January 2011 Archives

The Killing BBC4, Saturday 9pm
Fans of European crime dramas who are missing their Wallander and Spiral may just be sated by this Danish series (with English subtitles). Broadcast in Denmark in 2007, the International Emmy-nominated series follows a murder investigation team in the 20 days after a teenager’s mutilated body is found. BBC4 is showing the series in double bills over 10 weeks.

British Comedy Awards Channel 4, Saturday 9pm
London’s O2 is the new venue, Channel 4 is the new channel, but Jonathan Ross is still the host. One of telly’s most outrageously drunken awards bashes is, as a result, one of the least predictable. Some years it’s bad, some good, but always watchable.

The Tudors BBC2, Saturday 9.45pm
Henry the Eighth, series the fourth, wife the fifth. Jonathan Rhys Meyers’ Henry shows no signs of becoming the fat figure of portraiture, but this is a series that has no pretensions to historical accuracy when it comes to casting. Tamzin Merchant is Katherine Howard, and Joely Richardson is Katherine Parr, destined to become wife number six.

Being Human BBC3, Sunday 9pm
A third series of one of telly’s best fantasy dramas sees Mitchell, George and Nina move from Bristol to Wales as they try and cope with life without Annie, who we last saw being tricked into purgatory. The regular cast is as strong as ever, and fine performances from Lacey Turner and Robson Green in supporting roles indicate that this could be the best series yet…

Saturday Play: Payback Radio 4, Saturday 2.30pm
Jonathan Myerson’s drama looks at events in the US and the Middle East in 1973 as the Yom Kippur War breaks out. Golda Meir has become Prime Minister of Israel, while Richard Nixon is barely holding onto power as the Watergate scandal continues and Secretary of State Richard Nixon is in New York.

Opera on 3: Live From the Met Radio 3, Saturday 6pm
Giovanni Meoni stars in the title role of Verdi’s Rigoletto.

Desert Island Discs Radio 4, Sunday 11.15am
This week’s castaway is Betty Driver, who has played Coronation Street hotpot maker extraordinaire Betty Williams (previously Turpin) for more years than she’d probably care for any of us to remember. When she joined the Street, she was already a veteran performer, having started performing at the age of 8.

Classic Serial: The Moonstone Radio 4, Sunday 3pm
A four-part adaptation of Wilkie Collins’ novel, which some say set the template for the modern detective drama. Kenneth Cranham is Sergeant Cuff, who travels to a mysterious country house to investigate the disappearance of the titular diamond. Eleanor Bron, Jasmine Hyde and Paul Rhys also star.

Drama on 3: Living with Princes Radio 3, Sunday 8pm
Roger Allam and Jane Lapotaire star in Stephen Wakelam’s tale of Michel de Montaigne, who in 1588 journeyed around the troubled kingdom of France on a mission to reconcile the Valois King Henri the Third, a Catholic, with his likely successor, the Bourbon King of Navarre, a Protestant.

Afternoon Play: Market - Loco Parentis Radio 4, Monday 2.15pm
Gary Brown’s play Loco Parentis is the first of six self-contained dramas about people who work in and around the market stalls of a northern city. Jim (Reece Dinsdale) is having trouble sleeping, because his daughter has left for university, his business is failing, he suspects his wife is having an affair and his father’s health is failing. Understandably, he’s desperate to escape his life…

Mordrin McDonald: 21st-Century Wizard Radio 4, Wednesday 11pm
A second series for David Kay and Gavin Smith’s sitcom about Mordrin, a procrastinating wizard who’d really rather not perform the heroic acts he eventually undertakes.

Afternoon Play: Ursula and Boy Radio 4, Thursday 2.15pm
From a wizard to a witch - Ursula Kemp was an Essex woman who was executed for witchcraft in 1582, based on the testimony of her own eight-year-old son. Meg Fraser stars as Ursula in Abigail Docherty’s drama.

Friday Play: YT and the Soprano Radio 4, Friday 9pm
Hip hop rapper Sway plays YT, who falls in love with Gabrielle (Clare Watkins), a soprano opera singer, when he hears her sing Signore, ascolta from Puccini’s Turandot. When he steals a recording of her aria and remixes it, it becomes an underground hit.

