Tintin’ s creator was never a far-Right propagandist
Monday, 28 September 2009
Sunday, 27 September 2009
in spiked 24/9/2009
Not anti-war so much as anti-hope
Slaughterhouse-Five, a fatalistic, despairing work, is perfect radio listening for a Sunday afternoon.
in spiked 18/9/2009
Keith Floyd and the end of an era
It’s not the death of the wine-soaked celebrity chef that has been changing TV cookery shows, but the recession
in spiked 11/9/2009
A TV postcard from Dublin
Forget about the Lisbon Treaty vote and the economic crisis, the burning topic in Ireland is the new Late Late Show host
in spiked 28/8/2009
The Futurists’ assault on our lugholes
Most of us associate Futurism with painting, but as Radio 3 recently revealed they made music - well, noise - too
in spiked 21/8/2009
Science TV strikes back
After a decade of decline, the semi-silly science programme is making a comeback – will it inspire kids to become geniuses?
in spiked 14/8/2009
An obituary to
a once-great station
The eclectic mix of re-runs on ITV4 remind us that mainstream, commercial television could be great.
in spiked 7/8/2009
There’s nothing wrong with good repeats
Instead of rubbish new productions, cash-strapped channels like ITV should plunder their vaults for some TV gold
in spiked 30/7/2009
Why I prefer to Wake Up To Wogan
The Irish veteran's warm-hearted whimsy is far preferable to the quarrelsome heavyweight news on Today
in spiked 24/7/2009
Why does everyone want to be Irish?
From Angela's Ashes to Who Do You Think You Are?, the Emerald Isle is still a reliable source of self-pity
in spiked 10/7/2009
British TV’s sci-fi inferiority complex
Swearier, flashier, gayer and set in Cardiff, BBC’sDr Who spin-off Torchwood shows UK sci-fi can’t take itself seriously.
in spiked 3/7/2009
NASA: ‘Risk is the price of progress’
A brilliant documentary on the Apollo missions reminds us that, yes, going to space is a risky business, but it's worth it
in spiked 25/6/2009
Letting Ordinary Joe loose on the nation
Radio producers think phone-in shows are democratic. In truth they’re stuffed with whiny, clichéd invective
in spiked 19/6/2009
Funny women need to develop some balls
If TV panel shows are confrontational and laddish, female performers should stop moaning and get stuck in
in spiked 12/6/2009
Mitchell and Webb: third time unlucky
The third series of the comedy duo’s sketch show is too self-referential and knowing to be funny
in spiked 5/6/2009
Hey, let's all have a laugh at the past!
BBC4’s Meet the British showed us how the UK saw itself in the past, but only to snigger at our forebears’ misplaced optimism
in spiked 28/5/2009
Freud: not such a moody bastard
The Radio 4 tribute to Clement Freud showed that the BBC at least still does good radio
in spiked 22/5/2009
Why are so many people blank about verse?
BBC One’s Why Poetry Matters was a noble idea, but it proved to be more patronising than inspiring.
In Culture Wars, October 23, 2008
It is a cliché that today we live in a culture obsessed by ‘celebrity’, with the lumpen proletariat forever fawning over the minutiae of talentless non-entities who are famous merely for being famous. The popularity and power wielded by Hello!magazine, the profusion of famous nobodies spawned from and spewed out by Channel Four’s Big Brother and other reality television programmes, are often cited as proof of this cultural phenomenon. Perhaps the most visible evidence of our celebrity culture can be witnessed at local newsagents, which now sell a cornucopia of cheap magazine titles devoted entirely to the inexplicably famous.
in spiked 15/5/2009
Picking fights is just as human as taking flight
This week’s Horizon programme on violence showed that even pacifists can get a kick out of a punch-up
in spiked 1/5/2009
How the bottle gets the Best of you
BBC2’s Best: His Mother’s Son was a poignant tale about how alcoholism can ruin the lives of the most unlikely people
in spiked 23/4/2009
Comedy’s man of steel
Mark Steel's sharp and self-deprecatory humour shines through in his new laugh-out-loud radio show
in spiked 17/4/2009
A freakshow dressed up as documentary
Embarrassing Bodies is only a symptom of the deeper disease of dumbing down that now afflicts Channel 4
in spiked 9/4/2009
The world’s most deadly TV genre
As yet another ‘world’s toughest job’ show, Oil Riggers feels like a substandard rip-off with a Texan accent
in spiked 3/4/2009
Unoriginal, sterotypical, geeky — and very funny
Cult comedy Red Dwarf, set on a spaceship, is returning to our TV screens, with an injection of postmodern irony
in spiked 20/3/2009
Robert Peston: the most annoying man on TV?
