Activity

Rather more interesting (because more exclusively Who-related) and briefer than that one I linked to before,  Youtube just served me up an episode of the Whoniverse show  (which seems to be a little bit less kitsch than the fan show they used to add in as extras on Moff-era DVDs).    But anyway, it is the Moff, answering some reasonably int…[Read more]

@whohar Thank you for the update. I did worry that they might be the people that decided on the infamous i-daleks.

cheers

Janette

Smallish update on the tender process:

https://www.doctorwhotv.co.uk/doctor-who-next-production-partner-107265.htm

@ps1l0v3y0u    I agree Small Gods was satire.   I usually like that.  I just found Vorbis too close to reality for comfort.

All the other books are satire too, of course.   And I’m certainly not saying Small Gods was bad, I’d sooner read it than, say, anything by a less talented writer  (which is most of them).

@janetteb

For All Mankind has been recommended to me. Not sure its on my package though. Anna Maxwell Martin ought to make an appearance in Line of Duty too.

Slow Horses entertains and annoys. It would seem to occupy a very ‘LeCarresque’ universe and I’m not sure that takes kindly to send up. The ex CIA mastermind was ludicrous.

Chris Packh…[Read more]

@ps1l0v3y0u

You don’t need patience, or any commitment, to read the Discworld books.   Any more than you need a commitment to watch an isolated episode of Doctor Who.   The ‘recommended reading lists’ give the impression, possibly inadvertently, that each ‘series’ is one continuing story.  This is just not the case.   Although many of the charac…[Read more]

@dentarthurdent @whohar

TP… have I the patience to read the whole canon? I read Colour of Magic and Small Gods many years ago. Very enjoyable and intelligent. But that would be a big commitment.

There was a discussion online about whether anyone could make a satisfactory series from Aldiss’ Heliconia books. Having been quite unimpressed by wha…[Read more]

@janetteb I’m currently reading Lords and Ladies, which is of course a ‘witches’ one. Though my preference is for Nanny Ogg, which probably says something about my moral character 🙂

I’ve got the Hogfather movie on DVD, on my ‘rewatch soon’ pile. I’m a little surprised a lot more Discworld movies weren’t made. I guess with the wide cast of…[Read more]

@dentarthurdent, @ps1l0v3y0u and @whohar

I am reading the T.P books from the beginning. Half way through now. Death is one of the best characters but htey are all gold. I think if I have a preference, and it is only by a smidgen, it would be for the witches. Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and of course the fabulous Greebo.

The tv adaptation of…[Read more]

@ps1l0v3y0u   I guess Clara the Dalek only required Jenna’s presence when she was actually visible inside the Dalek.   The rest of the scene would have used a stand-in Dalek.   So with that, and one other Clara-lite episode which Moff mentioned but i don’t recall, I guess that amounted to one Clara episode saved.

And it appears the Dalek syste…[Read more]

@whohar

I think ‘Fifth Elephant’ may well have been derived from ‘5th Element’. It’s very common in literature and drama, I think it’s perfectly legitimate and a nice nod to the original work.
There are plenty of examples in Doctor Who. ‘Spyfall’ obviously comes from ‘Skyfall’ (James Bond). ‘Empress of Mars’ is very obviously a tribute to Edgar…[Read more]

@dentarthurdent

@janetteb

@ps1l0v3y0u

Also too much YouTube for me; it burns through my writing time so I really should stop…

Some interesting suggestions here. Big thumbs up for the 5th Element. I’ve watched it several times and always enjoy it. Incidentally there’s a Discworld book called The Fifth Elephant but that may be coincidence.

Re…[Read more]

@dentarthurdent

Moffat… you would think Clara the Dalek was such a rich scene that the whole two parter was written around it… and indeed Clara can only save herself (apparently) by invoking a word which a Dalek shouldn’t be able to express. And so resolves the story. And leave many unanswered questions.

Adams… I still invoke the locked filing…[Read more]

@janetteb Pleased to see you’re a Pratchett fan too. For some reason, to me the other work that most resembled the Discworld is Doug Adams Hitch-hiker quintet. Notwithstanding that Discworld is explicitly fantasy and Hitchhiker is explicitly Science Fiction. But there’s just something about the situations and characters that make them ‘feel’…[Read more]

@dentarthurdent I am still working through my first read of Pratchett. I recently picked up more books so now have only three to go to complete the series. I am currently on Jingo. Pratchett has that english style of writing, a tradition that really seems unique to the U.K and certainly influences Dr Who, especially Moffat.

Cheers

Janette

@ps1l0v3y0u I really enjoyed The Other Bennet Sister too. there were some jarring modern lines and sensibilities and costumes were hit and miss but overall it was a delight.

I have only watched one series of Slow Horses as yet. The remainder is on my “too watch” list. I am not sure I will get around to Silo. too much to catch up on. I have the…[Read more]

@whohar
I’m reading through Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series, in order. This is a long-term project. I do love an author with a good turn of phrase, and Pratchett certainly has that. So does Steven Moffat (of which more in a moment).
In between that I’m reading [geek mode ON] Hamilton Ellis’s British Railway History, Part 1. Which is what it…[Read more]