England

Kate Atkinson's novel both mourns the passing of the World War II generation and allows readers to vicariously enter into the experience of the war. It's a companion to her 2013 book, Life After Life.

The film is about an English private who is cut off from his unit in the middle of a riot in Belfast in 1971. It's a conventional and smashingly good chase melodrama, but it's also a tragedy.

The British series is set during and after World War II. Detective Foyle tackles crimes connected to the war -- murder and spying, black markets and profiteering. It's "terrifically entertaining."

The singer-songwriter often writes songs about his complex relationships with women. On his new Electric, Thompson is still coming to terms with the sources of his frustrations which out to give him material for many years to come.

The novelist's latest novel, earns the ire of critic Maureen Corrigan, who usually numbers among McEwan's fans but finds herself dismayed by this book's attitudes toward women.

A dark and stormy night, an isolated manor house and a knock at the door all play a part in Sadie Jones' delicious romp of a novel. Set in Edwardian England, it tracks a noble but cash-strapped family whose lavish dinner plans go awry when they're asked to shelter a crowd of refugees.

Peter Cameron's new novel about a young nurse is consummate English country home novel. Put the kettle on and settle in -- but don't get too comfortable: Cameron's writing is full of sharp angles an unanticipated swerves into the droll and the downright weird.

Dorothy Sayers' genteelly dapper detective, portrayed by Ian Carmichael in the '70s BBC miniseries, returns in a newly released DVD set. Critic John Powers reviews the first two episodes of a murder-mystery collection whose success on American TV paved the way for a PBS's popular Mystery franchise.

In Mike Leigh's marvelous comedy Happy-Go-Lucky, a London schoolteacher tackles life's everyday travails with a good dose of the giggles. Film critic David Edelstein reviews.

Fresh Air TV critic David Bianculli reviews DVD collections of British TV shows, including a few series that have never before been televised in the U.S.