? He soon finds out that the town of Ballykissangel poses many more challenges than just accepting the unfamiliar priest. The delightfully mischievous cast of characters include Brian Quigley, the local businessman and entrepreneur, Donal and Liam, his faithful sidekicks, Siobhan, the frequently prescient veterinarian, and the tough owner of Fitzgerald's Bar, Assumpta. As the characters become more familiar throughout the series, their tribulations and triumphs are all the more realistic. The intricate characterizations, beautiful scenery, and delightfully dry humor ensure that fans of the English series All Creatures Great and Small will also enjoy Ballykissangel, and savor its distinctly Irish twist.

In the first episode of the series, "Trying to Connect You," before Father Clifford has a chance to arrive in the town of Ballykissangel, the bus he is riding is almost smashed to bits by a huge wooden box. He soon finds out that this box contains welcome gift from Brian Quigley, Ballykissangel's occasionally misguided preeminent businessman. The second episode, The Things We Do for Love, finds a blast from Father Clifford's past arriving in town. The local football match is gearing up and takes on more importance than ever as Father Clifford and Assumpta team up to save a family from being evicted. --Amanda Powter

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The start of something great, January 5, 2001

By 

tropic_of_criticism - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ballykissangel 1 [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Another reviewer has compared BALLYKISSANGEL to NORTHERN EXPOSURE, and there's certainly some truth to that. An outsider arrives in a small town. He quickly finds himself squeezed by the pressure of the local financial overlord, the town conscience, a group of occasionally odd individuals, and his own feelings for an unattainable woman. And, just when the the transplanted hero gets REALLY interesting, the actor playing him decides to "pursue other interests", leaving the show's producers to scramble in another lead actor.

Only, unlike NORTHERN EXPOSURE, BallyK's inhabitants are a bit more realistic than Cicely's. You won't find radio announcers making catapult art, insane hypochondriacs badgering hermit chefs, or waitresses breaking into chronic song. Rather, BallyK is peopled by characters who present us with humor derived from their very ordinary humanity.

In truth, after the departure of Stephen Tompkinson and Dervla Kirwan, that humanity becomes a little too ordinary, and the show slips into a kind of soap opera normalcy. But for the two-year tenure of Tompkinson's Father Clifford and Kirwan's Assumpta Fitzgerald, BallyK is a fascinating place, where the storyline is fresh, and the characters genuinely evolve.

It's clear that the writers love their characters. They take great care to provide us with ones so involving, it is sometimes difficult to discern who the stars of the show actually are. Each main character has a well-defined relationship with all the rest.

At the end of the day, however, the show is most about two of them. The writers' greatest feat is the complete story arc of the Clifford-Fitzgerald relationship. It stands as one of the most complex liasons in the history of English-language television. Each episode teases greater definition out of the characters, and greater loyalty out of the viewer. By the end of their run, both Father Clifford and Asumpta have grown well beyond their initial characterizations.

I don't think that the whole of the first two seasons is yet available on VHS, but no matter. Start here at the beginning and work your way slowly forward. By the time you get to Topkinson and Kirwan's departure, you'll be left wondering why series television can't generally be this good.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The print is amazing, April 17, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Ballykissangel: Volume 1 - Trying to Connect You, The Things We Do For Love [VHS] (VHS Tape)

When I first saw this on video, I was astonished at the quality of the print. When I saw BALLYKISSANGEL on the BBC America channel, the prints had a certain foggy quality to it, as if one was looking through a slightly fogged up window. This was nonexistant on the video version. The video print was so clear and different that it looked like watching a theatrical film instead of a British TV show.

Being a big fan of the show, I generally wanted to get BALLYKISSANGEL when it was released on tape. It is a very entertaining show about the going-ons of a small Irish village. Although it may resemble a normal drama, don't let that fool you. It possesses an atmosphere of oddball humor. Despite the realistic trappings, anything unusual, from an automatic confessional to wooden sheep, may occur in this town. It's NORTHERN EXPOSURE in Ireland. Volume one features the pilot episode, introducing Father Peter Clifford (DROP THE DEAD DONKEYS' Stephen Tompkinson) as the arriving priest of the town's St. Joseph's parish. Along the way he meets the no-nonsense barkeeper Assumpta Fitzgerald (Devla Kirwin), the ambitious businessman Brian Quigley (Tony Doyle), his headstrong daughter Niamh (THE SNAPPER'S Tina Kellegher), and clumsy Gardi Ambrose Egan (BRAVEHEART'S Peter Hanly).

As an additional treat to BallyK fans, each video features a behind-the-scenes documentary on the making of the show.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I really like this; think Northern Exposure in Ireland., June 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Ballykissangel: Volume 1 - Trying to Connect You, The Things We Do For Love [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I stay up late to watch this on PBS. I care about the characters, I worry about what will happen to them, I'm way too sucked into this TV show. The story of an outsider (Fr. Clifford) a stranger in a strange land, struggling to do what's best, for his job, for his parishoners, and therefore for himself. With some very low-key but absolutely hysterical moments. You have to pay attention, but it's well worth it. Cross Northern Exposure with All Creatures Great and Small and you've got it.