Cilla (miniseries) nerves singing for Brian Epstein. A drama this good, with Smith in sparkling form, knows it can take its time to flourish." The Guardian wrote: "The third, and best, reason why Cilla is so watchable is Sheridan Smith. It's one of those extraordinary performances, like Julie Walters as Mo Mowlam, when an actress does more than play a real character; she becomes her, to the extent that it's hard for the viewer not to forget they're not actually watching a young Cilla Black. She sounds like her, too. I'd be interested to know what someone more qualified to judge (an
ITV Central drama series on the topic, called "Intimate Contact". Central also first reported on the Ethiopian famine in July 1984 with the documentary "Seeds of Despair". In the same year, the company completed production on one of its more controversial programmes "Question of Leadership", a four-part series directed by Ken Loach about trade unions' responses to government actions. The IBA was concerned it breached balance guidelines, while the unions criticised it as defamatory. Even after several re-edits, the series was never transmitted, which was described as political censorship. Central also played a major role in the ITV network's infrastructure – not