The Paradise (BBC): The Complete First Series (Review)

Last month, Her Ladyship published a cursory review of the first episode of BBC’s The Paradise and was left interested, rather than addicted. Having now had occasion to watch the entire series, she is delighted to announce that her attitude to the show, which transfers Zola’s Au Bonheur des Dames to Northern England, is now…

North and South (2004): Review

‘I wish I could tell you, Edith, how lonely I am, how cold and harsh it is here. Everywhere there is conflict and unkindness. I think God has forsaken this place. I believe I have seen hell. And it’s white. It’s snow white.’ So ends the dazzling first episode of North and South, the BBC’s…

Don’t Even Bother Arguing: Pride and Prejudice 2005 sucks.

The howls of indignation from fans of the 1995 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice have never quite ceased since the day it was announced that there’d be a new film adaptation starring Keira Knightley of the Great Locked Jaw. You can still hear them if you listen hard: the movie is still popping up on…

Notes on ‘The Paradise’ Series 1 Episode 1

Featured image is by alexandra george at http://bookshelfstories.blogspot.gr/2013/01/the-paradise-bbc-series.html. While it doesn’t quite leave you passed out on the floor gasping for more, The Paradise comes pretty close. Transferring Zola’s Au Bonheur des Dames to northern England, it’s an Edwardian drama for our times. It’s about ordinary people that face the same issues as ordinary people…

The Moonstone: An Imaginary Cast List

Her Ladyship amuses herself by drawing up an entirely imaginary cast list for the BBC’s proposed new adaptation of The Moonstone, since they don’t look like they’re going to do it themselves any time soon. Franklin Blake A character capable of being both mortifyingly unconventional thanks to his cosmopolitan education (a fact that he strongly denies);…

Spooks Series 7 (Review)

Written in the very best tradition of British drama that drives both plot and character with equal intensity, the seventh series of Spooks brings the gritty, doomsday atmosphere of the conventional spy thriller into a highly polished and almost loving backdrop of 21st century London. The characters are raw, fresh and genuinely interesting and the…

Ten Great TV Performances You’ve Never Seen

This is a tribute to ten truly great performances that most of the public have never seen or even heard of, written with the intention of spreading awesomeness. 10.Jonathan Rhys-Meyers – Gormenghast The first (and the greatest) performance in an otherwise mediocre career, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers is menacingly and toweringly evil as kitchen boy turned master…