Let’s talk about sound design. Hey where are you- no no, please stay, it’ll be interesting, I promise. We take good sound design for granted. TV practically expects us to: awards for it are always briskly packed away in the ‘Earlier in tonight’s show…’ montages at the BAFTAs and Academy Awards. People only notice it … >
After poking its nostrils above the waterline to sniff the air of inspiration, The Driver slithers back into the mire of predictability, intent only on reaching a conclusion with little concern as to what the conclusion should be or how it gets there. It’s a shame. Given the quality of the cast and the potential … >
It was on a June evening in 2010, with the Silence ringing in our ears, when we first heard there was a mummy on the spacebound Orient Express. Looking back, it was a blast of chaff: words to distract us from questions about the Silence, and infer that the Christmas special would feature a festive … >
It has taken a while to figure out while Glue is called Glue, but with Episode 4 the meaning behind the title feels clear. Given the debauchery in Episode 1 you’d think it was in reference to substance abuse. But as the story has cantered along and the show has proved itself more grown up … >
Our Girl takes a different direction this week as Molly and Smurf return back to Britain on respite from their Afghanistan tour. However, coming back home only seems to highlight the differences in Molly’s life. A comical, light-hearted opening sequence with the soldiers on an assault course, to the tune of ‘Good Golly, Miss Molly’ … >
The third episode of Downton Abbey’s new season opens with Lord Gillingham scrambling to his room as the hotel maid delivers Lady Mary’s breakfast tray. Have all their dreams come true? Alas, not so. He’s itching to trip down the aisle, but she’s not so enamored with a man that’s governed by routine and ritual. … >
This is more like it. In spite of all the good things we’ve seen since Peter Capaldi took control of the TARDIS, we’ve been waiting for something that is unmistakeably Doctor Who, something as comfortable as a sparkly black sweater and as inventive as exterminating a giant alien spider with disinfectant spray, as familiar as … >
After a steady start in last week’s opener – enjoyable but pedestrian in its predictableness – the second episode zooms out of the 30mph zone with its foot down, bringing some much needed excitement to a journey that might otherwise have become tedious. Having already been party to some dodgy deals since becoming driver for … >
“Certain moments in Time are fixed. Tiny, precious moments. Everything else is in flux, anything can happen. But those certain moments…they have to stand.” So said The Tenth Doctor in ‘The Waters of Mars’ – not the last time you’ll hear that episode mentioned in this review, or others. Viewers will draw close parallels between … >
As I said last week, there always seems to be something on fire in Glue. A car, a caravan, a pile of wood in a copse… the countryside is indeed a highly flammable place. It’s why you never see cows smoking. Or sheep having ‘baa’-rbeques. Ha. Ha. Ha. But all those flames do more than … >