Scouting for Girls @ Shepherd's Bush Empire - 18/10/2012

Scouting for Girls played a "home turf" gig at Shepherd's Bush Empire on 18/10/2012.

 As newbies to the venue, we were surprised at how intimate it was, confirming the feeling that this was a gig aimed at real fans who had stuck with the band for all three albums. Having anticipated finding ourselves among a crowd full of screaming teenage girls, we were also surprised at the range of the audience, from families with kids as young as 6, to people in their sixties.

Predictably the first few songs were from their newly released album, The Light Between Us, including Rocky Balboa, Summertime in the City and It only rains in LA.

They then moved back into the second, more catchy album, Everybody wants to be on TV, before finishing with all of the classics from their eponymous debut album. This choice to cover all of their material, rather than focusing on promoting the newer singles as other artists may have been tempted to do, meant that nobody was left disappointed at not having heard their favourite SFG tune.

The band interacted with the crowd throughout, telling the story behind writing each of the songs, proving that this is music with meaning rather than music for the sake of music.

The highlight was seeing lead singer Roy Stride heading up into the stands (the shorties at the back didn't even realise he had left the stage, so effortless was the transition), taking optimum position for singing two of their cheekiest songs, 1+1 and Posh Girls, before borrowing a member of the audience's phone to take a photo of the screaming crowd below.

The basic, shabby chic set consisted of a backdrop onto which the latest album cover was projected, embellished by a mish-mash of lampshades hung from the ceiling. Simplistic though it was, it really captured my imagination and seduced my inner interior design geek, showing that SFG don't need fancy sets and expensive pyrotechnics to put on an enjoyable show.

Charismatic, charming and categorically the best live performance I've seen any artist give.

Chalet Girl (Traill, 2011)

A 19-year old ex-skateboarding champion from an underprivileged background has been looking after her couch-potato father since the death of her mother. Struggling to make ends meet, it looks like her luck is changing when she lands herself a high paying job - the catch being that in involves moving to Austria for four months. 

Within the first few minutes, the unmistakable face of Bill Bailey appears on the screen, assuring the audience that this is no ordinary "Brit-com". The subsequent arrival of British institution Bill Nighy confirms that this is one to stick with, and, following a brief detour into St. Trinians' style territory, we're en-route for a decent film.

The most visually noticeable way in which this differentiates itself from the usual monotony of the rom-com genre is the setting; gone is the generic, nameless metropolis that usually serves as the forgettable location for romantic near misses concerning middle-class, high-earning, well-dressed fashion types. Instead, we are facing, for the main part, a gorgeous mountainous setting, with a tomboy-esque female protagonist. In keeping with the generic conventions, once the base is laid, the plotline is largely predictable, yet still satisfying. 

The class divide between the protagonist and the family she finds herself working for sets the film up for several laughs, but the way in which she holds her own serves to have the audience rooting for her from the start. Couple this with several incidents which anyone who has attempted skiing or snowing will identify with, and the comedy just keeps coming.

A feel good British rom-com which, despite understandable predictability, remains light hearted and entertaining throughout.

Sensorites - Fool.

Check out my current jam, "Fool" by Sensorites. Yeah, I was never street enough to pull off "jam" was I? Nonetheless, this song has been on constant repeat in my room for the last couple of days. As I've said before, writing about and reviewing music is not my strong point, but to me they sound like a raw, edgier, less mainstream take on contemporary Indy Pop. Undeniably catchy, very laid back and less manufactured than most music you hear these days, "Fool" unsurprisingly won Indie London's Single of the Week.

I found out about the band through Trespasser Film, who made the wonderful video below.  Through Trespasser I also heard a couple more songs by Sensorites, and I like what I hear.

Have a watch, have a listen, let me know what you think, and check out Sensorites' website. Fool.

Scouting for Girls- The Light Between Us: Album review

No artist has held me captive for more than two albums since the Spice Girls, so I  wasn't sure what to expect from Scouting for Girls' new album, The Light Between Us.

