Year: 2006

US TV

Review: The State Within

3 November 2006 Rob Buckley 8 Comments

In the UK: Thursdays, BBC1, 9pm
In the US: BBC America. Premieres in 2007

Here’s new: a co-prod (I want to say cod-prod, but won’t) between BBC America and BBC1. Whatever next? BBC Scotland and BBC Factual? BBC Knowledge and BBC Sport?

Anyway, here’s a show I had high hopes for. Good cast: Jason Isaacs (Brotherhood), Lennie James (Jericho), Sharon Gless (Cagney and Lacey). An interesting premise: a terrorist attack and the UK and US governments’ response to it plus a great big conspiracy underneath the surface.

But tarnation. It was mostly pants.

Continue reading “Review: The State Within”

Channel 4 might stop buying US dramas

3 November 2006 Rob Buckley 2 Comments

Once upon a time, Channel 4 was well known for being the home of quality US dramas – and rubbish US dramas, so notorious is probably a better word to pick. But with Lost having slipped through its fingers – to a sour grapes Channel 4 chorus of “Well, it wasn’t very good anyway, the ratings were dropping and we didn’t want it any more so you can keep it Sky One!” – Channel 4’s acquisitions head Jeff Ford is pondering whether the network can even afford to buy US shows any more:

“Acquisitions always used to be there (in our schedules) because they enabled us to afford to do other (more expensive) things,” Ford said. “If they get more expensive, we are going to have to say goodbye to them.”

Hmm. Won’t that put you out of a job, Jeff? For some reason, I missed the point in Channel 4 history when Desmonds was more expensive to make than Friends. Perhaps a bit of history rewriting in order to get a better deal out of the US networks? Some might well argue that Channel 4 used to be chock full of US shows because they got good ratings and were better than a lot of the rubbish that Channel 4 used to put out.

But if not, sounds like we can anticipate more Big Brother and cobblers like NY:LON in our C4 future then.

Three supernatural dramas for the Beeb

3 November 2006 Rob Buckley 3 Comments

Since BBC Wales has the whole sci-fi thing sewn up for the Beeb, BBC Scotland has decided to create its own niche by ploughing a more supernatural course: the slightly poor Sea of Souls is back for a new two-part special but two new dramas have been commissioned. Empathy is about a former convict who has visions that he uses to help the police investigate a murder. Less exciting is Life Line, a supernatural love story written by Stephen Gallagher, who brought us the atrocious Eleventh Hour.

News

Lost arrives on Sky One on November 18th

2 November 2006 Rob Buckley 4 Comments

Kate and Jack from LostLove Lost? Live in the UK? Have a sodding great big dish strapped to the side of your house and pay an exorbitant subscription charge each month? Then you’ll be delighted to hear that Lost, season three, will be arriving on Sky One on Saturday 18th November. It’ll also be on Sky One HD if you’ve really wasted your money and bought an HD set and a Sky HD subscription. And for true money wasters, it’ll be on “Sky by broadband” as well, subject to technical requirements and your having Sky Sports 1 and 2 and/or Sky Movies 1 and 2.

Woo hoo.

The good news is that the six episodes that will have aired in the US by then will all get aired before Christmas; Sky will continue the season in February, with each episode airing just a few days after it airs in the US.

Lost trivia: have you noticed that whenever a major character dies, it’s always at the end of their flashback episode? So if you know, thanks to trailers, that someone’s going to die, as soon as you see the flashback, all sense of mystery is removed and you know exactly who’s going to pass on. Just mentioning that in passing and not because I’m hacked off as a result about last night’s episode. Oh no.