2014 in Review: Top TV Shows

I've watched a frightening amount of TV in 2014. And not all of it has been repeats of Friends. 

Continuing my ‘best of 2014’ blog series, here’s a rundown of the best TV I've watched this year. I've limited myself to ten again and it was much harder to choose than I thought. So bad luck to The Walking Dead (which I've left off because its full series hasn't been on this year so it seems a bit unfair), Penny Dreadful and the two documentary series I mention later on who just missed the cut. I'm sure their respective production teams are gutted.

Here, in no particular order, are the lucky ten who made it...

Doctor Who

Peter Capaldi has completely changed my opinion of Doctor Who. Before it was a show I might watch on a Saturday if I was in, with Capaldi in the lead role it’s become must see. His Doctor is perfect for me - brooding, sarcastic, socially awkward and emotionally unavailable. The end of the ridiculous and boring Doctor/companion love stories was particularly welcome. Capaldi aside, I also really got into some of the storylines for the first time in many series too, especially the series closer with the fantastic Michelle Gomez as a basically perfect female incarnation of the Master. More of this please. 

Veep
The third series of Veep saw terminally gaffe prone Vice President Selina secure her party’s nomination for the Presidential election, but suffice it to say the course did not run smooth. Julia Louis-Dreyfus is my home girl and she is outstanding in Veep, but then she has to be because her supporting cast are all equally good (Tony Hale’s put upon PA Gary is a personal favourite). After a slow start, the Armando Iannucci penned series is going from strength to strength. The idea of a Selina Presidential campaign - in a fourth series which also features Hugh Laurie - is just too much.

Game of Thrones

Whilst series four has made some missteps (the Cersei-Jamie rape scene was awful on many levels) Game of Thrones is still one of the best series on TV. The acting is excellent across the board - Peter Dinklage's Tyrion and Pedro Pascal’s Oberyn Martel were my stand outs in season four - it looks stunning and the writing remains top notch. The thing that’s really interesting about Thrones now is how far it’s moving from its source material; every season feels less and less like a book adaptation and more like an original drama. I'm quite excited by this, even as a huge fan of the books, and can’t wait for the next season to start to see where the characters are going.

The Great British Bake Off

If ever proof were needed that Bake Off mania is fully set in, I think this year’s Baked Alaska-gate was it. Personally, all that angsty nonsense annoyed me (though I was Team Iain all the way) as did some of the more tenuously themed weeks but I will always love this show. Pleasing, too, that its move to BBC1 didn't dent anyone’s enthusiasm for some good old fashioned innuendo. I also continue to love the judges’ Masterclass spin off mini-series, mostly because Paul.

Strictly Come Dancing

It’s amazing how much the removal of Bruce Forsyth as host rejuvenated my love of Strictly. Claudia Winkleman is the best replacement too - I absolutely love her. This year’s series has been textbook classic Strictly: the good dancers are excellent, the bad dancers are funny, the boring dancers got voted off first and there have been some genuinely surprising eliminations. Even the themed weeks haven’t been too awful. It’s so great to feel enthusiastic about Strictly again. Long may it continue.

My Shakespeare

The only documentary to make this list (BBC4’s Len Goodman/Lucy Worsely dance history show Cheek to Cheek and BBC2’s three part history of sci fi Tomorrow's World just missed out) My Shakespeare is a Sky Arts series where prominent actors and directors discuss their favourite Shakespeare plays and characters. It’s perfect viewing for me, and just the right side of pretentious! My favourite was Kim Catrall on Antony and Cleopatra, but all of the ones I saw were really good - informative, accessible and interesting.

Boardwalk Empire 

My favourite TV show ever bowed out this year, which makes me sad but also happy that it went out on such a strong season. As ever with this show, the writing, acting (Stephen Graham’s Al Capone was my stand out this year), production and everything else were all fantastic. Although the ending was ultimately a bit predictable - no spoilers though - the series built up to it perfectly and it was the right ending, unlike so many other shows. Still kind of hoping for a Lucky Luciano spinoff...

Remember Me

Even though it trailed off in the final third, this BBC take on a modern ghost story was incredibly effective. Which is to say the first two episodes were fucking terrifying. The thing that got me into this show was the idea of Michael Palin playing not only a straight role but a pretty morally ambiguous one at that and he was completely brilliant at it. Ditto Mark Addy (I’m really enjoying his late career renaissance) as the world weary policeman so desperate to find a rational explanation for everything that was happening. The writing was solid and the Yorkshire scenery looked so beautiful, but the twisty turny plot was the most compelling thing about this show. I’d love to see the BBC do more of this sort of short series drama.

