Who’s hosting Comic Relief

David Tennant will be hosting the first hour of Comic Relief Night it’s been revealed today. Read more

New Charlie Brooker TV review show

Charlie Brooker will be recording a new TV review show on Friday, 30 January. Read more

Red again

UKTV has released more details about Red Dwarf’s upcoming return. Read more

Most-watched shows of the 80s

A slight return to OTT’s chart of the decade.
Read more

New beat for The Bill

ITV has announced its twice-weekly cop show is to drop to one episode and get a new slot. Read more

“To the North…”

“…Where we do what we want”.

It’s hard to remember the last time C4 put so much weight behind one of its dramas. Red Riding, adapted from the novels of David Peace, tells the story of policing in Yorkshire through the 1970s and early ’80s. The trilogy was unveiled to the press tonight via a lowkey press launch in Shoreditch, East London.

C4′s Head of Drama, Liza Marshall, unveiled a selection of clips from each episode (which are set in 1974, 1980 and 1983 respectively), commenting that a production like this is  reason enough the channel should be helped out of its current financial crisis. Read more

President Obama: The Inauguration

This was not the star-spangled clamour it ought to have been.

Read more

OTT’s chart of the decade

It’s time to update our list of the most-watched telly since 2000.
Read more

Tony Hart, RIP

The month continues to take many TV greats. This morning it was announced Tony Hart had passed away peacefully in his sleep at the age of 83.

A television pioneer, it’s worth remembering how far back his association with the media goes. His first role was as artist in residence on Saturday Special in 1952. Last year, he told the Times how he got the job… Read more

Patrick McGoohan, RIP

A man rows with someone very important-looking and storms out of an imposing building, but before he can even get home, unseen hands are setting the wheels in motion for his unplanned ‘retirement’. Easily summarised in one sentence, but perhaps the single most powerful and compelling sequence in television history, and capable of striking a chord with almost anyone anywhere in the world.

There’s no question that The Prisoner has overshadowed the rest of Patrick McGoohan’s long list of television credits (not to mention his extensive film work) – from, notably, his multi-award winning episodes of Columboto, somewhat less notably, interminable daytime drama serial Rafferty – and it will dominate this tribute too. Read more

Hustle

“What do we need in a mark?” asks Mickey, rhetorically. “Greed.” Read more

Indies competition now closed

Our competition to win Ian Potter’s impressive book: The Rise and Rise of the Independents: A Television History (read more about it here) is now closed.

Thanks to everyone who entered. Our winners are:

Anthony Babajee, David McNay and Stuart Adair.

They all got it right, but how did you get on with our question?

It was… What connects BBC1′s Satan-baiting drama Apparitions with C4′s Chester-set soap, Hollyoaks?

The answer is, both shows are Lime Pictures productions. The clue was in the question…

Countdown

Letters, prey?

Read more

Trisha – axed

As you may have spotted from our news feed – Five has axed Trisha. Read more

Countdown

Countdown returns on Monday, C4, with its all-new presenting team – Jeff Stelling (“Stelling is the name -  six consonants, two vowels”) at the desk, and the very smiley Rachel Riley wrangling the letters and numbers.

We’ll have a full review from our Countdown correspondent Ian Jones, but – briefly – how’s the relaunched show looking? Read more

So good?

Five has announced who’s singing the new Minder theme tune. Read more

Completing the circle

A blog post of interest to few follows… Read more

Sponsored by TIKLAS Anoraks

ITV4′s one good programme is back! Read more

Matt Smith is the new Doctor Who!

Matt Smith has been announced as the 11th Doctor.

The Party Animals and Ruby in the Smoke star (set to appear in upcoming BBC2 crime drama Moses Jones) was an outside chance with all pundits, until earlier today, when his name suddenly propelled itself through the ranks of potential Time Lords. 

So how did Doctor Who Confidential announce the casting? Slowly… Read more

New Doctor Who to be announced tomorrow

Not much more to add about this story on the BBC site… Read more

Next Page »