US TV

Review: Numb3rs 5×1

Numb3rs

In the US: Fridays, 10pm ET/PT, CBS
In the UK: Five, Five US, ITV1 and ITV3 in some sort of rota system, some time next year

Think CBS and if you know your US networks, you’ll probably think ‘procedural’ immediately afterwards. If it’s not existing stalwarts like the entire CSI stable, NCIS and The Unit filling the airwaves, we’ve The Eleventh Hour and The Mentalist this season as well.

Then there’s Numb3rs, which seems to exist simply to add yet another procedural to the CBS body count – and to win family programming prizes. A sub-exciting series in which the FBI seem incapable of solving even the basic crimes without recourse to a genius mathematician and his nerdy friends, it’s been lurking on Friday nights for years and has now reached season five.

And I’m still watching it. I have no idea why.

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New BBC sitcom pilot: Shush

I’m going to be off watching The IT Crowd being filmed that day, but if you’re interested, this looks promising, given the talent behind it:

Shush

17 October, BBC Television Centre

We’d like to invite you along to see two of Britain’s top comedy actresses, Morwenna Banks (Saxondale, The Thick Of It, Absolutely) and Rebecca Front (Nighty Night, The Day Today, Knowing Me, Knowing You) joining forces in Shush, an absurd sitcom pilot set in an archaic library perpetually fighting the threat of closure.

Alice (Rebecca Front) a hopelessly romantic misfit and Snoo (Morwenna Banks) an indolent meddler are determined to prove to the library inspector Raff (Ben Willbond) that they can attract new readers and raise enough funds to save their library.

Meanwhile, Alice finally looks set to go on her dream date with Dean, the local porn-mag seller (Simon Greenall).

Produced by Armando Iannucci (I’m Alan Partridge, The Thick Of It, The Day Today) and written by Morwenna Banks, Rebecca Front and Arthur Mathews (Father Ted, Big Train).

The Cast also includes Michael Fenton-Stevens and Alex Macqueen.

Recording on Friday 17 October at BBC Television Centre, Wood Lane, London. Doors open at 7pm.

To apply for tickets, call the BBC Ticket Line on 0370 901 1227

Monday’s deeply implausible news

Doctor Who

  • Deeply implausible Patrick Stewart rumour clearly made up by fans to see if The Sun would publish it

Film

  • Brandon Routh, Gil Bellows, Martin Donovan and Carrie-Anne Moss join Unthinkable
  • Under Siege 3. In space. With aliens. Hmm.

British TV

US TV

US TV

Review: Dirty Sexy Money 2×1

Dirty Sexy Money

In the US: Wednesdays, 10/9c, ABC
In the UK: Channel 4, probably sometime in January if their acquisitions budget holds up

As we’ve found out already, the US writers’ strike has proved to be a boon creatively (if not ratingsly) for a host of shows. Heroes has come back refreshed, albeit daft as a brush as always; My Name is Earl is back on track, but still not desperately funny; and The Unit is vibrant and exciting again.

Other shows haven’t quite fared as well. Chuck‘s a little better, but is pretty much the same old, same old; while Life‘s intricate storyline is proving hard to get back into without sufficient incentive for the viewer.

Dirty Sexy Money is having similar issues. Last season, it was confused. It thought it was intelligent television and so needed to have a message – something like rich people aren’t to be envied since they’re messed up. But it never really could work out what its message was and got its head all confused, poor thing. The result was an extremely convoluted storyline of extreme silliness, involving bed-hopping, Catholic priests with illegitimate sons living in Brazil, politicians with transgender mistresses and murder.

Over the break, though, the writers have sat down, meditated, and decided they know what’s wrong. Screw intelligent TV, screw messages: let’s just have fun. And even more convoluted silly storylines.

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Friday’s German-touching news

Doctor Who

Film

Commercials

Theatre

German TV

British TV

US TV