Tonight, Channel 4 starts a new topical satire show, 10 O’Clock Live, with Jimmy Carr, David Mitchell, Charlie Brooker and Lauren Laverne.

I won’t be watching this episode until at least tomorrow — mostly because I’m going out tonight and forgot to set the PVR. Based as it is on 2010’s Alternative Election Night, which I wasn’t keen on, I’m prepared for the possibility that four performers/presenters I really like individually (well, three and Carr) don’t really work all that well together.

I hope my (perhaps unfairly low) expectations are exceeded. Mostly because we need a good quality political satire show that can take the subject matter seriously enough to then completely take the mickey out of it.

And since Channel 4 dropped The Daily Show with Jon Stewart from its More4 schedules (save for the weekly highlights package, The Global Edition), there is nothing fulfilling that function on television at the moment.

Nobody much misses BBC4’s effort, The Late Edition, presented by Marcus Brigstocke and which ran between 2005 and 2008, and which in format was very close to The Daily Show. That’s partly because (a) it wasn’t very good and (b) nobody watched it in the first place.

But The Daily Show’s absence from our screens is something I really do miss. Jon Stewart’s effective skewering of US cable news channels and Washington politics is usually right on the button. And in the last show More4 broadcast, Stewart’s coverage of a bill that would give additional health coverage to the emergency services personnel who were first on the scene of the September 11 terrorist attacks is widely credited with helping to get the bill past the stalemate situation that had arisen in Congress.

Luckily, The Daily Show is still available in the UK — for a price. The iTunes Store sells individual episodes for £1.89, which is a bit excessive in my view. However, for £9.99 you can buy a “multi-pass”, which will give you the most recent episode for immediate download and the next 15 episodes as soon as they become available. That makes each episode download cost just over 62p each, which is a lot more bearable.

• The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on iTunes

Tonight, BBC4 continues its occasional series of dramas looking at classic heroes of comedy with Hattie, documenting the turbulent love life of Hattie Jacques. In the early 1960s, Hattie had an affair with her driver, John Schofield, while still married to actor John Le Mesurier.

Over on the BBC TV blog, producer Seb Barwell talks about the project, including the script by Stephen Russell and the casting of Ruth Jones as Hattie, Robert Bathurst as Le Mesurier and Being Human’s Aidan Turner as Schofield.

As a taster, two short clips are available:

Trawling through The Stage archives of the time, I found a review of a series Jacques made with commercial broadcaster ABC in 1964, a year after the events dramatised in the BBC’s film.

Sunday afternoon serial Miss Adventure saw Jacques playing private investigator Stacey Smith. And, if the opinion of Stage reviewer Marjorie Norris is anything to go by, it was a bit of a stinker:

…The idea of having a woman investigator is fine. The idea of casting Hattie Jacques is even better. I don’t subscribe to the belief that someone who has made a reputation in comedy must go on being funny ad infinitum; but to take someone like Hattie Jacques, give her the starring role in a mystery serial, and then make her play a nitwit who loses her nerve and squeaks with terror when someone suggests moving a dead body from one place to another, makes for neither drama nor comedy. A woman detective should be happy-go-lucky and/or efficient to get maximum effect from her femininity.

On a quick count I can’t think of any woman appearing on television who is more loved than Hattie Jacques…

…Faintly, like a far off echo, pressing my ear to the set, I seemed to hear the whimpering of an originally light-hearted script that was being trodden on.

I remember Hattie from the later years of her role in Eric Sykes’ long-running sitcom Sykes (as well, of course, as the Carry On films). At the time — this would have been the late 1970s — the assertion that Jacques was one of the best loved women on television was still true. And hopefully after tonight’s BBC4 programming, which includes archive programmes as well as the drama, it can be true in 2011 as well.

