Reviews

Acorn Antiques is without doubt the best soap opera ever produced. Okay, so the sets were wonky, the lines were terrible and the actors couldn't act their way out of a paper bag - but this was era defining television...

All jokes aside, Victoria Wood and her 'family' made this spoof perfect and each episode is a gem. You have to be extremely talented to do spoofs this well.

'dinnerladies' (sic) was a short lived but concise series which was a delight to watch. The scripts were quite simply charming. Victoria Wood's attention to character detail is so well refined, there is little like it elsewhere in the land of situation comedy. Even series which clock up over a hundred episodes do not have the brilliance or depth of character as can be seen here.

A lot of the credit also goes to the performers. Particularly Anne Reid and Thelma Barlow as the bickering friends Jean and Dolly respectively. We had seen aspects of Thelma Barlow's comic timing when she was in Coronation Street but it is brought to great fruition here.

It may not be as 'in your face' or as loud and bumptious as a lot of nineties comedies and I feel it is sad that 'dinnerladies' is often compared to these others. This is a series of pure classic comedy writing - showing off a great knowledge of idiolect and pathos.

Victoria Wood kept the series short to leave on a high note, and she certainly did. The second series proved just how brilliant a writer she is. I certainly hope she pens another sitcom of an equal standard sometime in the future.

I met Barry Purves at an animation festival in Poole, Dorset, England in 1999. He gave a terrific lecture and showed some of his best pieces of work including 'Achilles' which I consider to be his masterpiece in joint place with 'Gilbert & Sullivan - the very models'. 'Achilles' is just an astounding piece of animation which also works as a piece of drama, a love story and a prime example of a master working at his craft. The story centres on Achilles and his relationship with his lover, Petroclus, during the trojan war. The scenes are played out through montage as well as action sequences and tableaus, culminating in the untimely deaths of the two heroes. Never before has an historical homosexual relationship been so delicately portrayed without prejudice or judgement. Considering this is animation, that is a tremendous feat. Astonishing stuff!

I have seen this movie over 100 times (no exaggeration!) and I am not afraid to admit it. I have never laughed so hard during a movie before in my life. The casting is impeccable, the script is savvy and the humour deftly diverts from satire to slapstick. This is the sort of film that people who love it will quote from for years to come. Eileen Brennan, the late Madeleine Kahn and Tim Curry ultimately steal the show, but the ensemble cast are terrific. Jonathan Lynn should be proud that he has made so many of it's fans very happy.

I am not one to scare easily. I love horror movies, but most just make you jump. How many films ACTUALLY scare you? Well, this one scared me. I was alone in the house one night with all the lights out. BBC2 screened it and I settled down for a bit of an old scary movie. It wasn't what I expected. When it finished, I went around the house putting all the lights back on and didn't get to sleep for quite some time. Robert Wise - a remarkably versatile director (The Sound of Music, Star Trek - the Motion Picture) - has brought Shirley Jackson's acclaimed novel brilliantly to the big screen with chilling effects. Julie Harris portrays Eleanor perfectly with great support from Claire Bloom as Theo. Watch it alone for the best effect! Forget the remake!

This series ran for two series of six episodes each and one special in the mid 80's. Victoria Wood is one of the funniest, brightest and most clever comedians today. Her wit and charm come shining through her writing of sketches, songs and short plays. This series established her as one of the leading comedians in Britain and has gone on to perform sell out tours of her one woman show ever since. Further projects included the film 'Pat and Margaret' and the irresistibly charming sitcom 'dinnerladies'(sic). Helped with the talented aid of Julie Walters, Patricia Routledge and the irrepressible Celia Imrie, 'As Seen on TV' will continually delight fans and bring laughter to all those who watch.