Tuesday 29 January 2013

Miranda - Series 3 Thoughts

Okay, I have been a massive fan of "Miranda" since Series 1, and the wait for Series 3 seemed to drag on FOREVER.

It got off to a brilliant start, but while the storylines were actually more defined this year, there were moments when the comedy was just a smidge too forced for my taste - however - I don't care about that. It's still fab.

But last night was the last episode of Series 3, and it ended on quite the cliffhanger. Not only did Miranda's ex, Mike show up to propose, the love of her life, Gary, proposed too!



The problem? Gary's sudden commitment phobia. Okay, some might say I'm putting a little bit too much thought into a BBC1 comedy show, but come on! How is this even a real thing? Gary wasn't afraid to be in a relationship with Rose, he got married when he was living in Hong Kong (even though it was for a favour, but still!), and he was ready to be with Miranda during Series 2. So what's up with the hesitation, chef??

There seems to be a weird thing in comedy shows where the writers believe the humour will disappear if the will they/won't they couple finally get together. It's the same reason Lee and Lucy have STILL not got it on in "Not Going Out." Frankly, the dragging out is what makes the show less watchable. There is only so long you can string something out before people get bored and give up.

Ross and Rachel did just fine in "Friends." They didn't last but they worked it out in the end, and the comedy did not suffer when they got together.

So, come on Miranda. Give us what we want. Think of the hilariousness of Miranda and Gary trying to plan a wedding! That's funny stuff! For once, let the girl get the guy, and PLEASE don't make us wait any longer!

Thursday 24 January 2013

'American Horror Story' - The Finale!

I know, I know, two posts in a row about "American Horror Story," but it just wouldn't be right not to talk about last night's finale.

Dude.

If every episode of this season was as strong as the last two, I'd have been yabbering on about it with enthusiasm the whole time. I'm not really apologetic about the weeks I thought the show had gone way off the rails. There were times when I outright HATED it.

BUT, here we are, the final episode aired, and I am still thinking about it. The one thing "American Horror Story" always has going for it is the strong cast. Last year, Jessica Lange was the superstar. Actually, she will always be the superstar - the woman is incredible. But this year really highlighted the talents of Lily Rabe, Sarah Paulson, Zacahry Quinto, Evan Peters and Dylan McDermott.

For those of you who haven't seen the episode yet - prepare to blub. Because it's kind of heartbreaking.

For those of you who have seen the episode - read my take on the episode here: 'American Horror Story: Asylum': Who Survived The Horrors of Briarcliff?

Tuesday 22 January 2013

American Horror Story Season 3 - Analyzing the Clues!

I'm not gonna lie. I've been pretty disheartened with this season of "American Horror Story." I know I mentioned that before, so I will swiftly move on to something a little more promising.

Fans of the show will be familiar with Ryan Murphy's end of season clues. In Season 1, there were some very big clues that Season 2 would be set in an asylum. But if I am reading it correctly, Season 2's clues are a lot more subtle. Of course, I could be way off base, but I am not the only one who spotted these things. Take a look, and let me know what you think! Did I miss anything? Have you seen a different set of clues?

"American Horror Story" Season 3: Does Ryan Murphy Hint At Witchcraft

Tuesday 15 January 2013

Fozzy Tour Dates 2013 announced!

(I totally just did this! Well, not just, I've had this post scheduled for hours because I didn't want to announce it before the band. But Rich Ward just posted, so we're good to go!)


Yup, yup! If you follow Fozzy on Twitter, you'll have spotted them teasing us about big news! The date Jan 15th was hashtagged, and thus, I have been bouncing up and down all day waiting for the news to come out about what Fozzy has in store for us in April!

Well the wait is over, my friends, because the boys will be back in town (okay, okay, the country, kill my buzz why don't ya!) starting April 11th, along with Drowning Pool and Revoker!

