Case Histories – New PBS Masterpiece tonight!

There’s a new sheriff in the PBS Masterpiece town. Actually, depending on who you talk to, there’s either a maverick ex-cop or a private investigator in town. In either case, he goes by the name of Jackson Brodie and is played brilliantly by Jason Isaacs. Isaacs, who’s most recent gig was as Lucius Malfoy in […]

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Ashes to Ashes, Spooks, Downton Abbey and more….

Need an Audi Quattro? Going once, going twice…. Ok, maybe not THE Audi Quattro, but some of the set pieces from the brilliant BBC series, Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes starring Philip Glenister will go on the auction block this coming Friday, 23 September at the Merlin Theatre in Somerset. DCI Hunt, himself, […]

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Voice of the Daleks, Zippy and George dies at 79

This is definitely a case of you probably are not familiar with either the name or the face, but you are keenly aware of the voice. For 21 years (1967-1988), Roy Skelton brought the Doctor’s scariest villains to life with one simple word….Exterminate! In addition to being THE voice of the Daleks, Skelton also lent […]

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Torchwood v. worldwide immortality begins July 8

How can you argue with the likes of Russell T. Davies, Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter? Quick answer? You can’t. Collectively, they have been responsible for the original reinvention of Doctor Who (ok, regeneration, if you must), the creation of Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures. As Head of Drama for BBC Wales, Gardner was […]

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British comedy in the pipeline

No one can quite understand the process of commissioning a comedy at the BBC, ITV or Sky. For that matter, no one can understand the de-commissioning of a series either. Can I just selfishly insert here a mention of Whites that starred Alan Davies as an example of a series that should have been renewed […]

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Anything you ever wanted to know – British edition

Helen Mirren completes British invasion of SNL Following in the footsteps of her Arthur co-star, Russell Brand, Dame Helen Mirren will host this coming Saturday’s edition of Saturday Night Live on NBC. Mirren’s hosting stint of the late-night comedy show will come the night after the premiere of the release of the re-make of the Dudley Moore […]

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BBC Showcase 2011 – Day 2

Fresh with the news that Colin Firth and The King’s Speech will be bringing home the Oscar statue in the 2011 Academy Awards, its day #2 of the 2011 BBC Showcase. Even though we are 6000 miles away from the Oscar red carpet, it was a star-studded evening Sunday night at the BBC Showcase in Brighton. […]

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Brighton…Craggy Island. Tedfest V…Brighton. What to do?

Let’s see. It’s February with a forecast of cold, wind and rain. It’s not Boston. Took too long to get there. Must be Brighton. Must be time again for BBC Showcase, the annual gathering in Brighton, UK where we get a chance to screen the entire BBC catalog both past and present to make potential […]

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Monday Scattershooting – Lark Rise, David Tennant and more…

Lark Rise to Candleford axed After four seasons, the BBC’s popular period drama adaptation of Flora Thompson’s memoirs of her Oxfordshire childhood has come to an end. Set in both the small hamlet of Lark Rise and the neighboring, wealthier town of Candleford, the series starred Julia Sawalha (Absolutely Fabulous), Olivia Hallinan and Linda Bassett. BBC […]

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Upstairs Downstairs….165 Eaton Place gets a facelift

Scheduled for Boxing Day (26 December) on BBC One, with parts two and three to follow the next two days, UK viewers don’t have long to wait before we return to 165 Eaton Place (U.S. premiere is set for April 10, 2011 on Masterpiece Classic). On the surface, the challenge of bringing back perhaps the […]

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