Articles by:
About three seconds. That’s how long it takes from Dara O Briain’s first appearance on stage to his having the audience in his total command. He crams more belly laughs into every ten minutes than other acts might manage in a full sixty minute set, which is even more impressive when you realise he’s on … >
Class has been announced as the latest spin-off series from Doctor Who, centred on the kids of Coal Hill School fighting aliens. Sort of like The Sarah Jane Adventures without the comforting presence of Sarah Jane Smith. Within the BBC, as a product, such a show makes complete sense – a new genre show for … >
David O’Doherty arrives, as presumably he always has done, seemingly somewhat surprised to see us. The keyboard is at hand, although not used constantly throughout the hour, as he gets distracted by one thought process colliding into another. He warns us, in an entirely casual and low rent way, that he’s getting too big for … >
There’s a very good sketch in the series Big Train in which adoring fans won’t let Ralph McTell escape the shadow of his most famous song. The audience aren’t interested in the new, original stuff, only happy when he’s revisiting old hits. It’s a risk that Frisky & Mannish are acutely aware of – they … >
Doctor Who star Michelle Gomez was engaging in an entertaining Q&A on Twitter last weekend. Almost inevitably, the possibility of a spin-off series for Missy was mooted, something that Gomez sounded enthusiastic about. There have of course been several spin-off series from Doctor Who before – two of them being led by the great Elisabeth … >
Patrick Macnee, the London-born actor best known for playing debonair hero John Steed in cult British ‘spy-fi’ series The Avengers, has died at his home in California at the age of 93. The Avengers began as a gritty detective piece – literally about revenge – but soon become one of the most surreal and fantastical … >
Somewhere on a dusty shelf in the dark corner of hell, stands two small jars, glowing gently with the souls of Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton. It’s the most plausible explanation as to why there hasn’t been a single episode that has fallen short in this second season of Inside No 9. There is, of … >
This week, Inside No. 9 receives a 999 call as something goes terribly wrong at a birthday party. In truth, quite a few things go wrong before the episode is out, but let’s go back a bit – as indeed the episode itself does, starting with a dramatic prologue before going back in time and … >
Here we are, then, at the last episode of Raised by Wolves (for now). It’s a magnificent finale, full of little twists before ending with one very big twist, which we’ll speak about later. But in the preceding twenty-eight minutes, everyone gets a chance to shine as the girls prepare for a night out. Germaine … >
Consider, if you will, the carnival of monsters that Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith have presented throughout their career. A cavalcade of grotesques with strange voices, horrible wigs, and a variety of prosthetics. All very impressive, to be sure, but what they don’t get enough credit for is the so-called ‘normal’ characters: a collection of … >