French TV

Well, after a bit of investigation, I’ve tracked down what’s happening with season three of Engrenages (Spiral), which has just finished its BBC4 run.

So season three is going to be 12 episodes long and it’s been shot in and around Paris (particularly the 19th arrondissement, and inside the Palais de Justice and the Hôtel Dieu) in two blocks: 25th June to the 2nd October this year was the first block, with the second block running from 12th October to the 29th January next year.

As for the plot, it’s going to “delve into the deranged mind” of a serial killer, the Butcher of Villette, who kills and mutilates young girls. The show will look at the difficulty of dealing with a high-profile media crime, where even the slightest mistake can have terrible consequences (I’m translating here, in case you couldn’t guess).

Interestingly, the BBC is assisting with the show, at least financially, so that should mean BBC4 should be picking up the third season at some point. As for who’s coming back from the cast, we have Caroline Proust (Laure), Audrey Fleurot (Karlsson), Grégory Fitoussi (Clement), Philippe Duclos (Roban), Thierry Godard (Gilou) and Fred Bianconi (Fromentin), at least. No word on Samy, I’m afraid.

I’ve dropped a line to the Beeb about air dates and whether they’re going to show it and I’ll let you know if/when they get back to me.