The Binge: Years and Years
I’m obsessed with this British miniseries following one family through a dystopian 2020s. It’s completely harrowing, very nearly soul-crushing. Yet I cling to its tenuous optimism and profound beauty.
Russell Tovey
The Good Liar movie review: mangled web
We expect a film about a con man to con us, but it’s not fun here: it’s absurd. This limp thriller might fancy itself smart, sharp, twisty, and probably feminist, but it just made me groan out loud.
Mindhorn movie review: fame and fatuity
A wonderfully silly sendup of fandom and nostalgia… and an absolutely hilarious smackdown of actorly pomposity and delusions of celebrity grandeur.
Moomins on the Riviera movie review: really old-fashioned adventure
The hand-drawn animation is serene and charming, but the story and characters are so unpleasantly retrograde that I found little enjoyment here.
The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists!/Band of Misfits (review)
Implies that science! and scientists! could be fun! and adventurous! Oh noes, the kiddies! Brainwashed into thinking science is awesome! Who shall protect them from such horrors?
Sherlock blogging: “The Hounds of Baskerville”
There’s little resemblance to Arthur Conan Doyle’s story here, apart from the lashings of creepy atmosphere…
retro ad: young Russell Tovey in a bizarre 1990s Heinz ketchup commercial
This might be the weirdest ad for anything I’ve ever seen.
‘Doctor Who’ thing of the day: Christopher Eccleston’s charity Dalek sketch
It’s part of National Doodle Day, in support of Epilepsy Action, which helps people living with epilepsy. You can text to vote for Eccleston’s sketch (or that of any of the many other celebs who contributed), or bid to buy the originals on eBay…
Syfy ruins ‘Being Human’
Proper Being Human is nuanced and subtle. All of that has been stripped out of Syfy’s Being Human. It’s infuriating. And enraging. And completely unnecessary.