• Read the full review of Miss Adventure
• Browse and search the entire Stage Archive at thestage.co.uk/archive

Saturday Play: Master Harold and the Boys Radio 4, Saturday 2.30pm
South African playwright Athol Fulgrad introduces a new production of his semi-autobiographical 1982 work. Seventeen year old Hally, growing up in 1950s apartheid South Africa, spends all his time with his parents’ black servants, Sam and Willie. As the two servants practice their dance moves, some news emerges that will change their relationship with ‘Master Harold’ for ever.

Jimmy Carr’s Comedy Cuts Radio 2, Saturday 10pm
A series of masterclasses in comedy, using examples culled from the BBC radio archives, is hosted by Jimmy Carr. The first of the six-part series looks at the art of stand-up, with clips from Bill Bailey, Eddie Izzard and Rowan Atkinson amongst others.

Drama on 3: Charles and Mary Radio 3, Sunday 8pm
Paul Rhys and Lia Williams star as brother and sister Charles and Mary Lamb, whose adaptation of Shakespeare’s tales for children has been popular for over 200 years. Their own lives were no less dramatic: he was an alcoholic and she was driven insane by a combination of poverty and stress.

Afternoon Play: Haunted Radio 4, Wednesday 2.15pm
Steffan Rhodri plays Will Morgan, a professional television illusionist and Zoe Tapper a psychic medium who lock horns when asked to work on the same television show. Their very different beliefs about the spirit world are tested when Hayley (Tapper) receives a message from the other side for Will from an angry young man…

Showstopper Radio 4, Wednesday 6.30pm
The improvised musical troupe that has been pleasing Edinburgh Fringe and London audiences makes a well-deserved transition to a full radio series after a successful pilot last year.

Afternoon Play: Notes to Self Radio 4, Thursday 2.15pm
Deborah Wain’s poignant drama about Alzheimer’s is based on real experiences, and among the dramatic scenes includes recording of therapeutic music sessions recorded at care homes and day centres. Linda Bassett plays Doreen, whose failing memory seems to unlock during sing-along sessions.

Friday Play: The Wild Ass’s Skin Reloaded Radio 4, Friday 9pm
A modern day retelling of Balzac’s 1831 novel La Peau de chagrin, adapted by Adrian Penketh. An unemployed investment banker (Elliot Cowan) is given a magical animal skin which will grant him his every wish - but with the price being his own health. Don Gilet also stars as a drag queen who goes by the name of Miss Givings.

Comedy Rocks with Jason Manford ITV1, Friday 9pm
After last week’s very good Fool Us, ITV1 seems to be staking a claim on Friday night light entertainment with this new six-part combination of topical stand-up and pop music. Jason Manford hosts. One presumes the show won’t be sponsored by Skype.

Fast and Loose BBC2, Friday 10pm
Hugh Dennis hosts a new improvisational comedy show, produced by Dan Patterson, who created the not-at-all-similar Whose Line Is It Anyway?.

La Boheme Sky Arts 2, Saturday 8pm
Sky Arts’ Royal Opera House season continues with Puccini’s classic, starring Teodor Ilincai as Rodolpho and Hibla Gerzmava as Mimi.

British Comedy Awards: The Nominations Channel 4, Saturday 10.05pm
Comic’s Choice Channel 4, Sunday 10pm
Now that ITV has relinquished the broadcasting of the BCAs to Channel 4, its new hosts are eager to promote their new acquisition in ways which, frankly, benefit us the viewers and the comedy sector to good benefit. As a prelude to next weekend’s awards ceremony, we get a preview of all the nominees in each category on Saturday night, while on Sunday we get the first of five shows in which Bill Bailey interviews comedians about their favourite comedy performers. Alan Davies kicks off the run, which continues throughout the week.

I have a soft spot for Law and Order: UK. I should hate it: its scripts are adapted from cases that first appeared in one of the original American series, and in following a single case from first discovery to verdict in the space of an hour, there’s rarely the complexity that you used to get in a two-hour Prime Suspect. (That said, each episode is more eventful than Above Suspicion: Deadly Intent, which only really got interesting in the closing minutes of the last episode).