True Detective

A cop show that avoided all the clichés of a cop show, looked beautiful and was phenomenally acted? Yes please. I think this show was probably slightly over hyped, but it was still very, very good. Matthew Mcconaughey (continuing his baffling run of excellent form) and Woody Harrelson were both excellent as the mismatched Detectives forced to work together on a string of dark, ritualistic murder cases. The best thing about this show was the way it eschewed all the usual cop show plot devices, character stereotypes and stock scenes and presented something much more interesting and with far loftier themes. The only disappointment was that they couldn’t continue this into the series finale.

24: Live Another Day

Jack Bauer comes to London and mayhem ensues - what’s not to love? Ok, so there were some issues with the way the show was Anglicised (anything to do with transport for a start), the allusions to Wikileaks were about as subtle as a brick to the face and some of the plot details extremely dubious but it’s 24 and it was so much fun. It also inspired the most brilliantly snarky Guardian episode blog which is still worth a read months after the series has ended. Hopefully the cliffhanger ending - no spoilers - means we haven’t seen the last of Jack just yet.

Emmys Best Dressed

I miss awards season.

There's just not enough pretty in the world without it, y'know? People need more excuses to wear ridiculously expensive OTT gowns and for that to be ok. We've had nothing like that since Cannes. Sigh.

Luckily, for reasons best known to someone else, the Emmys (and the MTV VMAs but OMG did you see the car crash that was that red carpet?!) have their ceremony outside of awards season providing a little glamour fix to keep me going. It's not high high fashion - no Dior, no Chanel, no Gucci Premiere, only one Armani Prive - but it's something.

Here's my pick...

January Jones in Prabal Gurung

Image source

My favourite of the 8 million red dresses on the very red Emmys carpet. I love the detail of the fabric, I love the high-low hem and I love the overall impact that this gown has. It's definitely the biggest 'fashion moment' of the lot.

Jessica Pare in Lanvin

Image source

Opting not to wear a gown, this classic Lanvin LBD is gorgeous. No fuss, no messing around, just understated elegance. There wasn't much black on the carpet this time so nice to see it being used to effectively here.


Heidi Klum in Zac Posen

Image source

Heidi so often looks like mutton dressed as lamb so it's nice to see her in something much simpler. This dress is all about the fit - which is perfect - and finding the right shade of red to match her skin tone. I'm also a tiny bit obsessed with the cape detail. Good to see something less structured from Zac Posen getting a red carpet outing too.

Amy Poehler in Theia

Image source

We don't often see Amy P in all out glitz but man does this look work for me. I love the delicate beading, minimal styling and the silver against her skin tone is beautiful.

Sarah Paulson in Armani Prive

Image source

One of the few people to wear a traditional fashion big gun, I love this intricately detailed gown. Red and black is a fantastic combination and this is such an effective way of using it. The Gothic net overlay is to die for.

2013 in review: top 10 TV

Well everyone else in the world is doing 2013 review posts so I figured I'd join in. And TV is a great place to start because I love it.

I'm such a couch potato it's ridiculous. Generally, though, most of what I watch consists of either repeats or complete trash. Or both if I'm having a bad day. My current favourite things in the world are the sensationalised American crime documentaries that populate the ID channel (as I write I'm watching something called 'Manhunt: Search for a Serial Killer'). Not big, not clever, very entertaining.

Anyway, just occasionally I watch something that isn't awful. Here's a (largely spoiler free) list of my favourites from this year...

Best in Show: Boardwalk Empire
If this were Crufts, some minor royal would be handing Steve Buscemi a big trophy and a rosette. I love Boardwalk. I love everything about it - the writing, the cast, the acting, the way it's shot and lit, the music, the costumes etc etc etc. It's the most consistently brilliant thing on TV and series four is fantastic. Top, top stuff.
Top moment - Michael K Williams' Chalky White vs Jeffrey Wright's Dr Valentin Narcisse is by far and away my favourite Boardwalk rivalry since Steve Buscemi's Nucky Thompson vs Michael Shannon's Agent van Alden in series one.