I've always been a fan of Scouting for Girls since their eponymous debut album, and never before have I so keenly awaited a new album release, damaging my already precarious bank balance by pre-ordering the album and buying tour tickets in the same week.

Within a few seconds of putting the album on, the unmistakable sound of SFG was there. The Light Between Us has as many tongue in cheek lyrics as other albums, which Scouting for Girls are known for (however, nothing quite as good as "Posh girls have good manners but they go like the clappers coz they never got to hang around with boys in school" from the second album.

Many of the songs have a more mature feel than the previous two albums, yet they still remain as anti- high brow as ever. Catchiest song has to be Summertime in the City, but after a few listens, it's as if SFG have never been away.

Tour review to follow. Bring on the fourth album.

Hanna (Wright, 2011)

This masterpiece somehow managed to escape my radar altogether when it was released last year, but I’m so glad I caught up with it.  Thrilling, gripping, at times chilling, it combines several well known styles to create something truly unique, a new genre where fairytale meets thriller and horror meets sci-fi.

The opening scene, set in a white wonderland that later transpires to be Russia, was an immediate turn-off, and turn off I would have done, had it not been for the large, piping hot, oven fresh pizza balancing on my knee. The film was presented as something from the fantasy fiction genre, an area I refuse to go near.

Yet 10 minutes later, things were looking up, with the introduction of some American hotshots (who, it later transpired, were actually in Morocco-the geographicality of the film was somewhat confusing), and the thriller part of the film began.

Beautifully written, and spectacularly acted, Saoirse Ronan, who plays the protagonist Hanna, deserves special recognition. She brings a certain je-ne-sais-quoi to her character, perfecting the portrayal of a girl who has been all but raised in the wild, yet maintaining enough humanity for the audience to be rooting for her throughout.  

Cinematographically, this is the best film in years. Beautifully lit, skillfully shot and framed, and the setting of part of the film in a dilapidated theme park was a stroke of pure genius, adding a touch of Burton to the film.

When the final credits rolled, I still hadn’t figured out who was the good guy and who was the bad guy, but I think that says more about me than the film. Somehow it didn’t matter.

No more comments will be made about the narrative, as it is hard to comment without giving too much away, and this is one film that is worth watching all the way through.

Anyone who is willing to put aside any questions of feasibility (the ease with which she escaped so many CIA agents, for one) will have an enjoyable and gripping hour and a half ahead of them.

Hall Pass (2011, Farrelly brothers)

Hall Pass was widely recognised as one of the best comedies of 2011, and it's easy to see why, with its appeal to both male and female audiences.

The basic premise is two women (Jenna Fischer and Christina Applegate), fed up of their husbands wandering eyes, give them a week off of marriage, on the advice of a friend who did the same thing. The wives leave town for a week, taking the kids with them and leaving the husbands to their own devices, no questions asked

I remember seeing the trailer at the cinema when it was released around this time last year, and thinking it was a film that I really wanted to see. As usual, life got in the way and I didn't get round to seeing it until a couple of days ago.

From the first scene, it is clear that this is no usual comedy. An intelligent understanding of both sexes is displayed, and despite the subject matter being of more appeal to a male audience, the female interest is maintained in the way that the female protagonists are one step ahead of their husbands.

One letdown is that the majority of the material used in the trailer features within the first 15 minutes, meaning that the majority of best moments are already over before the film has been established.

Owen Wilson is beautiful as always, but special mention has to go to the highly underrated Stephen Merchant.

Laugh out loud funny in some parts, toe-curlingly cringeworthy in others. Overall, a good watch, albeit enough to put a girl off the idea of marriage!

War Horse (Spielberg, 2012)

Having seen War Horse on stage in the West End, and absolutely loving it, I was eagerly awaiting the film version, but simultaneously praying that it wouldn’t ruin the story for me.

