What are you watching?

[Nearly Sane]

Watched this, Annika, over the weekend, quite enjoyed it. A lot of people struggled with the breaking of the fourth wall but it worked for me. It does portray Scotland as rather more diverse than it actually is.


https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0fjh17b

[Aruntraveller]

Yesterday evening I watched the last University Challenge with Jeremy Paxman presenting. Here are some of his best put downs from the past:

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2023/may/29/jeremy-paxman-memorable-lines-from-a-master-of-the-scathing-put-down

I'll miss him, although Parkinsons is clearly beginning to affect his speech so he couldn't really continue.

Not sure how I will take to his replacement, Amol Rajan. Going on what I have seen of him elsewhere I'm not a huge fan.

[Aruntraveller]

So this week I've watched Shane Meadows new period drama "The Gallows Pole". As ever, it takes a while to get accustomed to his style (at least it takes me awhile) but it looks wonderful although the first episode was mighty slow. I also watched it as an old, old friend of mine has a part in it, in my unbiased opinion he was very good! Still undecided about it though, but intrigued enough to keep watching.

At the other end of the scale I watched all six episodes of "Changin Ends" on ITVX which is Alan Carr's sort of childhood autobiography. It made me laugh out loud several times at situations I identified quite closely with. OK it's cheesy and camp, but it is done with enough panache and good humour to overcome any shortcomings.

[ad_orientem]

Been watching Minder on ITVX. Loved this as a kid. I like watching these types of programmes. I get a bit nostalgic, seeing London as I remember it.

Also got HBO Nordic and am going to watch Rome and Leftovers again. Leftovers touched me. The storyline is out there (but good, in my opinion) but anyone who has had to cope with loss will understand it.

[Nearly Sane]

Been watching the second series of The Avengers, not much left of the first, seen some of them before but many not. There are hints of the magnificent madness that it was to become but the changing partnerships, and tougher writing make it a very different series. It's a pity that so little of the first series exists to see how it developed.

Finally onto series 4, and Emma Peel. The year gap, change in production company, and Diana Rigg, add up.to ot moving into a different show.

[Aruntraveller]

Watched the film "Living" on Prime last night.

Bill Nighy, as ever, was excellent.

The story of the film is apparently inspired by "The Death of Ivan Ilyich" by Tolstoy, via a 1952 Japanese film "Ikiru" directed by Akira Kurosawa. In addition the screenplay was by Kazuo Ishiguro.

It is a good film. Understated, but surprisingly effective and affecting.

The seaside town Nighy visits at one point in the film is Worthing. Not the Worthing I recognise, it looks altogether more exotic and exciting in this film!

Thouroughly recommended.

[Nearly Sane]

The second episode of series 4 of Thr Avengers is packed with actors who are well known, Wanda Ventham, Caroline Blakiston, Steven Berkhoff, Ronald Fraser, and Bryan Mosley.

[Nearly Sane]

Been rewatching Still.Game on iplayer. It's often extremely dark for a comedy show, and sometimes quite moving. The episode Cairds though is my favourite, and up there with the best episodes of comedy ever.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b007czj6/still-game-series-3-3-cairds

[SteveH]

Just started watching and re-watching (because I haven't seen all episodes previously) 'Red Dwarf' from the beginning. Brilliant concept, brilliantly realised. Interesting spotting the 35-years-younger versions of well-known actors, some in minor roles because they were not so well-known then, such as Clare Grogan, Robert Bathurst and Mark Williams. I'm sure Chris Barrie is a lovely bloke, but he seems to specialise in playing humourless, petty-minded pompous types, eg Arnold Rimmer and Gordon Brittas.

[Aruntraveller]

Started watching "The Sixth Commandment" last night on BBC.

As fine a piece of television as you could wish for. Timothy Spall is outstanding.

Note of caution, it is a harrowing watch.

[SteveH]

'World On Fire', a drama serial following the lives of various people of different classes during WW2. Sean Bean plays a bus conductor who's a pacifist who hawks 'Peace News' round the streets in his spare time; Lesley Manville is a posh woman who comes to know him because her son is dating his daughter; etc. Lots of people getting shot and things being blown up, and a very realistic depiction of the Dunkirk evacuation, so it's very gripping, but it's a bit cliched in some ways: dead bodies always have their eyes open, for example, one of the sillier modern video conventions: no doubt dead bodies can have their eyes open, but I think normally they'd be shut. There are a number of black characters, including two Senegalese soldiers, but everyone studiously avoids the word "nigger", though back then it was common currency, not necessarily even used derogatorily. Also, this being 2023, there has to be a gay relationship  being conducted surreptitiously.
Still, despite those quibbles, all jolly good fun.

