Hunting Venus

Hunting Venus
Genre Drama/comedy
Written by Nick Vivian
Directed by Martin Clunes
Composer(s) Jools Holland
Production
Executive producer(s) David Reynolds
Producer(s) Philippa Braithwaite
Cinematography Paul Wheeler
Editor(s) Hugh Boyson
Running time 115 minutes
Production company(s) Buffalo Pictures for Yorkshire Television
Release
Original network ITV
Original release 31 March 1999 (1999-03-31)

''Hunting Venus'' is a British television comedy-drama starring Martin Clunes and Neil Morrissey as former members of a 1980s pop group. The one-off drama was broadcast on ITV on 31 March 1999, and was produced by Buffalo Pictures for Yorkshire Television.

PLOT

This fictional story concerns the events surrounding the reforming of a 1980’s new-romantic styled pop group called the “Venus Hunters”. Their one-hit wonder “Starburst” entered the UK Top 30 singles chart in the early ‘80’s.

Simon Delancey was the bass player and founding member of the pop group "The Venus Hunters". The band split acrimoniously after a gig and Simon disappeared with the fan-club funds, the minibus and notably a guitar belonging to John, a fellow band member.

In the '90s Simon reappears as a con-man pretending to be a vacuum cleaner salesman, who after entering a person's home (usually a kind old lady) distracts her and ransacks the house behind her back. In one such instance he feigns clumsiness and spills a cup of tea onto himself and proceeds to steal jewellery and money prior to making a "clean getaway" - or so he thinks.

The old lady discovers the crime and reports the theft to the police and together with a photo-fit the criminal Simon appears on TV and in newspapers. Simon sees himself on a TV report being shown as he walks past an electrical retail shop in a town high-street.

He decides to flee Britain and telephones an old girlfriend who lives abroad, professing undying love whilst eliciting information on the whereabouts of a "criminal fence" to dispose of the jewellery, most notably a diamond studded dog-collar.

Whilst planning his escape he books into a small bed+breakfast hotel run by Cassandra, one of the founders of the Venus Hunter's Fan Club, and he is instantly recognised by her as being Simon Delancey - bassist and now wanted criminal.

She contacts her friend and fellow fan-club founder Jacqui and between them hatch a plot to kidnap Simon and force him to reform the group. It transpires that Cassandra and Jacqui have been contacted by the BBC regarding an upcoming '80s pop music reunion show “Sound of the Crowd” (the name of a Human League track) and inquiries have been made as to the whereabouts of the former members of the "Venus Hunters" who seem to have disappeared. Simon's timely appearance at the B+B is coincidental to say the least.

They drug him by lacing his cocktail with crushed-up pills. The cocktail in question is made from “Bezique”, grapefruit juice and a dash of lime. It’s called an “Enola Gay”, a reference to the Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) song from 1980. He collapses and awakes to find himself tied to a chair in a surreal scene where the two girls are dressed in outfits similar to that which Midge Ure is wearing the video of “Vienna” by Ultravox which is playing on the TV in front of the helpless Simon.

They confront him and threaten to expose him and turn him over to the police unless he reforms the group and performs at the BBC on the planned ‘80s band tribute show.

He reluctantly agrees when the girls show him the suitcase they found in his room containing thousands of pounds in cash and jewellery. He is then driven around in the girl’s pink VW minibus to find the remaining band members by the girls but he secretly plans to recover his loot and make good his escape.

Simon calls at the family home of Charlie, his former friend and also the lead singer of the former group. Charlie’s mother opens the door and is distressed to find Simon looking for her son Charlie. She is tearful and cries for “her boy” and tells Simon to visit the “Central Club” in Ribchester to find answers............

A compilation album was released to accompany the drama featuring songs from the [[Music of the United Kingdom (1980s)|1980s]].

Cast


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