Suffice to say I was not disappointed. Directorially awe- inspiring, an emotional musical score and some Oscar-worthy acting, make for an emotional and entertaining two hours.

In the West End show, the audience’ interests were directed towards the family as a unit, and whether they as a whole would come through the war. The film, however, ensures that all interest is vetted in the relationship between Albie and Joey, with Albie’s parents and the villagers playing a minor peripheral role. This is hardly surprising; Spielberg recreates war scenes with such conviction, that much more screen time is given over to this part of the film. On stage, it is harder to recreate the horrors of war, so the villagers and the build up to the war

Unfortunately, I have not read the original novel (it’s on my ever-growing to-do list), so can make no comment about the interpretation that Morpurgo intended.

One disappointment was the casting of Albie’s mother, Emily Watson. For one, I couldn’t help thinking that she was far too young and fresh faced to play the worn down role of Rose Narracott, and secondly, her acting was not outstanding.

Verdict: The stage show is still the best thing I have ever seen live, and I would urge everyone to go see it. The film is magnificent (well it’s a Spielberg, I doubt anyone would expect anything less), but it is obvious that it is made with the intention of becoming a blockbuster hit, which somehow cheapens it.

 Sad but true that “War Horse” is probably going to become more synonymous with the name “Spielberg” than “Morpurgo”, but I guess that’s what you expect if you sell your book rights to potentially the biggest director in the history of Hollywood.

What I watched this week: 1st-8th January 2012

As part of my new year's plans to spread my journalistic wings in 2012, I am aiming to introduce a weekly TV blog. Whether or not I will keep up with this, only time will tell, but here goes:

Of course the big TV news of the week was Pat's death in Eastenders. In a bizarre seventy miunte long episode, the long standing matriarch of Albert Square passed away amongst her nearest and dearest, and Janine and her son David. The peaceful manner in which she died was somewhat unexpected,and definitely out of character-when her impending death was announced a few months back, fans of the show were surely imagining explosive death scenes to match the ferocity of the character. Yet somehow the quiet and sudden passing made it all the more poignant-the infamous closing credit 'duff-duffs' were even toned down to mark the occasion.Following this episode was the inevitable Goodbye Pat special. The rest of the week's episodes were devoted to Pat's family, Denise and Phil's feud and the Amira-Syed-Christian love triangle, which is getting a bit old now.


Next up was Absolutely Fabulous, the second of the three specials. The start lacked humour, but this was soon rectified by a combination of Bubbles' impressions of Liz Hurley and Patsy threatening to "have you clapping between movements for the rest of your life" (not sure how they got away without any complaints to Ofcom for that one). Further intrigue grows around the subject of Saffy's daughter in Africa-we don't yet know how old she is, or even if her name is Lola or Jane...will we meet her in the third of the three specials, centred around the olympics? The comedy timing was, as always, spot on throughout. The only complaint is that these episodes are only 30 minutes each.

Hacks was a bizarre, but not entirely successful, satirical take on the News of the World phone hacking scandal, although of course all characters and plotlines were entirely fictitious etc.

Eternal Law was of particular interest, being filmed in York. It's hard to be objective about a TV programme when you're spotting all the places you know whilst watching it, but other than the interest of familiarity, there was not much gripping about this airy fairy (or should that be angelic?) drama. The opening scene was reminiscent of Doctor Who, but it went downhill from there. It was hard to feel anything towards the characters, as they were just not developed enough in this opening episode. That said, the second episode is probably worth a watch, to see if it improves at all.

Hustle was meant to be broadcast on Friday night, but hasn't appeared on iPlayer. Anyone know anything of it's whereabouts?

Wild at Heart regraced our screens on Sunday evening, but this most heartwarming of dramas has a new, chilling factor. With two scenes of trailing blood, a dead body floating in the water and a rogue tiger. this is not the family drama we used to know and love. Combine the horror scenes with the predictability of the storylines, such as Danny lying about his new job and Alice finding out, you realise it's only the humour of Fatani's fear of being at Leopard's Den at night, reminiscent of an episode of Sccoby Doo, that saved the episode. Bring back the whole family and make it back into the show it was!

