bias alert: back in love with ‘Doctor Who’ and the Doctor, psyched for Indiana Jones

Anything to get psyched for in May? Well, there *is* my birthday... (glances aboot) Um guys? Guys? No one brought cake...? :(

What about Iron Man (5/2) and Speed Racer (5/9)? (I do not count the new Indiana Jones movie because as good as it might be, I am of the opinion it should not have been made. I am not psyched for it and I probably will not go see it.)

Can't believe Doctor Who's back? Well, now there's talk of reviving the late 70s BBC space opera 'Blake's 7'. And why not? It may have been cheap and camp, but it was also lots of fun.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7364663.stm

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2008/04/25/do2502.xml

If it's done right, I'd love to see a remake of Blake's 7. I lived in England during part of the time when the show was originally airing... the later parts, after Blake left and Avon was basically in charge. I also got to see first-run Tom Baker and Peter Davison Doctor Who, and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

If they do this, they should find a way to get some of the old cast to participate. Perhaps they could get Paul Darrow to be the voice of Orac or of Zen? Or even better, they could pull a Richard Hatch and get Darrow to play a male Servalan.

RE: "If it's done right, I'd love to see a remake of Blake's 7."

Well Clayj, it is being done- don't know if it is being done right...

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/36517

I was working on a magazine in London today when the picture editor showed me an embargoed RSC publicity shot of David Tennant as Hamlet. He's standing on a heath, wearing a long blue jacket similar to Captain Jack's and staring moodily into the distance. Pretty soon all the women in the office were standing around the Mac, cooing: "Oooh, he's so lovely."

This is the part where MaryAnn kicks your ass for telling her of such a picture, and then failing to provide it to her for her to fawn over.

Ignorance, as they say, is bliss. Better to have never heard of the picture at all than to be teased by its possible existence. ;-)

Speaking of remakes and rumors - I thought I heard that a remake of The Prisoner was in the works. Whatever happened to that idea, I wonder? I even heard Chris Eccleston was being considered for the lead.

Which would make me a very very very happy fangirl.

Don't you love british theatre? Big names doing Shakepseare in rep. I am not sure what the publicity for Hamlet is for, since the run has been sold out for months and a pair of tickets at ebay are going for £600 ($1190) a pair.

Tennant will also have to contend with a stalker in the audience.

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/showbiz/a84402/tennant-stalker-writes-sci-fi-hamlet.html

One of my college roommates used to stalk Sara Michelle Gellar; he actually left campus and flew across the country to Denver to try and meet her in the middle of the semester. His parents called me and then contacted the police because they didn't know where he had gone. Veeery awkward and Holden Caulfieldy.

One of my good friends from high school got dangerously close to stalking Kristen Kreuk, but I think he's better now. He doesn't spend thousands of dollars on airline tickets anymore at least. Both of these guys started out pretty "normal", but they gradually started to lead extremely isolated lives.

Neither of them had a very close relationship with their parents either. When you're isolated, it's pretty easy to fixate on someone out of your league and imagine that a relationship with them will magically solve all your problems. After a while, you've imagined the relationship so often, it seems like it already exists.

It's kinda like going from living in your own place, to sharing a room, to crashing in a living room, to living in your car... and before you know it, you're homeless. (This sequence happened to a friend of mine from college too) Looking at someone who has a mental illness, it's easy to think "How could this happen? I'm glad I'm not like that." But if you get cut off from society and you don't seek support when you need it, it can happen to almost anyone.

This woman clearly has deteriorated a lot farther than most though. Hopefully, someone will take the time to slowly bring her back to reality.

I am also excited for Indy even though Lucas has stated it is a complete departure from the style and tone of the first three films. He describes Skull as more SciFi than adventure, claiming they used 50's films like The Blob and Black Lagoon as models.

angel: Funny you should say that...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/1904353/Christopher-Eccleston-tipped-for-lead-in-new-Prisoner.html

That Tennant/Hamlet pic has been published now.

http://davidtennant.albumpost.com/album749/aaa

this photo of Tennant as Hamlet is sort of Capt Jack reminiscent, for sure, but is nonetheless sending me slowly into a seizure of delight. he's too beautiful... lungs not functioning... brain...melting...

okay, i've recovered long enough to say that I too will be going to Stratford to witness Tennant in all his Shakespearean glory. i may need to invest in smelling salts to get me thru each performance.

Hi maryann, I'm a Doctor Who enthusiast as well! It is absolutely wonderful!!!!! I created my own Doctor Who theme song cellphone ringtone. When it is on, I am overcome with excitement!
All the best,
Neima

MaryAnn wrote: "Though I am *dreading* the clueless hoards of dorks who will certainly be descending upon Stratford for these shows..."
For what is worth, the audience I saw the play with was absolutely brilliant. I was as apprehensive as you are, many plays I have seen have been ruined by the audience, but this theatre experience was one of the best, and the audience was part of it. Wonderfully diverse (RSC veterans, hardcore theatregoers, young people, couples, families and children), everyone was at their best behaviour, very responsive to the play and there was no indication that anyone was there for any other reason than to see a production of Hamlet. Obviously, the cast has attrached many people, but inside the auditorium everyone was completely caught up in the play.

The production deserves much of the credit, transporting and thrilling. The other explnation is the Courtyard theatre itself. It's a theatre that envelops the performers, creating a very intimate atmosphere, an intimacy enhanced by the fact that the theatre seats more than 1000 people. That many people feeling very close to the theatre action creates a powerful atmosphere and the audience feels responsible for the action as much as the actors.