Who dares wins
BBC1 continuity excitedly introduced the first in the new series of Doctor Who as ‘bigger and better than ever’ —…
If it ain’t broke
At one point in an early Simpsons, Homer comes across an old issue of TV Guide, and finds the listing…
A spoonful of Sugar
Murder Island features eight real-life ‘ordinary people’ seeking to solve a fictional killing on a fictional Scottish island. What follows…
Hot mess
These days, James Bond can no longer just be the main character in the Bond films. He’s also had to…
No Time to Die is a compelling mess
Times being what they are, James Bond can no longer just be the main character in the Bond films. He’s…
Follow the science
It is, of course, not unknown for a man to become famous with the support of his family — and,…
Man up
‘The world is hell, and men are both the tormented souls and the devils within it.’ This was the cheery…
Top of the chocs
Last Sunday on Channel 4, a man called Eric Nicoli proudly remembered ‘the bravest thing I’ve ever done’. In November…
Finding Karyo
There was, you may remember, a time when Sunday night television was rather a jolly affair: gently plotted and full…
What a performance
To its huge credit, ITV has managed to find perhaps the last two television celebrities who’ve never before been filmed…
The importance of being earnest
Ken Burns made his name in 1990 with The Civil War, the justly celebrated 11-and-a-half-hour documentary series that gave America’s…
Dishing the dirt
Even by James Ellroy’s standards, the narrator of his latest novel is not a man much given to the quiet…
The play’s the thing
Let me start with a spot of admin: if you’re wondering what The Speccie makes of GB News, it’ll be…
History repeats itself
Fifty-one years ago, in the BBC’s much-acclaimed The Six Wives of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn was portrayed as a brave…
The best of British
There was certainly no lack of variety among new TV dramas this week, with a standard British thriller up against…
Visitations from Franco
At the risk of encroaching on Spectator Competition territory, what is the least surprising thing for any given narrator in…
Wright and wrong
Ian Wright: Home Truths began with the ex-footballer saying that the home he grew up in was ‘not a happy…
Filthy lucre
If you’re after an exciting, twisty programme about police corruption that doesn’t also feel a bit like sitting an exam…
Cooking the books
Agatha and Poirot was one of those programmes that had the annoying effect of making you feel distinctly snooty. ITV’s…
Mercurio rising
When a drama begins with news of a ‘Chis handler’ receiving ‘intel graded A1 on the matrix’ that causes a…
Double act
Well, this a bit awkward. A fortnight ago, in my last TV column, I confidently asserted that, despite the involvement…
Thoughtful thriller
To begin on a cheerful note, it’s certainly been a good week for fans of slow-burn British crime dramas with…
Joining the dots
‘History,’ wrote Edward Gibbon, ‘is, indeed, little more than the register of the crimes, follies, and misfortunes of mankind.’ In…
Life in the fast lane
DeLorean: Back from the Future was one of those documentaries — for me at least — that takes a story…
The weirdness of Britain present and past
The new series of Mark Kermode’s Secrets of Cinema began with an episode on British comedy films. As ever, Kermode…
