Murder is murder. You stop believing that, and we might as well not be fighting the war.” Not long ago, I was watching Foyle’s War, and my wife derided it as “an old people’s programme.” I was indignantly making my case that actually, no it isn’t thank you very much,...
Dawn and Mo join Matt to review another 4 new shows. On Channel 4, Steve Coogan interviews Harriet Walter's Margeret Thatcher in true-life drama Brian & Maggie. The BBC's latest Sunday night fare tells the little-known story behind the Austen sisters in Miss...
Mark Rylance is set to reprise his role as Thomas Cromwell alongside Lewis as Henry VIII in the BBC/PBS adaptation of Hilary Mantel's novel. The BBC have revealed first-look images from Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, the hotly-anticipated miniseries sequel to...
The BBC and MASTERPIECE PBS have announced further casting for Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, based on the final novel in Hilary Mantel’s multi-award-winning trilogy. As previously announced, Mark Rylance, Damian Lewis, Jonathan Pryce, Kate Phillips...
BBC One doesn’t muck about with Sunday nights anymore. Following hot on the heels of the sumptuous and lavish semi-naked threshing drama Poldark comes the sumptuous and lavish Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, adapted from Susanna Clarke’s bestselling novel of the...
ITV’s Director of Television, Peter Fincham, today confirmed commission of two stand-alone dramatic films featuring the legendary French fictional detective Jules Maigret, to be played by Rowan Atkinson. Set in the 1950’s in Paris, the first of the two x 120’ films,...
Welcome back to my look at the best and worst of the last seven days in TV. As we leave Christmas behind us we enter a rather drab and rainy January and so we look to the TV for escapism. A captivating love story sound like the ideal choice to while away the winter...
Murder mysteries, no matter how complex or clever they try to be, all share one fundamental constant: there is always a victim, whether we see them or not. I reckon a reasonably reliable yardstick for measuring the quality of just such a TV drama is learning who plays...
You'd think what with all the episodes of Morse and of the recent ITV spin-off Lewis ITV would have got all the steam they possibly could out of the success of John Thaw's epic role. However, in early 2012 we were treated to a new twist in the Morse tale when Shaun...
Welcome to a look back at another seven days in TV Firstly this week we had the return of the highest rated entertainment show of last year - Britain's Got Talent. Last year's series had a rocky start, but a mixture of endearing acts and a fresh new judging panel soon...
More love for Broadchurch, the return of Endeavour and Britain's Got Talent all fuelled by Spaghetti.
Easter was a massive time for TV. In this podcast we talk about Doctor Who, get hot under the collar when discussing the somewhat unwelcome return of The Voice and continue to marvel at Broadchurch.
It got over 6 million viewers on Sunday night, but some complained new BBC1 period piece The Village was "too miserable". If you've been following this site for a while you'll know I'm not a big fan of period drama. I like dramas with characters I can relate to and...
It seems a bit odd to be writing this piece at the start of the week however seeing as it's a Bank Holiday Weekend I thought I'd give you all a bit of a treat. So this week you're getting two articles for the price of one with this particular instalment looking back...
22 year old actor Nico Mirallegro has already been in one of the biggest successes of 2013. E4's comedy My Mad Fat Diary won viewers with its warm and believable characters, brilliant storylines and wonderful '90s nostalgia. In his latest role Mirallegro stars...
ITV has announced the new commissioning of new medical drama, Breathless, a stylish and compelling six-part series set in London in 1961, starring JACK DAVENPORT (Smash, Pirates of the Caribbean). Produced for ITV by ITV Studios, the drama follows the lives...
An epic drama series for BBC ONE starring Maxine Peake and John Simm charting the life and turbulent times of one English village across the whole of the twentieth century. THE VILLAGE is written by BAFTA winning writer PETER MOFFAT. The camera never leaves the...
Hello TV-lovers welcome once again to my round-up of the week in telly programmes featuring a lot of jazz music, some colourful Mancunians and a sitcom the BBC seemingly want to hide away. There are some names that can sell a TV programme on their own and...
Last year BBC1 had one of their bigger successes with The Paradise a costume drama set in a department store in the late 19th century. Though the series was a ratings winner there was controversy surrounding the decision to air the episodes before production had...
The story of Jack the Ripper has been dramatised countless times. TV has long had a fascination with the macabre and brutality of the ripper murders which might explain the excitement and intrigue that has surrounded the BBC's new drama series Ripper Street since the...
For me, the true centrepiece of the BBC festive schedules was Restless, an adaptation of the spy thriller by William Boyd. The luminous cast included Hayley Atwell, Rufus Sewell, Michelle Dockery, Charlotte Rampling and Michael Gambon. I confess to being a huge...
This time year I sat in a very different office, and oddly in a very different country pondering on what I'd enjoyed most in 2011. 365 days later (roughly) it's time to sit and ponder again on my personal highlights of a packed TV year. I knew before I compiled 2012...
Whether you like them or not, period dramas certainly have their place in the schedules of 2012. Dowton Abbey and Call the Midwife have drawn massive audiences this year so you can't blame ITV for trying their luck at another period piece for a dark Sunday night. The...
The story of Jack the Ripper has been dramatised countless times. TV has long had a fascination with the macabre and brutality of the ripper murders which might explain the excitement and intrigue that has surrounded the BBC's new drama series Ripper Street...