Best for the lolz: Parks and Rec
One of the inumerable reasons I love BBC4 is that it introduced me to Parks and Rec, and this year I've got properly into it watching the first three series back to back over a series of very happy weeks. Another case of great writing and a fabulous ensemble cast combining to make something lovely. And lovely is the right word for Parks and Rec - it's funny without being mean, well observed without being cruel and incredibly optimistic in outlook. Now to start watching the next few series...
Top moment - anything said or done by Ron Swanson

Most improved lolz: Veep
I watched series one of Veep and found it a bit meh. Series two is so much better and as a result completely hilarious. It feels like the writers have really hit their stride and focused in on giving the fantastic cast some amazing one liners. And the second great comedy on my list whose lead character is female, which is more noteworthy than it should be.
Top moment - so many fantastic quotes and insults to choose from, but as a cheese lover I particularly enjoyed Gary's vaguely psychotic girlfriend declaring "quit being so hot, you're melting my cheese".

Best for epicness, nudity and dragons: Game of Thrones
I adore the Song of Ice and Fire series of books and, so far, Game of Thrones has been a fantastic and (more or less) faithful adaptation. Probably the best ensemble cast on TV at the moment with amazing effects and great writing, it's the grand and sweeping scale of GoT that makes it so spectacular. And all the nudity. Gotta love the nudity.
Top moment - loved the addition of Diana Rigg to the cast, but the highlight for me has to be The Red Wedding. What's that song I hear?

Best for gore (and hotties): The Walking Dead
A good, old fashioned post-apocalyptic zombie yarn, The Walking Dead is definitely more than the sum of its parts thanks to some fantastically well constructed characters, great writing and uniformly excellent big set pieces. Another great cast too, particularly Andrew Lincoln's Rick (good hotty) and David Morrisey's The Governor (psycho hotty).
Top moment - the excellent mid-season finale showdown between Rick's group and The Governor's. Gory, exciting and heartbreaking in equal measure with a couple of great twists and a fantastic cliffhanger. Can't wait to pick the series up again in February.

Best old fashioned thriller: The Tunnel
English language adaptations of European crime thrillers are rarely great (the superlative Wallander aside) but Sky's take on Scannoir murder mystery The Bridge was really well done. Stephan Dillane and Clemance Posey were fantastic leading a British-French hybrid production in this well written, dark, funny and unpredictable drama about a serial killer with a grudge and a point to make. The Bridge has just been renewed for a second series. Hopefully The Tunnel will follow suit.
Top moment - the incredibly tense sequence with the (ultimately fake) bomb in cretinous tabloid journalist Danny Hillier's car in episode one set the scene and the pace really well. I was hooked from then on.

Saddest goodbye: Borgen
The fact that there's no more Borgen, ever, makes me sadder that it reasonably should. I love this series mostly because I love the characters and I'm genuinely sad to say goodbye to them, especially Birgitte. A believable, rounded and strong female politician character is so achingly rare, as indeed is a believable and rounded depiction of politics in general, and I'll miss Borgen's take on both so much. Bring on the box set!
Top moment - I have two (beware spoilers ahead): the moment when Bent follows Birgitte to the New Democrats and the moment when Nete - who I loved - is revealed to be the one leaking information to the Moderates. The former made me cry happy tears, the latter made me viscerally angry. I love that TV can do that.

Best one off: Burton and Taylor
Dominic West as Richard Burton and Helena Bonham Carter as Elizabeth Taylor - need I say more? Well if you insist: fantastic central performances with a great script and did I mention Dominic West as Richard Burton?
Top moment - the hotel room workout flashback scene was adorable. But my favourite scenes were the 'I love you but we can't be together' finale. Heartbreaking stuff.

The 'Not as good this year but still pretty fucking ace' award: The Great British Bake Off
Basically, I really didn't like any of the final contestants, didn't care who won and found all the tabloid nonsense really tiresome but Bake Off is still one of my favourite shows. And as long as Mary, Paul, Mel and Sue are still involved I'll always love it. The contestants and baking are kind of peripheral at this point.
Top moment - custardgate. Poor Howard.

The 'this is basically porn' award: Paul Hollywood's Bread and Pies and Puds
Pretty self explanatory really. Any show that involves a lot of old blue eyes is going to feature on my list. Several of my lists actually, but the others aren't for public consumption.
Top moment - all the close ups of his hands. Don't even care how creepy that is.

Posted with Blogsy

BBC4: a love letter

My darling BBC4,

I adore you. You know that, don't you? But why? Why, after years of regarding you with at best mild curiosity and slight confusion, have you come to be an indispensable part of my evenings and weekends?

I'll tell you: it's because of your incredible output. You have so many amazing, perfectly formed shows that just wouldn't get a look in anywhere else. That you give them their chance makes you a very special channel indeed.

