Christmas Telly

[Pubey]

Gavin and Stacey was absolutely gash.

 

[ibwiajwa]

Gavin and Stacey was absolutely gash.

I've just watched it on catchup. I normally agree with you Pubey but not on this one. I loved it. OK, it was predictable but the genius of it is that they have created characters you really care about and they make it funny but natural. I love the use of songs. The reading of 'Stop the Clocks' at the wedding was hysterical - it IS a lot of people's favourite poem with Four Weddings - nice irony there. Really good ending too.

 

[jassyfa1]

Managed to watch both Dr Who's, decent ending and Simms and Cribbings carried the show. As an American football fan, thank God for ESPN America, bowl game after bowl game made up for the crap on the other channels. Couldn't be doing with Tate as she has repeated so often on UK Gold that it all sounds the same, and I never got into Gavin and Stacey from series 1. As for the Royal Family, what a load of crap that was, the plot is simple, mother says something to daughter, then asks son in law some question then asks somebody else the same question and so on, Christ I could do a funnier 5 minute stand up routine than all the comedy in that pile of *****

 

[Rob Noxious]

Is is me, or has it been absolutely dire this year?

As for Boxing Day....was there anything on at all? I had to restrain myself from throwing a cold turkey at the telly when those irritating geordie ***** were on the telly. Light entertainment circa 1974. :puke

Think you're being a bit harsh, MK - I love 'The Likely Lads' and seeing Thelma in her Xmas pixie suit was a real festive treat. Have got high hopes for that new series 'Are You Being Served?' and rumour has it that there's a wartime drama called 'Colditz' happening in the New Year proper.

But seriously, best prog I watched was about Ray Davies' songwriting on Sky Arts One. Second part is on tonight at 9.00 - the best living English song-writer? He must be up there, surely...

 

[OldBlueLady]

Caught up with most things I wanted to see on iplayer eventually. Enjoyed both Gavin and Stacey and Catherine Tate's simple humour and loved Dr Who. John Simm is just an absolute genius and the poignancy of the Doctor's farewell visits was very emotional - never known such a long regeneration in the history of the show. I love David Tennant's OTT acting, everything about his Doctor has made you be involved with an emotional side not normally seen in the Doctor, he'll be very greatly missed. Is it me or does the new Doctor look like one of those "latex created" people that Ant and Dec and others use to fool people?

 

[Napster]

Dr Who was excellent. Watched it with the kids.

 

[Pubey]

Ah, I thought it was superb. I guess that's the last we'll see of Capt Jack, Rose, Martha et al. Tennant's final line of "I don't want to go," had me in bits.

Quality.

Also, the final Gavin & Stacey was absolute class as well, even if it was blatantly obvious what was going to happen.

why was it class? the whole 3rd series has been crap and this capped it off. it just wasn't funny. recycled Bryn, Pam and Smiffy jokes and Gavin and Stacey have ended up being the most sickening TV couple ever. Ness just isn't funny, and if I hear one more person say 'whats occuring?' I'm going to rise up with Clarkson and Anne Robinson and commit a ji'had on Barry ****ing Island.

On the other hand, The Royale Family was actually quite good

 

[MK Shrimper]

why was it class? the whole 3rd series has been crap and this capped it off. it just wasn't funny. recycled Bryn, Pam and Smiffy jokes and Gavin and Stacey have ended up being the most sickening TV couple ever. Ness just isn't funny, and if I hear one more person say 'whats occuring?' I'm going to rise up with Clarkson and Anne Robinson and commit a ji'had on Barry ****ing Island.

On the other hand, The Royale Family was actually quite good

They ended it at the right time. Forget the comedy side of things, the actual acting from James Corden as he spoke in the church was electrifying. Yes it was cheesy and utterly sentimental, but a great way to go out for a show that was one of the highlights of the 2000's.

 

[EastStandBlue]

why was it class? the whole 3rd series has been crap and this capped it off. it just wasn't funny. recycled Bryn, Pam and Smiffy jokes and Gavin and Stacey have ended up being the most sickening TV couple ever. Ness just isn't funny, and if I hear one more person say 'whats occuring?' I'm going to rise up with Clarkson and Anne Robinson and commit a ji'had on Barry ****ing Island.

On the other hand, The Royale Family was actually quite good

I agree with you about Gavin & Stacey, but I think the Royale Family is going down the same route now...

I thought the whole "Morning" "Goodnight" repetition was nonsense and to top it all off, they've made Dave into an absolute moron with the mental capacity of a toddler for a cheap laugh. Last years Christmas Special was spectacular, but this years was merely Ok.

