Venice! Venizia! The city that has a terrible pizza named after it has seen a lot of crazy things in its history; from sexy alien fish vampires trying to flood the world, to an ageing British secret agent piloting a high-speed hover-gondola through its waterways and plazas, causing local wildlife to do double-takes. But its … >
You can’t beat a good book in the garden on a summer’s day (anyone remember when we used to have summers in the UK?). Nothing can compete with a really good read — a great description is involving than the best special effects Hollywood will ever produce, good dialogue sounds all the better when it’s … >
If you’re already under the spell of Sunday night’s resident magicians Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell then you need waste no more time reading this. If, on the other hand, you’ve not yet tuned in then there’s still time (via the magic of BBC iPlayer) to catch up with one of the strangest – indeed … >
‘Can a magician kill a man by magic?’ The question was asked on Jonathan on The Peninsula, back in Episode 3. His reply, ‘A magician might. But a gentleman never could.’ So we assumed him a gentleman. But in the knock-your-socks-off impressive tumult of the Battle of Waterloo that opens Episode 5, we see that … >
Given that Chapter 4 of BBC One’s fantasy period drama is titled ‘All the Mirrors of the World’, let’s take a moment to reflect on mirrors. That shiny plate on your bathroom wall has always been viewed as magical, either practically – it was mirrors that brought to life the famous 1862 illusion ‘Pepper’s Ghost’ … >
The magic continues in the third chapter of BBC One’s Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. In ‘The Education of a Magician’ tensions continue to tighten like a belt sucked agonisingly into the next notch along, those ever so polite animosities escalate, and a magician does indeed learn a thing or two of the consequences of … >
Doctor Who writer Peter Harness (‘Kill the Moon’) has adapted Susanna Clarke’s bestselling novel Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell for BBC One. Set at the beginning of the 19th century, England no longer believes in practical magic, until the reclusive Mr Norrell vows to prove himself England’s greatest magician. > Order the DVD on Amazon. > … >
Until Episode 1’s credits told me so, I hadn’t realised that BBC One’s Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell was based on a book. I can’t really comment, therefore, on whether the book is essential to a full understanding of the bewildering and beguiling events unfolding on screen. For the same reason, I’m not yet sure … >
When it comes to occupying our various entertainment rectangles, the BBC is practiced to the point of ease at two things: period dramas and adaptations of novels. Often both at once, as we’ve seen most recently with Wolf Hall and Poldark. But there’s being very good at something, and then there’s just showing off, because … >
Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell’s title is a very clever one. Mr Norrel’s name suggests an element of period drama – all costumes and propriety – but the name Jonathan Strange implies a sort of superhero, or some element of the otherworldly. And that’s because that’s exactly what Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell is – … >