The Mysteries of Laura, 5USA - TV review

If you like Murder She Wrote you may find this police procedural strangely appealing

The Mysteries of Laura

Debra Messing has been casting about for another vehicle ever since Will & Grace wound up in 2006, but according to virtually every US critic, The Mysteries of Laura is definitely not the one.

The show's pilot got a real mauling when it first aired last September. Five episodes into its UK run on 5USA, however, and this critic, at least, is beginning to soften. Even in below-par material, Messing is a flame-haired firecracker.

Yes, the murder-of-the-week plots are silly, the supporting characters are underwritten and the show's fascination with working mothers "having it all" is laughably old-fashioned, but squint a little, and isn't that just part of the show's throwback charm? If you like Murder She Wrote and Monk you may find this colourful, lightweight and entirely un-gritty police procedural strangely appealing.