Ali Larter should be encouraged to wear this dress more often. That’s my thought for the day.
US TV
Fringe: tracking the Observer
Still watching Fringe? Blimey, you’ve got stamina. Even I petered out around about episode six or seven. I want to like it, I really do, it’s just really boring.
There are some glimmers of light in it, though. One’s John Noble as the truly mad scientist Dr Bishop. If the show was purely about him, I’d watch it.
The other glimmer of hope is The Observer. Much like Lazar in Witchblade, he pops up in more or less every episode, but you have to be very observant to spot him – although the fourth episode in which he’s the focus was pretty much the only good episode since the pilot (as far as I’m aware).
To save you time – and to avoid watching Fringe – you can see all his appearances in this video someone’s mashed up for your delight
Wednesday’s slightly abbreviated news
Doctor Who
- David Morrissey talks about the Christmas special [video, spoilers]
Film
- Rutger Hauer to star in Dutch film for first time in 29 years
- Justin Chadwick to write and direct The Tenderness of Wolves
- Keanu Reeves to star in YA 47 Ronin adaptation
- Next Bourne movie to be based on non-Bourne Ludlum novel?
British TV
- Ruth Jones and Bob Hoskins to join The Street
- Steve Coogan doing a time travel TV series for the Beeb
- Graham Norton to replace Terry Wogan on Eurovision
- Peter Salmon appointed director of BBC North
- Episode colourised for Dad’s Army night
- A clip from the Gavin & Stacey Christmas special
- C4 and ITV may get free use of the iPlayer
US TV
- Four more join Matthew Perry’s The End of Steve
- Royal Pains near to series order
- Sonya Walger to be female lead of increasingly English Flash Forward
- Martian Manhunter spin-off from Smallville planned?
- ABC commits to pilot based on DC’s Fables
- Showtime developing sci-fi series about synthetic organs
- NBC axing 500 staff
- Dead Like Me returning as direct-to-DVD movie
Audio and radio play reviews
Review: Doctor Who – Forty Five
Sometimes Big Finish have a good idea and they run with it: make lots of audio plays featuring the original actors from Doctor Who. Sometimes they have a bad idea and they still run with it: make lots of audio plays featuring none of the original actors from Sapphire and Steel.
But sometimes they just have an entirely mundane idea that no one would really consider re-using – and they run with it. Case in point: 100 was a series of four, one-episode plays gathered together to celebrate the 100th Big Finish Doctor Who audio release. So far so good. What you might not then have expected is for Big Finish to release four more one-episode plays under a numerical umbrella for no really good reason whatsoever.
Which is why Forty Five would have surprised you. It’s just four plays, all featuring the number 45.
That’s silly.
Playing Shop with Robert Webb and David Mitchell
I’d not heard of this, but it’s filming this month. How odd:
PLAYING SHOP
Playing Shop is a new sitcom written by and starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb (Peep Show).
They play Eric and Jamie, two of the most dynamic, practical and driven men ever to try and run a business out of a garden shed. Convinced that everyone else involved in commerce are idiots, they think that this insight alone will make them millionaires.
To such men, redundancy is just an opportunity – an opportunity to blow all their money on two massive trips to Rymans. Armed with new computers, state-of-the-art stationery and a blogger’s contempt for the rest of mankind, all they have to do is sit back and wait for greatness to be thrust upon them. Oh and somehow earn enough money to keep themselves in lager and snacks.
They’re up a creek basically, although they have got a paddle – they’re just not sure whether they can be bothered to use it. Welcome to the epic struggle of two men attempting to make a fast buck without getting up before eleven or ever missing “Bargain Hunt”.
If you would like to join us for this brand new comedy on Saturday 20th December at Teddington Studios, then apply now!
Anyone else think Robert Webb was really good on Buzzcocks last night, by the way?