58 posts tagged with British.
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Anyone liking Ludwig?
Just watched all 6 episodes of Ludwig, a British mystery series starring David Mitchell. Was hoping for some discussion here, but nope. How do new threads get started?
Book: Grave Expectations
"When 30-something freelance medium Claire Hendricks is invited to an old university friend's country pile to provide entertainment for a family party, her best friend Sophie tags along. In fact, Sophie rarely leaves Claire's side, because she's been haunting her ever since she was murdered at the age of seventeen. ... Teaming up with the least unbearable members of the Wellington-Forge family - depressive ex-cop Basher and teenage radical Alex - Claire and Sophie determine to figure out not just whodunnit, but who they killed, why and when." [more inside]
The Great British Bake Off: Patisserie Week Season 14, Ep 9
It's the semi-final and the four remaining bakers take on an elegant French patisserie Signature and a buttery French classic in the Technical, before making a showstopping Italian celebration cake made up of delicate puff pastry layers.
Ten Percent: British remake of Call My Agent / Dix Pour Cent Season 1, Ep 0
British version of the French show Dix pour cent (English title Call My Agent)
a comedy dram about a London talent agency where agents scramble to keep their star clients happy and their business afloat. [more inside]
Faking It: All episodes Season 0, Ep 0
Faking It was an early British reality TV show. Its challenge was based on Shaw's Pygmalion: experts get a month to train a member of the public to the point where a panel of their peers would be unable to pick them from a group as an imposter. Often there might be a loose connection between the existing and new occupation of the candidate: "Sheep sheerer to hairdresser" or "Show girl to show jumper", for example. The trainee would live with the experts for the month and would usually undergo a makeover as well as training by actors. After their test - they would return home - either reluctantly or gratefully. [more inside]
Movie: All Night Long
British director Basil Dearden followed his gay blackmail thriller Victim with 1962’s All Night Long, which re-imagines Shakespeare's Othello at a late night London jazz jam. Patrick McGoohan is drummer Johnny Cousins, the scheming, pot-smoking Iago who prowls the party stirring up jealousy and fear to tear the interracial couple of bandleader Aurelius Rex and his wife Delia apart so Delia will sing with Johnny when he leaves Othello's band. An excellent score helps drive the tightening downward spiral, with Charles Mingus and Dave Brubeck showing up as themselves throughout the party. [more inside]
Movie: Victim
Basil Dearden's landmark 1961 noir about gay men in London victimized by a blackmail ring is credited with helping shift British attitudes about homosexuality. Closeted actor Dirk Bogarde plays the guilt-ridden lawyer who decides to fight back. Surprisingly thrilling, and sympathetic to a range of gay characters who are presented with minimal stereotyping (for the time). Banned from wide release in the US because Dearden refused to make concessions. 100/87 at Rotten Tomatoes, on HBO and the Criterion Channel. [more inside]
Book: Jeeves and the King of Clubs
Storm clouds loom over Europe. Treason is afoot in the highest social circles. The very security of the nation is in peril. Jeeves, it transpires, has long been an agent of British Intelligence, but now His Majesty's Government must turn to the one man who can help . . . Bertie Wooster. [more inside]
Movie: If....
In this allegorical story, a revolution led by pupil Mick Travis takes place at an old established private school in England. [more inside]
The Crown: Decommissioned Season 5, Ep 10
After heightened public scrutiny, Charles forges a new alliance in Hong Kong. Mohamed Al-Fayed offers his support to a newly-divorced Diana. [more inside]
The Crown: Couple 31 Season 5, Ep 9
The Princess of Wales contends with the repercussions of her statements. The Queen asks the Prime Minister for his help in a delicate family matter. [more inside]
The Crown: Gunpowder Season 5, Ep 8
The Queen spends quality time with Prince William. On Guy Fawkes Night, fireworks make for a perfect distraction from Diana's BBC interview. [more inside]
The Crown: No Woman's Land Season 5, Ep 7
As BBC's Martin Bashir goes to great lengths to secure an interview with Diana, the lonely princess finds purpose and warmth in a London hospital. [more inside]
The Crown: Ipatiev House Season 5, Ep 6
Eager to lead a newly democratic Russia, President Yeltsin tries to win the Queen's support while she navigates new rifts in her marriage with Philip. [more inside]
The Crown: The Way Ahead Season 5, Ep 5
Faced with the fallout of an intercepted call with Camilla and the consequent kickback to his marriage, Prince Charles must navigate a scandal. [more inside]
The Crown: Annus Horribilis Season 5, Ep 4
Between a fire at Windsor Castle and tensions in her children's marriages, the Queen commemorates and reassesses her 40 years on the throne. [more inside]
The Crown: Mou Mou Season 5, Ep 3
In 1946, an Egyptian street vendor finds inspiration in the abdicated King Edward. Years later, he eagerly tries to integrate into British High Society. [more inside]
The Crown: The System Season 5, Ep 2
Prince Philip offers his support to a grieving family member. Keen to snatch a scoop, a tabloid journalist approaches Diana about a tell-all book. [more inside]
The Crown: Queen Victoria Syndrome Season 5, Ep 1
A much-needed update to the Royal Yacht draws scrutiny to the Queen's reign. Hounded by the press, Charles and Diana have a second honeymoon in Italy. [more inside]
The Goes Wrong Show: Season 2 Season 2, Ep 0
Includes a prison break drama with malfunctioning cell bars, a historical drama by not-William Shakespeare, Robert's acting masterclass, a 1970s sex comedy revival, and a short play by Dennis. Available on DVD and, in the UK, available from some streaming services.