Take the sublime Borgen for example. What other channel would show this exquisitely shot Danish political drama with writing and acting so good it makes The West Wing look like the work of five year olds? No one. But thanks to you I can watch two episodes every week. And I always do, because Borgen is the best thing on TV at the moment. By far.

And who else would've taken the time and effort that you did to make your excellent The Story of Musicals? A fabulous three part look at the rise of the British musical since the 1950s, I'm devastated that this had to end (but excited that you're filling its vacant slot with a nature documentary).

Then there's my beloved Only Connect. The best quiz show around by several country miles, no doubt your more mainstream BBC cousins thought it too nerdy and obscure. But you realised that it was this nerdiness and obscurity that made it such a brilliant show.

I could go on and on - I've not even touched upon your amazing range of documentaries on subjects as varied as the process of decay and the history and relevance of illuminated manuscripts (both of which were excellent, by the way). But I won't.

I just want you to know how much I love you.

Please, don't ever change.

Billi xoxo

2012: I'm back baby

Well it's January and you know what that means: new year's resolutions. Huzzah and hurrah. Maybe. 

Oddly for me, I've made a few this year:

• Watch as many of my ridiculously large collection of currently unwatched DVDs as I can 
• Read more, starting with my ridiculously large collection of currently unread books (spot a theme?) 
• Take more photos
• Be more adventurous in the kitchen. I mean with cooking and recipes and stuff, not the thing you were thinking. 
• Catch up on some of the TV series I've been meaning to watch (Boardwalk Empire, The Wire, Human Remains et al) even if this means adding to that DVD collection
• The usual exercise, healthy eating one
• And, last but most relevant, try and finally keep a regular blog

So, whether you like it or not, I've returned to the blogosphere. Whether this or my diet last longer remains to be seen... 

BBC reveals new Strictly Come Dancing pro lineup

Exciting news to stimulate some rare lunchtime blogging from me: the BBC has released the list of pro dancers who'll be taking part in this year's Strictly Come Dancing.

And it's good news if you're me. Anton is back for another series! Hurrah! My other favourites, Erin and Brendan, are back too. Slightly-less-enthusiastic-but-pleased-nonetheless hurrah! All three of them will have been in every series since the beginning, a not inconsiderable feat given the Beeb's propensity to fiddle with the pro lineup every year.

That said, though, this year's fiddling has been kept to a minimum with just one change: Jared Murillo is out, Pasha Kovalev is in. Honestly, I'm kind of glad to see the back of Jared. As cute as he was paired with Tina O'Brian last year, I never felt he clicked with the show. Maybe it was because he was too young, I don't know, but I did find him pretty annoying. His replacement, a veteran of the US version of So You Think You Can Dance and the stage show Burn The Floor, is older and, frankly, hotter.Good stuff.

The full pro line up for Strictly 2011 is:  Artem Chigvintsev, Brendan Cole, Anton Du Beke, James Jordan, Pasha Kovalev, Vincent Simone and Robin Windsor; Erin Boag, Flavia Cacace, Ola Jordan, Natalie Lowe, Kristina Rihanoff, Aliona Vilani and Katya Virshilas.

You can read the BBC press release here.

Things I'm loving this week: #11

Have to be honest, the main thing I'm loving this week is the fact that I'm only working for three days of it. Bank holiday + taking Friday as leave to go back to Wales for my dad's birthday = win. Other than that, though...

Films

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. I'm a bit of a devotee of this franchise mostly, and highly obviously, because Johnny Depp's Cap'n Jack is pretty much the best movie character of recent times. Savvy? And for my money POTC4 is the best of the three sequels to the outstanding originals. I love the new characters it introduces, Penelope Cruz's Angelica and Ian McShane's (Lovejoy to Blackbeard via Al Swearengen, oh for his career!) Blackbeard especially. Frankly, I'm quite glad to see the back of the irritating Will and Elizabeth too, and the new love birds (the missionary and his mermaid) are charming in a cute-if-contrived sort of way. Watch out for genius cameos from Keith Richards, Richard Griffiths and (blink and you'll miss her) Judi Dench. Overall a great watch that's a lot of fun. Bring on part five...

Quite excited to be heading to see X Men: First Class this week too - another film franchise I love. Will it be as good without Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen driving it though? And finally on film, if you're a Harry Potter fan and haven't picked up the current issue of Empire then do so, now. It's amazing. 