Forget Fred the Shred: in his weird, garbled tones, it’s the BBC’s business editor who’s been talking us into a recession
in spiked 26/2/2009
The science of sleep
As two BBC documentaries revealed this week, we really need those 40 winks; without them, we'd go mad
in spiked 20/2/2009
The Amish are more American than you think
Amish communities are often depicted as a monolithic ‘Other’ to modern society, but the truth is far more complex
in spiked 6/2/2009
The all-new Minder: a passable knock-off
It’s a nice little earner for Shane Richie, but the remake of the Eighties favourite takes a few ‘diabolical liberties’
in spiked 29/1/2009
Expletives: the good, the bad and the crude
Yes, swearing can be a substitute for real humour. But used wisely and judiciously it can also be subversively witty
in spiked 23/1/2009
The changing climate of weather forecasts
From isobars and trained meteorologists to 3-D graphics and pretty faces, the evolution of weather forecasts is telling
in spiked 16/1/2009
The boring but
beautiful game
We should resist demands to ‘sex up’ snooker: this sport requires patience, silence, decency and dickie bows
in spiked 9/1/2009
A shooting star in the comedy firmament
True or false: the one-off Christmas special of Vic and Bob’s cult quiz show proved it still has comedy cache?
in spiked 19/12/2008
Is this the end for the TV reviewer?
Multi-channel, multi-platform TV limits moments of shared viewing - and the need for someone to write about them
in spiked 5/12/2008
How to broaden the viewer’s mind
As the BBC’s recent Horizon programme proves, challenging, thought-provoking TV just needs a little time
in spiked 28/11/2008
Survivors: we’re bad and we deserve to die
The BBC’s new series, in which millions are wiped out by a virus, is perfectly attuned to the gloom of the moment
in spiked 20/11/2008
Stalin and Hitler were both evil? Go figure!
The BBC’s latest high-profile documentary on the Second World War finds a new way to tell us the blindingly obvious.
in spiked 14/11/2008
A heartwarming display of class contempt
Channel 4’s Rich Kid, Poor Kid was a hackneyed examination of class warfare. But it was touching all the same.
in spiked 7/11/2008
World’s Largest Metaphor Hits Iceberg
The Unsinkable Titanic told the story of the doomed liner without the usual waves of misanthropy and anti-science
in spiked 31/10/2008
How the soap kills the murder plot
Murder mysteries are titillating and intriguing in literary and cinematic forms, but TV just can’t seem to pull them off.
in spiked 23/10/2008
Your spin-off for 10…
From The Colbys to Joey, TV is known for its dodgy spin-offs. Now even a quiz show is spawning new versions
in spiked 17/10/2008
Apollo 13: a triumph over adversity
A TV doc reminds us that even failed space missions can be inspiring. Surely it’s time we returned to the moon?
in spiked 10/10/2008
Unhappy birthday
to This Morning
Trite, inconsequential, and aimed at bored women: why celebrate this show?
in spiked 26/9/2008
Why I’ve changed my mind about Piers Morgan
He used to be a sleazy hack, but the formerMirror editor’s honest interviewing style is a breath of fresh air
in spiked 19/9/2008
In praise of the ‘Nazi Channel’
UKTV History shows that commercial channels can provide enlightening programming, too
in spiked 12/9/2008
The 9/11 faker: suffering as celebrity
Tania Head, who achieved fame posing as a survivor of 9/11, grasped the source of modern celebrity: victimhood
in spiked 5/9/2008
Why Metallica should never have cut their hair
Forget indie and punk and their conformist ‘anti-establishment’ views. Heavy metal is the real music of rebellion
in spiked 28/8/2008
Who does Jerry Springer think he is?
It was a bit much to watch the creator of hundreds of TV victims posing as an ersatz ‘Holocaust victim’ on BBC1
in spiked 1/8/2008
The Countdown to the end
With Des O’Connor and Carol Vorderman departing, the end is nigh for Channel 4’s words and numbers quiz
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