Make way for Precious

On Easter Sunday do ensure you check out The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency showing on BBC1 at 9pm (do check listings to confirm the time). The film stars Jill Scott as the fiesty independent Mma Precious Ramotswe - Botswana's finest lady detective. Based on the bestselling books by Alexander McCall Smith, the narrative centres around the escapades of Precious as she tries to solve various mysteries often to hilarious consequence. I personally adore these little books. I've only read the first three, but there are at least 8 in total. I loved the way McCall Smith picked up on the tone and all the nuances associated with the the Botswanan community.I can remember laughing out loud several times while reading 'Ladies Detective' which is quite a rarity for me. McCall has faced a fair bit of criticism from some members of the black community who take issue with the fact that Africa is only of interest to the mainstream when presented or seen through the eyes of a white person. To some extent I do agree with this theory. There are some fantastic African writers who present a deeper and more multi-layered portrayal of the African experience such as Chinua Achebe or Buchi Emecheta, but yet they are still only really celebrated in literary circles. And I personally would love to see Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamda Ngozi Adichiethe turned into a film (and the optimist in me believes that some day it will). But for now, I'll take Precious sorting out an unscrupulous lover, over yet another Beeb period drama any day. And just to mention, the film was directed by the late Anthony Minghella and was the last film he ever directed, making it even more poignant.