Tag Archives: TV
The Apprentice (UK)
Posted on 21. Feb, 2005
Started last week on BBC TWO, first episode was good:
BBC Dragons’ Den
Posted on 31. Jan, 2005
Really enjoying BBC Dragons' Den. Budding entrepreneurs come in and pitch their business ideas to five investors in the hope of funding a startup. There's a real mix of proposals, some crazy, some promising. It's great to watch the pitch and the drilling afterwards. Time is limited, the entrepreneurs have to make both a personal impression on the investors to secure their trust as potential business partners, as well as having an idea that'll fly. One, any or all of the investors can invest. As the investors have different backgrounds and business interests not all good ideas are picked up by all the investors. They must get the full amount they're seeking for investment to get anything, if one investor only puts up half the cash and none of the others pitch-in, the entrepreneur gets nothing.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/...
Adverts jolt smokers into action
Posted on 02. Nov, 2004
That heart wrenching Anthony Hicks UK anti-smoking ad seems to be having a good effect. I wonder how the My House ad for road safety is going, not as shocking of course, but very well done.
http://icnewcastle.icnetwork.co.uk/...
The Amazing Race Season 5
Posted on 10. Aug, 2004
Only a couple of episodes in so far, loving it already. The Amazing Race really is the ultimate reality show. They've got a good mix again too, with the requisite teams that you can't help liking, and the others that you can't help hating. Great stuff!
Grand Slam
Posted on 06. Sep, 2003
Channel 4 has a great quiz show called Grand Slam. It's considerably more watchable than many other quiz shows as the incredibly smart contestants and are placed under considerable pressure by several one minute rounds standing face-to-face with their opponent. One minute worth of questions on Grand Slam is equivalent to entire episode of Who Wants To be a Millionaire. Some of the contestants are just amazing, they're extremely cool under pressure, able to recall obscure information repeatedly on a diverse range of subjects in seconds. Watching the maths rounds are the best though, with contestants performing reasonably tricky calculations that I'd have to do on paper, in their heads in under 2 seconds.
http://www.channel4.co.uk/...
She saved the world, a lot
Posted on 01. Jun, 2003
Few tidbits from this weekends SMH article on the passing of Buffy:
The Toronto Star lamented the end of a "multi-dimensional, deeply recessed and densely layered mythology ... that could engage both supernatural escapism and earthly social constructs such as friendship, love, power, religion and free will".
Jana Riess, the religion editor for the US-based Publishers Weekly, is writing a self-help book called What Would Buffy Do? A Vampire Slayer as Spiritual Guide. "Whedon may call himself an atheist," she says, "but Buffy deals with profoundly religious themes. It serves as a strong moral example most of the time."
There's 487,000 Buffy and 373,000 Angel viewers in Australia with the dominant group being females aged 25-39.
Buffy: Chosen
Posted on 01. Jun, 2003
Finally watched the last episode of Buffy, it broadcast in the US on May 20th, but I hadn't time until now. Don't worry, I definitely won't give anything away in this post, so Buffy fans several episodes behind on Australian TV can keep reading. I certainly didn't pick the ending and as usual very credible rumours were dropped in the media as to what some of the cast members would be doing post-Buffy, from which you could draw certain conclusions, but were of course totally false. The rumours were clearly designed to send one last "fuck you" to spoiler spies that have plagued the shows producers for years, leaking plot twists to spoiler web sites feeding the insatiable appetites of those want to know the plot twists and mysteries of each season ahead of time. Personally I hate spoilers and have avoided them, so you've gotta laugh at all the red faced spoiler spreaders. Anyway, I will say one thing about the episode as a whole, I was left wanting more.. I guess the closure will come soon.. bye Buffy, what a brilliant show.
Emma at BDU Con Melbourne
Posted on 19. May, 2003
Some good pics of Emma Caulfield at the BDU 2003 conference in Melbourne a couple of weekends ago. I would love this for my wall at home.
http://www.subliminalmonkey.com/...
Where Do We Go From Here?
Posted on 16. May, 2003
@N-Zone rounds up where the Buffy cast, writers and producers are heading workwise post-Buffy.
http://www.atnzone.com/...
The Village Voice: Buffy Puts a Stake in It
Posted on 15. May, 2003
Press: "Buffy the Vampire Slayer leaves the air this week, and I haven't felt so sad to see a series end since my childhood.. The only good thing about the demise of Buffy (and the likely cancellation of its nearly as endearing spin-off Angel) is that I'll no longer feel compelled to convince nonbelievers of its virtues. I understand why people wrote it off as a cult geek-show: low-budget sets, B-movie ghouls, and hot teenage chicks kung-fu fighting in graveyards do not usually signify top-notch drama. Despite the cheesy trappings, Buffy was not only one of the funniest, smartest, and sassiest shows on television in the last decade?it was also the most mournful.. Buffy struck a chord that's incredibly rare on TV, and it will be missed."
http://www.villagevoice.com/...
Why Spike ruined “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”
Posted on 15. May, 2003
Weinman suggests why Buffy has sucked so badly this final season, laying the blame clearly on the writers focus on Spike and the lost opportunities in essentially ignoring Willow, Anya, and Xander. I tend to agree somewhat, the whole Spike thing has really gone nowhere, but they keep on pushing it. An interesting analysis and quite spoilerish if you're not up to date with US episodes. The real test of a Buffy season is when you rewatch it in a single sitting, rather than 1-3 weeks between episodes. (heh, sorry non-Buffy fans.. I warned you :)
http://www.salon.com/...
