Category Archives: Entertainment

There Can’t Be A Winner In Football Unless There’s A Loser

I didn’t do much on Sunday night but I did watch Sky One’s The Match:

Shocks aplenty on The Match, as Graham Taylor announced the squad of 22 celebrities that he will take to St James’ Park next month for this year’s big encounter with the Legends. No Nick Pickard from Hollyoaks, no Dave Jones from Sky Sports News and (here’s the real bone-shaker) no Philip Olivier from Brookside

[Source: Times Online].

Blogged with Flock

On this day…

2004: Weekend In Britain’s Smallest County
2003: Gay Teens Right To Privacy
2002: Fast Food Nation

All You Need To Know About Sharon Osbourne’s New TV Show

Really, The Guardian’s Organ Grinder is the place to go if you want to keep up with the highs and lows of television in the UK. I didn’t even know the lovely Sharon had her own television chat show. Never mind that it started earlier tonight.

Martin, the second contestant looking for love, looks terrified. Ooh, he hugs Sharon, the cheeky monkey! Hope Ozzy’s not watching. He’s probably in bed. The third love wannabe, Mariola, is giant! Give that woman her own show! [Cue Sharon! from Guardian Unlimited: Organ Grinder]

It’s making me wish I was at home in front of the box right now. But I am not, I am in Oslo and I haven’t even switched the television on yet.

On this day…

2006: Big Pink Crosses (or some such TV nonsense)
2006: In The Air Again
2002: Temptation

What’s The 20th Most Complained About Show On UK TV?

Occasionally, you are required to browse the information superhighway for things related to work. And, more often than not, on that journey you get sidetracked by something in the way. A little like driving to Abergavenny and being stuck behind a caravan for most of the time on the A40. Which is interesting as I suspect that caravan owners are the biggest group of people to complain to the BBC about Top Gear. And it is the fact that, according to Ofcom, Top Gear is the 20th most complained about show on TV that stopped me in my tracks today. The BBC has – apparently – been forced to make a statement: “We acknowledge some viewers do not appreciate the Top Gear team’s sense of humour, but their provocative comments are an integral part of the programme and are not intended to be taken seriously,” [Top Gear: 0 to offensive in 6.5 seconds from Guardian Unlimited: Organ Grinder] said Auntie.

The thing is, I, John Plunkett (who wrote the article for The Guardian’s website), and, I guess, millions of others love watching three blokes talking about cars on the telly. And I am not interested in cars that much. I’m not sure Jeremy Clarkson and I would get on very well (mainly because I wouldn’t be able to stop laughing at him), but that doesn’t stop me enjoying every word that he speaks. Richard Hammond is, of course, there to be both amusing and the totty to watch. And then there’s James May. You couldn’t have Top Gear without him, but one of the great mysteries is why not. Ultimately, I love the banter between the presenters more than anything else. Except the bits about racing fast cars. I like that too.

I am not surprised so many people complain. It’s often rude, politically incorrect and responsible for a large part of the hole in the ozone layer. It’s also funny, self-deprecating and addictive television. It is also television made with passion. And that’s what makes it stand head and shoulders above much of the dross on the box at the moment. When somebody loves what they do, how can that enthusiasm not be infectious? Sunday nights. BBC2.

On this day…

2002: The Taxi Cometh

New Doctor New Earth

Leave a Reply

david tennant is the new doctor whoThe Doctor was back tonight and the new Doctor is just as good as the last. The first episode of this new series, New Earth, was great. Rose, invaded by Casandra, and shouting I’m a Chav was a very unexpected amusing moment: almost as amusing as the Doctor saving the earth with a satsuma in the Christmas episode. Saturday nights are settled until the summer then.

UPDATE: You really should go and look at the BBC’s Doctor Who website for the new series – it’s really well done and there are tons of extra features & material online.

On this day…

2005: Jack: Straight From The Gut
2003: What We Shouldn’t Be Talking About

Catherine Tate

3 Replies

I am so sad right now. The Catherine Tate show (which follows Extras on BBC2 on Thursday nights) has just come to the end of its pitifully short run. It’s by far the best comedy sketch show there has been for a long, long time. I love all the characters, but the ‘I don’t know’ couple make me laugh before they open their mouths. Foul-mouth Gran, Lauren (Am I bothered? Am I bothered though?) and Derek (How Very Dare You) just make me smile the whole time. What a shame this is ending. Please, BBC, bring it back soon.

UPDATE 30 August: Amazon have the Catherine Tate Show Series One DVD on sale now.

On this day…

2003: Naked Valley Money
2002: Not Hilarious or Surprising

Boston Legal

Leave a Reply
head shot picture of william shatner in boston legal

On Monday I mentioned that I’m already hooked on Channel Four’s Lost (via the E4 showings a week ahead). While Sunday night’s Lost marathon was gripping, it has to be said that Monday night’s can be enjoyable too. I have been finding Living TV’s Boston Legal superb. William Shatner is a revelation to me in that show. I find the quirky humour very appealing indeed. If you haven’t seen it, catch it Mondays at 10pm (repeated Fridays at the same time). [Living TV site]

On this day…

2004: Flash Floods
2004: Should I Mention The Olympics?
2003: Great Yarmouth
2003: Stag
2002: In Short, Things Are Grim

Lost

Leave a Reply
still from the first episode of lost

So last night we settled down for a Lost marathon. It started earlier in the week on Channel Four, but we missed the opening episodes. Digital channel E4‘s Second Chance Sunday was not only showing the first two episodes again but also the third, and so three hours of television drama ended our weekend. I am already hooked – it’s going to be twenty weeks of really high quality drama ahead. There’s been lots of talk about the most expensive television pilot in history and such. Each episode has been compared to a movie. I don’t know about that, but I know that it appears very well written, well acted and has very high production values. I also know there is a lot of content on the web about the show, and I am not going to read it. I am going to let the story unfold naturally (so don’t tell me), but the first question has to be: how did any of them survive, and how have they got three episodes in without worrying about food?

