The Weakest Link, BBC UK version, broadcast on Thursday 15 February 2007.

Anne (bleugh) Robinson: What “h” precedes “be thy name” in the Lord’s Prayer?

Contestant: Howard.

Anne: Sorry?

Contestant: Howard.

Anne (smirking): Hallowed.

Poor Marco.

In a non-football household, Angela Giles Klocke’s 10 year old daughter sums it up.

Remember the excitement of having a film crew on our doorstep? Well a kind commenter let me know that the comedy series (Dogtown) is now being broadcast both on BBC3 and on the interweb (alas, only to UK residents unless you know of a good *ahem* proxy service…) What’s it like? Well I’ve watched the first two episodes. I really want to like it. Most of the cast take on more than one role (both male and female), it’s cleverly done. But just too depressing for me. I think it’ll appeal to those who enjoyed Little Britain and League of Gentlemen. Mind you, I’ve never actually seen either show so it’s best if you make your own minds up.

Filed under things I keep going back to enjoy – a wee while back Ellie double dared her son Jacob to audition for American Idol. It’s so good I’m even prepared to open Internet Explorer (it won’t work in Firefox or Opera). If these two performances don’t make you smile broadly and want to adopt/date/manage/offer a starring role to (delete as appropriate), then you’re either dead or a republican.

Other bright and shiny things

A quick game of Hangman from Steven DeGraeve whose Color Palette Generator is one of the most useful design tools I’ve come across. You type in the url of an image to get a color palette that matches the image. For example, if you enter the header image from the next link you get a lovely rich palette of colours to kick off your design.

Talking of spicy, Quick Indian Cooking does what it says on the tin in providing quick, easy recipes for Indian food. Definitely one to keep an eye on. I suspect that Saturday’s menu chez Daisy will include traditional Bengali fish cakes, Macher Chop.

While we’re still in the kitchen, here’s a sweet photograph of saucepans. Yes, saucepans.

That’s it for now. Himself has a really bad dose of flu and ever the generous soul has shared it with yours truly so I’m off to make another pot of hot tea before collapsing back into a heap on the sofa. Bonne nuit.

If you have access to BBC America you need to cancel all appointments for next Monday evening (July 24, 10pm ET), settle yourself down in a nice comfy chair, unplug the ‘phone and start watching the 8 part BBC series Life on Mars.

Sam Tyler, a cool, sharp young detective, is working hard to keep the streets of 21st century Manchester safe from crime. But his world is turned upside down when the hunt for a serial killer becomes a personal vendetta after Maya, his girlfriend and colleague, goes missing. Desperately afraid she has been kidnapped by the killer, he sets out to find her, only to become involved in a near-fatal car accident. When he wakes, he finds himself in a different era – 1973. Is this reality, madness or a dream? Sam struggles to understand what is happening to him.

Disoriented and traumatized, 21st century Sam is completely bewildered by his new environment. As all attempts to return to his own time fail, Sam falls back on what he knows best – his job. … This is a world without cell phones, where cops rely on paperwork and memory instead of computers, there’s no DNA profiling and what forensics do exist take two weeks to process.

How to sum it up? Brilliant scripting, fine performances, a superb soundtrack of fab and groovy seventies music and a storyline that keeps you guessing right ’til the end. And beyond. A second series is currently being made (hooray!).

Karan is ‘fessing up to her CPS (couch potato status) via a meme from Lester.

The brief: Here’s a list of televsion shows, bold all the shows which you have seen at least 3 episodes.

Additions: I’ve added a few British and Australian ones for a slightly more international flavour. Oh and I threw in NYPD Blue and Starsky & Hutch so that I had a few more boldings. I was starting to feel like a freak. Feel free to add your own if you‘re bored and want to take part.

24
7th Heaven
Adam-12
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Alias
Angel
Arrested Development
Battlestar Galactica < -- original only! Baywatch Beverly Hills 90210 (more…)

I’m sobbing into my hankie at the moment – the film crew have arrived, I’ve taken some pictures but Martyn has had to leave… taking the only working camera with him.

They’re a very friendly bunch and Millie is adorable but much as I’d like to go out there and have a chinwag, offer them all tea and biscuits in the true Daisy mi casa/su casa spirit, I feel as if I’m intruding. Dammit.

Google has been quite helpful in finding out more:

A six-part sitcom written by twins Beth and Emma Kilcoyne described as a “quirky character comedy, part sketch, part narrative” which is due to air this autumn. Produced by Celador and the BBC in Sunderland.

It stars Emma Kilcoyne and Sam Battersea, and follows on from a sketch show they performed in Edinburgh. It also stars stand-up Dave Johns as Norman, the son of a 73-year-old fortune-telling dwarf.

I’m off to twitch a few more nets…

Put your average person in a television studio, pin a microphone to his chest and – well to be fair, how many of us would be up to the challenge? Not many, judging by these replies.

University Challenge

Bamber Gascoigne: What was Ghandi’s first name?
Contestant: Goosey, Goosey?

The Weakest Link

Anne Robinson: In traffic, what “J” is where two roads meet?
Contestant: Jool carriageway.

Anne Robinson: Which Italian city is overlooked by Vesuvius?
Contestant: Bombay.
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We have the granddaughters staying this weekend (hooray!) so I’m on the lookout for some more online games to keep the computer addicted pair happy.

A quick hop over to Lazy Laces and there’s nothing specifically for 3 and 6 year olds but as always, plenty to keep us older kids happy.

How about creating a talking squirrel animation? Talking flowers or tomatoes? Or maybe some ninja text? Then there’s the movie clapperboard generator.

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I finally got to see Dear Frankie last night:

Nine year-old Frankie and his single mum Lizzie have been on the move ever since Frankie can remember, most recently arriving in a seaside Scottish town. Wanting to protect her deaf son from the truth that they’ve run away from his father, Lizzie has invented a story that he is away at sea on the HMS Accra. Every few weeks, Lizzie writes to Frankie a make-believe letter from his father, telling of his adventures in exotic lands.

As Frankie tracks the ship’s progress around the globe, he discovers that it is due to dock in his hometown. With the real HMS Accra arriving in only a fortnight, Lizzie must choose between telling Frankie the truth or finding the perfect stranger to play Frankie’s father for just one day.

A cracking story, wonderful acting and a first class script. I’m on a mission now to try and see screenwriter Andrea Gibb’s other films.

Tellybox and wireless archives

There’s much excitement over the BBC has opening up its fully searchable experimental programme catalogue – “details of 946,614 BBC radio & TV programmes, dating back 75 years”. There’s a great introduction to the site by Tom Loosemore but best of all, Murky Murdoch is well pissed off about it.

First task: what was on television the day I was born? Harold Wilson (then Prime Minister), a documentary about Japan and another heartbreaking episode of Steptoe and Son.

I love that you can search for your favourite programmes – how about Nice Town? I’m thinking of starting a campaign to get the beeb (or anyone!) to broadcast it again.

Oh and the Woman’s Hour dramatisation of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca with Harriet Walter and Michael Rosen. I still get goosebumps thinking about it.

There’s plenty to explore but first thought is that the radio icon could be improved – I spent the first 10 minutes thinking it was a clapperboard therefore a movie icon. Or maybe I should go find my spectacles.

I have much to learn about embedding video methinks. To stop the video playing every time you (re)load the front page, I’ve put it in an extended post. Just click on the “Continue reading Lassie come home” link to see our favourite collie as you’ve never seen him before!
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