TV

I kind of gave up on my much vaunted guilty pleasure of last week, Geordie Shore. I was a bit concerned that it was just going to basically be the same show every week and so it proved. Instead I've been getting back into Inked and rekindling my desire for a tattoo. For my money Inked (also set at a Hart and Huntington, the one at The Palms in Vegas) is much better than the '... Ink' series of shows. It cuts out the soap opera crap and just focuses on the tattoos. 

Incidentally, and I'm sure it'll never happen (I'm too chicken and not cool enough), but if I ever did get ink of my own then I'd be going here for some inspiration (I like the Mirror of Erised ones) and getting it done at Hart and Huntington at Universal Resort in Orlando. Or such is my geeky fantasy. I mean how cool would it be to wander into The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and show fellow visitors to Hogsmead your Potter-based tattoo? Stop looking at me like that - cool is a subjective concept. But I digress...

I've also been fascinated at a slightly higher level by TV this week in the form of BBC1's excellent Egypt's Lost Cities. The technology on display here - using satellites to map long lost settlements, pyramids and tombs - was incredible. Also? I want to be Indiana Jones. With a tattoo.

Unattractive personal quality of the week

Stubbornness. I don't know why but this week I've been in one of those moods where if you tell me I can't do something then I'm sure as hell going to do it. Case in point: chatting to a friend on the phone whilst in Morrisons getting some lunch today. Conversation went like this:

Me: hey they have WWE Magazine here. I should totally buy it.

Friend: you're so not going to. 

Me: *proceeds to checkout, WWE Magazine in hand*

I don't really want said magazine. And it was £4 which, given for a similar price I could've got Vogue, is not money well spent. Still, it has some nice pictures in it: 

John Morrison's abs. Wowza. 

Web stuff

First of all a recommendation for fellow fashion bunnies: High Fashion Society. This is a great 'designer resale' (ie vintage) site that's definitely worth keeping an eye on. I bought an almost mint condition bright pink patent Miu Miu purse that I'd been lusting after for literally years from them this week for a tiny fraction of what it should really be worth. Their customer service, delivery and super luxe packaging all scores top marks and I'll definitely be using them again. 

Launching this week, and looking damn fine, is the new Anton and Erin website. This is ace and I love it. I especially recommend investing some time perusing the gallery. I'm sure you can imagine why..! The new site is very obviously based on Erin's recently relaunched site - no bad thing as that too is very good, useful and usable. And it has a shop so, y'know, if you're ever wondering what to get me for my birthday... 

  

Things I'm loving this week: week 10

(Well it's kind of week 10 I suppose. I've lost track.)

Soundtrack to the week
Like pretty much everyone else in the world I'm currently obsessing over Lady Gaga's new album 'Born This Way'. It's so, so good. So good. It's rare that I'll say that an album has no filler but literally every song on Born This Way has me hooked. Edge of Glory is my personal favourite track.

Worth-every-penny splurge of the week
My new Gold Series GHDs were by no means cheap but my god they're money well spent. GHDs have always been the daddy of hair straighteners and the Gold Series is the best I've used. The plates glide through your hair so easily and leave hair silky smooth. I can't stop touching mine. It's becoming a bit of an issue. At about £120 a pair they made for one very expensive lunch hour, but for the effect - and on a cost per use basis! - they're completely 100% worth it.

Guilty pleasure of the week
I'm not a particular fan of Jersey Shore. I can't stand The Only Way is Essex. So my viewing of Geordie Shore on MTV last night was only exploratory. In theory. In fact I love the show. For those unaware of the concept eight (four girls, four guys) young, good looking, incredibly shallow Geordies are put in a stupidly nice house with a fridge full of booze and draws full of condoms and, essentially, left to their own devices. Hilarity ensues. And/or all hell breaks loose. It's hard to tell the difference. It's not big, it's not clever but it is entertaining. Trashy, but entertaining.

Some early thoughts: Greg and Vicky are my favourites, Vicky should get with Greg not Jay, Jay's eyebrows are weird and 'a million and ten per cent' is a wicked catchphrase.

Girl crush of the week
Michelle Obama. With the state visit happening at the moment the Obamas are all over the news. This pleases me intensely. Now, y'know, Barack is pretty cool but Michelle is just amaze, as the kids would say. I've always had a soft spot for her but this developed into full on girl crush thanks to the incredible white Tom Ford gown she wore to the state banquet. Oh. Em. Gee.

