New British TV Show Reviews
October 8, 2008
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Andrew Marr's History of Modern Britain (10/08)
BBC
newsman Marr presents this intensive look at post-war Britain, a great
recap for folks like me who didn't experience it, or never had it
taught in school.
Ashes to Ashes (10/08)
This sequel to Life on Mars
can be justified only because it brings back one of great, original
characters on TV in the 21st Century: DCI Gene Hunt (Philip
Glenister). Unfortunately, it repeats the same premise as Mars,
namely a modern-day copper who is thrust back to the past and forced to
be a fashion victim. This time it's the 1980s, and the wrinkle is
this time the protagonist is a woman and a mother. And she knew
about Sam Tyler and his was-it-all-a-dream adventures in the
1970s. However, by episode six of the first season, a very
plausible explanation is laid out just why she knows Gene Hunt, and the
identity of the creepy clown that haunts her as she tries to prevent
the murder of her parents back in the past is revealed. While I
would have prefered a stand-alone series of just the mis-adventures of
Gene Hunt, unreconstructed copper, without all the time travel
nonsense, there seems to be enough life left in the format for one more
season.
Balderdash & Piffle (10/08)
Only
the BBC would dedicate an entire series to the selection of new words
for the Oxford English Dictionary. Presented by fresh-scrubbed
Victoria Coren, she challenges viewers to seek out the earliest
possible uses of commonly-used words for citations that will ultimately
appear (if they pass muster) in the OED. Entertaining and educational.
Drop Dead Gorgeous (10/08)
Serialized
BBC drama about two sisters, one of whom is plucked from obscurity in
working class Manchester, and becomes an overnight sensation as a
supermodel. Needless to say, the other one is a bit jealous, and their
mother sees this as the family's chance to do some social climbing.
Remarkable, in the first season at least, the model modestly keeps her
head on her shoulders and some perspective about being suddenly famous,
even if while all around her the world is moving much too quickly.
Gavin & Stacey (10/08)
Charming
low-key BBC comedy (from Steve Coogan's Baby Cow Productions) that
fairly straight forward presents the relationship of the two eponymous
lovers (Mathew Horne and Joanna Page) who met over the phone through
work (one in Sussex, the other in Wales), meet up, and decide to get
married as quickly as possible. They are sweet as pie, but the real
humor comes from their friends and family, particularly Gavin's pal
Smithy (James Corden) who begins his own love/hate relationship with
Stacey's best mate, the imposing Nessa (Ruth Jones). Rob Brydon is on
hand as Stacey's eccentric uncle, and Alison Steadman is Gavin's
neurotic mum.
The Good Samaritan (10/08)
Shane
Richie (EastEnders) stars as Brian who after a bad day gets a wrong
number and tells a man who thinks he's called The Samaritans to kill
himself. He doesn't but Brian thinks he has and wanting to compensate
his widow sets off a chain reaction in this farcical ITV TV movie.
Great British Journeys (10/08)
Writer
Nicholas Crane, ubiquitous in his red rain jacket and umbrella, crosses
Britain, either by foot or bicycle, in this BBC documentary series
where he retraces the routes taken by famous British travel writers
going back as far as the 16th Century who were the first to discover
and write about parts of their own country. Crane is tireless
(Wikipedia claims he once walked 10,000 kilometers from Finisterre to
Istanbul), but also an informed presenter who marvels at how the
countryside has both changed and remained the same over hundreds of
years.
The History of Mr Polly (10/08)
Lee
Evans stars in this rarely filmed HG Wells story about a young man
trying to find his place in the world in this ITV TV movie. He inherits some money and
opens a shop, but chooses poorly in marriage. A convenient fire gives
him the excuse to get out of the trap he's made for himself and he hits
the road to find his destiny. Eventually he tries to help out an
innkeeper in distress (Julie Graham) but he'll need to summon up some
courage first.
Keith Allen Will Burn In Hell (10/08)
Comedian
Allen, best known these days as the Sheriff of Nottingham in the new Robin Hood, directed this Channel 4 documentary about Westboro
Baptists and their white supremacy agenda in America. He gets to
interview them and show them as the racists they are, although the
cards are stacked in his favor as the editor and narrator of the
finished piece. But he's not afraid to get his hands dirty in the
process.
Kingdom (10/08)
Stephen Fry
stars as Peter Kingdom in this ITV drama as apparently the only lawyer
in a small town in Norfolk. All other forms of authority don't seem
to exist, and so everyone comes to Peter to sort out their disputes and
relationship problems. These include his recently deceased brother who
ran up debts with the wrong people, and his mentally unstable sister
who now lives with him. Fry can do no wrong, but the series strains
credibility at times.