The Queen's Bodyguard is the new sitcom featuring David Jason as a blundering protection agent for the royal family. More of a guilty pleasure than a must see drama, it's occasionally funny, but mostly cringeworthy and highly predictable. Plus it's hard to shake off the character of Del Boy while you're watching David Jason playing a similarly bumbling character.

How do you know (Brooks, 2010)

*SPOILERS GALORE*

This attempt at a deep, life-exploring romantic story is thorougly unsucessful, which is frustrating considering the combined talent of the cast: Jack Nicholson, Paul Rudd, Owen Wilson, Reese Witherspoon.

The character of Lisa (Witherspoon) begins as a sexy, independent young woman, however the character, and the plot of the film, lose all credibility when she stays with her awful (sort of) boyfriend Matty (Wilson). Yes, he's hot, and yes, he's rich, but very few women would put up with their relationship. And so Witherspoon is boxed into the same old sickly-sweet, pretty-blonde character that rose her to fame in Legally Blonde.

The plot is hard work, not because it's hard to follow. In fact quite the opposite. But because it's hard to fathom why half of the scenes are necessary. From the moment George (Rudd) phones Lisa to cancel a date that they weren't going on (yes, it's that sort of film), it was clear through their thoroughly separate storylines that they would get together at the end.

Overall this is a dull, unrewarding film. However, there is one saving grace: anyone who thought that Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston were a hot couple in Marley & Me can sit back and watch the screen melt under the heat of Owen Wilson and Reese Witherspoon sharing on-screen time in How do you know.

It's complicated (Meyers, 2009)

*SPOILERS GALORE*

At the risk of sounding unoriginal by using that most overjuiced of cliches, this really is a heartwarming and empowering film.

A large part of the success of this film is due to the thespian institution that is Meryl Streep. She plays a blinding performance as a strong, stylish and sexy woman, despite being older than your average twenty-something rom-com protagonist. Supported by equally talented actors Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, whose characters provide perfect foils to each other, it's not easy to find fault with the impeccable acting that makes this film as watchable as it is.

The basic premise is a long-divorced couple reunite for a fling, despite Jake (Baldwin) being re-married to a younger model, and Jane (Streep) about to embark on a long-overdue new relationship with her architect  Adam (Martin).

What is so great about this film, is that for once it is not the woman who prematurely falls in love; It is Jake who leaves his new wife in the heat of the moment, hoping that Jane will take him back. Anyone with so much of a glimmer of inner-feminism will be jumping with joy when she walks away from him, a reversal of most films of this genre in which the woman is portrayed as the victim and the weaker character.

The one flaw that can be seen in the plot is that it's hard to get past the fact that Jane would consider being the other woman in her ex-husband's life after her own heartache; Although not a deception that this character would conceivably be part of, it creates a chink in her otherwise flawless armour, allowing the audience to warm further to her; a clever twist on the part of Meyers.

In addition to this, the chocolate croissant scene at the bakery is becoming one of my favourite rom-com scenes of all time,and is definitely worth a watch.

Despite the light-hearted route this film takes, it raises a genuine puzzle;would many divorced couples work the second time around, if they were to reunite 10 years later?

Not too mentally strenuous, but perfect for a quiet night in.

Going the distance (Burstein, 2010)

*SPOILERS GALORE*

Heat magazine labelled it as the "funniest rom-com of the year so far". One can only assume that it was released in early January, as it is neither funny nor romantic.

The plotline has potential, although the long distance relationship thing has been done multiple times. The first main problem is the lack of chemistry and passion between the protagonists (Drew Barrymore and Justin Long)-a key ingredient for a successful romantic comedy.

