Law & Order: UK - Reception

Reception

Independent writer Robin Jarossi, who attended a special preview of the premiere episode at the British Film Institute in London on 5 February 2009, praised the uniquely British take on the franchise for balancing the new vision while maintaining the proven Law & Order formula. Jarossi specifically extolled the unexpected casting of Bradley Walsh, the excellent use of their London backdrop, and Chibnall's adaptation of the show. John Boland of the Irish Independent compared Law & Order: UK to the original, ultimately deciding that the former is just as engrossing as the latter, if its tone is slightly more jocular. Boland expects ITV "has a winner on its hands." Andrew Billen from The Times expects the series to be successful based on the premiere episode, and TV Times said that "those concerned can give themselves a pat on the back because this really, really works." The Daily Express' Matt Baylis described the new series as "a breath of fresh air", and the Daily Mirror said "It’s all highly professional and heroic." Variety magazine called the series a hit, quoting NBC Universal as saying, "'Law and Order' has won its slot every week and is actually increasing its ratings." While Radio Times reviewer Alison Graham felt the series' execution was adequate, she criticised its pacing and writing; the former for not matching that of the original Law & Order programmes, and the latter for "falling headfirst into a typically British legal-drama trap of the noble prosecutor, crusading to bring the guilty to justice while pitted against the louche, self-serving defence barrister." Whereas, on the other hand, The Guardian's Sarah Dempster didn't feel that using the original series' camera work and stylings was appropriate for British crime drama: "Fiddly. And wrong.". However, later on in the series' run The Observer's Kathryn Flytt writes that despite her initial prejudices, the series "seems to have absorbed the pace and energy of the original without looking too tricksily derivative". In Australia, Melinda Houston commented favourably in The Age on the show's opening series, opining that the fusion between British crime drama and the US Law & Order franchise is like "a match made in Heaven." The premiere episode which aired on 12 August 2009, only rated 775,000 viewers, and was outside the top 15 rated shows for that period.