Shoes of the week
I love Schuh. It's just the best shoe shop out there, especially their web shopping. I particularly love their great range of cute kitten heels which, not being much cop at walking in anything higher, are my go to work/occasion shoe style. My most recent acquisitions are another pair - I already have them in black glitter! - of their Clara courts. And they're ace.

So who should take over on Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two?

So the sad Strictly news of the day is that Claudia Winkleman is taking a break from It Takes Two this series to concentrate on raising her (what will then be) newborn baby. Or as she put it on Twitter:

"Will miss it terribly but baby / goat will only be very small and can't leave it every day." 

 Sadface. Understandable of course, but sadface.

There's been much chatter today about who the Beeb will get to fill in for her. Names that keep cropping up include Kate Garraway (I'll be demanding a portion of my license fee back if so - I can't abide the woman), Natasha Kaplinsky, Sian Williams, Arlene Philips and various of the ex-pros (Matt Cutler and Karen Hardy seemingly being particular faves).

Taking a slightly more left field approach, over on her blog Caron suggested my beloved Anton Du Beke taking over. I'm not as averse to this suggestion as you might think. I mean come on, it'd be guaranteed Anton five nights a week! I love that idea. On many levels... As long as he still did the pro dances (not the show dances since they're invariably rubbish and the point where everyone puts the kettle on) I could live with him not competing on the show were it not for one thing: he's a dancer.

I feel pretty strongly that the host of ITT should not be a dancer. That seems like a pretty stupid thing to say, right? But for me so much of the charm of Claudia doing ITT was that she knew nothing about the technical side of the dancing. She asked the sort of ill informed questions that the average audience member would ask, given the chance. And she did so wonderfully badly in my favourite bit of ITT - Len's Master Class. Put a dancer in as the host and you lose all of that. I have very little interest in watching Anton and Craig R-H sit and argue about the relative merits of someone's fleckle for half an hour. Stick a non-dancer in to argue with Craig about how much fun it was watching the person try and do said fleckle on the other hand...

So who do I think should take over from Claudia? I'd like to see it be someone who's contributed to the Friday Panel in the past. Miranda Hart would be fabulous, I could live with John Barrowman, even Peter Andre would have his charm. (And also his body, but I digress). But I think my top choice would be showbiz royalty in the shape of Michael Ball. I love his contributions to the Panel and he has the right blend of charm, cheese and cheek to make it his own. And I think he'd make an excellent dance partner for Len, which is surely the most important consideration in all of this!

One thing's for sure though. Whoever eventually emerges as this series' host is going to have one hell of a job filling Claudia's stilettos.

Things I'm loving this... er... non specific period of time

Stop looking at me like that. I'm aware it's been a while. What can I say? Life's been a bit... life-y recently. By which I mean, if you'll excuse the language, it's been a bit of a cluster fuck. Personally and, moreover, politically things have not been great. I'm not going to dwell on either other than to say, on both counts, keep calm and carry on.

Anyway, enough of that. Here's some stuff that has been providing much needed smiles and fun:

Music

I seem to have discovered a lot of new (to me) music recently. Top top top recommendation goes to Hugh Laurie's new album 'Let Them Talk'. This is genuinely brilliant for anyone who has even a passing interesting in old school proper blues. The musicianship is astonishing. My favourite track from it, I think, is Swanee River for which the superlative has yet to be invented. Buy it. Now.

Also rocking my socks has been Alexis Jordan's eponymous début album (top track: How You Like Me Now), which is much better than it has any right to be given it came from an American Idol reject, and the excellent Bomb Shelter Sessions by Vintage Trouble. You may have seen these beyond fabulous retro rockers on Jools Holland - if not you missed a treat. Here they are doing my favourite song from the album, Blues Hand Me Down:

Books
Not that I've had much time to read, but when I have I've been absorbed by either travel guides for Malta (the destination of my much anticipated October break this year) or the thoroughly excellent 'Behind the Black Door' by Sarah Brown. This book is a completely compelling, very entertaining account of life in Downing Street by the former 'first lady'. I've not quite finished it yet, watch out for a full review when I do.

One political book I have finished recently is the amazing '22 Days in May' by the equally amazing David Laws. If you've not read this book and have the faintest interest in British politics at the moment then you really need to. The epilogue in which he outlines his hopes for the coalition explains what I believe and why I'm a Lib Dem more eloquently than I ever could.


