The only true measure of a great episode of TV is when you spend ten minutes after the credits repeating “wait, what?” like a mantra. ‘The Lying Detective’ was all about confessions; inner secrets laid bare for all. Our big bad, Culverton Smith (what a great name) is on the end of the spectrum, relishing … >
The fourth season of Sherlock certainly didn’t pull any emotional punches with its first episode, ‘The Six Thatchers’. The loss of Mary Watson is not only an important game-changer as far as the show’s central dynamic is concerned, but also delivers a kick to the gut with its poignancy. Thing is, it’s only really effective because … >
Taboo comes at you like its protagonist. It approaches forcefully and unrelenting, swathed in many shades of black; vague and yet intimidating, and with a purpose so odd and opaque that it renders your opinion of it insignificant. Taboo, like its anti-hero James Delaney (Tom Hardy) just exists. And you either have to deal with … >
Hit comedy drama Death in Paradise returned tonight to help us beat the blues with some sun, sand, sea… and murder. Now in its sixth season, BBC One’s detective show is the perfect antidote to a wintry January, adding a little mystery to the New Year. When a researcher at the Saint Marie Volcanic Institute is found dead … >
With Downton Abbey in the rear view mirror and the second season of The Crown in the distant future, we now have ITV’s The Halcyon to fill the void. And does it ever! The Halcyon is a swanky hotel in London where aristocrats, political leaders, and the posh set come to stay and play. It’s May … >
‘Crime and Punishment’ is set in Bleakridge which is, we’re told, “the most remote village in Midsomer.” It also has a chronic shortage of ample parking – either that or, despite its remoteness, it is something of a Mecca for the tourist trade. Whatever the reason, there seems to be no end of cars parked … >
The opening episode of the third season of Inside No. 9 is a Christmas-themed nightmare, dealing with the old legend of Krampus. It also, to some extent, deals with the legend of the BBC multi-camera studio bound dramas of the seventies and eighties, employing both old-fashioned cameras and indeed retired camera operators. All of which … >
[To the tune of the show’s ‘Danse Macabre’ title sequence…] ‘Jonathan Creek, Jonathan Creek; In recent years his show has been quite weak. The quality’s begun to leak; Is this one much better? Let’s take a peek…’ Well, Jonathan Creek‘s 2016 Christmas special, ‘Daemon’s Roost’, is neither festive, nor particularly special but it is the … >
Christmas is the season for catching up with old friends and so Boxing Day night seems an ideal time to entertain the Brockman family. It has been almost three years since the Outnumbered gang last graced our screens with their semi-improvised mayhem and unsurprisingly the kids have shot up (what are they feeding them?); Karen … >
As in so many episodes of Call the Midwife, the theme of this year’s Christmas special is spelled out by Vanessa Redgrave as the older Jenny Lee in the opening voiceover. “The most precious gifts cost nothing whatsoever,” she says, before an episode that is all about selflessness and thinking of others. Exploring the power behind simply … >