The dates are as follows:
Apr 11 - The Cellar, Southampton
April 12 - White Rabbit, Plymouth
April 13 - Concorde 2, Brighton
April 14 - Waterfront, Norwich
April 16 -  Rescue Rooms, Nottingham
April 17 - The Vault, Rugby
April 18 - The Underground, Stoke
April 19 - Fibbers, York
April 20 - NQ Live, Manchester
April 21 - Central Station, Wrexham
April 23 - The Fleece, Bristol
April 24 - Electric Ballroom, London

European Dates:
April 25 - La Maroquinerie, Paris
April 27 - Feierwerk, Munich
April 28 - Flex, Vienna


You can find all those details here VIP Packages can be purchased on the FozzyIf you have never seen Fozzy live before, you are in for a TREAT! Nobody rocks harder than these guys - and I hope to catch them on more than one date this time around, so keep watch as there will be gig reviews coming up!

YEAH BOYEEEEEE! ;)

Wednesday 9 January 2013

Pretty Little Liars - Who Can We Trust?

So, "Pretty Little Liars" returned last night, and you know what that means? Yes, I get to drool over Caleb again! ;) But not just that - it means that we get to delve right back into the twisted plotline, and drive ourselves nuts trying to untangle all the little clues we've been given.

I've written articles about the show since the very beginning, and if you snoop around on the blog long enough, you'll find some posts which relate to the first season. I plan to stay more up to date from now on!

Right away, we were thrown straight back into the action when Mona (Janel Parrish) returned to school after her stay at Radley.



Wasn't much of a stay, to be honest, as she slipped in and out of there like it was the easiest thing in the world, but I digress. The point is, with both her and Toby (Keegan Allen) on the A-Team, it's getting harder and harder to know who the Liars can trust.

So - take a look at this from Yahoo TV, and let me know if you agree - and also tell me who else you think we can or can't trust!

Fozzy! Fozzy! Fozzy! Oy! Oy! Oy!

Yes, that is uber excitement you see up there in the title! Looky what Chris Jericho tweeted!

If any of you caught their European tour at the end of last year, you'll know how absolutely epic it was! Granted, I only caught one date, but I know there are some people who were lucky enough to got to more. I hope to be one of those lucky people next time around, but we'll see!

Anyway, I know this isn't a whole lot of info to get excited about just yet, but it's exciting that there's exciting news on the way! (Forgive me, I throw my thesaurus away when I'm .... erm ... you know!) :D Plus - this gives me time to finally learn all the words to "Sandpaper" :p

I leave you with this - Enemy performed in December in Plymouth!



Sunday 6 January 2013

Dancing On Ice - Skating Surprises

So,"Dancing On Ice" is back! I gotta say, every year this is the show I look forward to. Let's call it a guilty pleasure. Though I don't really feel that guilty about it.



The downside to the show this year is the return of Jason Gardiner to the judging panel. Every TV talent show needs a Mr. Nasty, but he, plain and simply, comes across as an arse. In his defense (and you probably won't hear me say this often) he wasn't quite as bad as in previous years. Karen Barber is also back on the panel, which means at some point through the series, they will get into a fight - and the chances are it will uncomfortable . They've also added Ashley Roberts, former Pussycat Doll and recently returned survivor of "I'm A Celebrity ... Get Me Out Of Here." I'm gonna assume the producers wanted to cash in on her current popularity, but actually, she's pretty decent. A vast improvement on Emma Bunton, anyway.

Samia Ghadie was first up to skate, and this past week, she's spent more time in the news for potentially dating her skating partner, Sylvain Longchambon. This wouldn't be a big deal except, he was in a relationship with his skating partner on the show two years ago, Jennifer Metcalfe. Whatever. Someone gets a relationship with someone else every year. Nothing new. Anyway, back to the skating! Their dance scored 17 out of 40 which was fair enough. Samia seemed pretty nervous, but she did a decent job for week one.

By far the most excited contestant was Keith Chegwin, who returned after breaking his shoulder and cracking three ribs on his first day of training for the show last year. For an older contestant, he really showed that ice who was boss - not to mention doing a jump which nobody ever attempts on week one. He only scored 14.5, but he got some great comments from the judges.