NPR: Buffy Studies
Posted on 14. May, 2003
Interesting 5 minute NPR radio piece on the historians, political theorists, ethicists, philosphers, literature and pop-culture academics who study Buffy and how they're coping with the series coming to an end. Has some nice points on the depth of the Buffyverse and some of the issues the program addresses. As I get my episodes from the US, I've only got two episodes to go before it's all over for me, the last 144 or so episodes have been quite a ride, it'll be sad to see it go. Boohoo.
http://www.npr.org/...
The Kumars at No 42, The Office and The What If Man
Posted on 29. Apr, 2003
Look, if ABC plug the Kumars once more I'm gonna lose it. Every night on ABC they have at least a dozen ads for it. I've tried this show a few times, and just don't get it. The celebs are mostly dry boring British gits who I could care less about, and can rarely name most of them anyway. The comedy is mildly clever, but overly forced, I just can't see why this show is so popular. Sure, it was interesting when it first started as the format was quite different, but now, well.. we're over it. Move on ABC.
Was that the last epsiode of The Office? Damn, no more Finchey.
The What If Man looks worthwhile:
Buffy Season 6 DVD Box Set
Posted on 03. Apr, 2003
Fox have released (possibly unofficially) several menu shots of the Season 6 DVD box set. Looks good.
http://www.r2-dvd.org/...
The Office
Posted on 01. Apr, 2003
The Office is such a true to life performance of what office life is like it's almost painful to watch. The second series started tonight, and has five episodes to go. It has me in stitches every week, excellent show, highly recommended. 10pm Tuesday's, ABC.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/...
Buffy officially finishing up
Posted on 28. Feb, 2003
Sniff - sniff - Buffy The Vampire Slayer, my all time favourite TV series and without hesitation I'd say one of the best shows EVER made, is ending after seven highly successful years. It leaves behind a massive cult following of loyal fans and a unique complex universe of characters, mythology, demons, magic, relationships and stories that I'm sure will live on for many years to come in spin-offs, books and our memories. Joss Whedon has officially acknowledged the end of Buffy with the departure of Sarah Michelle Gellar at the end of this season.
The last episodes should be quite a ride: "We're gearing up to tell a fabulous, huge, great arc," says Gellar. "It's going to be pretty spectacular.".
So it looks like things are looking up for the rest of season seven as the whole First Evil and the Slayer Camp really hasn't grabbed me so far. [via WHEDONesque]
http://www.reuters.com/...
The Truth and Closure
Posted on 29. Jan, 2003
Well, that's it then. As a long time devotee of The X-Files up to about season 6 or 7, it was good to have it all layed out in the final episode tonight. There was little to reveal, other than to piece together the whole conspiracy for those a little too slow to pull it altogether themselves over the past 9 years. The reference to the 21st December 2012, the mysterious end of the Mayan calendar, and sure to be the next Y2K like money spinner in the coming years, was the final element of truth and a nice thing to leave viewers dwelling on.
The final scene ends with Mulder and Scully having a smooch (pretty disgusting now when you think about it) and discussing whether they'll make it through the alien invasion, or as the show makes you feel, are doomed in 2012 as it's out of our hands. Ahhhh, closure (but now we are left hanging until the Mayan doomsday ;)
Lots of inner city Sydney balconies with satellite dishes
Posted on 14. Jan, 2003
Has anyone else noticed the increase in apartment balconies sporting FOXTEL/Austar Pay TV satellite dishes around inner city Sydney? Several units in my area have them now, installed by frustrated residents who have probably long since given up fighting with the strata to have their buildings cabled, opting for their own private dish. Unfortunately I'm on the west side of the building and can't get line of sight to the Optus B3 which would be at approximately azimuth 7 degrees and elevation 50.14 degrees from my location, damn it, I need a NNE facing balcony! I can never win.
If I could find someone willing in my area, I'd pay to have an extra set top box installed in their place and hook it up to this 2.4GHz Wireless Video and Audio transmitter. Don't know how I'd change the channels though, probably have to hook up a IR receiver/transmitter as well. It's feasible and reasonably cheap, but I'm unlikely to find a willing person in my area.
Damn it, I hate not being able to get FOXTEL.. it's bloody 2003, we've had pay TV in Sydney for over 7 years now, and I still can't bloody get it at my place. What's needed is a return of the terrestrial microwave repeaters that Galaxy were using, dot a few (ok a lot) of those around Sydney to pickup all the people facing the wrong way for Satellite. If not, surely their must be some alternative approach to the thousands and thousands of apartment dwelling consumers who'd be ready to sign up for FOXTEL in a flash if they could actually receive the service.
http://www.lyngsat.com/...
FOX dumps Firefly
Posted on 29. Dec, 2002
As expected, FOX dumped Firefly on 18th December. Whedon hasn't given up on the show though, and is currently looking for a new network. It's a shame as the show was really starting to get interesting, however I can see why FOX dumped it as it's just not mainstream and episodic enough for the bulk of their casual viewers. Fingers crossed for the return of Firefly soon.
http://www.fox.com/...
ABC TV: Attachments
Posted on 18. Dec, 2002
Attachments isn't too bad, it follows the inner workings of an Internet startup Webzine during the boom times.. It's full of net dev firm lingo, the constant stress of deadlines, finding and keeping the VC's happy, and managing the tensions of creative and technical staff of uneven skill levels working together (eg. competent vs. social programmers). It's only up to episode two, so I'm still letting it grow on me. For now it just gets a few amusing nods from me to some of the stressful situations that have arisen so far that I can relate to.
http://www.abc.net.au/...
