instrumental verse…

The Beatles did it with Yer Blues, unintentionally: maybe the engineer failed to plug in the vocal lead for the last verse or something (you can just hear Lennon on the background).

Starless by Crimson has a 3 verse ‘1st movement’. Sonata and through-composed are the two default positions for Crims…[Read more]

Yes. That’s enough Floyd.

Spotify is also excellent for sampling the unknown, just exceedingly parsimonious to the artist. I must listen to ‘On the Turning Away.’

If you are venturing into ‘The Tube’, there was an excellent BBC (?) compilation of Floyd films from Arnold Layne (I think) through to The Wall.

The Dave Gilmour‘s…[Read more]

Improv. Always fun to pontificate on something you never have a chance of doing…

Miles Davies could obviously improv and knew many fine musicians who could achieve exactly what he wanted. He also said he wanted to form a rock band because they made lots of money and the music was simple.

That is improv in rock and jazz is n…[Read more]

Sorry, made a mess of that last post… half measures really won’t do. But perhaps an in depth discussion of PF belongs here.

Richard Wright was probably the most original of the five core players and wrote off-beat pop songs with Syd Barrett. He tried to continue in the same vein after Syd left but encountered much res…[Read more]

Floyd! It’s difficult to talk about them without sounding like an obsessive. I really know nothing about their later post Walters incarnation. I know Gilmour was a friend of Jackie Leven, who I greatly admire.

I’m bewildered by their struggles after Syd Barrett ‘imploded.’ There was a huge struggle over what they were go…[Read more]

The beginning of Once Upon a Time in The West is astonishing. I still remember the first time I saw it… WHAT???

But it had been brewing since A Few Dollars More. Love Morricone’s scores.

Touch of Evil has another outrageous opening shot. Also the opening sequence of Goodfellas. What shall I watch tonight? Oh dear ain’t got the last…[Read more]

The Doctor Lies

The Soufflé is not the Soufflé, the Soufflé is the Recipe

Planet of Hats here I come

Just Some Bloke??!

Mark Gatiss made a rather downbeat interview recently, rather different to the ‘all is not over shtick’ issuing from the usual armchairs. He points out the BBC’s stance n…[Read more]

This isn’t really an explanation but…

DOCTOR: ….four digits. That narrows it down to a possible 10,000 numbers. Feeling lucky?
JOY: Really not.
DOCTOR: I mean, the variables are never equally weighted. I could figure it out if I just had…
JOY: What?
DOCTOR: Time. The Time Hotel.
JOY: The what?
DOCTOR: I couldn’t use t…[Read more]

You made me watch The Pilot again. Really NOT a problem… indeed from the age when watching Who REALLY wasn’t a problem.

’The Pilot.’ I feel there’s story in the title…

Moff’s given another chance? ‘No no you’ll just scare the broadsheets with your saphic africs…’

Moff given a surprise extra series? ‘Chibnall is…[Read more]

Davros and ablism. It’s not a simple ‘No! Not on my watch’ surely? Yes, the world has moved on, and we got Shirley and (see below) Jinkx Monsoon on the show, but there are ways of playing it, ain’t there? 12 turfed Davros out of his unit and rode it like a bumper car. I’ve said it before bu…[Read more]

RTD1: weird narcissistic racism, venal politicians, polyamory, shaggy dog stories about royal malaises, tech monocultures, nerds and their love interests,  racism in the past, environmental collapse, imperial heritage, more venal politicians, assisted weight loss, slavery, xenosexuality, super-wealthy…[Read more]

On the face of it, the ‘let it go’ moment is definitely a bit clumsy. Or you could read it as a generic ‘hey, these are just people’ statement.’ Or it’s RTD getting his revenge in first. I wasn’t studying the forums or meta at that stage, but I imagine Russ knew what was coming.

Otherwise you wonder if…[Read more]

Was RTD rubbing the viewers’ nose in it? Being ‘arsy’? Not arf!

I’m not sure ‘woke’ would be anymore than a novel and obscure adjective if not for The Culture Warriors. Why persecute religious or racial targets when you can choose to denounce absolutely anyone who disagrees with you?

Of co…[Read more]

Again… not really about a specific ep so I moved it here.

Sorry, my mulling over RTD turned out to be a bad post, late night etc. And then I changed it half through. The contraction of titles in two parters was started by Den of Geek, I think.

