Me And My Big Mouth

No Spoilers (Honest)

Yesterday I took a day off work to join the family at the BFI for a special screening of the next Doctor Who episode, Vincent and the Doctor, written by Richard Curtis. It was a free family event and the BBC/BFI had laid on a workshop and exhibition to keep everyone entertained.

There were costumes from recent episodes, including the vampire queen and the Silurians, a design your own monster competition and some of the props from the Vincent episode.

Oh, and here are Ethan and Martha in the TARDIS with the Doctor and Amy courtesy of some green screen trickery.

 

I won't post any spoilers about the episode itself. It does feature Vincent van Gogh but then you'll know that already. I will say that I enjoyed the beginning, thought it was only average as it went on and then Curtis pulls out a fantastic ending that had me blubbing like a big girl.

After the screening, Richard Curtis and Karen Gillan came on stage along with the director and one of the executive producers. They answered questions from the kids in the audience and carefully avoided any major revelations about future episodes. All we did learn was that horses and helmets may be involved and that the finale will be a two-parter. Oh and that Steven Moffat is currently writing the Christmas special.

Martha got to meet Karen briefly and had her photo signed, as you can see above. So all in all a jolly good day out.

You can see the Vincent and the Doctor episode on Saturday night. It comes highly recommended.

Wireless

I don't watch a great deal of television. Something has to give when you've got so many books to read and as the majority of stuff on the idiot's lantern is utter shite I tend to leave it well alone.

That being said, I do use my Sky+ box a great deal, filling it with all the movies I would have gone to see at the cinema if I didn't have kids. The hard drive is rarely less than 90% full and I am constantly playing catch up so that the bloody thing doesn't overload itself.

Of course, a majority of shite is no different to any other area of popular entertainment and, by definition, leaves a minority of really good stuff to check out. But I am lazy when it comes to television and don't make a huge effort to discover the gems.

Which is why I was delighted when The Wire came to BBC2. Everyone and his dog had been telling me how great it was, and the critics were falling over their armchairs in a rush to acclaim it as the best television drama ever. In an inspired piece of scheduling, albeit driven by them buying the show several years too late, it was broadcast every weeknight over a three week period. One click of the series link button and my evening viewing was sorted for some time to come.

We finally finished watching season one at the weekend. Brilliantly acted, with so many stand-out performances that they no longer stood out, it treated its audience with respect and was miles better than most of the dross funneled through our TVs every night. But best drama ever? I don't really think so. Perhaps I was expecting it, unfairly, to completely blow me away. It didn't. It had its fair share of cop cliches and most episodes included at least one really awful clanger of a line, something that pulled me up short and left me wishing they hadn't gone there. I accept that it is a cut above most television but I had been led to believe that it was in a league of its own. I have been just as impressed, and sometimes more so, with Twin Peaks, Six Feet Under, Weeds, My So Called Life and others. Oh, and while it couldn't possibly claim to be as gritty or realistic, I would take one episode of Columbo over an entire season of The Wire any day.

But don't get me wrong, for me to watch 13 episodes of anything it has to be bloody good. Season two starts on BBC2 this week. MOTC will definitely be watching it. I am undecided. My reading pile is growing alarming high.

Dear Ladies

My friend Carole Hayman has written a new TV series. Ladies of Letters is on ITV3 every Tuesday.

Here's a taster.

Tony Hart: 1925 - 2009

It seems to be the season for losing television legends.

Tony Hart was a true pioneer and has probably inspired more young, and now not so young, artists in the past 30 years than anyone else you'd care to mention.

Spare a thought, too, for Mr Bennett.

Headlines

I notice that the announcement of David Tennant quitting Doctor Who has knocked those pranksters Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross off the top of the BBC Entertainment News page.

Hmmm, what a coincidence.

I do find it interesting that the BBC has taken action against Brand and Ross in response to the 27,000 complaints from licence fee payers.  I believe 26,998 of those complaints were made only once the story broke in the newspapers.  2 people complained at the time.

I am a licence fee payer and I don't give a shit.  Why isn't my apathetic voice being heard?  Or have i just answered my own question?

Bang

My DVD of The Big Bang Theory: The Complete First Season has turned up.

I know what I'm doing for the next 17 nights in a row.

Don't bother calling, I'm not answering.

Marie, The Kids Are Warming Your Seat For You (In Their Own Very Special Way)

So the Strictly Come Dancing line up has been revealed. 

I am gutted that Lauren Laverne isn't one of them.

Maybe next year, if I am a very good boy.

Doctor Why

I had assumed that all the secrecy surrounding the series finale of Doctor Who was down to some amazing plot twist.  The cliffhanger last week was certainly exciting.

But no, it would appear they just didn't want us to find out that it was actually a bit poo before it was too late for us to watch Kindergarten Cop on ITV instead.

Anti-climax of the year so far.

Harukivision

Did anyone see the Haruki Murakami documentary last week?  What did you think?

If you missed it and are in the UK you can catch on the BBC iPlayer here for another couple of days.  They also allow you to download it and watch it within 30 days.

