It wasn’t meant to be like this. When you’re the king of England in 1533, you should be confident in your belief that your throne is appointed by a God who will provide you with a brood of strapping sons to strengthen the family line. When you’re instead presented with a possibly illegitimate daughter and … >
The fourth episode of Banana was one of the most stressful things I’ve had the pleasure of watching for quite some time. Helen (Bethany Black) is so sweet and so lovely, I just so desperately want good things to happen to her: I want Eddie to stop bothering her, and I’m so sad when he … >
Finally, after years spent traversing the space-time vortex, Russell T Davies gets to write a scene of two men, sat at a table, talking about relationships. As Henry (Vincent Franklin) opens up to newcomer Leigh (Phaldut Sharma) about his fears of sex and fears of men, the character visibly softens, beginning the journey perhaps towards … >
When a volleyball player is fatally stabbed at the Inter Island championships, Humphrey (Kris Marshall) and his team are called in to investigate. However, much like volleyball, this episode really feels like a game of two halves. Director Paul Murphy is clearly at home with filming the show, as tonight’s instalment is one of the … >
With only three episodes left, Broadchurch really needed to up its game. The quality has been up and down this season, compared to the consistent nail-biting of the first, but there is no denying that tonight’s episode was brilliant, with much needed revelations and developments explored. It’s an episode of key character moments, the first … >
If I had to pick a theme that best summarised what was going on in this week’s Mr Selfridge, it would be ‘how the war has changed people’ as this episode’s main storylines are drawn from everyone finding their place in a post-war society. A major point in the story is the letting go of … >
Even more than a regular episode of Call the Midwife, this instalment is about the roles that women play in public life. Whether it’s Trixie being silenced by an important bishop, prostitutes dealing with getting syphilis so that they don’t lose clients or the worries of a man who thinks a daughter couldn’t carry on his family … >
There’s an old joke that was told to me by a former girlfriend many years ago: what do two women do on their second date? They hire a moving van. While I’m typically inclined to roll my eyes at any such a stereotype, this does apply itself to Banana’s third episode with staggering accuracy. The … >
In the wake of Camille’s departure from Saint Marie last week, it is business as usual as the Honore Police department investigate the murder of an ageing rock star, found electrocuted in his swimming pool. However, it’s the ‘business as usual’ elements that make it the weakest episode of the season so far. Certain basic … >
Say what you like about Russell T Davies as a writer, he doesn’t crave anyone’s approval. Tackling the unsettling topic of teacher-pupil grooming this week, Davies eschews sermonising – and avoids Queer as Folk territory – by showing the retrospective consequences of such an affair. A game of sexual cat and mouse is played between … >