Anyway, BBC America has been airing the UK series for a while now, to generally favourable response. And now BBCA is so confident about the show’s appeal that its latest advertising promotion isn’t afraid to poke a little fun:

Glee E4, Monday 9pm
The high school show choir comedy drama returns. Perhaps you’ve heard of it. Season 2 opens with the school’s resident blogger interviewing the glee club members on video, in the process deftly acknowledging criticisms of the show’s first season that critics and fans alike had been more than vocal about. It’s a solid first episode and, while future weeks lose their way a bit, the ride is as enjoyably silly as ever.

Shameless Channel 4, from Monday 10pm
The Gallaghers and Maguires are back with a vengeance, with the longest ever series (22 episodes in all) that starts with five nightly episodes.

Episodes BBC2, Monday 10pm
A coproduction between the BBC and Showtime, this new comedy from Friends co-creator David Crane sees Tamsin Greig and Stephen Mangan as a UK-based comedy writing couple whose successful British sitcom gets picked up by an American network. Along the way, though, network interference sees the show change beyond recognition, with Richard Griffiths’ genial headmaster being replaced by former Friends actor Matt LeBlanc.

Taggart ITV1, Tuesday 9pm
A new six-part series of the Glasgow-set murder series, which has already been broadcast on STV (scant consolation for the broadcaster’s lackadaisical treatment of quality dramas produced south of the border, I should think).

Kidnap and Ransom ITV1, Thursday 9pm
A new three-part serial starring Trevor Eve and made by his own production company, Projector Pictures in co-production with Talkback Thames. Eve plays Dominic King, a hostage negotiator who is sent to South Africa to try and help with the release of an English businesswoman (Emma Fielding). That things don’t go smoothly is more or less a given, isn’t it? Helen Baxendale costars as King’s boss, with Natasha Little as his wife.

The Great Outdoors BBC2, Thursday 10pm
A much welcomed BBC2 repeat for this three-part comedy series commissioned by, and first show on, BBC4. Mark Heap plays the organiser of a walking club that rambles along various routes in the Chiltern Hills, but finds the dynamic of the group becomes unbalanced by the arrival of new member Christine (Ruth Jones). Kevin Cecil and Andy Riley’s script reminded me a lot of Channel 4’s The Book Group, and I can think of no higher compliment.

Penn and Teller: Fool Us ITV1, Friday 9pm
American magicians Penn and Teller are known for deconstructing traditional magic tricks as a means of performing something far more complex and subtle. In this one-off show, hosted by the now non-BBC Jonathan Ross, they audition British conjurors with a view to offering the winner a spot in their prestigious Las Vegas show. The criterion for winning is that the trick each act should perform should be new, and should fool P&T. Hopefully the result will be far more interesting than The Magicians (see below).

Hustle BBC1, Friday 9pm
The heist caper returns for a seventh series. You know the drill by now, surely - all those archly hip slow motion shots and winks to camera as a con appears to go one way, then just as it looks like it has failed, we see what really happened. All still good fun, but one can’t help thinking that it’s a little too repetitive these days.

The Magicians BBC1, Saturday 7pm
From repetitive to just plain dull. What could have beea joyous return to stage magic is marred by the presentation of this series, which pairs the same three magic acts up with a different celebrity each week. Truth be told, last week showed the folly of the whole approach: Bruno Tonioli hammed up his role so much he made Jon Culshaw’s excruciating impression of him start to look authentic, while BBC Breakfast presenter Sian Williams was lumbered with a trick whose overcomplicated setup rendered the payoff more of a relief than a reveal.

Covent Garden Season: Swan Lake Sky Arts 2, Saturday 8pm
Sky Arts kicks off the new year with a season of six classic shows from the stage of the Royal Opera House. The season starts with Anthony Dowell’s version of Swan Lake”, starring Marianela Nuñez and Thiago Soares.

Derren Brown night Channel 4, Saturday from 9pm To celebrate his ten years on television, Channel 4 devotes an evening to the “psychological illusionist”, starting with a new documentary about the man featuring interviews with friends, family and famous fans. That is followed by one of his specials as voted for by viewers, and then a repeat of stage show Enigma, first broadcast last night.