So, what the hell has just happened?

I’m not sure how RTD got the gig the first tim…[Read more]

The Arc…

The weird thing is the incomplete arc so obviously echoes the RTD vs Corporation gambit played out. But you HAVE to pay because only I can EXPLAIN! Although, as I keep observing, someone signed off those press release.

Well, the DG has just cast a whole raft of shows adrift… all light entertainment but… WHO KNOWS WHAT’…[Read more]

Yes. What the hell, hero? Also sketchy science. Though it looked great. Also, in the words of Sylvia Noble in The Star Beast, ‘none of this real!’

Also, Eurovision looms large in Who History.

So, in my view, as you know, RTD was cooking a monster arc in which The Doctor is being tested: it was all Mind Robbers, War Gam…[Read more]

Right. Chib. The socio-economic years.

The history eps: Rosa, Demons… yes there’s commentary there but, because it’s buried in the (recent) past, you can (if you want) mentally sanitise it to oblivion. And, worthy though the ambition is, the narrative of Rosa is a problem. Old white bloke on bus. Then we get proper risk…[Read more]

have you SEEN some of my posts?!

I’m afraid the BBC didn’t want Moffat anywhere near Ladydoc. And I can see their point.

I also suspect they loaded Chib’s tenure with many, many stipulations; or maybe he thought The Fam up all on his own. BUT either RTD and Moff were both phenomenal auxiliary script editors (and I really don’t think that’s Moff’s forte) or C…[Read more]

The ‘23 specials contained a few clues. Sylvia runs around yelling ‘none of this is real!’ For forgetful Donna’s benefit. This is BEFORE Mavity raises its now possibly completely irrelevant head.

Und zen ze Toymaker scene mit der outrageous Central European mugging. This would seem to be a straightforward catchup. Hmmm. Really?…[Read more]

I observe these were criticisms made of Moffat. They are aren’t my accusations. But, yes, RTD was also quite up for all that. Personally, I don’t really understand the angst, other than it being the natural tension of a kiddult scifi show. To me it’s Hinchcliffe/Holmes vs Whitehouse or JNT/Seward vs Grade.

I went out a…[Read more]

Thought I’d move over here…

Right! Neither I, nor Cardinals Fang or Biggles quite expected that!

Personally, I start off with the existential question ‘why should any right-minded Whovian be u fuly critical of Moff?’; and ‘how could the show written by Chib be both SO tedious AND incoherent.’ It shouldn’t b…[Read more]

The Test. I did kind of say Moff didn’t really care. Do I? Well, it’s there now. You would think it might be successfully extolled at some point. And yet examples are few. To the extent that Dan ended up giving Yaz the talk… I mean… ah???

But Moff (and Jamie Matthieson) did lock Clara and Maisie in the baggage car of…[Read more]

Moff: you know where my sympathies lie. But there are those who cannot stand him, consider him ‘unwho’. He clearly wasn’t bothered what side of the Bechdel Test he landed. I am inclined to think an awareness of the principle of the Test should be enough. In the words of Arcade Fire: ‘I guess we’ll just have to adjust.’

BUT the plots did…[Read more]

Hi!

I went off on one a bit. How could RTD speak so convincingly about the special that wasn’t? The BBC authorise the press releases don’t they?

But, what with the dire ratings, it was hard to see how there wouldn’t be a problem at some point. Murky business.

The furore over Billie Piper was really quite distressing. She’s an actor.…[Read more]

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]

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]

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]

Yes, I’ll be watching the new series of Ludwig. Gentle comedic mystery. The Other Bennett Sister was  dismissed as light-weight but that again was part off its charm: it actually worked.

Silo season 3 coming soon… in 2 minds about it, but I’ll watch it. Pluribus intrigued by I couldn’t stay with it; may go back to it. Also Slo…[Read more]

That’s Entertainment! Well, Moff has no problems on that score. Could it even be a barb at another showmaker? Or an executive in drama?

But I would hope a new regime would also aspire to some kind intelligence. Like Moff. Cbeebies doesn’t fill me with confidence.

Otherwise…

I AM annoyed with The BBC:

Putting Grade and the first cancellation aside…

In my opinion they undermined Moffat.