The second gaping hole is the comedy part-the only part that managed to raise a laugh was the very final moment-and that was more of a this-is-meant-to-be-a-comedy-so-I-should-laugh rather than an actual this-is funny-so-I'll-laugh laugh. Ya get me?

That's not to say there weren't attempts at humour-but an awkward dining table sex-scene and an excruciating attempt at phone sex later, no one was laughing.

As queen of the downright awful rom-com, even I cannot find a saving grace for this atrocity. Avoid avoid avoid.

Zookeeper (Coraci, 2011)

*SPOILERS GALORE*

From the release of the first trailers for this film, it was either going to be really good, or really, really bad. There were mixed reviews about it; some people had said it "wasn't great", but they didn't say it was terrible, so a mountain of turkey sandwiches and some pig-awful Boxing Day TV later, I found myself sitting down to watch Zookeeper.

I had two big issues with the opening scene:

• He was batting WAY above his average with her
• WHY would you not want to marry a zookeeper? I would. Not necessarily that particular one, but if the right zookeeper came along...

So yes, a few dodgy hits in the opening scene, and I was dreading what was to come, but I was pleasantly surprised. It may not have the strongest storyline or the most convincing characters, but it is an entertaining way to wile away a lazy couple of hours. There are several throwbacks to Dr Dolittle, and even King Kong, with a the gorilla heroically climbing his way to the top of a bridge to let the zookeeper get the girl. The plot was highly predictable from about 10 minutes in, but so are most Disney films, and people don't complain about them.

Had my stomach not been lined with a couple of cheeky glasses of Buck's Fizz, I may not have been so keen, as I normally can't stand unrealistic films with animals talking and whatnot (my imagination is not as elastic as it used to be), but it managed to raise a few laughs, which is all you need on a lazy Boxing Day.

Christmas specials that never were

When I was a kid, my favourite part of Christmas, other than the presents, was the Christmas specials on TV, especially the comedies. I remember the days (I feel like I should be stroking my beard and looking wise whilst writing this) when, after Christmas dinner, you would sit down to the My Family Christmas special, followed by The Vicar of Dibley Christmas special, then Only Fools and Horses. Those were the good days (another stroke of the beard*). These days, there are no decent comedies on TV on Christmas Day-the only thing I'm looking forward to is the Ab Fab comeback, and I've a feeling that will be bitterly disappointing. Combine that with the doom and gloom of Walford, Weatherfield and the like, and we might as well give up any hope of Christmas cheer right now.

So, I've come up with my own Christmas specials of pre-existing shows, featuring characters past and present. Some of the shows have done Christmas specials in the past, while others haven't. Enjoy

Friends

Rachel organises the Santa's Grotto at work, but her Santa drops out last minute so she needs a replacement. Joey steps in, but due to eating Monica's turkey on Christmas Eve, Joey falls asleep and nearly misses Christmas, so Chandler has to step in as Santa, during which time he inadvertently makes some inappropriate comments towards children and nearly gets arrested.

Phoebe tries to cover for Joey by buying a new turkey, replacing it in Monica's fridge where the old one was...but leaves the feathers on.

Rachel and Ross go on a break, during which time Ross remarries.

Waterloo Road

Some major disaster in Rochdale (Janeece's left boob exploding, perhaps?) results in the school hall being used as a shelter for the rough and ready residents. Ruby's elaborate 12-course Christmas dinner is used as ammo in a food fight between two rival estate gangs.

Rachel, the ex-headmistress, turns up in a Sexy Santa outfit, touting for business (turns out it didn't work out with the chef, so she's back to old tricks.)

Ronan Burlely flogs a load of dodgy Christmas crackers, which turn out to have real explosives in.

For the first time, we see footage of Grantly Budgen smiling. Oh, sorry, false alarm, it was just gas from one too many mince pies.

Desperate Housewives

Santa's sleigh crashes into Wisteria Lane on Christmas Eve, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake (I'd be willing to wager that the idea came up in at least one production planning meeting). The reindeer cut loose and munch their way through Bree's roses. This, combined with Bree coming second to Susan in the Christmas cake competition, results in Bree having a minor heart attack and ending up in Fairview Memorial hospital.

