TV
The TV we feared they’d never dare make any more: The Singapore Grip reviewed
‘Art is dead,’ declared Mark Steyn recently. He was referring to the new rules — copied from the Baftas —…
What on earth has happened to Simon Schama: The Romantics and Us reviewed
‘You may think our modern world was born yesterday,’ said Simon Schama at the beginning of The Romantics and Us.…
A sadistic delight: World’s Toughest Race – Eco-Challenge Fiji reviewed
Few things better capture the crazed cognitive dissonance of our age than this: that while we cower behind masks for…
Ludicrous – and the makers know it: Sky One's Prodigal Son reviewed
‘By the way, my name is Max. I take care of them, which ain’t easy, because their hobby is murder.’…
Takes us deep into an unknown world: Channel 4’s Inside Missguided reviewed
If it’s a test of a good documentary series that it takes us deep into an unknown, even unimaginable world,…
The only things left worth watching on the BBC are foreign buy-ins like The Last Wave
Soon, very soon now — even sooner than I imagined, if A Suitable Boy turns out to be as lacklustre…
Sumptuous and very promising: A Suitable Boy reviewed
Nobody could argue that Andrew Davies isn’t up for a challenge. He’d also surely be a shoo-in for Monty Python’s…
The real Rupert Murdoch, by Kelvin MacKenzie
The BBC documentary on Rupert Murdoch is pure one-sided bile, says Kelvin MacKenzie
James Graham's small new drama is exquisite: BBC Four's Unprecedented reviewed
Let’s face it. Theatre via the internet is barely theatre. It takes a huge amount of creativity and inventiveness to…
Michaela Coel's dazzling finale reminds me of Philip Roth: I May Destroy You reviewed
It might seem a bit of a stretch to see deep similarities between Michaela Coel (young, female, black and currently…
A documentary about the M25 that will make your heart soar
When a 90-minute documentary is introduced with the words ‘This is the M25’, you’d be within your rights not to…
Dysfunctional music for dysfunctional people: The Public Image is Rotten reviewed
A star is born, but instead of emerging into the world beaming for the cameras, he spits and snarls and…
The festivalisation of TV
Televising Glastonbury has changed the festival, and in turn transformed television, says Graeme Thomson
Sensual and silky: the Royal Ballet returns to Covent Garden
Wayne McGregor’s Morgen! and Frederick Ashton’s Dance of the Blessed Spirits are the first pieces of live dance — streamed…
A fine, even rather noble drama: BBC1's The Salisbury Poisonings reviewed
This week, BBC1 brought us a three-part dramatisation of an ‘unprecedented crisis’ in recent British life. Among other things, it…
Jeffrey Epstein really was a streak of slime
Did Jeffrey Epstein kill himself or was he murdered — and frankly who cares? Actually, having watched the four-part Netflix…
Another drama about how women are great and men are rubbish: C4's Philharmonia reviewed
On the face of it, a French-language drama about a Parisian symphony orchestra mightn’t sound like the most action-packed of…
The best Macbeths to watch online
The world’s greatest playwright ought to be dynamite at the movies. But it’s notoriously hard to turn a profit from…
Netflix’s Caliphate is all too frighteningly plausible
Sweden is now properly celebrated as the Land that Called Coronavirus Correctly. But in the distant past, those with long…
Joyous and very, very funny: Beastie Boys Story reviewed
The music of the Beastie Boys was entirely an expression of their personalities, a chance to delightedly splurge out on…
Riveting – and disgusting: BFI's 'Dogs v Cats' and 'Eating In' collections reviewed
This week I’d like to point you in the direction of the British Film Institute and its free online archive…
Not merely funny but somehow also joyous: Sky One's Brassic reviewed
Danny Brocklehurst, the scriptwriter for Sky One’s Brassic, used to work for Shameless in its glory days — although if…
How Tom Stoppard foretold what we’re living through
A TV play by Tom Stoppard, A Separate Peace, was broadcast live on Zoom last Saturday. I watched as my…
The unstoppable rise of television-rewatch podcasts
Talking Sopranos — a new weekly podcast which launched this month— is another example of a seemingly unstoppable sub-genre occupying…
Superbly convincing: Unorthodox reviewed
When I lived briefly in Stamford Hill I was mesmerised by the huge fur hats (shtreimel) worn by the local…
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