Noticias

Exclusive: Harry King TV is headed to Mip London with an antiques and collectibles-themed format after launching an unscripted division.

Harry King Unscripted will be the new wing of veteran scripted producer Nicholas Sercombe’s UK and U.S. production operation. It will focus on formats designed for digital and linear TV, using a “new talent- and format-first model” that seeks to combat the traditional commissioning slowdown.

Debuting through the unit later this month will be Curiosity, fronted by Antiques Roadshow expert Raj Bisram and comedian Henning Wehn. Set in an emporium that buys and sells outlandish collectibles and other items, Curiosity will see celebrity guests visiting to find trinkets, curios and gifts from owners Bisram and Wehn.

BAFTA- and Emmy-nominated David Meadows is attached as Dop, while Ian Bailey is the Production Designer.

Bisram is best known for TV...

Jenny Morrill Dec 20, 2016

Russ Abbot, Bullseye, Noel Edmonds and a film we all watched in the same room. Christmas TV was more exciting in the 80s...

Cast your mind back to when Christmas Day wasn't about Doctor Who followed by sticking something on Netflix until it was time to go watch the annual fist fight outside the pub.

See related Looking back at Martin Scorsese's The King Of Comedy The Wolf Of Wall Street review The Wolf Of Wall Street & Scorsese's confrontational films

In the 80s, Christmas was about seeing which fantastic fare the TV had decided to bless us with. Of course, the more prepared among us knew this well in advance, having eagerly pored over the Radio Times/TV Times to check that Jimmy Cricket's Family Laugh 'n' Waz would be shown. There it was – right after Reflections On The Eucharist With The Reverend Paul Leyland.

Are you a fan of the BBC One TV show, Boomers? Has the long hiatus made you concerned that it has been cancelled? Well, keep calm and carry on. BBC One has renewed the comedy for a second series (i.e. "season" in Us parlance). Boomers series two is set to return with six episodes in 2016. Boomers stars Russ Abbot, Stephanie Beacham, Phillip Jackson, James Smith, Alison Steadman, and Paula Wilcox. The last new episode of Boomers first aired on BBC One, on September 19, 2014. Read More…...

Boomers will be back on BBC One for a second series.

The comedy is returning for six new episodes in early 2016, starring Russ Abbot, Stephanie Beacham, Philip Jackson, James Smith, Alison Steadman and Paula Wilcox.

Following the ups and downs of three couples living in Thurnemouth, the new run will see the characters dealing with sexual experimentation, drug abuse and camping trips.

"The new series pushes our merry band of retirees into evermore agonising and ridiculous situations whilst crackling with sharply observed dialogue," said BBC comedy commissioning controller Shane Allen.

"It's a privilege to see these well-loved and hugely accomplished performers in full flow with such richly comic material."

Producer Paul Schlesinger added: "It's great to welcome back this particular group of friends and to see their jealousies, general resentment and disappointment with life come off the page even more vividly than series one - all brought to life by a stellar comedy cast.

Bill Bailey, Abbey Clancy and Tinie Tempah will front new exclusive programming on BBC iPlayer.

Victoria Jaye, Head of TV Content for the service, has announced 16 new titles for 2015, including nine original comedy shorts to coincide with Valentine's Day.

The Funny Valentine series will see Bailey and other comedians create a short film offering their unique take on Valentine's Day. Matt Berry, Romesh Ranganathan, Sara Pascoe, Limmy, Nick Helm, Modern Toss, Russ Abbott and Katy Wix will also feature.

Meanwhile, Tinie Tempah will offer an insight into Alexander McQueen's forthcoming V&A exhibition, Savage Beauty, in Private View.

Abbey Clancy will return to front iPlayer's coverage of London Fashion Week later this year, which is being produced in collaboration with the British Fashion Council.

Speaking about the commissions, Jaye said: "BBC iPlayer presents a huge creative opportunity to push the boundaries of storytelling and engage audiences in new ways.

The Big Brother final was viewed by an average of 1.53 million (8.3%) on Channel 5.

The live finale, which was won by Helen Wood, attracted a peak audience of 1.62 million (9.3%) as the winner was announced.

Follow-up show Big Brother's Bit on the Side was seen by an average of 898k (7.7%) immediately after at 10.45pm.

BBC One's Boomers was the evening's highest-rated show outside of soaps, pulling in an average of 4.45 million (21.9%) at 9pm. The new comedy series, which stars Philip Jackson, Alison Steadman and Russ Abbot, peaked with 4.47 million.