People notice liquor beginning to go missing from their houses and blame Carlos (it's been a tough year), until it is revealed that it is in fact the ghost of Edie who is responsible.

Linette, naturally, is pregnant.

Gavin and Stacey

Nessa wins the X-Factor and shacks up with Simon Cowell, who makes a guest appearance for Christmas dinner at Gwen's (turkey omelette, of course). Her hit single "What's occuring" becomes No.1 in many middle and far-Eastern countries. Brin assumes role of her stage manager and refuses to let anyone speak to her unless they consult him first...until Christmas Day. Gavin and Stacey buy him am Iphone and he becomes so impressed with it and convinced that he can conduct his whole life via this one piece of technology that he refuses to leave the house for two whole weeks, until he realises that he cannot use the Iphone to clean the Picasso.

Pam indulges in some lip surgery, which goes wrong and results in her being known as 'Fat-lip-Pam'.

The Vicar of Dibley 

The Coca Cola truck gets lost on its tour of Britain and ends up in Dibley. Owen tries to seduce one of the Coca Cola tour girls. Hugo and Alice, neither having ever left Dibley, perceive the lorry to be some sort of giant cow and begin 'milking' it, to get Coca Cola to give to their children. The 'udder' turns out to be the petrol cap. That one doesn't end happily.

*For anyone who doesn't know me, I don't actually have a beard.

The Young Apprentice-Episode 1

Overinflated public school egos, oversized suits and irrelevant shots of London skyscrapers, just for dramatic effect. It can only be a new series of The Young Apprentice.

This mini-spin off of The Apprentice relaunched on Monday, with another group of adolescents keen to impress Sugar and his homies, and it seems the contestants are as egotistical as ever. Their opening statements were all going so well, if cliched (although you get the impressions that whoever scripted them neglected to inform  Mohammed of the relevance of the words "I have a dream") with one young lady proclaiming within the opening sequence "No-one intimidates me because I know I am better than them." Little charmers.

Either Sugar is going soppy in his old age, or he really does have a soft spot for the youth of today. In his opening speech to them he declared "I love you lot" and throughout the episode went on to joke with them more readily than he usually does with the more mature contestants of The Apprentice. It was good, if slightly unnerving to see a softer side to the man behind The Finger.

The task turned out to be making and selling frozen treats for maximum profit. Fairly simple you would think? Yet the girls ended up disposing of a large proportion of their ingredients before they'd even left the factory and fluffing their maths entirely. It was shocking to see Sugar's aide Nick supporting their unethical selling method of putting toppings onto ice creams before customers had the chance to protest, then charging them for the privilege, not to mention charging for the cones.

The boys, on the other hand, opted for the more straight forward method of press ganging passers by into buying ice creams. A couple in particular were overly aggressive in their selling tactics, resembling an East End market stall. Most ingenious idea of the day was offering deliveries of ice cream to sunbathers on the beach.

Both teams ended up slashing their prices at the end of the day to sell off their stock, a move which did little to impress Sugar.

Back in the boardroom, amid a frenzy of shouting and squabbling, it was revealed that the girls had won. Off they went to frolic down hills and leave James and Mohammed to squabble over whose idea the pirate theme was, a scene which became painful and cringeworthy to watch, particularly when Mohammed refused to back down despite there being footage attributing the idea to James the bulldozer.

As it turned out, the words Essex and entrepreneur didn't bond together as well as Mohammed had hoped, as he was on the receiving end of those immortal words "you're fired". Ah well, back to satellites for you, my friend.

My early prediction at this stage would be for Harry Maxwell to win, or at least to go far. He was kept quiet during this episode, mainly drowned out by the immature squabblings of his peers, but he was seen in the background working on the maths for his team with more success than the girls. One to watch, perhaps.