The Goes Wrong Show: Episodes 1-6 Season 1, Ep 0
The Goes Wrong Show, a British farce TV show (JustWatch to advise on streaming options; watch the first season free in the US on Tubi), is a spinoff of the live theater production The Play That Goes Wrong. Both the live show and the TV show depict an ambitious theatrical troupe trying valiantly to get through live performances of plays-within-a-play, despite all manner of mishap -- props and sets that fall apart, musical cues gone wrong, pratfalls, and whatnot. [more inside]
Movie: Psychomania (1973)
An amiable, psychopathic leader of a violent teen motorbike gang is spurred by his mother, a Satan-worshiping spiritual medium, into committing suicide and returning to life as an "undead" [CW: Suicide] [more inside]
The Crown: Avalanche Season 4, Ep 9
Charles is caught in a deadly avalanche, and he and Diana are prompted to reevaluate their commitment to their troubled marriage. [more inside]
The Crown: 48:1 Season 4, Ep 8
As the Commonwealth nations condemn apartheid in South Africa, tension mounts between Margaret Thatcher and Elizabeth over their clashing opinions on applying sanctions. [more inside]
Small Axe: Mangrove Season 1, Ep 1
Mangrove is the first episode in this anthology series of 5 episodes created and directed by artist-turned-filmmaker Steve McQueen, each standalone, set in England, about Black British people.
Mangrove is based on the true story of Frank Crichlow (Shaun Parkes), who opened Carribean restaurant Mangrove in Notting Hill in 1968. [more inside]
The Crown: The Hereditary Principal Season 4, Ep 7
Princess Margaret finds her current fling is a friend of Dorothy, has a health scare, and seeks more duties only to be rebuffed (again) and demoted. As she tries to deal with her depression, she discovers she has cousins, locked up in an institution for "mental defectives" and officially declared dead. [more inside]
The Crown: Terra Nullius Season 4, Ep 6
Charles and Diana tour Australia and New Zealand, and their marriage buckles further under the strain of Diana's celebrity and approachability. The Queen struggles with the idea of opening up a bit and maybe showing some affection.
The Crown: Fagan Season 4, Ep 5
The Queen has an unexpected caller, as the show takes some time to explore the impacts of Margaret Thatcher's domestic policy while she celebrates the end of the war with Argentina.
The Crown: Favourites Season 4, Ep 4
Thatcher's son (and favourite child) goes missing during the Paris-Dakar rally, prompting the Queen to question her relationships with her children. She finds that all of her children are unhappy in their own way. Argentina makes trouble in the Falkands.
The Crown: Fairytale Season 4, Ep 3
Diana accepts a proposal, and we all know how this fairytale ends.
The Crown: The Balmoral Test Season 4, Ep 2
Balmoral Castle hosts two guests during the Queen's vacation, with two very different outcomes. [more inside]
The Great British Bake Off: Pastry Week Season 11, Ep 5
It's Pastry Week and the bakers put their stamp on a Cornish classic in the signature, go retro in the technical, and make a showstopping classic tart hidden within a cage made entirely from pastry
The Great British Bake Off: Bread Week Season 11, Ep 3
It's Bread Week, and the remaining bakers have a lot to prove in a sweet and savoury signature, a technical that honours the NHS, and an ambitious, artistic showstopper
The Great British Bake Off: Bread Week Season 10, Ep 3
The bakers tackle a signature bake designed to be shared; a deceptively simple summer staple in the Technical; and an ambitious Showstopper (Channel 4 description). [more inside]
Movie: Blinded by the Light
In 1987 Luton, in Thatcher's Britain, confronted by National Front racists on the streets and a stressed, angry father at home, a British Asian teenager learns to live his own life, get a new perspective on his Pakistani immigrant family, and find his own voice through the music of Bruce Springsteen. Directed and co-written by Gurinder Chadha (known for Bend It Like Beckham), with music by legendary Indian composer and film score creator A.R. Rahman. Inspired by a true story. [more inside]
Unforgotten: Full series Season 1, Ep 0
When the remains of a murdered 17-year-old who went missing in 1976 are discovered buried beneath a house, detectives DCI Cassie Stuart and DI Sunny Khan attempt to solve the case. The investigation brings up decades-old secrets for those involved.