TV
First of all, yes I did watch - and enjoy -  every second of the Royal Wedding. Let's just say that and get it out of the way. Apart from the bits with Fearne Cotton, I thought the BBC coverage was pretty good. (And, if you're wondering, my picks for Best Dressed Guest go to Lady Frederick Windsor - AKA Big Suze off of Peep Show - in deep blue Georgio Armani, Sam Cam in beautiful Burberry and Miriam Gonzalez Durantez and that amazing embellished turban.)

Second of all, yes I did watch - and enjoy - every second of Eurovision, including the two semi finals. My favourite songs were from Switzerland and Iceland. I also adored Lipstick by the ever youthful and energetic Jedward. So shoot me.

Finally, if you have Sky and enjoy trashy shit as much as I do then I implore you to check out Spartacus: Blood and Sand on Sky 1. It is... well, it's awful! It's kind of like what would have happened if a 13 year old boy had written HBO's excellent Rome. There's a lot of (fairly graphic) completely gratuitous sex and all the violence you could ever want, inexplicably shown in slow motion. I'm not really making a good case here am I? But seriously if you have a spare hour and it happens to be on then do have a look. It will make you giggle.

Finally finally, if you have Sky and enjoy properly good drama then look out for In Treatment on Sky Atlantic. Another HBO export, it stars the uber dishy Gabriel Byrne as a therapist - and he is mind blowingly good. It's not always an easy watch (each episode is a simple double hander between Byrne's therapist and one of his patients, or occasionally his own therapist) but it is just supremely good.

Breaking the code of the quickstep?

So in my Dancing With The Stars post last week I said I wanted to see Team Cherico tackle ballroom. This week my wish came true and Chris and Cheryl had a quickstep...

As I've mentioned before, the quickstep is my absolute favourite dance out of the selection that Strictly-type shows tackle. I absolutely love it. I have to admit that I, like Len Goodman, was really fearful about Jericho taking it on. To be honest I thought he would suck at ballroom. Big time.

I don't generally like being wrong, but on this occasion I'm proper chuffed to be. The Cherico quickstep is, simply, ace. The footwork is great, the posture is fab and the music is proper quickstep music. He loses some points for not being in white tie and tails (and slightly creepy facial expressions), but still. I'm really, really impressed. The elimination show is tonight on US TV. If Cherico go, I'll be writing a sternly worded letter. Or something.



In other news, I finished reading Jericho's latest book - Undisputed - this week. It, too, is ace. I can't recommend it highly enough it you're even a casual fan of wrestling. You should absolutely read it if you got the reference in the title of this post. It's by turns hilarious and deeply touching and his writing style is froot*.

*In order to get this joke you must read the book. If that's not reason enough then I don't know what is.

Strictly Week 1: A case study in why I love this show so much!

Have I mentioned that I love Strictly Come Dancing more than almost anything else in the world? Thought I had. And after this week's opening double bill I am reminded why. This show is better than sliced bread. It's the cat's pyjamas. The mutt's nuts. I. Love. It.

But first, before my not at all biased and completely inciteful thoughts on the couples, I wish to have a moan. I actively enjoying moaning and it's good that even Strictly provides me with material: over marking. Judges (especially you Alesha): it's week one. Get a grip please. The amount of completely undeserved 7s and 8s dished out this week was ridiculous. Stop offering stupid platitudes because you don't want to look harsh and start offering proper constructive criticism to help the celebs improve. Like Craig does, if you could ever hear what he said over stupid audience booing. I have particular problems with Alesha in this regard - something which I'm sure I'll return to as the series goes on. Suffice it to say, I am one of the legions of people who would weep with joy at the return of Arlene...

Anyway, griping over. Let's talk dancing.

Felicity and Vincent (cha cha cha)
One of my favourite couples - they're so cute! Felicity looked amazing in yellow. Forget Michelle Williams, it's Felicity's legs I want! Their cha cha cha was pretty good too. It was fun and energetic and Felicity clearly has the potential to do well in a Cherie Lunghi sort of way. I can't wait to see her ballroom! A good start from them. I'd give them a 5.

Scott and Natalie (waltz)
This was not for me. From the second Scott strutted out in a dinner jacket not white tie and tails - he looked more like a sommelier than a dancer - I was unimpressed. It was also not a proper waltz in my book. Too dirty, not enough proper waltz steps and too much an exhibition of how hot Natalie is. Technically I didn't rate it either. So stiff it may as well have been starched! Scott clearly has potential though and I'm looking forward to seeing him in future weeks. They'd get 5 from me.