Just Rosie

Just Rosie is the new spin-off series from Coronation Street, starring none other than the increasingly irritating Rosie Webster, following her dreams of becoming a model. The idea is a good one; draw in younger viewers by giving them a stronger character of their own age to relate to. The spin off series has it's own website, with pictures, videos, a blog etc., all of which help the concept appeal to the younger audience. So far, so good.

Image from website (link above)

The reality, however, is painful. The website is somewhat tacky, and unlikely to appeal to anyone over the age of 14.  Click 'play' and you are greeted with a bizarre mixture of over the top special effects, split scenes and pointless layover animations, as if somebody got trigger happy with the special effects buttons.

Bizarre special effects (screenshot from first episode)

 You can tell that the thought was to recreate the ditzy, pink, self-centred world of this wannabe-model, but it's just too much. The show steps away from the usual Corrie formula as well, with strange time jumps and flashbacks, and perhaps most bizarre of all, the character of Rosie directly addressing the camera. And this was just the first episode, I'm not sure I can bring myself to watch the rest.

Directly addressing the camera doesn't fit the Corrie format (screenshot from first episode)

A further thing that confuses me; why are they releasing several episodes at once? Three episodes have been put on the website this morning, and they have all been widely publicised on Twitter etc. If all were being released at once, why not put them together to make one decent length episode, rather than bitty and disjointed 10 minute pieces?

Conclusion? A good idea, badly realised. I can see what they were going for. Had they stuck to the traditional Corrie style, this show could have been a lot more successful, and appealed to older, more traditional audiences too. A more interesting character would have helped as well; a spin off with Sean Tully? Yes!  Norris Cole? Genius! But Rosie is just flat, flat, flat. I can't help thinking this might damage the career of Helen Flanagan, who plays Rosie. Perhaps this is just me, growing old grumpily. Anyone else agree?

Glee Season 1 Episode 1

Out of boredom, and admittedly a little curiosity as to what all the fuss is about, I have finally succumbed to the world of Glee. As expected, it is decidedly average-like a dull High School Musical, without the Disney je ne sais quoi.

By the end of the first episode, only a couple of the characters had actually gained my interest. Rachel (Lea Michelle) seems quite central, I can imagine her undergoing some sort of Mia Thermopolis style transformation from geek to chic.

I can tell that several of the characters, including Sue Slyvester, are going to annoy me a lot if I continue watching the show.

Despite the ungripping storylines, the final song of the episode, Journey's "Don't stop believing" picked it up a bit.Overall though, I am struggling to see what all the fuss about this show is. I will carry on watching this series later so watch this space...

Desperate Housewives-Season 1

So I finally jumped on the Desperate Housewives bandwagon (a few years too late, I know)-and I'm hooked! I've just watched all 23 episodes of the first series within 3 days and can't wait to get my hands on the second series.

To be honest, the show is not entirely what I expected (a group of attractive middle aged women sitting round drinking coffee, doing yoga and gossiping). Whilst this does occur, the show is so much more than this, as shown with a suicide in the first episode, with a body count to rival the sleepy English village of Midsomer.

What's so brilliant about this show is that most women will be able to identify with at least one of the main women of Wisteria Lane. I personally think there's a bit of Susan (Teri Hatcher) in me, in that I tend to panic, fluff things up and generally act hysterical. Pleased to say I've never stalked a boyfriend though :-). I love the way the dramas of each of the families are entwined with each other, and as the mysteries unravelled  as the series came to an end, I was utterly gripped.

There's also a lot of eye candy for male and female viewers too. Gabrielle and John make a very attractive couple. If the baby's his, it'll be a little stunner!

I've just shot myself in the foot a little whilst writing this-I looked up Teri Hatcher on imdb.com, where her character is named as Susan Mayer/Susan Delfino. I'm guessing wedding bells are on the cards in a forthcoming series then.

500 days of summer (2009, Marc Webb)

Shamefully, I only got round to watching this film last night. And I loved it.