BBC One's evening started with 2.27 million (13.2%) for The One Show at 7pm, followed by 2.10 million (11.3%) for A Question of Sport and 2.35 million (11.4%) for Scrappers at 8.30pm.

Later in the evening, Room 101 and Would I Lie to You? The Unseen Bits were seen by 2.08 million (15.3%) and 1.47 million (14%) respectively.

After a bumper evening of athletics, BBC Two's night kicked off with...

Les Dennis isn't exactly in our day-to-day thoughts, truth be told, but the news yesterday (January 23) that the light entertainment legend would be joining Coronation Street still managed to put a massive smile on our face. Les on the cobbles! Amazing!

To celebrate Les's biggest gig in quite some time, we look back at the celebrity good egg's life and career in order, and come up with eight reasons why we absolutely love him...

He's a talent show king!

Way back before Britain's Got Talent, The X Factor et al, there was New Faces, a notoriously tough competition where a panel of judges - including a youthful Noel Edmonds - marked variety acts on their "star quality", usually without chucking water over each other or trying to get into the papers with a particularly daring dress, as all that palaver is a modern talent show invention.

After doing the rounds...

If older women are given TV and film roles at all, their bodies are still subject to one of the last sex taboos

Diane Keaton recalled her mother's advice – "don't grow old" – as useless, however pertinent for Keaton's chosen career as an actress. It's a truism that interesting roles for older actresses are hard to come by. While signs of physical ageing are routinely played down in leading male actors, who regularly take roles as still vigorous and desirable characters (whether heroes or villains), the opposite applies to older actresses, if they are allowed to appear on screen at all.

Are things changing? It was Keaton herself who seemed to herald a shift when she played in the popular 2003 film about love in later life, Something's Gotta Give. At the time she expressed astonishment at being offered the role of romantic heroine, at 58, despite being partnered by Jack Nicholson, already a decade older.

BBC One controller Charlotte Moore has said that social media should never dictate programming decisions.

Speaking today (December 2) at a BAFTA session, Moore argued that sites like Twitter should "never [be] the only reason to decide whether you're going to commission or not commission".

"It would be mad to think that you're going to make any creative judgements based on that," she said. "That's just one element of feedback [and] it's a very small part of our audience."

Moore added that working in the media can cause people to become "overly obsessed" with Twitter.

"If you work for the media, you feel [social media] must be the biggest market, but I simply don't think that's true," she continued. "I know it's not true.

"It's very easy to get overly obsessed by it. You've got to take it within context. It's that balance between... keeping up with your younger audiences who really are interested in social media and Twitter.

David Walliams comedy Big School is to return for a second series.

Charlotte Moore - Controller of BBC One - made the announcement today (December 2) at a BAFTA session.

"We've recommissioned Big School," she said. "I loved the fact that we were in a new precinct and environment, with a stellar cast."

Moore also claimed that Big School could have a "long" run, with more series in the planning stages.

BBC One has also ordered a third series of its comedy Citizen Khan, plus new sitcom Grey Mates starring Russ Abbot.

Big School was co-created by David Walliams and stars the comic as bumbling chemistry teacher Mr Church.

Catherine Tate and Philip Glenister also featured in the first six-part series, which aired on BBC One between August and September.

David Walliams's Gangsta Granny: New Miranda, Robbie Williams pictures

Watch a deleted scene from Big School below:...

Citizen Khan is to return for a third series.

Charlotte Moore - Controller of BBC One - made the announcement this morning (December 2) at a BAFTA session.

Starring Adil Ray as lead character Mr Khan, Citizen Khan first aired in August 2012, with a second series transmitting on BBC One in October and November of this year.

A Christmas special has also been scheduled for later this month, with the third series now expected to follow in 2014.

Moore also addressed the "controversy" surrounding Citizen Khan - with the show having been criticised in some quarters for its depiction of South Asian culture.

"We're not scared of being edgy and provocative in comedy," she said. "Comedy is meant to take us into those areas."

BBC One has also commissioned new sitcom Grey Mates starring Russ Abbot and June Whitfield.

Lacey Turner's Our Girl picked up for full series on BBC One...

BBC One is to explore the world of KFC in a new three-part documentary series.

Inside KFC promises to offer "a unique, top-to-bottom look" at the fast food franchise, which has grown year-on-year despite the recession.

The series was announced today (December 2) by Controller of BBC One, Charlotte Moore, who promised a "warts and all" examination of the fried chicken empire.