[Aruntraveller]

'World On Fire', a drama serial following the lives of various people of different classes during WW2. Sean Bean plays a bus conductor who's a pacifist who hawks 'Peace News' round the streets in his spare time; Lesley Manville is a posh woman who comes to know him because her son is dating his daughter; etc. Lots of people getting shot and things being blown up, and a very realistic depiction of the Dunkirk evacuation, so it's very gripping, but it's a bit cliched in some ways: dead bodies always have their eyes open, for example, one of the sillier modern video conventions: no doubt dead bodies can have their eyes open, but I think normally they'd be shut. There are a number of black characters, including two Senegalese soldiers, but everyone studiously avoids the word "nigger", though back then it was common currency, not necessarily even used derogatorily. Also, this being 2023, there has to be a gay relationship  being conducted surreptitiously.
Still, despite those quibbles, all jolly good fun.

That is the first series. They've just started showing the second series. They have dropped the Americans from it, and Sean Bean has been written out, presumably he had better things to do. You'll be pleased to know the gay element has gone too. Of course, as everyone knows there were no homosexuals until the late 60's 

[Nearly Sane]

Somehow completely missed this when it was shown in the 70s, don't even remember not watching it.


Wings


It's available in its entirety on Youtube, and the first episode was good. Great cast.

[jeremyp]

Somehow completely missed this when it was shown in the 70s, don't even remember not watching it.


Wings


It's available in its entirety on Youtube, and the first episode was good. Great cast.

I watched it avidly as a child. It got a bit silly later on though.

[Nearly Sane]

Looking forward to the second season of Good Omens being released this Friday

[Nearly Sane]

Just to.note that the magnificent The Ascent of Man is available on iPlayer.


https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001p2xc/the-ascent-of-man-1-lower-than-the-angels

[SteveH]

Binge-watching various classic comedy series from their beginnings - as mentioned before, I watched all of 'League of Gentlemen', and am now working my way through 'Red Dwarf', 'The Catherine Tate Show' and 'The Fast Show'. I've just started series 2 of the last-named, and Swiss Toni is yet to make an appearance, but most of the other regulars have appeared. I'm impatiently looking forward to the return of hot weather, so that I can post "Scorchio!" in the weather thread. Also, "How very dare you!" Derek hasn't yet shown up in the CT Show.

[Nearly Sane]

Watching documentary from the Chronicle series from 1973 on Piltdown Man. Fascinating generally, and also because of how documentary presentation has changed in 50 years.


www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p018c7rb via @bbciplayer

[SteveH]

Saw a documentary about Jacqueline Du Pre some time ago, and realised that the upper-class English accent has disappeared in the last 50 years. Modern upper-class types just don't have a regional accent, but then they had an accent all their own, as some old interviews from the 60s with Sir John Barbirolli, other classical musicians of the era, and JDP herself revealed: to modern ears, they sounded quite bizarre.

[Nearly Sane]

Saw a documentary about Jacqueline Du Pre some time ago, and realised that the upper-class English accent has disappeared in the last 50 years. Modern upper-class types just don't have a regional accent, but then they had an accent all their own, as some old interviews from the 60s with Sir John Barbirolli, other classical musicians of the era, and JDP herself revealed: to modern ears, they sounded quite bizarre.

One of the bizarre things in the Piltdown documentary is there is a bit where a ridiculous German accent is adopted to read out a translation from a German work on evolution. It's quite hard to understand and given the lack of mention in the credits, I assume was done by the narrator, Geoffrey Hinsliff.



https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_Hinsliff

[Aruntraveller]

So currently watching "Wolf" on BBC IPlayer adapted from Mo Hayder's Jack Caffery series of books. I've read some, although not this particular one.

On line the series seems to split people into two groups either very much liking it, or very much hating it. I fall into the former group, I love it.

Once you get over the fact that it is a second cousin to the book series and that the main character is somewhat underplayed (imo) it is fine on its own merits.I have spotted one or two plotholes - but minor ones, so not enough to spoil the ride.

One thing though, the books are written in order, so it seems a little odd to take the last book as a starting point, some of the previous goings on need a fair bit of exposition which wouldn't have been necesary if they'd started at the beginning of the series, but I guess they thought this was the best storyline for a series?

It is tense, moody, quite grisly (so not for those who don't like a splatter of blood) full of black humour and moves along at a fair old lick after the first episode.

Not seen the conclusion yet so can't give a fully rounded impression but it beats the hell out of Midsummer Murders.

[Nearly Sane]

The Ascent of Man is back on iPlayer so rewatching. The first episode has some computer graphics of skulls that would was groundbreaking.

[SteveH]

.Little Britain'. Watched the first-ever episode last night. It's classic comedy, and very funny, but a bit problematic inclusivity-wise: two well-off, well-educated, upper-middle-class men taking the piss out of the disabled, the working-class, etc.

[Nearly Sane]

Looking forward to the second season of Good Omens being released this Friday

So now watched this. It's charming but not as good, unsurprisingly, as the first series, given that it is effectively a bridge from the book to the further story that Gaiman and Pratchett had talked about. 

[Nearly Sane]

The BBC series of Oppenheimer is now on iPlayer.


https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/p0g3j9cp/oppenheimer