Next up was Olympic gymnast, Beth Tweddle. Beth has been tipped as an early favourite to win and it was easy to see why. Already super graceful because of her gymnastic background, she moved very easily around the ice, and even created her own move - named the Tweddle Tilt! Her score was 21. Would have been higher if Jason Gardiner hadn't has a pop at her for her lack of performance level, and saying he was "bored to Beth" *rolls eyes* I am bored of him already.

Matt Lapinskas, formerly of Eastenders was like a kid with ADHD in rehearsals. However, when it came to performance time, there was no hint of messing around. He looked incredible - not a hint of nerves of hesitation. His brilliance was rewarded with a score of 24, shooting him to the top of the leader board.

Finally, the moment my mother was waiting for - Shayne Ward. Okay, I gotta admit I was kinda excited to see him, too. His training VT showed him looking pretty terrible on the ice, but his performance wasn't as bad as it could have been. He finished with a score of 16, and if makes it through to next week - we'll likely see him taking dance classes as recommended by the judges.

 Pamela freaking Anderson was the last performer, and holy crap, was she good! I couldn't help but love the excitement she had for skating, and she seems so sweet and not diva-ish at all. Her score was 18.5, which wasn't so bad. 

After a short break, it was time for the results. In the first "Dancing On Ice" skate-off of 2013 were Keith and Pamela. New this year is the "Save Me" skate. Instead of re-performing their earlier routine, all the contestants have had to choreograph a whole new routine to perform should they land in the bottom two. Cheggers performed a rather dramatic number with his partner and did pretty well with it. Pammy didn't do so well with hers. She stumbled, and it seemed to put her off the rest of the performance which was a real shame. Sadly, that stumble cost Pamela her place in the show. :( I'm even sadder that it means a whole series to get through without Matt Evers.

Next week, the other half of this year's contestants get their chance to show what they can do. I can't lie, Joe Pasquale on ice is going to be fabulous!





Splash - ITV1's New Saturday Night Entertainment Show!


If you happened to catch the Olympics last summer, you may have seen Team GB's Tom Daley taking home  the bronze medal for diving. 


Well, since then, our little Olympic hero has gone from strength to strength, and has now landed himself a primetime TV show on ITV1! Splash sees Tom Daley teaching brave celebrities how to dive. Think Strictly Come Dancing, but with bikinis instead of sequins.

The celebrities taking the plunge this week were Jenni Falconer, Jade Ewen, Omid Djalil, Jake Canuso and Helen Lederer. Each had their own tale about why learning to dive was such a challenge for them. From Jake, who was trapped underwater during the 2004 tsunami in Thailand, to Helen Lederer's phobia of heights - they all had a fear to face. 

Gotta give them credit, they all did what they had to do with varying levels of success, and thankfully, none of them did this:


By far the most entertaining dive of the night was by funnyman Omid Djalili, who did his dive from the highest board - ten metres above the pool. There was something magical about watching Djalili do something so unexpected with a surprising amount of grace!

While the votes were being counted, the show's own dive team did a super cool display, with the divers dressed as ninjas and fighting with James Bond characters, all dressed in tuxedos and flinging themselves into the pool in numerous creative ways. It was impossible to take your eyes off them because it was all so surprising, not to mention rather dangerous looking!

Throughout the show, Splash was a trending topic on Twitter, and in traditional British fashion, there were many people openly mocking it. However, don't judge too harshly, people. It was week one, and it looked very much like the whole team, from presenters, to celebrities,  to judges were still trying to find their feet. And that's okay. For a first attempt at a brand new concept (diving on TV, not teaching celebrities a skill) it was really interesting.

At the risk of sounding like Louis "you remind of a young" Walsh on The X Factor, Tom Daley is young, he has a talent, he is an Olympic medallist - so let's celebrate what he's achieved and who knows, maybe Splash will do for diving what Dancing On Ice did for ice skating! 

Bring on next week!