This Spring on PBS, a group of 21st-century people will board a time machine and move into a Victorian tenement that has been painstakingly brought back to life in the heart of London’s East End. Hosted by British television journalist, presenter and producer, Michael Mosley, The Victorian Slum is what the concept of reality television was […]
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It’s official. There is nothing Benedict Cumberbatch cannot do. After seeing the star of Sherlock and Doctor Strange this past week on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, I am convinced that the party word game, Mad Libs, was invented in 1953 by Leonard Stern and Roger Price with Benedict Cumberbatch in mind. Days ahead of his Saturday Night Live hosting gig last night, the Sherlock star […]
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In keeping with the BBC’s tradition in 2016 of reviving and/or rebooting classic comedy series (i.e. Young Hyacinth, Are You Being Served, Goodnight Sweetheart, Porridge, Cold Feet) comes news that ITV will turn to the classic 90s BBC sitcom, Birds of a Feather for a Christmas treat for viewers. It was ITV the brought back the popular […]
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Mary Berry, the now former judge from the defunct BBC series, The Great British Bake-Off, will return sooner than expected with the forthcoming Secrets from Britain’s Great Houses series for BBC One. The culinary series, which has been described as a cross between Bake-Off and Upstairs Downstairs, will feature the British food writer and television presenter examine the gardens, kitchens and private […]
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It’s National Sandwich Day in the States so, if you’re like me and are wondering the best way to celebrate the forthcoming 298th birthday of the 4th Earl of Sandwich (born 13 November, 1718), how about starting with a look back to the 254th anniversary of the invention of the sandwich. It was 1762 when John Montagu, the fourth Earl of […]
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Today marks the 80th anniversary of British television as the BBC launched the nation’s first regular TV service at 3pm on November 2 1936, broadcasting live from from Alexandra Palace in north London. I am reminded, once again, why I continue to favor British television over their American counterpart. We turn to the British Comedy Guide […]
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Last night, Joanne Froggatt began her long journey from the sweet Anna Bates that we will all never forget to her next role as Sunday-school teacher/nurse/Victorian wife and mother, Mary Ann Cotton. Oh and, yes, she was also a murderer. Cotton’s infamous spree of arsenic poisonings, with which she claimed up to 21 lives is enough to […]
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I think I’ve decided that only thing that could rival the fanboy love and appreciation for Sherlock Holmes by the mind palaces of Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss is the love of film and all things Hitchcock-ian by League of Gentlemen alumni, Steve Pemberton and Reese Shearsmith. Case in point. Following the greatness of The […]
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Aside from The Shining and the original Halloween, there’s really not much I would rush out to find and watch on Halloween these days. Maybe a trip to Denton, Ohio and The Rocky Horror Picture Show for the umpteenth time but that’s about it. So, if you find yourself in the same frame of mind, here are a few that originated […]
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With Halloween fast approaching, there are many different kinds of scary when it comes to movies. From Jaws-scary to Psycho-scary to Texas Chainsaw Massacre-scary, tastes vary and levels of fright vary. As you begin to make your Halloween horror movie binge-watching selections for this weekend, you might want to think about staying home to watch the likes of […]
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