The End of Oak Street review

 

In the Eighties, when this movie is set, there was a phrase that said: “don’t bore us, get to the chorus” referring to those songs with short verses and memorable choruses and it is this sort of philosophy that The End of Oak Street follows. With as little a preamble as you need- though one that contains quite a lot of material - David Robert Mitchell’s film soon cuts to the chases and offers exciting set pieces and plenty of nerve-jangling action. Yes, it does share some dino DNA with the likes of successive Jurassic World films and also the tv show Primeval but has enough ingredients of its own to provide memorable moments and rekindle that feeling you would get watching a film as a kid. Come on, its dinosaurs running wild in Eighties America! How can you not enjoy that?

Raaarrrrghh. Spoilers lurk in this review...

 

Our Hero, Balthazar review

This film has had quite a strong online promotional presence and like many when I first saw one of the Bboy Malone videos pop up on YouTube I thought it was real; some kid literally crying about the state of the world and its not as unlikely a sight as you’d think. It was only when they kept appearing and its subject seemed equally distressed about all kinds of things that I twigged it was for the film. These videos and clips have got crazier – Balthazar is the first ethical feminist to become pregnant! – yet in terms of the film they may be giving a slightly misleading impression. As a campaign it worked though as it led me to the film itself yet while Our Hero, Balthazar has some dark humour it’s an intriguing look at characters that society- whether at the top or near the bottom- overlooks.

Top of the Pops 15th August 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Gary Davies: “Hello. Very good evening to you. Welcome to a hot summer night’s edition of Top of the Pops and of course we are in stereo on Radio 1FM. In the studio tonight we have Right Said Fred, and Sophie Lawrence, and PM Dawn, and we start off with the second highest new entry in the charts. At seventeen, Level 42, Guaranteed.”

 [17] LEVEL 42: GUARANTEED. Level 42 have been away. They last appeared briefly on Top of the Pops in 1989 when their song Tracie was a breaker on the 26/01/1989 edition. When did they last see the inside of the Top of the Pops studio? That would be 01/09/1988 when they performed Heaven In Your Hands and even on that occasion Mark Goodier described how they “have been away for a long time”.

Grand Designs!

 

I wanted to recommend two artists whose work now features prominently in my house which I’ve recently been having redecorated room by room. One of the aspects I really wanted to freshen up were the wall hanging pictures. Previously there was an assortment of various images of different vintages whereas I wanted to have something more in line with the new furnishings. And that’s how I found two artists whose work I think is excellent and wanted to do a little to promote it in case you, too, were pondering over what art to put on your walls.

Top of the Pops 8th August 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Nicky Campbell: “Oh, very good to see you. Thanks for joining us. Listen, tonight’s show is wonderful. Rock and roll up for the greatest pop show on Earth, Top of the Pops and prepare to marvel at the line up tonight. Truly incredible. Let’s start off with three fun loving guys from Amityville. The phenomenal De La Soul.”

 [22] DE LA SOUL: A ROLLER SKATING JAM NAMED ‘SATURDAYS’. Henry Barber is still doing the Lighting and it looks great. Lots of colour. Lots of studio atmosphere. Good use of the hand held camera operators by Stanley Appel. Yes, this is a really positive start to the show. I could do without Nicky Campbell quoting the Zip-a-de-doo-dah lyric at the end. When he does it, it’s not cool.

Top of the Pops 25th July & 1st August 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 25/07/1991

 Mark Goodier: “Hi. Good evening. Welcome to the UK’s number one hit music show, Top of the Pops with stereo sound on Radio 1FM. We’ve got Danni Minogue on tonight, we have Cher, we also have OMD, and we start with the brilliant Shamen. Rapping, scratchin’, and singin’ live on Move Any Mountain.”

 [9] THE SHAMEN: MOVE ANY MOUNTAIN. It’s all a bit flat. Stanley Appel directs Vision Mixer Ben Fuller to mostly bounce between static camera angles when a song like this needs energy and oomph. It needs panning cameras and constantly moving handheld camera shots. It needs more dynamic lighting and atmosphere. Where are the strobes and the spotlights and the smoke? Why are we limited to flashing banks of orange and blue lights along the studio roof? Basically, why is this all a bit boring? It should be brilliant but somehow the direction and staging sucks away all the life.

