Author Archives: Frostie

Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby Announce First Ambassador

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Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby has welcomed its first Ambassador to the sport that captivated the nation at London 2012.  Harlequins and England rugby star Mike Brown will take on a role that continues the rugby links GBWR has made recently – partnering with the RFU and with Harlequins, Saracens, Gloucester, Leicester and Woodbridge rugby clubs – involving him in the GBWR military programme, supported and funded by Help for Heroes.

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(From left to right: Alan Ash, GBWR Captain, Mike Brown, Harlequins and England and Kylie Grimes, GBWR)
Mike – who has amassed 21 caps for England and had a starring role in England’s recent Autumn Internationals picking up the coveted QBE Player of the Series Award – comments,  “I enjoy playing rugby because it is physical and I enjoy wheelchair rugby for the same reason.  The sound they make with the hits they put in is unbelievable.   It is a fast-paced, high-action game and the physicality and skill they show with the ball is brilliant.  I look forward to my new role and hope I will get a chance to join them for a game.”
David Pond, Chief Executive of GBWR, comments “I’m delighted that we have the support of Mike for this initiative.  We have been working closely with the charity Help for Heroes and Battle Back to provide opportunities for wounded and injured service men and women to try wheelchair rugby for the first time. The programme started with a series of sessions at Headley Court and I’m pleased it is to be part of the rehabilitation programme rolled out to support Help the Heroes run Recovery Centres at Colchester, Tidworth, Catterick and Plymouth.”
Mike Brown met with GBWR squad players (including Alan Ash [Captain] and Kylie Grimes) at Headley Court, the Ministry of Defence Medical Rehabilitation Unit, to announce the appointment and joined them in a demonstration match against the patients.
The programme, funded by Help for Heroes, along with Sport England, will be available to wounded, injured and service personnel and veterans at UK Recovery Centres across 2014.”
 

Channel 4 commissions Benefits Street live

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After only one episode Benefits Street became one of the most controversial television shows, sparking debate and a slew of articles. After the controversy (which included a petition for Channel 4 to stop broadcasting the show attracting 17,000 signatures after only one episode, so much for free speech), Channel 4 has commissioned a live debate.

BenefitsStreet_logo_wChannel 4’s Head of Special Programmes, Ed Havard, has commissioned Mentorn Media to produce a 1 x 60 live debate around the issues brought to the fore by the observational documentary series Benefits Street. This series, filmed over the course of 12 months, documents the reality of life on a street in Birmingham where the majority of households are dependent on benefits and in an area of Birmingham that has had the highest rate of unemployment in the country for the last eight years. It has attracted a great deal of attention – generating tens of thousands of responses on Twitter, press headlines and questions raised in parliament.

Channel 4 Head of Factual, Ralph Lee, says: “This is a series which reflects the reality of day-to-day life for some of the residents of a single street who, for the most part, rely on benefits to survive. It does not and never has set out to reflect the experiences of every person who receives benefits yet it has triggered a national debate about state welfare at a time in which further welfare reforms are being proposed. We feel it is timely to provide a forum in which these issues can be raised and discussed.”

The programme will be live and interactive allowing viewers to submit questions; it will be chaired by broadcaster Richard Bacon. The panellists will be confirmed closer to transmission but will represent the views across the political spectrum – and crucially those who claim benefits.

It will be broadcast at 10pm on Monday 10th February, directly after the final episode of the five-part documentary series airs. The Executive Producer is Mentorn Media’s Director of Current Affairs Hayley Valentine, she says: “It is vital that voices on all sides are heard, and we are pleased to be providing a forum for both public figures and viewers to debate the series that has brought a pertinent political issue to life so vividly.”

 

The Good Wife Season 5: Robert and Michelle King Interview

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the good wife series 5.4_A2ROBERT and MICHELLE KING – Co-Creators / Executive Producers

How does it feel to be on Season 5 of “The Good Wife”?

Michelle King: It’s tremendous. We’re coming up on our 100th episode. It’s really exciting for us.

Robert King: And exhausting. We end the year very tired and ready to collapse and then start reading the news and go ‘that’s interesting, this is fun, Anthony Weiner, really?’ So, all this starts to get you excited about going the year again.

