I actually sat down and watched a TV show tonight - like, at the time it was on and on purpose. The show? “The Riches”, the new show on FX starring Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver.

Many Americans are not familiar with Eddie Izzard. Of those, not many know that he has been on stage in several dramatic roles (both as in drama - the art of theatre, and drama - not comedy). And has appeared in dramatic roles in several films.

I’m pretty damn impressed with his dramatic acting abilities in this. There is an article in the Scotsman online that pretty much nails the show premise and feel:

[Eddie Izzard] and fellow British performer Minnie Driver co-star as Wayne and Dahlia Malloy, a married couple who belong to a clan of nomadic grifters of Irish descent in rural Louisiana called the Travellers.

In the biggest scam they have ever pulled, the Malloys and their three kids break from the Travellers, go on the run with a big chunk of the clan’s treasury and seek to blend into a gated, suburban community by masquerading as another family.

The show’s title, “The Riches,” comes from a well-heeled couple, Douglas and Cherien Rich, who die in a car accident during the Malloys’ getaway, and whose identity, possessions and house the Malloys adopt.

That sets the stage for a new life that will prove the ultimate test of their talents as scam artists and their very sense of identity…

…The show’s strangers-in-a-strange-land premise borrows from early shows like “The Beverly Hillbillies” to more recent offerings like Mafia saga “The Sopranos” and the polygamist family drama “Big Love.

Yup. I was watching it and thinking, “this has got a definite Soprano vein, but I actually ENJOY this.” And it reminded me of some “X-Files” episodes and some “Law & Order” episodes involved Travellers, and also “Big Love.”

Now I’m really tired. This time change is not having the expected effect. I can’t get up in the morning (which makes sense, since it’s an hour earlier than the clock says) but I’m exhausted at night (which doesn’t make sense for the same reason).