Move Any Mountain is a great single. This is three minutes of a bunch of blokes doing their best but being offered no support. It’s as if Stanley Appel expects the viewer to be so impressed by a live vocal that no other work is required. It’s like offering someone a cake and dumping eggs, flour, milk, and sugar on the table. Additional work is required.

Spider-Man - Brand New Day review

 

Brand New Day, as the title attests is a relatively fresh start. What you need to know is neatly summed up at the time you need to know it and even though most of the main characters are not new, they feel fresh again. People are saying this is the best of the current era of Spiderman films which may be true though we should acknowledge the excellence of the previous three has created the platform on which this one can triumph. Brand New Day is a joyride to experience and by a comfortable distance the best new film I’ve seen this year so far.

 Some Spidey Spoilers contained in this review....

The Odyssey review

 You never really know what you’re going to get with a Christopher Nolan film. I remember wondering before both Dunkirk how he could find a new way to present a familiar story. With Oppenheimer I imagined it wouldn’t be very exciting yet it was even though it was mostly conversational. As for Inception and Tenet, they are strange out there movies that work even though they shouldn’t. The Odyssey is I suppose the original story, or at least one of the first great tales. Its credited to Homer though he may just have been the first person to write down a story that, like many of that time, were passed on by word of mouth. Can Christopher Nolan reinvigorate yet remain true to such a venerable work? Spoiler- yes!

 

Heartstopper Forever review

It’s only been four years yet it seems longer since we first met Nick Nelson and Charlie Spring tentatively starting their relationship and I would imagine only those who watched the previous three seasons will check this finale. What's really changed though in that time is that it feels like the accepting atmosphere in which a series like this could thrive has been challenged.  While even some of its loyal audience have to admit that Heartstopper has sometimes been the frothiest confection that may not even fully represent the generation it is supposed to, the fact that it is being made at all is important in itself. However, that does mean the show has had something of a free pass in that aspects that would have received criticism had they appeared in other series were overlooked. On the flip side it has been a welcome change to have a drama unafraid of brightness and joy rather than the seemingly endless parade of dark thrillers that seem to make a lot of the running these days. This feature length conclusion closes off the story in a satisfactory though not outstanding manner. 

Spoilers after the break...

 

Top of the Pops 18th July 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Jakki Brambles: “Hello, good evening and welcome along to Top of the Pops on BBC1 and you can hear us in stereo on Radio 1FM. Well, it’s an all star line up on tonight’s show. We’re starting off with a lady who’s knocking ‘em dead on both sides of the Atlantic. Will you welcome, in the studio, Cathy Dennis.”

 [28] CATHY DENNIS: JUST ANOTHER DREAM. A very high concept start to this performance. Kathy Dennis stands singing while dancers wearing black raincoats and Fedoras turn and pretend to take photos of her. It’s all terribly symbolic and I’m sure its a marvellous metaphor for something or other but I don’t know what. Kathy doesn’t seem to be disappointed by the attention and why should she when she’s wearing a one-piece hot-pants suit covered in sequins. Fortunately for everyone concerned the dancers disrobe to reveal underneath their raincoats they are all wearing neon-coloured bikini tops and hot pants. 

Why don’t I have dreams like this? I get nightmares about rats attacking me on the bog*.

*Curse you, James Herbert!

Dating Amber (2020)

 

This overlooked, light hearted film set in 1995 is about two closeted Irish teenagers, Eddie and Amber. Tired of the homophobic jibes they have to endure, they conjure up a plan to pretend to be a straight couple. While initially this eases the pressures on them and also means they are meeting familial expectations it leads to other more complex problems. David Freyne’s delightful film turns what could be a serious topic into something altogether more comedic with some pin sharp observations and two characters whom the viewer soon gets to like. In a way it’s a romcom without the `rom` as the duo’s pretence leads to each of them discovering more about themselves.