 

[Pubey]

They ended it at the right time. Forget the comedy side of things, the actual acting from James Corden as he spoke in the church was electrifying. Yes it was cheesy and utterly sentimental, but a great way to go out for a show that was one of the highlights of the 2000's.

I agree that James Corden stole it in the last episode. However:

Series 1 - 10/10
Series 2 - 7/10
Series 3 - 5/10

The problem is that they just made so much effort to bring all the characters together it (curry, christening, lads night) it completely lost it in the last one, and the attempts at bringing in (and subsequently chucking) new characters were awful. Gavin is probably the dullest leading man ever, and Stacey ends up being an utter bitch. It ended up being a kind of Little Britain sketch show forced into a Sit-com.

 

[Ulysses]

i turned on sky movies cos it was dire and ended up watching endless dross.

 

[Smudger]

They ended it at the right time. Forget the comedy side of things, the actual acting from James Corden as he spoke in the church was electrifying. Yes it was cheesy and utterly sentimental, but a great way to go out for a show that was one of the highlights of the 2000's.

Electrifying??? Have you gone ****ing mad??! It was 100% predictable toilet that a couple of blokes down the pub could have knocked up in 5 minutes. I've always thought Corden was a self-obsessed bellend in interviews so it didn't surprise me that he made the last episode all about him.

I loved Series 1 and 2 but Pubey is right - the whole of Series 3 was just a collection of re-hashed gags as they ran out of material....

 

[Mad Cyril]

Is it just me that thinks David Tennant is a complete and utter ****?

Not that it matters - he will undoubtedly be juiced in to most BBC produced drama for the next ten years or so.

 

[MK Shrimper]

Electrifying??? Have you gone ****ing mad??! It was 100% predictable toilet that a couple of blokes down the pub could have knocked up in 5 minutes. I've always thought Corden was a self-obsessed bellend in interviews so it didn't surprise me that he made the last episode all about him.

I loved Series 1 and 2 but Pubey is right - the whole of Series 3 was just a collection of re-hashed gags as they ran out of material....

Come on, it was always about anyone BUT G&S as they were pretty dull characters. It wouldn't have lasted one series without Smithy, Nessa or Uncle Bryn.

 

[Matt the Shrimp]

Christmas telly has been absolutely dire in the evenings this year. There wasn't even a decent James Bond movie from the 1960s / 1970s to tuck into!

Oddly, however, there were some good movies on during the day - so we recorded them and then watched them during the evenings. Elf was absolutely hilarious; Miracle on 34th Street (the original one) was enchanting; Singing in the Rain is fantastic. Also caught a couple of the "TV Films" in the BBC series Women We Loved. Gracie! - in which Jane Horrocks plays Gracie Fields was poignant and moving; Enid, about Enid Blyton, was little short of terrifying (but brilliantly acted by Helena Bonham-Carter).

So, there has been some good stuff there, amongst all the dross. Royle Family was OK (although they were always going to struggle when compared to the Nanna Xmas special from last year); Gavin & Stacey was enjoyable on the basis that it was made for punters like me - namely, people who had never previously seen an episode of the show. If you were a regular, I can see how you wouldn't have enjoyed it. And, whisper it quietly, but I rather enjoyed the Cranford Xmas specials.

Matt

 

[Mad Cyril]

Christmas telly has been absolutely dire in the evenings this year. There wasn't even a decent James Bond movie from the 1960s / 1970s to tuck into!

I like a disaster movie featuring a galaxy of stars such as The Towering Inferno or The Poseidon Adventure over Christmas.

 

[Rob Noxious]

New Year telly

Saturday's FA Cup highlights were a treat with those seven Preston goals ... :clap: :D:excellent:

 

[osymandus]

Is it just me that thinks David Tennant is a complete and utter ****?

Not that it matters - he will undoubtedly be juiced in to most BBC produced drama for the next ten years or so.

I think its just you !
In what sense is he ? He is a brilliant actor (The Hamlet was fantastic)

 

[ibwiajwa]

I think its just you !
In what sense is he ? He is a brilliant actor (The Hamlet was fantastic)

I can see where Mad Cyril is coming from on this one. Tennant is great in the theatre but overacts on TV IMO. Everything is larger than life so that the back row can get it. He could do with listening to Michael Caine who did a masterclass on how less is more when acting for TV. He is charismatic but Christopher Ecclestone was SO much better.

 

[Pubey]

I can see where Mad Cyril is coming from on this one. Tennant is great in the theatre but overacts on TV IMO. Everything is larger than life so that the back row can get it. He could do with listening to Michael Caine who did a masterclass on how less is more when acting for TV. He is charismatic but Christopher Ecclestone was SO much better.

Incidently I saw Christopher Ecclestone with his nan going around the shops in Manchester the other day