I enjoyed it.  As a Murakami fan there wasn't a great deal in it that I didn't already know but it was good to see footage of some of his old haunts and the overall tone of the programme was suitably light, it didn't wander up its own arse all that much.  My friend Jay Rubin appeared a few times and it is always fun to see your mates on the telly.  I was personally delighted that Alfred Birnbaum appeared as he translated the early works which were the first I read and I had never seen footage of him before.

If you do watch it, note how the translators and Japanese people interviewed pronounce his name.  It isn't quite how you'd expect.  Actually, Jay Rubin discusses this in entertaining fashion in his book.  Haruki Murakami and the Music of Words is the perfect place to start if you want to discover more about the man and his work.  Part biography, part fan appreciation, part literary criticism, it is the best thing out there and well worth reading.

Do leave a comment if you saw it, I would be fascinated to hear what people think.

Haruki Alert!

In case you weren't aware there is a documentary about Haruki Murakami on BBC One at 10.45 tonight.  It is part of Alan Yentob's Imagine series.  The Doris Lessing programme was very interesting so this could be worthwhile viewing.  No Haruki though, he only gave an off-camera interview.

I was asked to help out with the show last year by one of the researchers but I lost his contact details and we never managed to hook up. I am sure the finished product is all the better for it.

Any bookshop worth its salt will have lots of Murakami books on display from tomorrow so here's your chance to find out why I rave about him so much (and named my son after him) if you haven't already.

If you're a bloke I recommend starting with South Of The Border, West Of The Sun*.  It is short and gives you a flavour for his weirdness.  It also leaves you lots of his better novels to discover later on.

If you are of the female persuasion I usually suggest Norwegian Wood.  Not because it is a love story (of sorts) and more suited to your girly nature but because most of the women I know really love this book.

Although having said all that I began with A Wild Sheep Chase and Jay Rubin was hooked by Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World so who knows really?  One thing's for sure, don't start with Kafka On The Shore or Sputnik Sweetheart whatever you do.

In terms of online resources, the official US site is very good.  The Dolphin Hotel discussion group is back up and running after a hiatus.  Osakabe's site is another great place for rarities and oddities.   I also like this one.

I hope you enjoy the show.

* unless you are going out with Marie.

HDTV?

Almost every time I pass by an electronics store I pop in and stare at the HD TVs.  As of yet I have been unable to spot any discernible difference between HD television and normal television.

Do you think my eyesight is going?

I realise it is the future of broadcasting and we will all be watching it in years to come but it looks just the same to me.

Your New Universe Starts Here

I watched a fascinating documentary last night.  It was called Parallel Worlds, Parallel Lives.  I had taped it (actually I pressed a button on my Sky+ box to record it digitally but I still insist on saying that I taped it) when it was shown last week.

In the programme Mark Everett, frontman of the rock band Eels, investigated the life of his father, a man he barely spoke to in the 19 years they shared on the planet.  In one moving scene he explained that the first time he held his father was when trying to wake him on the day he found him dead.  He was a withdrawn and complicated man.

He was also a genius.  Hugh Everett III was the physicist who first proposed the many-worlds interpretation of quantum physics in the early 1950s.  This is the suggestion that every possible outcome of a certain event actually happens, creating a new parallel universe as it does so.  We only see the one we are in.  Or something like that.  It hurts my brain to think of it too much so I will park that notion for a second.

The documentary was as much a son's search for his father as it was a guide to quantum theory for dummies.  Mark Everett inherited none of this father's skills as a mathematician and he had no idea of Hugh's importance until after his death.

Hugh Everett came up with his theory while in his 20s and was rocked when he was dismissed by his elders and peers.  He gave up his studies and worked for the US government in the nuclear weapons research and later started a company that created war games computers.  Years later his theories began to gather a following and he finally received the acclaim he deserved. And then he died.  He was just 51.  His son was 19.

The idea of parallel universes, and the acceptance by science that they might exist, has been the source of inspiration for countless science fiction plots, for episodes of Star Trek and Doctor Who, and for the multi-award winning Dark Materials series by Philip Pullman.

It is also, to my layman's perception, a load of nonsense.  Asking me to believe there are countless parallel universes out there in which countless versions of me are experiencing alternative outcomes of a decision over which flavour crisps to purchase with my pocket money when I was six years old is like asking me to accept the Holy Trinity.  Both seem daft to my simple brain so I choose not to believe them.  They are both attractive, beautiful, poetic concepts but if they were parading through the town square to rapturous acclaim then there would undoubtedly be a small boy shouting up to point out that they didn't have any clothes on.

I know, I know, I am an ignoramus.  This I accept.  But it was a compelling piece of television with a wonderful soundtrack, courtesy of Eels.

Here's a clip.  I love the bit where Mark asks the physicist what a photon is.

Revenge Of The Nerds

Actually, there is one show that I have become quietly addicted to.  It is called The Big Bang Theory and is on Channel 4 on Friday evenings.  It is a new-ish US sitcom about a bunch of twenty-something nerdy physicists who live opposite the obligatory hot babe.  The ensuing clash of cultures has had me chuckling away during the hours of darkness.  Worth a peek.