 

Top of the Pops 11th July 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Bruno Brookes: “Good evening. Welcome to another sizzling Top of the Pops. All hot stuff on the show tonight. Later on we’ve got Bryan Adams for you. INXS, Billy Bragg, and Bros to name a few. First of all at number twenty eight is D.J.H. featuring Stefy. You need it. And you love it!”

 [28] D.J.H. featuring STEFY: I LIKE IT. The shape of the new-look Top of the Pops is being assembled in the background. We’ve had Michael Hurll’s changes to the way the charts are presented. And, as a side effect of this, the interstitial graphics for the Top 40, Top 10, and Breakers have been retired. Oh, and the Top 5 Albums countdown has been quietly dropped as well. There’s also the green screen and separating the host from the audience.

Enola Holmes 3 review

 

At the beginning of this third instalment of the adventures of Sherlock Holmes’ smart sister, Enola is late, a nod perhaps to the tardy arrival of the film. It’s more than three and a half years since the second in the series so you’d be forgiven for forgetting what happened. Luckily anything you need to know is folded into this brisk, energetic package mostly set in Malta rather than England. The location adds a new character to the tale which may not be as knotty as the cases dealt with by Enola’s older brother but is exciting and involving enough.

 Spoilers after the break

 

Top of the Pops 4th July 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Gary Davies: “Hello. Very good evening to you. Welcome to Top of the Pops. We are in stereo on Radio 1 97 to 99 FM and we have a terrific show for you tonight. In the studio we have Cola Boy and Kim Appleby, but we start off with this week’s highest climber. It’s called Always There, Incognito and Jocelyn Brown.”

 [9] INCOGNITO Featuring JOCELYN BROWN: ALWAYS THERE. I’ve just noticed another small tweak to the title sequence. The little sprite chased by the camera through the title sequence has gone. It was added on the 13/06/1991 and lasted all of one week. It was replaced by some less abstract but more dull numbers; 5,2,4,1. It’s probably Stanley Appel’s PIN.

Top of the Pops 27th June 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Simon Mayo: “Hello this is Top of the Pops. Thirty minutes of songs for your folks to complain about. Question. Give me a singing superstar from Belgium. Yes, yes, yes. Singing nun. Any ideas? Plastic Bertrand. Yes. Any more? Well you can add this lot to the pile because they’re at number twenty two a spooky thing, the band are Cubic 22.”

 [22] CUBIC 22: NIGHT IN MOTION. Please welcome Stanley Appel to the Produced and Directed by credit. He’s been around for years, obviously, but now he is here to shepherd Top of the Pops into the nineties, and beyond. This is awkward. I don’t much like his style. I’ve previously described it as dull. Although, fair play to the man, he directed a storming performance by The Wedding Present on the 27/09/1990 show.

Supergirl review

 

Superhero films are not generally a lot of fun when there’s serious world saving to be done yet Supergirl ,while it does have some darker hues to its story, is light and breezy enough to make you smile. Unlike the most recent Superman its clear his cousin takes her responsibilities a lot less seriously even if tis is covering up for traumatic past issues. The relatively small stakes of the plot compared with the other films of this ilk do make it more amenable to those less familiar with the backstory. In tone Supergirl lines up more with something like Guardians of the Galaxy. And, yes, the music is very loud!

Spoilers after the break.

 

Top of the Pops 20th June 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Nicky Campbell: “Hello. Good evening. Welcome to the brilliant new look Top of the Pops. Prepare to be engulfed in a fiesta of music and colour. Lights and action. Sound and vision. What a show. Five live acts, the best music videos and what a start. Here is the r-r-r-r-Rebel MC.”

 [20] REBEL MC/TENOR FLY/B.LEVY: TRIBAL BASE. It seems a little over the top for Nicky Campbell to describe minor format tweaks as a new look. However, there’s an interesting snippet of news in the following week’s Stage And Television Today.

That news item would have been written in the week the 20/06/1991Top of the Pops was being prepared and recorded. It is possible Nicky Campbell was asked to describe the small changes made to Top of the Pops as a “new look” to throw people off the scent a bit.

