Matt Smith was magnificent – never more so than as the aged toymaker whittling away at his wood. Raggedy man, we shall miss you. But then, you knew that already.
Negatus’ kinks are further developed in this finale, as his boss Imperatrix is due to arrive to sort things out herself, due to Negatus’ incompetence. In disguise as a tramp (the titular Ernie), Negatus plans to destroy Debbie once and for all. Along the way he learns that being pure motiveless evil isn’t necessarily great for your self-esteem.
One of the less popular of Shakespeare’s tragedies, it’s a rare treat to see a stage production of Coriolanus.
One of the main reasons it’s not in as popular as Macbeth, King Lear and Hamlet is audiences find Coriolanus impenetrable. Reflective moments are few and far between amidst scenes of blood and thunder and political intrigue. There is little in terms of soliloquies, which are hallmarks of his greatest plays.
With the werewolf shenanigans of ‘Hunger Pangs’ past, and not even referenced, the opening part of Atlantis’s Christmas-straddling finale was rooted in earlier events. Returning in a dream that saw Hercules dead, Jason was reminded of the fateful bargain he struck with Pasiphae’s vengeful sister, the witch Circe. It was a creepy and effective start to a storyline full of promise.
Shouldn’t Jim Broadbent have been classed as a National Treasure by now? Kept in The Tower of London with the Crown and whatnot, only to be released so that he can appear in top quality drama? Broadbent is, and always has been, the big birthday cake of drama – seeing him at once both excites and reassures. You know you’re in for something special.
Full of brash lights and gorgeous colours, Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert rolls into Brighton for the holiday season. What there is in plot, you could hide under two and a half sequins, but that hardly matters when the camp is pitched to the highest level and the audience are having a wonderful time.
It wasn’t always called ‘The Great Train Robbery’, but history has a way of swaddling itself in mythology.
Back in 1963 it was known as ‘The Cheddington Mail Van Raid’. And in the same way as that title removes any notion of excitement and romanticism from the act, so Chris Chibnall’s A Robber’s Tale strips away the mythology that has crystallised around the greatest folkloric tale in British larceny and presents us with the facts (or as close to them) of what was a train robbery that time wrongly mythologised into something ‘Great’.
The wait is over everyone. After a two-year gap, Sherlock is back for three more devilishly intricate, deliriously fun episodes. Written by co-creator Mark Gatiss (who also appears as Sherlock’s older brother Mycroft), first episode ‘The Empty Hearse’ sees our curly-haired hero “return from the dead” after two years travelling the world and dismantling Jim … >
These days Christmas TV isn’t scary. It’s all willowy-voiced renditions of classic anthems and children dressed like millionaires using iPads as sledges. There’s no fear to cut through the festive treacle.
Yet a ghost story at Christmas is as traditional as a crowd of villagers gazing at a convoy of lorries filled with fizzy pop. So it’s a thrill to see BBC Two return the ‘Ghost Story for Christmas’ to the schedules, and that horror aficionado Mark Gatiss is the man behind the resurrection.
And just like that, it’s time to bid farewell to Ripper Street. The good news is that, despite the series being axed after disappointing ratings (you can blame I’m A Celebrity), there remains a small glimmer of hope that LoveFilm could be funding a third series. Whatever happens, we couldn’t have asked for much more from this final gut punch of an episode.