A statement announcing the commission reads: "It will paint a multi-layered portrait of the fried chicken empire, meeting the many colourful characters working there - from the boardroom to the restaurant chef.

"How does KFC ensure there is enough chicken to meet the demands of its many thousands of daily customers? Where does the chicken come from and what journey does it take before reaching the bucket?

"We'll meet the people responsible for the minutiae of daily operations at KFC, as well as those charged with the bigger tasks of growing the business,...

Russ Abbot is to star in new BBC One sitcom Grey Mates.

Veteran stars Stephanie Beacham, Alison Steadman and June Whitfield will also appear in the six-part half-hour comedy.

Created by Citizen Khan writer Richard Pinto, Grey Mates will follow the ups and downs of three recently retired couples.

Philip Jackson, James Smith and Paula Wilcox have also been cast as pensioners "all coming at retirement from very different directions".

Announced today (December 2) by Controller of BBC One, Charlotte Moore, Grey Mates promises to "strike a chord with people of all generations".

Made by Hat Trick Productions, the sitcom will be produced by Paul Schlesinger (Twenty Twelve) and executive produced by Jimmy Mulville (Outnumbered).

> Tim Minchin to star in new BBC sitcom 88 Keys

> Eddie Izzard, Brian Cox science programmes for BBC Two and Four...

Quite often, TV soundtracks are only mentioned when they're particularly bad. A clunking tune or wobbly composition can turn a beautiful, tense or dramatic TV moment and stink out the whole scene.

But what about the great soundtracks? The ones that make a good moment great. The tunes that give TV shows swagger. Digital Spy has picked out the 10 TV show soundtracks from 2013 that have rocked, helped us get our groove on or made us cry.

1. Peaky Blinders

The Brummie gangster drama, which ended this week, was beautifully shot, brilliantly acted and deliciously dark. The cherry on the top of the flat caps was the soundtrack. Tom Waits, the White Stripes, the Raconteurs and a hefty topping of the brilliant Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds.

2. Broadchurch

The TV phenomenon of 2013's soundtrack matched its content. Eerie, brimming with drama and totally captivating, the music of Ólafur Arnalds was almost as...

Quite often, TV soundtracks are only mentioned when they're particularly bad. A clunking tune or wobbly composition can turn a beautiful, tense or dramatic TV moment and stink out the whole scene.

But what about the great soundtracks? The ones that make a good moment great. The tunes that give TV shows swagger. Digital Spy has picked out the 10 TV show soundtracks from 2013 that have rocked, helped us get our groove on or made us cry.

1. Peaky Blinders

The Brummie gangster drama, which ended this week, was beautifully shot, brilliantly acted and deliciously dark. The cherry on the top of the flat caps was the soundtrack. Tom Waits, the White Stripes, the Raconteurs and a hefty topping of the brilliant Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds.

2. Broadchurch

The TV phenomenon of 2013's soundtrack matched its content. Eerie, brimming with drama and totally captivating, the music of Ólafur Arnalds was almost as...

Review Louisa Mellor 28 Jul 2013 - 22:00

The Returned’s first series concludes with a slow, emotional episode that leaves a number of mysteries unsolved…

This review contains spoilers.

1.8 The Horde

Ask The Returned to explain what the last eight weeks have been about - the water, the electricity, that group of people, how and what and when and above all, why - and it’ll give you a big Gallic shrug of indifference, roll a fag, and dismiss resolution as a bourgeois invention. “Je m’ennuie de vos questions” says The Returned, “Revenez l’année prochaine, si vous voulez en savoir plus”.

Come back next year to find out more we will, because resolution or not, The Returned remains the most handsome, intriguing, poised bit of telly we’ve seen in a long while.

Taken as a whole, its winding story of the living being confronted by the dead in...

The trouser-dropping 80s stage farce finally hits the big screen with Danny Dyer, to kill off any remaining British self-respect

There's a moment in an old Goon Show where Peter Sellers sonorously says in his officer-class voice: "Old England isn't finished yet. It's finished …" [FX: dinner gong] "… now!" That gong, signalling the end of British self-respect, sounded deafeningly as the houselights dimmed for this film. Argentinian president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner will wish to block-book it for every cinema in Buenos Aires. It's a big-screen version of the trouser-dropping stage farce Run for Your Wife, which ran in London's West End from 1983 to 1991, adapted and directed by its author, Ray Cooney, and starring Danny Dyer as the bigamous taxi driver coping with two missuses (Denise van Outen and Sarah Harding) and a next-door neighbour (Neil Morrissey) who is cheeky, perky and, like everyone else, stunningly unfunny. The humour makes The Dick Emery Show look edgy and contemporary,...