Disclosure Day review

 

I suspect that if proof of aliens really was disclosed at this current febrile time the public reaction would be hysterical with calls for them to be locked up, dropped on the Moon or something similarly draconian. This is not presently a world receptive to `others` of the human variety let along extra-terrestrials. The idea of such a reveal is what drives Steven Spielberg’s latest which returns him to the territory of ET and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Disclosure Day lacks the certainty of those earlier movies though and the sense of wonder they created is in shorter supply. I think it’s potentially a good story presented in a way that doesn’t do it justice.

 Spoilers disclosed after the break...

Invaders from Mars (1953)

 

“Gee Whizz!” Big green men invade a small town in this classic sci fi film

 If the plot of Invaders from Mars seems familiar then that’s likely to be because it’s proven to be hugely influential on subsequent generations of filmmakers. The likes of Joe Dante and John Landis are fans while Martin Scorcese has named it as one of the best uses of lighting and colour in film. While it does appear to fulfil its title admirably it also sets a template for future invasion pictures to follow or extrapolate from. Re-released last month with a fantastic restoration, we can have a more vivid experience watching it than even those 1953 cinemagoers did.

 

Top of the Pops 13th June 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Jakki Brambles: “Hello. Good evening. And welcome to Top of the Pops. It’s a little bit different tonight but you can still hear us in stereo on 1FM. First up, tonight’s show, we have probably the only ever artist who scored five top twenty singles off her debut album and still got dropped by her record label. You can’t keep a good woman down. Here’s Sonia.”

 [11] SONIA: ONLY FOOLS (NEVER FALL IN LOVE). “A little bit different tonight.” That sounds ominous. I’m getting “Great news for all readers inside!” vibes. It sounds like IPC is about to force Top of the Pops to merge with Roy of the Rovers.

Backrooms review

 

Sometimes you can find yourself in one of those shops whose dimensions appear to exceed the space the building occupies. I’ve been in one or two such places and as you start to move away from the hubbub of the entrance, browsing can become a solitary occupation with no other customers around. The further you go, the stranger it can seem. It is this sensation, magnified many times, that Backrooms creates finding scares in such seemingly regular things as walls, rooms, doors and even open space. The debut feature of twenty year old Kane Parsons is an impressively unsettling movie to sit through, one that will make you think twice about roaming off on your own. Like last year’s Weapons it creates an edgy mood that makes the everyday terrifying.

 Some spoilers after the break

 

Spider - Noir review

 For Nicolas Cage to commit to his first television role (apart from appearances as himself or a 1981 pilot) it had to be something special and Spider- Noir definitely is. The phrase `comic book coming to life` is often bandied about but there aren’t many instances where this seems a appropriate a description as with this series. Set in the Thirties, it side steps realism taking inspiration from the printed page and pulp novels to present an absorbing world and a fresh take on familiar material. Even if you’ve seen the Spiderman films, you haven’t seen anything quite like this.

 You can choose to watch in “true black and white” or in what is described as “True Hue Full Colour”. There’s even some guidance as to which format is best for which episodes courtesy of the online fan site Marvel Mania. I’m sure the studio wants us to watch the whole thing twice but it actually works out interestingly to switch back and forth. So, in the reviews below, I’ve noted which format I watched in. In the end, I’d say the black and white edges it making the material look so stylish and adding to its’ strangeness.

Spider Spoilers after the break...

Top of the Pops 6th June 1991

 

Words: Chris Arnsby

Mark Goodier: “Good evening and welcome to Top of the Pops, featuring the world’s most exciting chart the BBC UK Top Forty. There’s lots of variety on the show tonight from Harry Connick Jnr. to the brilliant Northside with their brand new single. This is Take Five.”

 [A quick note for posterity. As I write this, Film is Fabulous have announced the recovery of two lost Beatles performances from the 23/03/1964 edition. It’s 35mm film of them miming to Can’t Buy Me Love and You Can’t Do That; their first appearance on Top of the Pops. If you can afford it, please donate to Film is Fabulous so they can continue their good work https://filmisfabulous.org.uk/the-film-is-fabulous-trust/ ]

 

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Groku review

 

The Star Wars Universe has expanded massively yet despite the undoubted quality of the offshoots (notably the superb Andor) they are a fairly long way from the tone of the 1977 original. Here though is a branch of the tale that indulges in exactly the same fast paced action orientated type of story that lit the fuse.  The Mandalorian and Groku hardly rests, pinwheeling from one place to another frantic to throw our unusual heroes into ever more perilous situations. What you gain from the action you do tend to lose in terms of character but this is a film that brings the fun back to big screen Star Wars.