They set an agenda for Chibnall. Who was pretty poor anyway.

They give every impression that they want to sell the show… you can call…[Read more]

I shall consider my response to all these parallels. Couldn’t give a two peeps on Bessie’s horn about Jimmie Bend-Sinster.

The rest is too raw.

Moffat’s recent response to the ongoing Whovian Torture sounded quite alarmed. The corporation is in charge, why are they asking a very ex show-runner?

Who has The Ming Vase??

Which is kind of what I’ve been saying.

cbeebies… always look on the bright side of life. Or time for bed.

the cbeebies thing is frankly an insult. Kid’s show.

I might say the bbc’s behaviour was inexplicable but you may well get your wish @translatorcircuit, the days of The Corporation as we know it could be numbered. They know it. They literally cannot afford a challenging exciting show.

This may exp…[Read more]

The Big Spoof? As you say, surely not. The only explanation must be the slow motion car crash. This was coming since RTD finished series 4 with The Parting of The Ways.

At some point the special was planned and The BBC then decided they couldn’t back it. It’s not the same institution that brought the show bac…[Read more]

The cliff-hanger, as Belam says, does seem to be the key, almost a taunt. ‘You want a show based on continuity but without continuity? Try THIS.’ This suggests both sides knew what was coming.

I am actually very annoyed, mainly with the BBC. I’m afraid for The Corporation too; it’s been in right wing’s…[Read more]

The bbc are not holding the purse strings without creative control. But if someone else holds the purse strings and annoys the telegraphed mailfist, that’s not our fault.

yours faithfully PW

The ratings were an insurmountable problem.

BBC funding issues and allergy to continuity writing win out.

the food. I can’t speak from experience, just observe that somethings were available in the 60’s are not available now. Funny you mention ‘boiling’… until the early 70’s you might still observe people with boils, plaster or no. Urrhhh!!!

But, in the late 70’s I was taken to Italy and my tastebuds were reeducated. Thank you.

Thereaf…[Read more]

Are you revisiting Robot Revolution too?

Lux was enjoyable but maybe slightly empty. Like a cartoon. Need to go back to it. Especially the fourth wall moment.

There were better stories in the season. Maybe NOT Revolution nor Reality War.

The celluloid fire was both telegraphed and suspect. I have a feeling RTD (and Chib) rather…[Read more]

hmm lots of desperate sounds from the sheep pen.

i and The Independent basically reprinted the ‘no actor will do it’ story and blamed it on The Sun.

There was a ‘fans’ questionnaire: who was Rose at end of Reality War? Who should the next Doctor be? Will The Abzorbaloff return?

Then someone spectaculated that the special…[Read more]

so same old, same old?

If this ‘new doc’ rumour is anything more than disgraceful anti-Piper/anti-Badwolf briefing, I am going to get quite annoyed.

… or have ‘the rooms’ only just woken up to all the Virtual Reality/Alternate Universe clues? Mavity, V’linx, REG, song and dance, unDoctor-like reactions… we were even shown another ‘fake’ VR/AU within the one that’s been there since… NOT WBY but The Star Beast… ‘The Boss’ remember?

Why can’t The Doctor sort out the world…[Read more]

The constant anti-Piper briefing might qualify as ‘rubbish’; Tennant’s involvement isn’t critical is it?

well, you all seem to be taking The Darkness at The Edge of Moff in good heart.

In the words of Graham Chapman, ‘lucky we didn’t say anything about the dirty knife…’

And THEN Moff turns the horror UP!

Another ‘patient’ is apparently saying ‘Kill Me’. He’s lurching up behind Bill when Razor brains him.

Then, just in case we did’n’t get it, another candidate for full conversion announces, ‘Me Die, Me Die…’!

There are so many ideas there. I’m still not sure if the Saxon/Missy pay off w…[Read more]

yes, rec = recommendation.

I’m fairly sure Peter told Steven Moffat that the Mondasian Cybermen were the scariest thing he remembered. Moff thought they were rubbish but went away and thought about it. What a feat of imagination to imagine the Cyber factory as a terrifying Bakelite hospital and set it on a time dilated s…[Read more]

The detailed instructions he gave Ollie Reeder on where he should insert his I-pod and how Malcolm would then change the playlist…

Roger Allam was as (genuinely) classy as ever as Peter Mannion.