Goldie and Kristina (cha cha cha)
This was a bit of a classic Strictly moment for me. Almost zero technique and few actual cha cha cha steps, but so much fun. I love Goldie and he's proved time and again how versatile he is. He can only improve - as can Kristina's choreography. A 4, but with a smiley face attached!

Patsy and Robin (waltz)
I find watching Patsy slightly heartbreaking. You can actually see the sadness in her eyes. She's had a god awful year and it shows. I want her to do well so badly. And I thought her waltz was really nice. Perhaps slightly controversially, I preferred it to Scott's - the choreography was much more classic even if new boy Robin looked ridiculous in his vest and braces combo. Patsy was almost cripplingly nervous but she did ok. Her progress in the series will depend on getting control of her nerves. I really hope she can. A 6 from me.

Matt and Aliona (cha cha cha)
Latin dance of the opening two shows by a country mile, Matt completely owned this routine. And, despite the fact I'm not a fan of the cha cha cha, I really liked it (apart from the naff beginning). Matt is shockingly snake hipped and got his footwork down well. The choreography was fab too - nice work Aliona. Great stuff, I can't wait to see Matt's ballroom now. A definite highlight: 7 from me.

Pamela and James (waltz)
Oh. My. God. This was so beautiful. Proper waltz choreography done with flair and grace. And James was wearing tails. Sigh. I'm not sure how Pamela will deal with Latin dances but if all of her ballroom is this good I'm not sure I care. My favourite dance of the two nights: the only one that justifies an 8.

Paul and Ola (cha cha cha)
Poor Ola. From champion last year to... Well... This. There was nothing I liked about this technically but Paul tried hard, bless him. Maybe his ballroom will be better. It couldn't be much worse. At the risk of being booed, 3 from me.

Jimi and Flavia (cha cha cha)
So onto show 2. Jimi appeared to be wearing a shirt at least two sizes too big and untucked, which annoyed me! His cha cha cha was pretty good though. Some nice choreography and he pulled it off well. Jimi is my one to watch this series: he has real potential. Can't wait to see more of him (in many senses...). A 6 from me.

Peter and Erin (waltz)
I love Erin. Her choreography is always spot on for the ability of her partner and this was no exception. Sadly Peter just couldn't pull it off. He was stiff and nervous. The moment at the end when he more or less dropped Erin says as much about her professionalism as it does his lack of dancing ability! A 4, entirely earned by Erin!

Michelle and Brendan (cha cha cha)
So disappointing. Flat, safe and (sorry Brendan) rubbish choreography. I genuinely don't understand why the dance wasted so much time at the beginning just walking down the stairs. I think Michelle and Brendan are a great couple though - and amazing characters - so I'm sure they'll be back with something impressive soon. Until then, a disappointed 6.

Gavin and Katya (waltz)
It pains me to admit this as I've never been a Gavin Henson fan in the slightest, but I really liked this routine. The choreography was gorgeous, the hold completely firm and the footwork near perfect. Gavin's rise and fall was spot on too - very impressive for week one. I'm excited to see how Gavin gets on in the series. He'll be a real contender if he can just get the acting side of the competition right. A 7 from me.

Tina and Jared (cha cha cha)
Such a cute couple! Sadly another disappointing routine though. The choreography was ok, but not a cha cha cha. And Tina was so nervous. Still, clearly these two have potential and I hope Tina can get control of her nerves so they can fulfil it. Especially as newbie Jared is uber cute! For this week, a 5.

Kara and Artem (cha cha cha)
Yes I know I'm taking this out of sequence. You'll see why, if you haven't already guessed..! I have to admit I can't really remember this routine beyond Kara falling over and Artem's chest. Mmmmmmmmmm Artem's chest... Sorry. They are clearly going to be contenders though. Having just watched them back on YouTube, I give them a 6.

Ann and Anton (waltz)
The performance of the two nights by a long way! By the end I was crying with laughter. Ann, bless her, tried so hard and clearly had a blast. And you know what? I love her for it! Overall, the routine went ok. It was genius choreography from Saint Anton (as I believe he must now be) which worked to Ann's advantage and showed off Anton at his graceful best. There were two moments of comedy gold in it though: the way Ann jogged round Anton when he was doing his beautiful leg extended turn and her attempt at a kick which was really more of a goosestep. Overall though this was nowhere near as bad as it could have been! And I literally cannot wait to see their "comedy" salsa next week. I'm not going to score Team AnnTon (I can't bring myself to actually objectively asses them!) but I do think Craig's 2 was incredibly harsh. And Anton, my darling, I love you even more now than I ever have :)

Bring on Week 2!