 

Top of the Pops 23rd & 30th May 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

23/05/1991

 Gary Davies: “Hello. A very good evening to you and welcome to Top of the Pops. Don’t forget we’re in stereo on Radio 1FM and boy do we have a great show for you tonight. We start off with a band who’ve got a new album called The Promise which is coming out in June. They’re in the charts at number twenty with Whenever You Need Me. It’s T’Pau!”

 [20] T’PAU: WHENEVER YOU NEED ME. Apologies to flame-haired crooner Carol Decker but I wouldn’t have started this edition with this song. Then again, I’m not sure which song I would have used to start tonight’s show. This is going to be a double-bill write up because once again I find myself with little to say. Top of the Pops has hit a chart slump between the May Bank Holidays.

Soylent Green (1973)

 Fifty three years ago the events depicted in Soylent Green may have seemed far fetched yet today maybe not so much. Based loosely on Harry Harrison’s novel Make Room, Make Room (though the adaptation changes some events and has a different outcome) the 1973 film depicts population and climate change having rendered life almost impossible for many. People sleep on staircases and queue for hours for synthesised food produced by the Soylent company while everyone suffers under blistering heat twenty four hours per day. Corruption is rife and memories of life before this urban hell are fading.

 

Top of the Pops 9th and 16th May 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 09/05/1991

 Gary Davies: “Hello. A very good evening to you and welcome to Top of the Pops. We’re in stereo on your twenty four hour radio station, Radio 1FM. We have a terrific programme for you tonight. And we start off with a band who are shortly going to release their first album. They’re performing the DNA Groove mix of Get The Message, over there. Electronic!”

 [8] ELECTRONIC: GET THE MESSAGE. This is new. I don’t think a band has performed a different mix of a single before. It’s an interesting idea and I can see how you might want to keep a song fresh for the audience and the performer. It’s just… this is a bit boring isn’t it. It seems very low energy and Bernard Sumner’s voice sounds very quiet in the mix. I appreciate it’s a change of direction for these write ups to start talking about music but, hasn’t this remix boiled out all the good bits of the single? Where’s the drum break gone? Why is Johnny Marr miming to a guitar that only he can hear? 4/10 guys.

Eurovision 2026 Final review

 

I am gutted. Sick as a parrot etc. The two best songs in my opinion were eliminated in the semi’s. Latvia’s `Ena` and Switzerland’s `Alice` are no more which is a big disappointment though maybe not too surprising. Both are quite serious songs, perhaps not the tone required for the party atmosphere of the Final but I hope they are recognised beyond the competition. I really like both of them anyway. Of the others eliminated at this stage, I was also quite sorry to see Armenia, Georgia and Luxembourg go. These exits definitely cut back on the variety of music on display, however as last night’s Final demonstrated there were still plenty of bold performances to savour.

 

Good Omens finale review

 

Having been squeezed into ninety five minutes or so from an originally intended six-part series, its reputation tarnished by the allegations against its co- author, the third instalment of Good Omens seems determined to make a stand. Every scene is accompanied by grandiose incidental music, the story moves fast because it has so little time and the actors give it their best oratory.  Visually it manages to convey a lot even on a reduced budget. In some ways the truncated form helps; season two was definitely prone to meandering whereas this third part focusses on its two main characters, always the key asset. While the reduced screen time does sometimes help, it can also mean narrative leaps that are not always earned.

 

Top of the Pops 2nd May 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Simon Mayo: “Hello. Good evening. Tonight is club night. Welcome to the nicest nightclub in the nation with no dress sense required [glances at the woman to his right]… as you can probably tell. We’re going to start with the most incredible opening to Top of the Pops ever, ever seen. I mean it. Try this at number three. This is KLF. Take it lads.”

