Hugh Bonneville can celebrate after Gothic wins at Leicester
This morning, The Telegraph’s ‘Mandrake’ reported on the latest success of the Highclere Thoroughbred Racing Petrushka Syndicate and one of its investors, Downton Abbey star Hugh Bonneville, at Leicester. (more…)
ITV’s claims to have a solution to the mystery surrounding the disappearance of Lord Lucan are pure fantasy
There have been countless suggestions as to what happened to Lord Lucan after he disappeared without trace on 8th November 1974. As part of publicity for a forthcoming two-part drama starring Rory Kinnear, ITV, though, claim they have uncovered what really happened to the notorious aristocrat. (more…)
In 2013, this Danish-British former Liberal Democrat author and presenter stated: “The Duchess of Cambridge lacks a single [relevant] opinion”. The nation were far from impressed. “Toxic Toksvig”, as some refer to her, is a Cambridge educated lesbian and mother of three whose works number Hitler’s Canary and Heroines & Harridans. She started her career on the appropriately named Motormouth and once stated: “When I see comedian – and ‘comedienne’, of course I hate it – I think ‘Oh, really?’ because I think of myself as a writer and broadcaster”. Miaow!
This witty Northern comedian began his career as deputy headmaster at Caton Primary School in Lancashire. Best known as the host of Bullseye between 1981 and 1985, Bowen’s back in the limelight as many suggest he’s a lookalike of the new Pope. His BBC Radio Lancashire show was axed in 1999 after he referred to a guest as a “nig-nog” and in 2003 he launched a stand-up comedy DVD named You Can’t Tell These Anymore. Nothing, however, will ever “Beat a Bit of Bully!”
Belfast born Clugston is known as “The Posh Radio 4 Lady” or “The PR4L” and is BBC Radio 4’s continuity announcer. This witty lady’s voice is familiar to millions as a result of this but she’s also the female Irish voice for TomTom satellite navigation systems and the creator of the “Radio4minus1letter” Twitter based game. In her spare time, she plays the ukulele.
This Golden Globe and Emmy nominated actress came to prominence as Downton Abbey’s Lady Mary Crawley in September 2010 and is now considered “one of the most chattered-about women on television”. Born in Romford, Essex, Dockery has also appeared in television series’ including Heartbeat and Dalziel and Pascoe and films such as Anna Karenina with Jude Law and Keira Knightley. Of her future ambitions, she states: “I love singing live, actually. And I’m dying to sing in a role, whether it’s in a musical or a biographical film about a singer. It’s always been one of my aspirations”. In the meantime, the nation will continue to celebrate watching this rising talent as she morphs into Downton’s merry widow.
Our view on the Christmas episode of Downton Abbey
Christmas Day is meant to be a time for celebration and joy. After feasting likes kings, many of us sat down to a cheery cartoon or drama. With that in mind, watching Downton Abbey seemed like a good option.
8.1 million Brits viewed the ITV1 show this time last year and though the audience was down to 6.8 million, there was utterly no need for the ending created by Julian Fellowes.
During the two-hour programme, we found the majority of it tolerable despite the countless social inaccuracies but the way in which the main character, Matthew Crawley, played by Dan Stevens, was killed off was tasteless in the extreme.
After celebrating the arrival of an heir, Fellowes had the pivotal character crash an open top roadster. Blood poured from his head as he died and then they cut to Maggie Smith as The Dowager Countess of Grantham who stated: “We don’t always get our just deserts”.
This truly was a lowbrow piece of melodrama and we were disappointed that Fellowes didn’t use his dramatic licence a little better. It was, in fact, lazy writing and viewers have rightly reacted with horror in the hours since. Many have complained on Twitter that if they wanted this kind of action they’d be watching Eastenders or Coronation Street and one went as far as to say Downton Abbey is now “a Robin Reliant of a drama”.
Downton has been dumbed down enough. We imagine many of our readers will join us in pressing the off button when it returns in the New Year.
Our thoughts on the £10.8 million payout to Rebekah Brooks
Rebekah Brooks is a lady who is variously described as looking like Lady Macbeth and Merida, the animated hero of Pixar’s Brave.
Brooks is of working class extraction but rose to find herself in the company of the likes of Gordon Brown, Tony Blair, Matthew Freud and Jeremy Clarkson. At her peak she was the editor of one of the biggest newspapers in the country and had David Cameron on speed dial. This chameleon like lady’s rise was meteoric but her fall was just as dramatic.
This week, Brooks has been attacked over the £10.852 million payoff she received from News Corporation. We don’t see what all the fuss is about. She is not the only villain in the scandal of phone hacking. It is wrong to singlehandedly blame her and turning her into the sole scapegoat of the piece is just a malicious distraction. We’d much rather see Piers Morgan and Alan Rusbridger were brought to book.
Undoubtedly best known as one of the greatest actresses of the post-war period, Yorkshire born Dench briefly played Pru Forrest in the BBC’s The Archers. She’s an advocate for “more progressive drug policies” and only took the role of Lady Catherine de Bourgh in Pride & Prejudice after director Joe Wright wrote to her and said: “I love it when you play a bitch. Please come and be a bitch for me.” There’s barely a role she hasn’t conquered.