I must confess that I have watched these clips quite a few times while putting this post together. They do tickle me. Especially the second one.

Why Don't You Just Switch Off Your Television Set And Go And Do Something Less Boring Instead?

I have fallen out of the habit of watching television.  I think Sky+ is to blame.  I record my few pieces of staple viewing (Later With Jools Holland and Dr Who basically) along with a selection of movies but that is really about it.  It means I have lots of time for other things, and not being a slave to the telly is a healthy frame of mind, but it also means I miss out on lots of wonderful televisual entertainment.

For example, I have never seen an episode of The Sopranos, Deadwood, Heroes, Lost, CSI or any of the long list of intelligent/entertaining television which people tell me is great viewing.  Same goes for The Apprentice, X-Factor or anything with Ant & Dec in it.  I am guessing that I would only regret missing a few of these if I ever got round to seeing them - but how am I supposed to tell?

Last weekend, Mother Of The Children and I had our dinner on our laps and watched the BAFTA Television Awards.  This was a fascinating experience as we had seen next to none of the nominees or winners.  Gavin & Stacey looked interesting, and I am aware that it has captured the hearts of the nation, but I genuinely have no idea what it is about.  I hear that programmes such as The Thick Of It are wonderful, but I am none the wiser.

I take no pride in this ignorance.  I know that I am missing out.  I enjoy sitting down and watching some TV, I just find it hard to invest the time needed to watch a whole series.  There are just too many books to read.  I am beginning to feel that I need to ween myself back on to television.  So, where to start?

MOTC is much better than I.  She makes a weekly date with ER and Desperate Housewives and was a regular for Life On Mars and enjoyed Ashes To Ashes but I reckon I am too late to join in on those.

We do have some DVD box sets of series such as The Sopranos and Six Feet Under so that may be one way to plug back in.  I also downloaded the first series of Weeds from Sky Anytime and we loved that, so it can be done.  I just need to make a concerted effort.

Your recommendations would be warmly received.

Desperately Seeking Rupert

I had an email yesterday from someone called, I think, Rupert from, I think, Initial Television.  He wanted some help with a planned documentary on Haruki Murakami.  However, I managed to delete his email by mistake and there is now no trace of it.

I tried calling Initial (actually Endemol, of whom they are a part) but couldn't track him down.

So, anyone out there know this bloke? Ring any bells?  Are you the man himself?

What's In The Box?

I have been searching for a copy of this clip for years, probably a decade or more.  It is one of the funniest things I have ever seen on television and I have been playing it repeatedly since the weekend when I rediscovered it on YouTube.  You may need to turn the sound up to make out all the content over the canned laughter (this is taken from an It'll Be Alright On The Night show).

I think one of the comments on YouTube has it just right when it calls it 'the single greatest moment in human interaction ever'.

Time Goes By When You're The Driver Of A Train

Happy birthday to Trumpton which is celebrating its 40th around now.  Camberwick Green was created a year earlier and Chigley followed in 1969.  I didn't watch them at the time seeing as how I hadn't actually been born but they were all a staple part of my TV diet when I was growing up. 

Ethan and Martha still watch them today and like them a great deal.  The DVD collection is very well put together with all the Chigley, Camberwick Green and Trumpton episodes contained therein.

I have often pondered starting a petition to call for Brian Cant to be honoured by the state.  He was the nation's storyteller for most of the 70s and deserves to be recognised.

On a similar theme, we went to Bekonscot Model Village the other week.  It was the first model village in the world open to the public and one of my favourite places to visit.  Built in the 1920s as an amusement for his friends and clients by City accountant Roland Callingham, all the proceeds go to charity and there is a charming, timeless magic about the place.  It is like walking in to one of Gordon Murray's Trumptonshire villages.

I picked up this book on that visit, Forever England by Liam Bailey.  A wonderful collection of photographs, almost Hopper-esque some of them, from the village.  I noticed that Will Self's rejacketed backlist use some of these snaps as well.  One of the few things I can applaud him for as his novels rarely deliver the goods.

So yes, many happy returns to the villagers of Trumptonshire.  May their spirit live on in model villages everywhere.

The Further Adventures Of Krtek The Mole

Following my earlier post concerning Krtek The Mole I was contacted by a journalist from the Czech News Agency who has now filed a piece on the popularity of the helpful little mole around the world.   We now have international influence on matters of great importance and to celebrate he is another episode.

Krtek The Mole

One of the most evocative memories I have of my childhood is watching the animated adventures of a certain mole.  Until recently I thought I would only be able to relive those times in my head as the show was an old 70s Czech cartoon that no one else seemed to remember.  But then I managed to track down a DVD box set on a Japanese website and the whole family have been forced to endure these little nostalgic episodes ever since.  Not that they mind, and upon viewing them with adult eyes they are actually better than I remember.

Our favourite episode at the moment is this rather cutting edge portrayal of love, marriage and childbirth.  You'd never see this on CBeebies.