Upon hearing that part one of a sequel to Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice was being aired on Boxing Day, my immediate thought was that the author had taken a bit of a risk. Continuing the lives […]
TV | The Whale – The true story that inspired the wonderful Moby Dick
The true story that inspired Herman Melville’s iconic Moby Dick was told in a tale full of intense emotion, dramatic forces of nature and sea crew hostilities in a new BBC saga. An aged cabin […]
TV | Raised by Wolves – Just what comedy is howling out for
It is nothing short of miraculous that Raised by Wolves got commissioned, even for a just a pilot. But that isn’t meant as an indictment. For despite some rough edges, this half-hour sitcomcom written by […]
TV | The Great Train Robbery – All the wit and excitement of a Hollywood crime caper
In one of those eerie coincidences that could lead the more cynical among us to question the extremes the BBC are willing to go to for a bit of publicity; Ronnie Biggs the most famous […]
TV | Sherlock – A reflection on the season three teaser trailer
New Year’s Day has just overtaken December 25th in my list of favourite dates, for one reason, and one reason only: Sherlock is back. Yes, last week, the BBC released the first, tantalising glimpse of […]
TV | Legacy – Enough twists and turns to keep us engaged
During the turbulent era of 1970s London, when trade union strikes and power cuts crippled the country, Cold War paranoia was at a high, with many believing Communist Russia to be organising the defiant activism […]
TV | The Simpsons Season 16 on DVD
It hasn’t been the best of times for The Simpsons. Oh sweet Jebus, let’s just say it: it has been the very blurst of times. Yes, the show still rakes in the big bucks and […]
TV | Nigel & Adam's Farm Kitchen – From farm to fork
Nigel Slater enthusiastically promotes British farming and produce in this dynamic food series with the motto: ‘Sow, grow, rear, cook’. The collaboration of farmer and chef really does reveal the whole process of the food […]
TV | Backchat with Jack Whitehall and his dad – His dad being the highlight
“You know your mummy, she’s got very strong wrists.” God, you would hate to hear those words coming from your father, yet Michael Whitehall, the father of comedian Jack Whitehall, is just the sort of […]
TV | Last Tango in Halifax – More Alan Bennett than Wuthering Heights
You could be forgiven for having missed the first series of the BBC’s Last Tango in Halifax, not to be mistaken for the Marlon Brando film Last Tango in Paris, under any circumstances, students are […]
TV | The Day of the Doctor – 50 years of Doctor Who
Life can be only understood by looking backwards; but it can only be lived forwards. In that lies the central conceit of The Day of the Doctor. Beneath its Saturday night tea time family viewing […]
TV | Hebburn – Proof that BBC comedy has been tainted by 'Sachsgate'
Hebburn returns to our screens for a second series, but despite some occasional funny gags, it’s hard not to notice the effects of comedic scandals, notably Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand’s ‘Sachsgate’, in influencing a […]