Movie: Bunny Lake Is Missing
A woman reports that her young daughter is missing, but there seems to be no evidence that she ever existed. [more inside]
Movie: A Zed & Two Noughts
Oliver Deuce, a successful doctor, is shattered when his wife is killed in a freak car accident involving a car being driven by Alba Bewick colliding with a very large rare bird. His twin brother Oswald is researching how carcasses decay at the local zoo. Alba survives the accident although she loses one leg, and her sinister physician eventually removes the other 'because it looked so sad all alone'. Oswald and Oliver become involved in a menage a trois with Alba, and uncover very dubious trafficking in zoo property. But ultimately their only goal is to try and understand their mortal condition.
A Zed & Two Noughts
From director Peter Greenaway and currently streaming on Fandor. A Zed & Two Noughts is the inaugural film of the Strange Club 2018 winter season. [more inside]
Mystery Science Theater 3000: THE DEADLY BEES Season 9, Ep 5
"hives of horror! Excited by the smell of fear they inflict their fatal stings!" A British singer collapses on television and is sent to the countryside to recuperate. I guess she shouldn't have used AirB&B. Also apparently the British take forever to investigate anything. This episode is infamously unavailable commercially by any means, not YouTube, DVD, Video on Demand or streaming; it's one of those final few episodes where the copyright owners seem almost affronted at the temerity of that Midwest puppet show at making fun of their movie and have refused to license it for release. In subplot news, the other Observers are back and try to take Brain Guy away. Pearl and Bobo's attempts at getting him to stay is as close to touching as this deeply ridiculous show ever gets. Premiered May 9, 1998. 21 episodes left. (guy with bowler hat appears mysteriously, nods, and walks off into distance) [more inside]
Father Brown: Season Five of Father Brown Season 5, Ep 0
The good Father returns to solve more mysteries with some new companions.
Mystery Science Theater 3000: THE PROJECTED MAN Season 9, Ep 1
"Born a man... turned into a living laser beam by science's most gruesome experiment!" "A Billion Volts of Death in Every Finger!" Another dang fool scientist is inventing a teleporter, and again he's impatient for results so he tests it on himself and becomes a monster. Isn't it weird when a movie's hubristic Tampering In God's Domain amounts to moving somewhere? Hey here's a thought, why not just walk a few steps across the room and maybe not turn into a deformed horror? Lembeck is staying! The movie's okay but the thing about this episode is that the "endless chase" subplot is finally over, although it takes a season for the opening theme to catch up with this fact. Pearl and henchies finally arrive at and settle into ancestral family home Castle Forrester, the show's site until the end of the classic era. Pearl discovers a family history in which she finds out her family has been forcing bad art on hapless subjects for ages. In this, we find out that the female half of her family basically have the same first-naming conventions as the Crystal Gems, which could make for some really odd fanfiction if anyone wants to write it. (Kinga breaks that trend though.) YouTube (1h32m) Premiered November 22, 1997. 25 episodes left. [more inside]
The Great British Bake Off: Cake Week Season 8, Ep 1
Cake Week sees the bakers take on a fruity challenge. Prue sets her first technical - a kids' party favourite. Plus, the trickiest showstopper ever set in the first week of Bake Off: an illusion cake. [more inside]
Marcella: Marcella : Season One Season 1, Ep 0
Former London detective Marcella Backland is devastated when her husband leaves her and their two children. When Marcella is visited by a senior detective on the murder squad seeking information regarding an unsolved, 11-year-old case of a serial killer who seems to have become active again, Marcella returns to the murder squad. [more inside]
The Great British Bake Off: Bread Season 7, Ep 3
It is bread week, and Paul Hollywood has put together three of the toughest challenges ever. [more inside]
The Great British Bake Off: Biscuits Season 7, Ep 2
It is week two of The Great British Bake Off, and it is crunch time as Paul and Mary set the bakers three biscuit challenges. [more inside]
The Great British Bake Off: Cakes Season 7, Ep 1
Twelve new amateur bakers don their aprons and head for the iconic tent in the heart of the British countryside. [more inside]
My Mad Fat Diary: Big Wide World Season 1, Ep 1
After being discharged from a psychiatric hospital, Rae Earl has to figure out how to navigate teenage social life, her mom's new relationship, and her own secrets. [more inside]
Happy Valley: You're barely scraping by in this troubled town Season 2, Ep 0
Happy Valley's second season is a six episode series where the Calder Valley police force is tracking a serial with the detectives getting many assists from Cawood and the new police officer on the force. Personal life and crime collide once again for Cawood as she continues to deal with the fallout from season one.
Happy Valley: Where the only thing that's pretty is the thought of getting out Season 1, Ep 0
The BBC One Six-Part Series can also be found on as "Netflix Original" in the US. The series follows the chaotic life of police sergeant Catherine Cawood (Sarah Lancashire) set in the Calder Valley as she investigates crime and deals with the fallout from a traumatic loss.
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