On this day…

2004: Kill Bill (Volume 1)
2003: Disappointing Frustrating
2002: On The Town

Festen

The Lyric Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue is currently home to a production of Festen, David Eldridge’s adaptation of the cult film by Thomas Vinterberg. The play, directed by Rufus Norris, no longer has the original cast, but I don’t think that matters: it’s a stunning piece of theatre.

paul_n.jpg

thisistheatre.com sums it up well: Patriarch Helge Klingenfelt is celebrating his 60th birthday with his family at a magnificent old hotel in the Danish countryside. Gathered together are his loyal wife Elsa, his daughter Helene, and sons Christian and Michael. As the evening progresses Christian feels compelled to break the silence surrounding a dark family secret. The effect is explosive and sets the tone for a celebration no one will forget! [Source]

I don’t want to give the plot away any more, but you can read a little more at The Independent’s review (and some non plot-spoiling reviewer’s comments at the Festen site). Regardless, it’s a powerful piece of work with some excellent acting. It’s hard to pick anybody out, but Stephen Moore (Helge), Paul Nicholls (Christian) and Lisa Palfrey (Helene) are just three of the wonderful performances.

Credit must also be given to designer Ian MacNeil and all the others involved in the staging of this work. It’s a simple, yet stunningly effective, set that is a wonder. The stark, dark stage that opens the play hides some very clever set work.

As it appears only to be running until the start of May, I would advise you to go now! thisistheatre.com has tickets.

On this day…

2003: Fries and Freedom

More Producing

Following up on my previous review of The Producers, I’ve had a little more time to think about it, and earlier I posted this to Gay Boy Musicals Fans UK at Yahoo!

Having read the positive reader comments on the BBC’s story about The Producers, I suspect I may be a lone voice in expressing a little (and just a little) disappointment. I hadn’t read many reviews, but I did know about the reception it had received in the US and the praise heaped on Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick.

I haven’t seen the film, which, judging by the number of people sitting around me who had, means I was possibly one of only a small number of people in the audience who hadn’t. I wonder if that made a difference?

I saw it a week or so ago, and it was good but not as good as all the raving would imply. While Nathan Lane’s talent, comic timing and performance cannot be faulted, I did find weaknesses in the show. I thought some of the musical numbers in the middle were slow, and the Ulla character was not engaging at all – in fact, she was positively irritating. James Dreyfus was camp (which, I guess, is the intention) but in that 1970s OTT cringe-worthy way. Humour is, of course, personal and subjective, but I found it only amusing and not laugh-out-loud funny, as many of the reviews suggest.

Still, I would take issue with the review of Lee Evans’ performance, which says ‘he just about holds his own’. I would argue that he did far more than that. He too was excellent, believable & humorous, and while I’ve never been a big fan of his stage antics, he worked well in the role. In fact, for me, he worked so well I can’t imagine Broderick in the role.

I will, however, recommend the show because it stands out from much of the rest of the West End right now – it is good. It has some wonderful comedy and delightful musical moments. But those individual moments do not, in my opinion, add up to a great whole. I even bought the soundtrack in the hope that familiarity with the songs will make me warm to more of them.

Maybe it’s just me.

On this day…

2004: The Point Of Art?
2003: Flight Time Thinking

The Producers

I went to see a preview of the London version of The Producers today and was, like last night, a little taken by surprise. This time, however, it was with disappointment, not pleasure. I’ve been talking to PY and trying to explain my disappointment, but he doesn’t get it: he loved the show. I did not know the plot, nor had I seen the film, so I wasn’t let down by the story, but I had read that Nathan Lane had taken Broadway by storm.

You can’t fault Nathan Lane: he’s superb, and his comic timing is excellent. Lee Evans seems born for his role as the sidekick Leo Bloom, and some of the songs are great. Others, however, feel weak, and parts of the story just aren’t engaging. James Dreyfus camps it up in John Inman style, while Ulla, the Swedish blond bombshell, is so lost in the stereotype that any humour is lost.

Don’t get me wrong, it is a good show. I can’t imagine Richard Dreyfuss in it, and I imagine it will be hard to replace Nathan Lane in January. If you’re going to see it, I would suggest trying to get tickets now because, without Lane’s superb performance, I am not sure where this show will go. The fact that it is one of the better shows on the West End right now possibly says more about the other shows.

Sadly, The Producers disappointed.

UPDATE: Well, the reviews are out, and I may be a lone voice expressing disappointment. I wrote an updated review for the Yahoo Group: Gay Boy Musicals Fans UK (you can read it here if you’re not a member of the group).

On this day…

2003: The gay team