2. How does the Season 4 finale set the stage for Season 5?

Sometimes it’s great to swerve left and then you swerve right, but I thought thematically it worked for us, in that you thought it was going to romance when in fact it was going to career-end romance. That sets up the next year, as we get to see how Alicia and Cary follow through. If they’re going to start a firm together, what is that going to look like – and they’re going to start the year saying it’s going to be the most ethical firm – and how are they going to be able to follow through? What will that do to Alicia and Will, especially if they take clients along with them? If you’re stealing money from the other firm, which is the way Will and Diane might interpret it, it’s not going to end well. The year for us is about civil war through seeing these characters we’ve embraced in a family and the wedge go in the middle of the family – and how will that renew itself or will it ever?

3. More on setting the stage for Season 5

Michelle King: I feel like we set ourselves up very nicely at the end of Season 4 so I am really excited with the stories we get to tell in Season 5.

Robert King: There is a certain inevitability from the way we left it in Season 4. I would say each year we start with this real excitement and fever pitch to do well, except you have to stretch it out over a marathon and not over a sprint. There can’t be just one burst of energy. There has to be this constant renewal and burst of energy.

4. How has Alicia’s attitude towards Cary changed since Season 1?

Robert King: Julianna’s character over the years has grown respect for Cary, because he wasn’t the yuppie suburban boy that you expect. He has gone through a lot of turmoil. He was fired. He went to the state’s attorney’s office then he came back. He was overlooked for partner, so I think Jules’ character has a real respect for how he keeps bouncing back and that is different from the very first year where everybody thought he was the cliché.

5. How have the fans reacted to the direction the show has taken in Season 5?

Michelle King: What has been nice with the fan reaction is people seem very genuinely excited to see what’s going to happen next professionally with Alicia. With these two firms splitting and starting up I think people see the possibilities and are excited about it.

6. More on fan reaction…

Robert King: I think fans embrace anything new – seeing new versions of relationships, different ways to click people together – and so it’s fun to see Alicia and Cary try to be the new Will and Diane. Everybody knows what that means, all the fans know what that means, and are they going to be up to it.

7. What challenges will Peter and Alicia face going into Season 5?

The bottom line is Alicia and Peter have agreed to recommit to each other and that played into Alicia wanting to move away from Will. The difficulty is that Peter now has moved into a position of power in the governorship and as much as he has sworn over the years to be a changed man, now the test is really going to be put to a test because our theory is that the closer men get to power – and women probably too – the more it becomes that Henry Kissinger like aphrodisiac to women. He is also tempted by using his power as we saw with Anthony Weiner. Power comes with some sense of sexual loosening, so that’s difficult for Alicia and Peter – it’s not that Peter necessarily even acts on it – but that kind of divide in the marriage is difficult and it’s happening at a time when Alicia is feeling her own roots in a way. She has got her own firm, she’s got power, and she may not need Peter as much anymore, so that is a tension in that relationship.

8. Can we expect more big name guest stars in Season 5?

Robert King: It’s still early days but there are people – we’re building a little further ahead so we know Carrie Preston is coming back – she is lovely as Elsbeth Tascioni, and was nominated for an Emmy. We know that Gary Cole is coming back. He plays Kurt McVeigh who is in this relationship with Diane. We know America Ferrera is coming back. She was with us the second year and she has this odd relationship with Eli Gold. Melissa George who is this wonderful actress who is the Ethics Committee Commissioner in the governorship and causes Peter many problems and…

Michelle King: Jeffrey Tambor.

Robert King: Jeffrey Tambor who plays a judge on Arrested Development and Larry Sanders Show. He plays a judge in two of our episodes and is going to cause troubles for Alicia in the future, and then there is Juliet Rylance who plays the romantic interest to Kalinda and we couldn’t be more excited. I mean, there is an intent on our part to focus on our cast – the civil war going on in our cast – but it’s always wonderful to get these people back.

9. What are your plans for the 100th episode of “The Good Wife”?

Robert King: We are intending for it to be a blowout episode. We want the 100th episode to be one of the best we’ve written, but we don’t know what we’re doing yet. There is a movie called Drowning By Numbers that had a countdown in the movie from a 100 to 0. We were thinking about that but then our shows rely on the ability to edit out scenes that aren’t quite working, so you’d throw it off. I think it will come down to a real turning point in Julianna’s life and a case that just blows everybody away.

 

Interview thanks to Channel 4.

An interview with the star of The Good Wife, Julianna Margulies, is here.

24’s Back! New Series Announced

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24 fans can start getting excited: Jack’s back and this time he is in London.

Star Kiefer Sutherland said: “I’m about as anxious and wound up as I’ve been in a long time. There’s a great impetus for all of us to create something new with the show.”

