Television / Radio
Tv drama: new and old
I watched the final episode of “THE NIGHT MANAGER” and was disappointed. Aside from the acting of Hugh Laurie as Richard Roper, the amoral arms dealer, there was little to engage and no improvement on the original. It bore all the formulaic trademarks of modern drama; incessant gizmos [...]
Amadeus and the Night Manager
The above programmes were the BBC’s Xmas offering and I was underwhelmed by both. Although centuries separated Mozart and the Night Manager the two dramas reflected the BBC’s emphasis on diversity. In Amadeus, Mozart’s librettist Carlo Ponte was played by à black actor. that was not the [...]
Dial M for Murder / Rear Wondow
What better way to get through that rarher dull period between Xmas and New Year than a double bill of vintage Hitchcock on tv . i have seen both Rear Window and Dial M for Murder many times but like all classics you turn on for 5 minutes and are rapidly engrossed. Dial M for Murder has a [...]
Foyle’s War
They say a book improves in its second reading. I am now on my – at least third – viewing of “FOYLE’S WAR” and. if anything, am more impressed than ever by its script, acting and attention to detail. It’s written and directed by the celebrated writer Anthony Horowitz [...]
Coverage of the Ashes
England’s performance in the Ashes is dire. The First Test was over in two days and the second at Brisbane may not last much longer. The coverage on TMS and TNT matches the poor performances. TMS have recruited Daniel Norcross – a buffoon – and, if you are really unlucky his analyst [...]
The Tanner Report: Spurs 1 Fulham 2
To be two up after 6 minutes against Spurs at Spurs Stadium – how good is that? It moved my friend and Fulham nutter David to verse: “Vicario likes to go à-wandering Outside his Tottenham box But when the ball drops to ‘Arry Boy (Harry Wilson) Opportunity knocked.“ It’s [...]
The Quilter series
Of the Northern Hemisphere sides, England were the winners of this series though – as “THE RUST” had predicted – Argentina gave them a close call and, when the excellent Santi Carreras burst through in injury time, they might actually have won. England will surely be [...]
Thoughts on the 1st Test
One issue neglected by the wise-acres in the media is what do you want: a successful team or an entertaining one? “Bazball” may be too expansive but would you prefer a ‘nurdler’ doing it in singles , working the gaps, or someone taking risks by hitting the deep boundaries of the new [...]
Annabelle Croft
The highlight of my sporting weekend was not the ATP tennis, not the sports on offer, but Annabelle Croft’s appearance on Michael Berkeley’s Radio 3 programme “Private Passions” I have long been a huge fan of her. She was a tennis prodigy who abandoned her fledgling tennis career to [...]