It explores the idea of love and romance, although it's not your typical romantic movie. For a start, there's no happy ending. In fact, it left me feeling quite bereft, as all my ideas about life were pretty much destroyed in a two hour period. Also, for once, the guy is the good guy, and the girl is a complete cow, a subversion you don't often see in romantic films. The introduction of the character of Summer, though, portrays her as inspirational, happy-go-lucky, the sort of person that most people wish they were.

To be honest, I was left not knowing what to feel. In some ways, it's a feel good film, but in other ways, it's quite dark. The chronological leaps mean that you know the outcome before you watch the majority of the story, meaning that you are not free to truly enjoy scenes that you otherwise would have done.

And if, like me, you were naive enough to think that this film is about a couple of years of lovely weather, think again.

Eastenders, Friday 15th April, 20:00

Some of the best acting for a very long time in tonight's episode, with Ronnie finally giving Tommy back to Kat and coming clean.

Samantha Womack, who plays Ronnie, has portrayed her torment brilliantly over the past weeks and months, but never more so than in this episode, which saw Ronnie making the decision to do the right thing after visiting the maternity ward where James and Tommy were born.

Also brilliant acting on the part of Scott Maslen, who plays Ronnie's long-suffering husband Jack Branning, and Jessie Wallace, who plays Kat Slater.

As well as this storyline, we saw the aftermath of Abi and Max's crash on the way to Tanya's wedding. You would be surprised how many people don't even bat an eyelid at the sight of a bride rushing into A & E dressed head to toe in white on her wedding day. But is married life over before it's really started for Tanya and Greg? Whilst viewers have seen no real chemistry between these two, and no reason to believe in them as a couple, it would probably be a massive mistake for Tanya to go back to Max, and she knows it.

Waterloo Road Series 6-Series Review

A surprisingly happy ending to this series, considering previous runs have ended with fires in the school and a digger destroying the front entrance to name but a couple. No fires, no heavy vehicles, only one pupil injured.

Of course, the main story of the series has been Chesca and Jonah's illicit relationship. This seems to be a marmite one; some people love them together, others think it's completely wrong. Teacher-pupil relationship aside, they do make a very cute couple, but not sure some of the content was entirely appropriate considering the age group of many of the audience of this show.

It was good to see a positive side to Finn Sharky as well. This character used to be the bad guy of the school until George Sampson made an appearance as Kyle Stack, making him look, well, a bit weedy in comparison. The ongoing battle between them came to a head in the final episode, with Denzel Kelly risking his life on a railway bridge to impress Kyle, and Finn valiantly hurried up to rescue him, more to impress Sam than save Denzel we suspect, and injuring himself badly in the process. Appearing in a wheelchair in the next series? Perhaps, it's something they've not done before.

There have been Fisher family dramas along the way. It seems that everyone has forgotten Harry's bulimia, and he has moved on to getting involved with the stunts and dares of Denzel Kelly and the other boys-what would mummy say? Can't help going a bit "aww" over his friendship with Ruth Kirby-I'm hoping we'll see her back in the next series, and maybe a bit more happening between them, but following her brother Jonah's, ahem, misendeavours, it looks unlikely that she will be setting foot anywhere near Waterloo Road again. And just as she was beginning to grow on us...

And let us not forget the Fisher sister's brush with a paedophile.

Cannot help finding Ruby's novel publishing a tad unbelievable-a couple of hours working on a novel and suddenly she's being published. Good to see an ongoing friendship developing between her and Grantley though, despite them both being quite prickly characters.

Good news...according to digitalspy.co.uk, the show is due to return for a 7th series on week beginning 30th April. Exact date and time yet to be confirmed. Watch this space.

Predictions for the next series?
A blossoming friendship between Finn and Kyle? Another Fisher offspring arriving from somewhere now that Bex is off to uni? Denzel Kelly going the same way as his older brother Earl and ending up suspended or in prison?