‘Casino’ at 20: Martin Scorsese’s Mafia classic revisited

Can you believe it’s 20 years since Casino was released? Based on American author Nicholas Pileggi’s book of the same name, the movie’s thrill and appeal stems from the knowledge that it has its origin in reality. Casino was in fact the second collaboration between director Martin Scorcese and Pillegi, who also co-wrote the screenplay, … >

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Clara’s 6 best exits so far in ‘Doctor Who’

Clara Oswald, in one form or another, has been gracing Doctor Who with her shining presence since the beginning of 2012’s run. In that time, she’s also seemingly departed, for various reasons, enough times to nearly rival the many deaths of Rory Williams. Clara is back again in Season 9, but with Steven Moffat giving … >

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What are the ‘Merlin’ cast doing now?

Since Merlin cast his last spell in 2012 and walked off into history, you may have been feeling a little bereft. Atlantis tried to fill a gap but was sadly cut down before it finished telling its tale. At least we can console ourselves that many of the Camelot crew have gone on to other … >

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Why it’s time to reboot ‘Blake’s 7’

Pitched to the BBC in 1977 by Daleks creator Terry Nation as “the Dirty Dozen in space”, Blake’s 7 ran for four hugely successful seasons on BBC One. As the decades since its shocking series finale have passed, the show may be short on new admirers, but those who remember it do so fondly and … >

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5 things you never knew about ‘Casino’

It’s 20 years since Martin Scorsese’s classic American crime drama Casino was released in cinemas. Based on Nicholas Pileggi’s book, the 178-minute epic tells the story of Sam “Ace” Rothstein (played by Robert De Niro), a Jewish American top gambling handicapper who is called by the Italian Mob to look after the day-to-day operations at … >

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Top 10 moments from the first season of ‘Humans’

The first season of Channel 4’s new sci-fi drama Humans is over. From now on, if you want techno-drama on a screen, you’ll have to settle for updating to Windows 10, or – for a truly edge-of-the-seat viewing experience – trying to fully uninstall Adobe Flash Player. The good news is that, as there’s a … >

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‘Blackpool’ rewind: A look back at David Morrissey’s musical drama

Long before British star David Morrissey donned his eye patch and was terrifying audiences in AMC’s hit horror series The Walking Dead, and even before David Tennant landed his career-defining job in Doctor Who, the pair starred together BBC One’s Blackpool. The comedic, and often surreal, show starred a whole host of British talent in … >

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Sapphire & Steel

Sapphire & Steel rewind: A look back at the ’70s British sci-fi fantasy series

“All irregularities will be handled by the forces controlling each dimension. Transuranic heavy elements may not be used where there is life. Medium atomic weights are available: Gold, Lead, Copper, Jet, Diamond, Radium, Sapphire, Silver and Steel. Sapphire and Steel have been assigned.” In an exciting development reported last month, Luther creator and Doctor Who … >

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The ‘Quatermass’ influence

The influence of the Quatermass series is manifest throughout the annals of classic British sci-fi. Writer Nigel Kneale is perhaps the most significant constant in the Quatermass legacy and it was when he was a staff writer at the BBC in the early 1950’s that the character of Professor Bernard Quatermass was created. A heroic … >

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