Now What Have You Been Watching?

[Nyder]

My Sunday morning Terrahawks viewing has come to an end - it finished in fine style with Operation Zero, as Sgt-Major Zero has a bizarre dream as his circuits are being fixed. Luckily I still have the BF stories to enjoy - and they have really caught the spirit of the TV series.

So next Sunday I start my journey ...... Into The Labyrinth


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[Nyder]

Taking a break from the motel, and onto Series 7 of Tales of the Unexpected (1984).

"Dirty Detail" starring George Peppard as a 'Nam Veteran who bullied a Private beyond breaking point. But will he get his just desserts when they meet again? Shot entirely on film - and it's the most grainy film ever. You certainly can see some dirty detail! You know it's going to end badly - but for who??


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[Nyder]

"The Best Chess Player In The World"

You know you're in a safe pair of hands with Michael Jayston in the lead role! He plays a cold, ruthless, logical newspaper owner who always gets his way. But will his logic give way to red mist when he discovers his wife's affair?

Andrew Ray gives sterling support - and aren't I clever as I managed to guess the twist before the end.


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[Alex]

Blunt Talk - Sir Patrick Stewart stars in this very funny new sitcom as a British newscaster in the US who finds himself splashed all over the tabloids one day. I absolutely loved this, being very fond of it's creator, the writer Jonathan Ames, and Stewart is fantastic in it. I did worry that what with him being such an iconic actor I might be distracted and not buy in to him playing such a character, but he was so good that such worries disappeared within about thirty seconds.

[Nyder]

Sounds fascinating Alex. Is it on mainstream TV or that Internet thingy?


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[Nyder]

"Think of my eyes"


Yes I've gone Into The Labyrinth! How lucky HTV were to get Ron Moody for this. Episode 1 (written by Bob Baker) was a lot of exposition - who is Rothgo? What is the Nidus? How will you recognise it (only from a reflection of course!) Who is the evil Bitch Belor? (I might have made one of those words up!) I'd completely forgotten about the haunting theme music - it's basically Children of the Stones Volume 2 (featuring The Ambrosian Singers with their mystical chants).

The 3 children are bound to get annoying, particularly the one that's done well at school and enjoys physics! Cheddar Caves get a credit right after all the actors. I'm going to enjoy this boxed set


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[Andrew Curnow]

Wow, that really is a blast from the past Dave. I think I missed the early ones, so never quite worked out why every story was set in some caves (I fear I may have missed something vital there you know...) But I remember it being good fun, Pamela Salem being very good, and yes, Ron Moody!!

[Alex]

It's on Starz in America but hopefully will be picked up by one of the channels over here sooner rather than later. The first two episodes have been put on line for free though, so you can watch them here: http://www.starz.com/originals/blunttalk/freeepisodes

[Nyder]

Nearly finished Tales Series 6 - and the quality is definitely dipping, with far too much emphasis on American locations and actors. I guess the money was drying up!


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[Nyder]

Another Tales .... another set of American actors I didn't recognise. "Birds of Prey" was a chilling tale about a giant parrot that talked too much. Sounds more like The Avengers


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[Stuart Wallis]

Or the government...

[Nyder]

How bizarre! In the Tales episode called "I Like It Here In Wilmington", there's a scene where hubby & wife are dancing in their house. The piece of music they are dancing to is the same music that accompanies the end title sequence to the film version of Are You Being Served?!!


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[Stuart Wallis]

It reminds me of the episode of NCIS where a character's infiltrating the HQ of an internet porn site and they're playing what was then the theme to Bargain Hunt. Eh?

[Nyder]

I hope Tim Wonnacott wasn't in the porn film. Although he often mentions his leftover lolly....


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[Nyder]

Jacqueline Hill has turned up on another Tales episode - this one produced by Graham Williams


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[Stuart Wallis]

I remember seeing that one when it first went out and thinking, that woman looks awfully familiar...

[Stuart Wallis]

I hope Tim Wonnacott wasn't in the porn film. Although he often mentions his leftover lolly....

And I defy our critics to read something into David Dickinson!

[Nyder]

Yay - Pat Troughton in The Persuaders!


I don't think that eye stye was makeup though. Looked incredibly sore. What piercing blue eyes he had.


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[Alex]

I saw something really great yesterday but I'm not allowed to talk about it as it was part of a market research project and I had to sign a massive confidentiality agreement, which is really frustrating. But it's a big new series starring someone we all know very well as the villain (Who might be called a bit of a Casanova!), and I can't wait to see the rest of it.

[Philipnet]

Alex,

Is this a UK production and is it likely we'll see it on our TV screens over here?

[Alex]

No, it's a US show, and it's only going to be available via one of those online streaming services you get these days.

[Stuart Wallis]

Since I have signed no such confidentiality agreement, Bernard Cribbins has signed to play Amy Turtle in a new series of Crossroads.

Well I'm excited...

[Perry Vale]

Yay - Pat Troughton in The Persuaders!

I watched that a couple of weeks ago, and wasn't very impressed tbh. The accent seemed a bit like a mish-mash of Salamander and something else.

[Si Hunt]

We always miss the boat on new shows while watching things made 30 years ago with grainy film inserts, so we decided to try and watch new BBC 3 comedy Fried with Katy Wicks (of Torchwood and Not Going Out fame).

Oh dear. It was pretty poor. Time and again I lament actors who think that because something is supposed to be funny you should deploy "sitcom acting" and do silly expressions and the like. When you look at the comedy greats, they are all played straight. I found the guy who used to play The Ginger One in Game On particularly deplorable here, giving an eye-rolling, creepy over-the-top performance as the deputy manager of a fast-food restaurant trying to get the manager (Wicks) sacked. She decided to 'take leave' and return in a hilarious disguise to spy on him. Elsewhere, there was a comedy 'street' bloke and a few other sympathetic characters but they were lost in a script which betrayed a lack of sitcom experience.

Think we'll stick with Dallas and Who-dunnit in future.

Si.

[Stuart Wallis]

Falling back on the cliches you mention - unsympathetic manager, hilarious disguise, streetwise geezer - suggests inexperience too, and/or lack of ideas. We're often as not better off in the good ol days of TV. I was enjoying Sapphire and Steel adventure six over the weekend. Wonderful tension on sixpence an episode.