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Dexter star Yvonne Strahovski, Mary Lynn Rajskub (Chloe), Kim Raver (Audrey) and William Devane (James Heller) will all star alongside Sutherland. The series will air in the states from May 5 2014 with a two-hour special to start.

A movie is also in the works. Sutherland said: “If this ends up rebooting the show or causing a film to be made, so be it, The film is sort of an ongoing situation.”

The Good Wife Season Five: Julianna Margulies Interview

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the good wife series 5 interview How does it feel to be on Season 5 of The Good Wife?

Julianna Margulies: It doesn’t feel like the fifth season. I have more excitement about this season than I have any season. The first season I was so overwhelmed by it all and the second season you’re trying to keep the momentum going, and then all of a sudden you’re in year five and the writing is even better. I feel like I just landed in a pot of gold.

What was your reaction to the Season 4 finale?

When I read the script of the season finale I was like, oh, we’re still doing this triangle and then all of a sudden you realize how smart they are, these writers are just so smart.

How does the Season 4 finale set the stage for Season 5?

Basically what happens is Alicia chooses to leave her firm because she knows as long as she is there, her heart will always be with Will and she can’t live like that – not after recommitting to her husband. And she starts her own firm or talks about starting her own firm with Cary.

More on setting the stage for Season 5?

It picks up on the exact same night. We open up the episode and you see Alicia and Cary on their second bottle of wine – in her kitchen, getting a little drunk and realizing this could be the best thing that’s ever happened.

Are Alicia and Cary the new Will and Diane?

Cary sells it to her by saying we’re the new Will and Diane. She starts watching how Will and Diane work because when Season 5 starts they’re still there, they have to transition, they have to get offices, they have to figure this all out before they abandon and she’s watching Will and Diane work on a death row case with her and then she’s watching how Cary conducts himself and she is realizing this ain’t no Will and Diane.

What challenges does Alicia face at the start of Season 5?

Her husband is elected governor, so she is now the first lady, and is going to figure out how to leave the firm. They have to steal some clients, it’s ugly and it gets really ugly, and it’s going to be a very tense season because of it.

Are there advantages to being the Governor’s wife?

Being the governor’s wife gives her tremendous status as a lawyer and it has completely opened the door for her. It made her partner at Lockhart & Gardner. They could have chosen anyone, however she was much more valuable to them as the governor’s wife.

What damage will Alicia’s new firm create for Will and Diane?

The three biggest clients that she is taking with her are a blow to Lockhart & Gardner. She takes Chumhum, the drug kingpin Lemond Bishop and Sweeney. That’s at least $44 million a year in business for Lockhart & Gardner. So it’s not just that she is leaving the firm to start her own, she is stabbing them in the back and, even though I truly believe that Alicia doesn’t have a mean bone in her body, it’s the cruellest thing she could ever do to two people who were there for her when she had no-one.

More on the damage Alicia’s new firm creates…

It’s a bloodbath. If we were Game of Thrones, there would be a lot of actual blood, but because we’re lawyers in pretty clothing, there are just a lot of really smart words and emotions.

How will Alicia’s move affect her relationship with Diane?

It’s going to get horribly tense and it’s going to be pretty devastating, but then, and I can’t express it because it will ruin it for everybody – in fact no-one on the show knows except for me and the Kings, Brooke Kennedy and David Zucker – but we take a very big turn and through an event that happens Diane and Alicia are brought closer. This is what I’ve always wanted because they’re two such strong women that women connect to, and I hated that the two strong women on the show weren’t friends.

Why is Alicia’s relationship with Eli important?

The only people that know about Alicia and Will are Eli Gold and Diane. Then Eli becomes Chief of Staff of the governor’s office and as he knows all my secrets, it elevates their friendship as well. I think it’s going to be pretty beautiful and pretty devastating.

How does it feel to reach 100 episodes in Season 5?

It’s a milestone to shoot that many episodes and I remember the feeling on ER thinking a 100 episodes, that’s crazy. We’re talking 84-page scripts, so if you look at a feature length film, they’re usually about 125 to 130 pages, and we shoot that amount in eight days -and it’s quality writing and work. It’s definitely something to be proud of and I’m over the moon that we’ve made it this far. I think that audiences really have responded in an incredibly positive way to the show and I do think it’s just getting better and better.

Interview thanks to Channel 4.

An interview with the creators of The Good Wife is here.