The trouser-dropping 80s stage farce finally hits the big screen with Danny Dyer, to kill off any remaining British self-respect

There's a moment in an old Goon Show where Peter Sellers sonorously says in his officer-class voice: "Old England isn't finished yet. It's finished …" [FX: dinner gong] "… now!" That gong, signalling the end of British self-respect, sounded deafeningly as the houselights dimmed for this film. Argentinian president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner will wish to block-book it for every cinema in Buenos Aires. It's a big-screen version of the trouser-dropping stage farce Run for Your Wife, which ran in London's West End from 1983 to 1991, adapted and directed by its author, Ray Cooney, and starring Danny Dyer as the bigamous taxi driver coping with two missuses (Denise van Outen and Sarah Harding) and a next-door neighbour (Neil Morrissey) who is cheeky, perky and, like everyone else, stunningly unfunny. The humour makes The Dick Emery Show look edgy and contemporary,...

We human beings have a strange way of dealing with getting older. It happens at the point of milestone birthdays, so when the Big 40 morphs ominously into the Big 50 it's a hell of a shock, and then worse still, it turns devilishly into 65. And so on. Someone asked me the other day how I'd be celebrating my next milestone birthday, which is only a couple of years away – at which point I just started bawling so loudly the sobs could be heard 100 miles away.

Slightly less wussy people tend to forget about the misery of big birthdays by inviting the world and his wife to a great big party. More often than not, these events are not so much the happy-go-lucky kiddy parties from golden ages gone by, more one long booze-up with enough alcohol to make even Phil Mitchell raise his eyebrows. Friends and family congregate in a musty...

Phyllida Lloyd has really missed a trick with her film about Margaret Thatcher

I have been too busy to see The Iron Lady (which I assumed was a distaff spin-off from Marvel's Iron Man), but none the less, I am now about to use it as a lead-in to discussing the critical rehabilitation of Margaret Thatcher. I did, however, find time to watch Troll Hunter last week, an enormous metaphor for Norwegian national identity, which engaged more critically with Norway's mythologised past than The Iron Lady does with ours. I expect. I haven't seen The Iron Lady, as I said.

Phyllida Lloyd's Thatcher biopic includes some daring sight gags employing the literal snatching of milk, but softens the controversial prime minister's legacy. The sympathetic figure of the ageing Maggie is played, by all accounts brilliantly, by the always excellent Glenn Close, her micro-managed Hollywood features magically transformed by hours...

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The latest creation from the pen of Drop the Dead Donkey writer Guy Jenkin is set to hit British TV screens this winter. Hacks takes a satirical look at the British newspaper industry and revolves around the antics of unethical journalists who engage in illegal activities such as phone-hacking. The “ripped from the headlines” 60 minute comedy features a host of big name actors that includes Michael Kitchen (Foyle’s War), Clare Foy (Upstairs Downstairs) and funny man Russ Abbott. Also in the cast is Whitechapel actor Phil Davis who filmed the comedy during a break from work on the new season of Silk in which he appears alongside Whitechapel lead man Rupert Penry-Jones. Precise broadcast details have yet to be announced.

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Boxing legend Sir Henry Cooper was laid to rest on Wednesday, with sporting greats including Sir Bobby Charlton and Kevin Keegan turning out to pay their last respects.

The British fighting legend and charity advocate passed away at his son's home in Surrey, England after a short battle with ill health, two days before his 77th birthday earlier this month.

Following his death, boxing icon Muhammad Ali gave a moving tribute to his one-time adversary, saying, "Henry always had a smile for me; a warm and embracing smile. It was always a pleasure being in Henry's company."

Soccer heroes Charlton and Keegan were joined by fellow sports stars Sir Trevor Brooking and Barry McGuigan and beloved British TV personalities Bruce Forsyth, Sir Terry Wogan and Russ Abbott at the Corpus Christi Catholic Church in Kent, England to bid farewell to the fighter.

Cooper's coffin arrived at the church draped in a Union Jack flag, with a red wreath in the shape of a boxing glove and his nickname, 'Our 'Enry', was spelt out in white chrysanthemums.

