The greatness that is Mark Gatiss

In television, whether it be comedy, drama or documentaries, there are individuals whose names you may know but not the face or whose face you may know but not the name. In the case of Mark Gatiss, this is brilliance that you should know both the name and the face. His involvement in numerous series […]

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British sitcoms salute the labor force

Since the beginning of time, well, at least since 1946 when Pinwright’s Progress premiered on the BBC, the British sitcom has always saluted the labor force. After Pinwright’s Progress, the evolution of how the situation comedy dealt with the workforce really took off. Up next in the mid-50’s was Hancock’s Half Hour where Tony Hancock seemed […]

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Red Dwarf S10 nearer the horizon

As we begin to gear up for the upcoming new set of Red Dwarf, which films November 2011 – February 2012, a completely light-hearted twitter war between cast members has erupted. Seems as though Craig Charles (Lister) announced that when filming begins, he’s had to have his costumes altered for his return to comedy due to […]

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'Lost' British comedy gem discovered

The are many that believe comedy, British comedy in particular, began with Tony Hancock and the brilliant, Hancock’s Half Hour. The original BBC Radio series and subsequent BBC television series of the same name from the mid-50’s is thought to be, by many, the beginning of the British sitcom introducing “situation” into the comedy mix […]

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They're back…Pats and Eddy, still AbFab after 20 years

Brace yourselves. Edina and Patsy are back. Jennifer Saunders and Joanna Lumley and the entire cast of Absolutely Fabulous, including Julia Sawalha, Jane Horrocks and June Whitfield, return for a holiday special and two more during 2012 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its premiere in 1992. Picking up right where they left off in […]

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BBC TV themes by Ronnie Hazlehurst

Following Monday’s sad news of the untimely passing of producer/director, John Howard Davies, it started me thinking more about some of the individuals that have been a part of all of our British comedy lives for decades that we aren’t even aware of. We all know the talents of John Inman, Mollie Sugden, Richard Briers, […]

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The Man in the Rubber Mask

Powell’s Bookstore in downtown Portland. Bookstore mecca. Billed as the largest new, used and out-of-print bookstore on the planet, it occupies a full city block with over 3500 sections and over 68,000 square feet of nothing but books. Ok, there’s a not to be missed coffee shop too, but, essentially, it’s books, books and more […]

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PBS House Call set for Sept 30

Old news to some, new to others. Either way, this is news that bears repeating off and on for the next 4-6 weeks so bear with me…until September 30, anyway. During the PBS portion of the recent Television Critics Association summer press tour, Hugh Laurie made a quick ‘house call’ to chat up his upcoming […]

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