 [3] THE KLF: LAST TRAIN TO TRANCENTRAL. The Main Stage is full. I count 11 people, 10 of them dressed in white, diaphanous, robes and Ricardo da Force wearing black. Oh and Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty (or should that be King Boy D and Rockman Rock?) both have a single enormous tusk strapped to their head.

Eurovision 2026 Songs Reviewed

 

In an age when we’re all amateur pundits now, I thought I’d do mini reviews of each song entered into this year’s Eurovision. There’s thirty-five of them altogether and I’d say the standard is a little down on the last couple of years yet also more varied. Trends I noted where the inclusion of operatic influences in several songs (though nobody is spinning on a disk like Nemo) and what has become a Eurovision trope- a song starting as a ballad then lurching into all out techno. There are a lot of serious songs, so much so that a couple where the singer actually smiles and seems to be having fun really stand out. Disappointedly there’s no outright bonkers song this year; in fact the UK’s entry is at the quirkier end of things. It is though a vast improvement on our last couple of attempts.  Of course some of these thirty five songs will be eliminated in the semi- finals probably making my predictions seem totally wrong but that’s half the fun.

 

Top of the Pops 25th April 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Nicky Campbell: “Yes. Top of the Pops. Welcome to your weekly dose. Lewd gyrations. Hips swivelling and loud music. Oh! The youth of today. What a show. The greatest show on Earth in thirty minutes. What a start. Welcome, the amazing E.M.F.”

 [22] EMF: CHILDREN. This sounds to my tin ear like a very guitar and drum heavy song, with not a lot to do for the keyboard player. This might explain why he’s really hamming it up at one side of the stage dragging the keyboard around and battering the keys like he expects them to jump up and attack him. Or, has he been watching the keyboard player from Jesus Jones, and decided to nick his shtick?

ComicCon Liverpool 2nd/ 3rd May 2026

 The essential ingredients for attending a ComicCon are stamina and a good pair of shoes. There is a lot of walking and a lot of queuing which is inevitable when you realise there are 50,000 attendees. This was probably the largest Liverpool event yet staged though its only one of a number around the country.  In common with most events these days everything is done on a large scale while the guests are front of camera people so if you're after insights into production, direction or writing then you won't find them here. For those willing to pay there ae photos or autographs with the stars of some of your favourite tv shows. Plus its not unusual to see Darth Vader or Davros or Spiderman walking around.

Dracula review

 

Most people have a working knowledge of the Dracula story- or do they? There have been so many iterations, adaptations and interpretations of Bram Stoker’s novel, first published in 1897, that many of us are largely unaware of what the original book is like. This daring production aims goes back to the source while also utilising strikingly modern production techniques and an amazing performance by Cynthia Erivo to takes the audience deep into those gothic pages.

Top of the Pops 18th April 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Jakki Brambles: “Hello, good evening, and welcome along to Top of the Pops on BBC1 and of course we are live in stereo on Radio 1FM. We’ve got a right good rollocking show for you tonight, it’s a pleasure to be here. Will you welcome our first band of the night, with Sit Down, live on stage on Top of the Pops, it’s James.”

 [2] JAMES: SIT DOWN. If you haven’t watched it, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWZHPUGPxfo and have a look at the behind the scenes report from the 8.15 From Manchester, 20/04/1991 edition. Michael Hurll is interviewed around 4 minutes in and says: “The producer Paul Ciani at the moment unfortunately is in hospital and they asked me to just pop in and do it. I haven’t done it for four years.”

It would be really interesting to find out when Michael Hurll stepped in to the production cycle. Who took the initiative for the redesign of the Film Strip stage? The big central circular element has been left in the scenery store. A huge grey cyclorama has been hung behind the stage and on it Graham Rimmington is projecting big colourful moving flower shapes. It looks really good. It makes the stage look massive, especially in comparison to the normal look which is designed to create an enclosed, performance space. This is a wide open blasted heath that King Lear could really dig.