A couple of years ago, Doctor Who Magazine ran a contest in which you could win the chance to commentate on an episode of Survival. Foolishly, I decided to enter with a less than glowing review of Black Orchid. Needless to say, it didn't win, for one of the possible reasons. A) Peter Davison et al came up with a more scathing review on the accompanying DVD commentary; B) 200 words isn't enough for me to write everything I want, since there's more waffle in my writing than the entire output of Bird's Eye; and C) It was rubbish anyway.

Another potential reason is that in theory, Black Orchid shouldn't warrant such harsh criticism. It's a mid-season diversion with a down time, holiday feel – Doctor and co travel back to the Roaring 20s to play cricket, eat food and dance at the swanky Cranleigh abode. That's all.

But then having seen the thing again,...

The BBC has confirmed that it is axing comedy series Last Of The Summer Wine after 37 years. BBC One controller Jay Hunt promised that the last series, which will air this summer, will provide a "fitting farewell" for the Roy Clarke-penned sitcom. Following the adventures of characters such as Compo (Bill Owen), Nora Batty (Kathy Staff) and Edie Pegden (Thora Hird), the programme has survived for nearly four decades, despite a large number of the cast members passing away and frequent rumours that the show would be pulled off air. The final run will feature long-time cast member Peter Sallis as Norman Clegg, alongside Russ Abbott (Hobbo) and Brian Murphy (Alvin). "It is a testimony to the wit and warmth of the characters (more)...

Rowan Atkinson has been forced to temporarily pull out of a stage production of Oliver! after suffering from a hernia. The Blackadder star will be replaced in the role of Fagin at the Theatre Royal, London by Russ Abbot from April 13, reports Pa. Doctors have told Atkinson that he should be well enough to return to work on April 27. The theatre said in a statement that the actor's condition flared on a family break earlier this week. The statement read: "He has (more)...

Roly-poly funnywoman Bella Emberg regularly left millions of TV viewers in tears of laughter during the 1980s and early '90s. The rotund comic found fame acting as one of Russ Abbot's stooges in his Madhouse comedy series, where she often stole the show with her performances as Blunderwoman. Aside from her work with Abbot, Emberg worked on The Benny Hill Show, Z Cars and has even made three cameo appearances (more)...

In the 1980s, when light entertainment revolved around such comedy luminaries as The Krankies, Canon & Ball and Russ Abbott, Anneka Rice was heaven-sent TV gold. The Cowbridge-born lass provided hours of entertainment with her pert buttocks and unbridled enthusiasm for ludicrously complex challenges at the back end of the decade. Whether it was running errands for Kenneth Kendall on Treasure Hunt or solving the nation's problems (more)...

Russ Abbot has welcomed his evil guest-starring role in The Sarah Jane Adventures. "It's been a nice change for me to play a villain," the veteran entertainer told Radio Times magazine about his turn as megalomaniacal psychic Martin Trueman in two-part story 'Secrets Of The Stars'. "I've always been more of a comedy actor than a comic. I've never (more)...

What better way to escape the mundane old day job than to visit the stars with a 950-year-old man in a little blue box? Rose Tyler would certainly agree. But how do those legends of 'light entertainment' escape their world of canned laughter? Comedian Russ Abbot can currently be seen as a psychic baddie on Sarah Jane, taking over the show's villainous mantle from Wheel Of Fortune icon Bradley Walsh's Pied Piper. As Cult Spy discovers, they are not the first of their ilk to set foot in the Whoniverse. Many felt that Doctor Who had become too much of a pantomime by 1987 and the Sylvester McCoy tenure, and their grievances weren't assuaged by the casting of the feather duster-wielding Ken Dodd in 'Delta And The Bannerman'. His role as The Tollmaster was hardly against type, being full of boisterous and exuberant comments and mannerisms, (more)...

What better way to escape the mundane old day job than to visit the stars with a 950-year-old man in a little blue box? Rose Tyler would certainly agree. But how do those legends of 'light entertainment' escape their world of canned laughter? Comedian Russ Abbot can currently be seen as a psychic baddie on Sarah Jane, taking over the show's villainous mantle from Wheel Of Fortune icon Bradley Walsh's Pied Piper. As Cult Spy discovers, they are not the first of their ilk to set foot in the Whoniverse. Many felt that Doctor Who had become too much of a pantomime by 1987 and the Sylvester McCoy tenure, and their grievances weren't assuaged by the casting of the feather duster-wielding Ken Dodd in 'Delta And The Bannerman'. His role as The Tollmaster was hardly against type, being full of boisterous and exuberant comments and mannerisms, (more)...