One In Three In The UK Can’t Afford To Eat Healthily

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appleMore than a third (39 per cent) of people in the UK – around 25 million – say they do not eat healthily because it is too expensive to do so.   One in seven people (14 per cent) said they do not have time to prepare healthy food, and one in ten (10 per cent) said they do not know how to eat healthily.

 

These are the findings of new research out today from UK health charity Nuffield Health, who questioned more than 3,100 UK adults.  The figures provide a snapshot of the UK’s views on obesity and healthy lifestyle choices.  Experts say the findings are concerning, and show poor understanding about healthy living and an acceptance that obesity has become the norm in society.

 

The research, carried out to support National Obesity Awareness Week, highlights the urgency for effective obesity prevention strategies.  Of those polled, a third of people said they had noticed a rise in obesity in the area they live.  40 per cent of people said that seeing obese adults in the area they live in is common, with almost the same number – 38 per cent – saying that childhood obesity is now the norm.

 

The figures back up research released this week by the National Obesity Forum which shows that current strategies are failing to halt the rise in obesity, and a 2007 prediction that more than half of people in the UK will be obese by 2050 will in fact be exceeded.

 

Of the respondents, a further 550 people who were measured as obese – with a Body Mass Index of more than 30* – were questioned about their views on weight management.

Of this group:

  • Nearly half (48 per cent) are resigned to remaining obese due to a lack of willpower
  • 17 per cent said they had never attempted to lose weight
  • One in five (20 per cent) would rather be overweight than watch what they eat.

 

When questioned about attitudes towards exercise, the figures showed:

  • 40 per cent said they find exercise boring
  • A quarter (25 per cent) do not have time to exercise
  • One in seven (14 per cent) would rather be overweight than have to exercise.

 

When questioned about the Government’s response to tackling the problem, almost half (45 per cent) said that GP referrals for exercise should be considered. 40 per cent would like to see increased funding for recognised weight management programmes, 43 per cent want stricter regulations on ‘unhealthy’ food and drink chains from sponsoring high profile events and 40 per cent said that school meals should be regulated as a matter of urgency.

 

While the majority of respondents (81 per cent) said obesity is the fault of the individual, when questioned about contributing factors to the UK’s obesity epidemic, more than half (55 per cent) said the blame lies with the food industry.

 

Jackie Donkin, Nutritional Therapist at Nuffield Health, said; ”People who are trapped in the rut that is obesity need to take a step back and really think about the food they are eating.   As a nation, if we continue in this way we are heading for not only an obese population of children and adults, but a chronically ill population.  The key to success is not just dieting, it is long-term lifestyle changes that people need to adopt and which will only work if taken in small steps over a long period of time.

 

Eating more fruit and vegetables, cutting down on takeaways, or eating food in its natural state, rather than covered in rich sauces, will drastically reduce the amount of fat and sugar we eat.  Increasing day-to-day activity; walking up the stairs instead of taking the lift; walking those short distances instead of taking the car; going for a walk around the block in the evening, will all contribute to a healthier lifestyle, which once adopted will become much easier to maintain over time.”

 

Crystal Fairy Trailer | Film

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mza_4756234407815082883Prepare to have your mind bent and uncover a tale of hedonistic, ego-clashing college students on the road to self-discovery… with the help of the fabled San Pedro cactus brew.

Starring Michael Cera (Juno, This is The End, Superbad) and Gaby Hoffmann (13, Field of Dreams) as you’ve never seen them before, in a take on the classic road trip movie… with a twist. Directed by Sebastian Silva (The Maid, Magic Magic) in his signature maverick style, Crystal Fairy reminds us of what we can discover about ourselves when we stop looking. Described as ‘culminating in a profound audience experience’ (-Sundance Guide, 2013), Crystal Fairy features music from

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, Basement Jaxx and Manu Chao. Jamie (Michael Cera) is a boorish, insensitive college student travelling in Chile who leaves a path ofchaos wherever he goes. He and his friends are planning on taking a road trip north to experiencea legendary shamanistic hallucinogen called the San Pedro cactus. In a fit of drunkenness at a wild party, Jamie invites an eccentric woman – a radical spirit named Crystal Fairy (Hoffmann) – to comealong. What is meant to be a devil-may-care journey becomes a battle of wills as Jamie finds himself locking horns with his new travelling companion. But on a remote, pristine beach at the edge of the desert, the magic brew is finally imbibed, and the true adventure begins.

 

Crystal Fairy is available on DVD, Download and On-Demand from January 27 2014.