Monday 14th – Channel 4, 23:15
Once again we dive into the world of Televisual Wonderment, and the week is starting on a high with the brilliant Mr Eddie Izzard. His show Dressed to Kill is a fantastic piece of stand up and even though it’s 12 years since it was recorded in San Francisco, its still holds up against (and in my opinion is still better than) most of the comedy shows today. So sit back and marvel in the seemingly unplanned unrehearsed ramblings about history, space, movies, Italians saying Ciao and his famous Cake or Death routine.
Tuesday 15th – Sky Movies Premier, 23:40
Korea’s movie industry isn’t that well known over here, even with this sad fact, they’re still responsible for some of my favourite films, from the famous like OldBoy to the lesser known, but often recommended by me, I’m A Cyborg, But that’s OK. Their new big movie to hit our shores is The Good, The Bad, The Weird, a funny, action packed Western that spends the majority of its time either in elaborate mass gunfights or marathon length horse chases. The Good, The Bad, The Weird thankfully retains the casts original voices and hasn’t been confined to the dire pile of dubbed movies, however having said this, the subtitles aren’t great and for the likes of me (who sometimes forgets to put his glasses on) it was occasionally hard to read as the words bled into the pale desert landscapes. But even with this it’s still a brilliant movie that you should stay up late for.
Wednesday 16th – Discovery, 18:00
As those who’ve read my articles know, I love movies, even with all their unbelievable acts. I occasionally find myself, while watching an explosion filled, bullet dodging actioner if it is really possible to jump of a high cliff into freezing water and survive, or drive a car through a fire without melting the tyres, and when these questions arise…enter the Mythbusters. Mythbusters is all about two wannabe mad scientists, Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, proving or disproving scientific myth and rumour. In this weeks double bill the guys turn their attention to the gory myth of body splitting via a snapped High Tension Cable and in the second episode they study the film Wanted in an attempt to re-create the bullet curving technique. With additional experiments and theorem smashing by the henchmen of the team Grant Imahara (electronics/robotics), Tory Bellici (builder) and Kari Byron (nerd pin up girl) Mythbusters is as humorous as it is fact filled. Loadsa fun to watch.
Thursday 17th – BBC 4, 21:00
Comedy can be a great way to change people’s outlook or highlight political issues in a way that appeals to the masses. Starting in the 60’s an nearly taking over in the 80’s political satire has always been a major comedy genre and in Frost on Satire we see it’s beginnings with programmes like ‘That Was the Week that Was’, interviews with comedians from both the UK and the US about the power of satire and clips showing the greatest satirical TV moments from the last 50 years. Expect some outstanding comedy most likely including the likes of the Cleese, Barker and Corbett sketch ‘Class’ and Ben Elton when he was great!
Friday 18th – ITV1, 18:30
Sorry to all those who are sick of all the red crosses all over the place, who only visit a select few pubs and already hate and despise vuvuzelas with a vengeance but once again England are taking to a South African pitch, this time to play Algeria in the World Cup Live, and so say the annoying football shirt clad loud braying majority (of which I am one) C’MON ENGLAAAANNNND!
Saturday 19th – ITV2, 12:00
After growing up in the 80’s I have many fond memories, some of the most prominent are ones of me and my friends riding our bikes, all pretending to have a little brown wrinkly alien joining us on our adventures. Yes of course, I’m talking about E.T The Extra Terrestrial. If your old enough to remember watching it, then reminisce back to more innocent times while watching a bunch of kids outwit highly trained agents on their BMX’s and if your too young or haven’t seen it….I feel sorry for you, make sure you catch this masterpiece of cinematic storytelling, I just really really hope it isn’t the re-mastered version and those agents are still carrying guns!
Sunday 20th – BBC4, 21:00
I am saddened, the weather is promising a glorious summer, and I am attending no festivals. Glastonbury, Download, Isle of Wight, Reading….all denied to me this year, so I’ll have to be contented with highlights on the telly-box. Celebrating the 40th anniversary of Glastonbury this year, Glastonbury at 40 will be sharing the history of the UK’s most famous festival. Narrated by Mark Radcliff, we will be treated to archive footage ranging from muddy hippies to the clean trainer’d Jay-Z and music from a plethora of bands who have played there over the years.