Lark Rise to Candleford BBC1, Sunday 8pm Bill Gallagher’s series returns. The Timmins family must come to terms with the absence of patriarch Robert (actor Brendan Coyle having jumped ship to Downton Abbey). On the upside, this helps showcase Claudie Blakely’s acting range in ways her character has previously barely touched upon.

Every year, The Stage publishes The Stage 100, a list of the most influential people working in the theatre industry. For the last several years we have also published a complementary list focussing on our other passions of television and radio.

2011’s list, published in this week’s issue of The Stage and revealed below, is listed alphabetically. The 20 (actually 26, as some entries ‘double up’) includes comedians and writers as well as the faces behind the programming of Britain’s major television channels.

Summaries are written by Matthew Hemley and Scott Matthewman.

Shane Allen comedy controller

Channel 4 head of comedy Allen has spent the last year ensuring comedy continues to thrive on the channel, bringing us the likes of The Morgana Show - which gave new talent Morgana Robinson her big break - and PhoneShop. The broadcaster revealed in October it had ploughed an extra £5 million into its comedy budget and in 2011 its spend will be almost double 2009 levels. And with the loss of Big Brother meaning Allen has more hours to fill, comedy lovers can expect some fun viewing in the year to come, including Campus, a new series from the creators of Green Wing, plus fresh shows from Noel Fielding and Chris Addison.

Mark Bell/Jan Younghusband

Bell is the BBC’s commissioning editor for the arts, while Younghusband oversees BBC music and events. Bell commissioned the drama Garrow’s Law - which returned for a second run in 2010 - and Macbeth, the broadcast version of the stage show starring Patrick Stewart. Younghusband has recently commissioned Frankenstein’s Wedding… Live in Leeds, which will be broadcast in March and is described by the BBC as a “bold and ambitious music and drama event”. She was also behind an array of programmes about opera in 2010, which included content of productions from the Royal Opera House and documentaries from the likes of Stephen Fry.

Camilla Campbell

Campbell has held the top job in drama at Channel 4 for just over a year now, and in September she finally got to unveil her plans for the broadcaster, vowing to double its output of original drama from next year. Last year viewers saw This is England ‘86, Mo and Any Human Heart. This year the broadcaster will give us Peter Kosminsky’s The Promise, as well as Ronan Bennett’s thriller Top Boy. There will also be Naked Apes, which will air on Channel 4, and Beaver Falls, for E4. Campbell has promised “more to come throughout 2011”. Its output might not be as large as other channels, but it always punches well above its weight.

Danny Cohen

Described by BBC Vision director Jana Bennett as one of “the most talented TV executives of his generation”, Cohen was appointed controller of the UK’s most popular channel - BBC1 - in October 2009. Just 36 years old, Cohen was formerly in charge of BBC3 and its £100 million budget but now has a budget of £1.13 billion. At BBC3 he relaunched the channel to give it a better focus on young audiences. While it may be too soon to see what he plans to do with BBC1, those within the industry have welcomed the appointment, with one drama producer saying of Cohen - who oversaw the commissioning of drama Being Human - that he is someone who “understands classy drama”. Watch this space.

Simon Cowell

Whatever you think of him, there’s no denying the impact Cowell has had, and continues to have, on entertainment television. Britain’s Got Talent and The X Factor, which his company Syco co-produces with Talkback Thames, continue to be watched by millions every year. ITV in 2010 signed up both shows for another three years. On top of that, Cowell was recently presented with an Emmy in recognition of his contribution to television around the world. The ‘stars’ his shows found in 2010 might not be around at the end of this year, but Cowell doesn’t appear to be going anywhere fast.

Julian Fellowes

With ITV director of drama Laura Mackie calling him a writer at “the top of his game”, Fellowes enjoyed huge success last year with Downton Abbey, starring Maggie Smith. The first episode of the upstairs downstairs drama debuted with more than seven million viewers, while the last episode ended with around ten million. Meanwhile, ITV has ordered a second series to be shown this year and is already thinking about a third. Fellowes has also been commissioned by ITV to write a drama about the sinking of the Titanic, so things certainly seem to be going his way.

The list continues after the jump