2008 has been a great year for gritty short dramas. We’ve had gore, intrigue, religious fervour and murders galore so let’s take a look back at which have kept us on the edge of our seats…

Recently we’ve had Apparitions and Survivors, both of which received a mixed reception of the marmite variety; we either loved or hated them, there didn’t seem to be much feeling in between. I loved both I have to say but for me, Apparitions won that battle. I think it was very much underrated in almost every aspect. The storylines were controversial and well thought out, the special effects remarkable and the acting understated and award-worthy.

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What an excellent drama this has been so far! Written by Lucy Gannon and starring Kevin Whately, Lesley Sharp, Geraldine Somerville and Ian Puleston-Davies, the final part airs on Monday 15th.

If you haven’t seen it yet, head over to the ITV website and catch up. We rarely get a really good edge of your seat drama these days, so it’s worth catching up on this one. The story cleverly plays on real aspects of the problems inherent with every step-family, but in this drama, those problems don’t end with petty jealousies and family feuds…

Eight year old Emily – who is at the centre of the drama – is found dead and in a series of flashbacks and flashforwards, we’re getting ever nearer to finding out whodunit. There’s no shortage of suspects either because Emily’s been causing trouble left, right and centre.

She’s falsely accused her troubled step-brother Jack of sexually abusing her, she’s hurt and run off with her newborn step-sister and has incurred the wrath of just about everyone, with the exception of her adoring parents Sue and Paul. Because of Emily’s erratic and dangerous behaviour towards her baby step-sister, social services have become involved with the family and everybody’s on edge. Read more & comment »

Monday, 1 September 2008, 9:00PM – 10:00PM

This provocative three-part drama is about step-families and our messy modern lives. It explores the upheaval and excitement of new relationships, and how the emotional turmoil can lead to the unthinkable happening.

Kevin Whately stars as Cameron, who is in a new relationship with Sue, played by Geraldine Somerville, after the bitter break up of his marriage to Anne, played by Lesley Sharp. Cameron has a troublesome teenage son who resents the upheaval in family life, and Sue has an eight-year-old daughter, Emily (Sinead Michael), who is equally unhappy with the new arrangements at home.

Ian Puleston-Davies plays Sue’s ex-husband Paul, who also has new partner, Natasha, played by Kate Ashfield. They are celebrating the birth of their daughter. Read more & comment »