Longford (10/08)
Jim
Broadbent stars in this true-life BBC TV movie as Lord Longford, a
member of the establishment and devoted Christian, who went to bat for
the notorious child killer Myra Hindley (Samantha Morton). She and her
lover Ian Brady (Andy Serkis) were both psychopaths, but Myra convinced
Longford that she was under Brady's spell and he took up her cause and
nearly destroyed his reputation in the process. A fascinating case and
interesting character study.
Mountain (10/08)
Griff
Rhys-Jones stars in this BBC documentary series where he attempts to
scale Britain's most formidable mountain peaks. Why? Because they're
there. It is amazing to see a slight middle-aged man attempt to do
what is usually attempted by younger and more skilled climbers, but
Griff (and to an extent his extremely brave camera crew) is game.
Mumbai Calling (10/08)
Sanjeev
Bhaskar (Goodness Gracious Me) wrote and starred in this sitcom pilot
about a Briton of Indian descent who is sent to a call center in Mumbai (along
with a co-worker he fancies) in an attempt to straighten them out. Of
course they are tragically unprepared to deal with the Indian way of
doing things.
The Museum (10/08)
BBC
documentary series about the inner working of the venerable British
Museum in London. Each episode focuses on a different aspect as we get
to know the anonymous people who keep the museum an interactive,
educational experience.
Nazi Pop Twins (10/08)
James
Quinn profiles twin sisters in California whose pop music act (Prussian
Blue) feature lyrics all about white supremacy. The girls clearly are
too young to know what they are doing, as usual it's their mother who
is the driving force in their life (she got it from her father,
although the twin's grandmother is ready to leave him because of all
the racist nonsense she's put up with).
News Knight (10/08)
Respected
ITV news anchor Sir Trevor McDonald gets to let his hair down, so to
speak, and react to current events (along with Clive Anderson and
Marcus Brigstoke) in a way he never could have on The Ten O'Clock
News.
Outnumbered (10/08)
Hugh
Dennis and Claire Skinner star in this BBC comedy (mercifully sans a
laughtrack) as two overachieving middle class professionals who are
undone by their children. One is constantly bullied at school but
doesn't want his father to make a big deal about it, another is a
congenital liar, while the youngest is a cute girl who asks the most
embarrassing questions of mummy and daddy. It's almost painful to
watch but the kids are charming, although the series might
inadvertently work as birth control.
The Real Casino Royle (10/08)
Andrew Graham-Dixon takes a comprehensive look at the life of Ian
Fleming and the factors that lead him to create James Bond in this
documentary that tied in with the release of the first Daniel Craig
film.
The Return of 'Allo 'Allo! (10/08)
A
2007 reunion of the cast of the popular 1980s WWII French Resistance
comedy in front of a live audience has Rene (good old Gordon Kaye) take
the audience through the history of the series along with various cast
members who appear in character to help reminisce. Lots of clips and
interviews will satisfy fans of the series.
Roman's Empire (10/08)
Offbeat BBC sitcom about a porn king who keeps his extended family (and
their lovers) all working for him and living in the same house.
Our hero and narrator is Leo (Gavin & Stacey's Mathew Horne) who is the ex-boyfriend of one of Roman's daughters but is desperate to win her back. His best mate (The IT Crowd's
Chris O'Dowd) is married to one of the other daughters, and they have a
child neither wants. Kelsey Grammer reportedly filmed a pilot for
an American remake.
Ronnie Anacona & Co (10/08)
Impressionist
and comedienne Anacona gets her own series featuring some of her famous
characters as well as new ones like Nicole Kidman, and an overly
dramatic wife at a dinnerparty.
Star Stories (10/08)
Channel
4's clever over-the-top satires about famous people features hilarious
impersonators dramatizing the life stories of such personages as Tom
Cruise, Britney Spears and Robbie Williams. I love this style of
cod-biography film where every character lamely announces who they are
to the audience, and personality quirks are emphasized for maximum
comic effect.
Victoria's Empire (10/08)
Victoria Woods travels the globe to places named after the 19th Century
monarch (and her namesake) and looks at how the empire was formed and
what impacts it had across the globe to those it ruled over.
Would I Lie To You (10/08)
Amusing celebrity quiz show hosted by Angus Deayton that features two
teams who try to bluff each other by telling possible lies about
themselves or certain facts. In one episode John Barrowman (Torchwood) provides much energy and laughter, although my favorite "lie" has to be Dom Joly (Trigger Happy TV) who claims to have gone to school with Osama Bin Laden. Turns out he did, in Lebanon!
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Written and maintained by Ryan K. Johnson (rkj@eskimo.com).
October 8, 2008