Boarders review

A few years ago, a group of under privileged but intelligent pupils spent a period at Rugby public school and it is that as well as his own experiences as a black pupil at a mostly middle class, white University that inspired writer Daniel Lawrence Taylor to pen Boarders.  I would doubt though whether a lot of the scenarios depicted in this lively and occasionally riotous series actually happened which is a good call that pulls the series a\way from being too over earnest. Set over three six-episode series, Boarders charts the varying experience of five bright sixth formers who are plucked from urban surroundings by an outreach programme and placed in the somewhat rarefied country atmosphere of  St Gilberts school. It’s a place with a raft of traditions, some formal school activities with Latin names, others exuberant and often weird student traditions. The narrative tries to cover each of the pupils equally, their different journeys exploring all the possibilities of the experience.

 

Top of the Pops 11 April 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Anthea Turner: “Hallo there! Welcome to another edition of Top of the Pops! On BBC1 and Radio 1 in FM stereo! We’ve got a really lively show for you tonight! That’s going to include Danni Minogue, Madonna, Monie Love, and we’re starting with The Wonder Stuff at six!”

 [6] THE WONDER STUFF: THE SIZE OF A COW. There’s an immediate difference to the look of the programme. Gone are the blue and purple lights and careful use of black spaces, instead the studio is lit with bright yellow and purple lights. Sure enough, there’s a new (old) name on the credits. Replacing David Lock, Graham Rimmington. He last had a go in the summer of 1990. I do like the way the BBC rotates staff off Top of the Pops. It keeps it looking different.

Top of the Pops 4 April 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Gary Davies: “Hello. Very good evening to you. We are all live tonight from Television Centre. We’re in stereo on Radio 1FM. In the studio we’ve got The Mock Turtles, Fergeal Sharkey, and N-joi, but first we start off with a song at number thirty in the charts. It’s called Caravan, Inspiral Carpets.”

 [30] INSPIRAL CARPETS: CARAVAN. There’s an odd detail on the VT Countdown clock at the start of this episode, a note that reads “P AS B” which stands for Programme AS Broadcast. I’m probably teaching everyone who reads this to suck eggs* but this note is there because this is a live edition. No time for edits. Cross your fingers and hope everyone behaves themselves.

Crookhaven review

This new series, showing on BBC and on the iPlayer,  adapted by Justin Young based on books by JJ Arcanjo and aimed at a family audience initially comes across as something of a cross between Alex Ryder and MI High. Yet it proves to be somewhat more complicated than the former and less comedic than the latter, dialling up conspiracies and double crosses aplenty. Its been a while since there’s been a drama for any audience with quite so many plot twists and turns. Neither does the series linger on its mysteries, for the most part answering them in an episode or two before moving on. The results are a strangely addictive show that benefits from bingeing if only to keep track of where the tangled plot is heading.

 

Robin and Marian (1976)

 There have been many versions of the Robin Hood story on both cinema and television all of which have essentially kept within the familiar timespan. Richard Leser’s 1976 film however takes up the story twenty years after those events introducing us to older versions of the characters. I suppose it’s a sequel to all of those versions that had gone before and after. The concept is definitely an intriguing one with the potential to explore a hero after their heroics are over, facing middle age and different problems. As it turns out, this is not quite that film but it makes a bold attempt to be different from the Robin Hood story we know.

 

Top of the Pops 28th March 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Bruno Brookes: “Hello, good evening, and welcome to the world’s number one music show. This is Top of the Pops. Hope you’re well. Okay it’s a Minogue who’s going to start us off on the show tonight, this record has already been number four in [adopts hilarious Aussie accent] Australia, and Love and Kisses of course is produced by the wonderful Danni Minogue.”

 [31] DANNI MINOGUE: LOVE AND KISSES. Is this a new set, or just a rearranged Triangle Stage? I think it’s the latter. The main omission is the big perspex cross, seen to good effect in Feargal Sharkey’s performance last week. David Lock has also slung three tightly-packed rows of horizontal lights over the top of the stage. This gives it the appearance of having a fixed roof, whereas before the top was open. It’s really surprising how a couple of very minor changes can have a big effect on the look. 

Project Hail Mary review

 

Based on the novel by Andy Weir, Project Hail Mary is a tricky film to pin down. Part sci -fi odyssey, part environmental allegory, part charming if unconventional buddy flick, it travels as far as its main character does. Already being talked up as an Oscar prospect I would hesitate to place it quite so high yet it is hugely enjoyable, packed with imaginative vistas and tense scenarios. It is best seen on an IMAX screen where you, too, can travel to infinity and beyond.

