A popularity wave is taking ocean cruises to new heights, with more than 36 million people projected to embark on a voyage this year. BritBox taps into this enthusiasm with its new drama, The Good Ship Murder, where a cop turned cabaret singer solves murders aboard a luxury cruise ship.
Shayne Ward plays Jack Grayling, who followed his father onto the police force, but quit to pursue his first passion – singing. While there’s a supply of beautiful women rotating onto these trips, Jack is fixated on the ship’s first officer, Kate Woods (Catherine Tyldesley), who is about to become engaged to another ship officer, Piers de Vreese (Geoffrey Breton).
Zak Douglas as Jamil and Shayne Ward as Jack Grayling
Crime seems to follow the cruise line from port to port, and because of Jack’s skill as a police officer, he’s the one chosen to investigate. While Kate is ambitious and hopes to make captain, she’s quick to assist Jack. Also on the team is Jamil (Zak Douglas), a member of the ship’s crew who, because of his responsibilities, is able to search a passenger’s cabin looking for evidence.
Certain aspects of this streaming series will remind viewers of The Love Boat, a popular romantic comedy-drama that ran on ABC for nearly ten years, from 1977 to 1986. But while The Love Boat stayed focused on, yes, love, The Good Ship places murder first, love second. But no matter how in love a couple seems to be, when one dies, the first suspect is always the partner, especially when a great deal of money is involved.
Shayne Ward as Jack Grayling
The series could be an advertisement for ocean cruises. Filmed on the MSC Virtuoso, that was mostly harbored in Malta, there are many scenes playing up all that passengers can enjoy on one of these trips. (Ward said in one interview, that there were actual cruise passenger on the ship while they filmed and, at times, these people were in some of the scenes.) The ship may have stayed in Malta, but in the series, the cruise includes stops in some of the world’s most scenic and romantic places – Casablanca, Lisbon, Palma, Sicily, and Barcelona.
Like so many mysteries, the series has a pattern. The opening introduces some of the new passengers, usually wealthy individuals who, for whatever reason, have enemies who are willing to go to sea to seek revenge. The murders often happen off the boat which necessitates getting local law enforcement involved, something that always leads to complications. Law and order means different things in different countries and sometimes suspects panic when they realize they might not be able to pick up a phone and engage an attorney. Because the cruise tends to visit many of the same ports, Jack is known by many of the local police, an advantage for the cruise line which, obviously, wants to avoid bad publicity.
Shayne Ward as Jack Grayling and Catherine Tyldesley as Kate Woods
Ward will be familiar to fans of Simon Cowells’ British The X Factor, having been named the winner during the second season. In 2005, his debut single “That’s My Goal” was number one on the UK Singles Chart. He’s released many albums to critical acclaim, but put singing on the back burner to pursue an acting career. He has appeared in a variety of series and films. He’s now 39, married to actor Sophie Austin with two children. Fans will find much to like about his performance as the sexy cabaret crooner who hasn’t forgotten how to solve a crime.
For those who shy away from murder mysteries, wary of all that blood and gore, The Good Ship Murder focuses on live people, not dead bodies. The fun is in following Jack’s logic as he unravels the clues and zeroes in on the killer. Each episode ends with Jack (Shayne) doing what he does best – sing. Seems he still has that X factor.
The Good Ship Murder can be streamed on BritBox.
Photos courtesy of BritBox