Spoilers beyond this break

One Piece Season 2 Eps 5 to 8 reviews

The second half of the second season - time to meet Tony Tony Chopper!! 

Spoilers in the reviews from the start...

Wax On, Wax Off (wr Joe Tracz / dir Christophe Schrew)

By now we know to expect the unexpected when it comes to One Piece and this episode is a particular example of how eccentric a series it can be. Despite the tropical island setting there’s an air of Victorian macabre in the villainy afoot, a contrast to the bold heroics of the previous episode. As the gang each fall victim to sundry powers that exchange their personality or leave them isolated its at the hands of antagonists who can wield wax or paint with strange qualities. The first half of the episode seems to enjoy stretching these ideas as wide as Luffy’s rubbery abilities with a certain repetition creeping in.

Top of the Pops 14th and 21st March 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

14/03/1991

Simon Mayo: “Good evening. Welcome to Top of the Pops. A stonking [points at red nose attached to microphone] good edition we have today. Gonna start at number eighteen with a guy who’s never been on the show before. Back in the sixties his dad was on the whole time, he was Chip Hawkes from the Tremeloes. Here’s his son Chesney, the one and only. This week’s number eighteen. Go for it Ches…”

 [18] CHESNEY HAWKES: THE ONE AND ONLY. It’s Red Nose Day Eve, 1991. The night before the funnest day of the year. I hope you were ready to be pushed down a hill in a bath of trifle for charity. Everyone in the studio, well nearly everyone, is doing their bit wearing the 1991 brand red noses with little hands coming off the side.

I like the way David Lock opts to light Chesney Hawkes and friends with white spotlights that really make them stand out from the purple and blue lighting scheme, and the vast areas of darkness in the studio. Apart from that, I have little to say about the first act of the evening. (John- It is obligatory to mention that this song was written by Nik Kershaw and that this was indeed Ches' one and only hit)

One Piece Season 2 Eps 1 to 4 reviews

 

Sophomore seasons of a successful tv show always face a dilemma. Do they try and simply reproduce the signatures of the first season or do they strike out in new directions? Luckily for One Piece, the map was already drawn. The debut season, two and a half years ago now, established the world, brought together the Straw Hat pirates and only by the last episode did they have the capabilities to try and realise Monkey D Luffy’s ambition of becoming king of the pirates by claiming the One Piece. So the second season was always going to be different. If none of this makes sense, then you probably do need to watch season one before delving into the follow up. In fact the One Piece story, as told in the comics, is so vast and on going perhaps we will never see this quest end.

This first half of the second season delves deeper into the lore of the story, introducing some bizarrely attired and strangely superpowered characters while seemingly playing with a bigger budget. A show not to be taken over seriously but never to be underestimated, One Piece is close to perfect.

 Spoilers in the following reviews...

Top of the Pops 7th March 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Nicky Campbell: “Oh, tonight’s Top of the Pops, let me tell you, is one of dazzling lustre and it’s a rare privilege to introduce to you to rock and roll megaliths, two living legends, two demi-gods, two super heroes, two big hairy bottomed, stonkermongers, Hale and Pace.”

 [10] HALE & PACE & THE STONKERS: THE STONK. Nicky Campbell is once again picked to be the host of the Comic Relief edition. Last time, 09/03/1989, he was joined by Lenny Henry and Hale & Pace, as The Management. This time The Management are onstage but Campbell’s overcooked introduction kills any opportunity for humour well in advance.

Science Fiction Monthly (1974-76)

 The Seventies was the golden age of monthly and weekly magazines which crowded the shelves of WH Smiths and John Menzies as well as local newsagents. One of the most visually memorable was Science Fiction Monthly. Due to being tabloid size (sixteen inches by eleven inches), like the weekly music magazines, rather than the conventional magazine size it stood out already. Yet what really made it dazzle were the covers. Gloriously colourful and evocative works depicting strange aliens, unusual planets, asymmetrical spaceships and much more were ideal images to stick on your bedroom wall! Which actually was the point!