BCG Daily Wednesday 21st February 2018
Press clippings
Mum review - cliched take on the reality of being a mum
Lesley Manville suffuses her character with warmth and melancholy, but there is more to motherhood than 'keep calm and carry on ironing'.
Chitra Ramaswamy, The Guardian, 21st February 2018TV Review, Mum (BBC2)
Lesley Manville returns in family comedy gem.
Sean O'Grady, The Independent, 21st February 2018John Bishop's Winging It at the London Palladium review
This was a brilliant show of the highest quality and it was a real pleasure to watch John Bishop in his element on stage.
Tiemo Talk of the Town, 21st February 2018Why are comedians so sad? You asked Google
Every day millions of people ask Google life's most difficult questions. Our writers answer some of the commonest queries.
Adam Riches, The Guardian, 21st February 2018Mum, BBC Two, series 2 review
Lesley Manville is a discreet delight.
Jasper Rees, The Arts Desk, 21st February 2018Left stony-faced by Cleese? Try bittersweet gem Mum
We all laugh at different things. Opinions were sharply divided, in my home and probably millions of others, over John Cleese's new sitcom Hold The Sunset last Sunday -- blissfully traditional, or wheezingly out-dated, depending on your taste. Mum (BBC2) tackles identical subject matter: the recently widowed woman, not yet ready for her bath chair, whose hopes of new romance with an old friend are constantly obstructed by her selfish son and the rest of her feckless family.
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail, 21st February 2018I tak to: Isy Suttie
Here's what Isy had to say about working with Jo Brand, her character's backstory and why a good atmosphere on set makes all the difference.
Elliot Gonzalez, I Talk Telly, 21st February 2018Derry Girls is the biggest series in Northern Ireland
Derry Girls has consolidated (taking account of time-shifted viewing on a television over a seven day period) to become the biggest series ever in Northern Ireland, since modern records began in 2002.
Channel 4, 21st February 2018Review: Rita, Sue and Bob Too
Before it was a film, Rita, Sue And Bob Too was the second play of Andrea Dunbar who grew up on the Buttershaw Estate and was dead by 29.
It was a thoroughly good thing that the Royal Court reversed the decision to cancel this revival in the wake of current events. The play is far more sympathetic to the female characters than the film and far less of a Carry On-style comedy.
Seth Ewin, British Theatre Guide, 21st February 2018'Stylish, colourful comedy': The Belle's Stratagem
Vivacity, wit and downright stupidity abound in The Belle's Stratagem at the Lyceum, a production of verve and cheek that produces as much laughter as anything seen on the Edinburgh stage in recent years.
Hugh Simpson, My Theatre Mates, 21st February 2018TV preview: Hold The Sunset, Sunday, BBC One, Episode 2
It's a soft, gentle predictable script given half a kiss of life by a 24 carat cast. Of course there are better things on TV. And better things to do on a Sunday evening at 7.30pm. But I'm sure there are some people out there who like it. Though if they aren't the over-fifties who tweeted me saying it was shite I do wonder who they were.
Bruce Dessau, Beyond The Joke, 21st February 2018TV/Online review: This Country, BBC Three
The comedy here is very much in the margins. In a look or an aside.
Bruce Dessau, Beyond The Joke, 21st February 2018Thanks to 'silver sitcom', TV's youth obsession may end
Who says comedy is a young person's game?
Michael Hogan, The Telegraph, 21st February 2018Fringe chief: risks becoming unaffordable to artists
Edinburgh Festival Fringe chief executive Shona McCarthy has warned that the annual arts festival could risk becoming unaffordable if costs continue to rise, in a speech in which she argued against "disinvesting in success".
Thom Dibdin, The Stage, 21st February 2018Louise Reay, her husband & destructiveness of publicity
Last Friday, I blogged about Louise Reay being sued by her estranged husband over an Edinburgh show which, let's face it - Louise is good, but - only a small number of people had ever seen. On Saturday, the Chortle comedy website picked up the story. On Monday, the Guardian newspaper was reporting it. On Tuesday morning, it was on Channel 5. By Tuesday teatime, it was on the BBC World Service. By this morning - Wednesday - on a very superficial search (excluding blogs and social media mentions) these outlets (listed alphabetically) had reported the story.
John Fleming, John Fleming's Blog, 21st February 2018A wrinklies' romcom
It's mad, but not bad: one of those intrepidly schmaltzy fluff operas the British sometimes do well.
Nigel Andrews, The Financial Times, 21st February 2018Dammit, we wish Rose Matafeo was our best friend
Universal touchstones make Sassy Best Friend the hit it is; a jealous rant on the length of other girls' periods brings the house down. And then there's the Michael Jackson segue...
Dammit, we wish Rose Matafeo was our best friend. We'd never stop laughing.
Will Noble, Londonist, 21st February 2018Rose Matafeo review
Universal touchstones make Sassy Best Friend the hit it is; a jealous rant on the length of other girls' periods brings the house down. And then there's the Michael Jackson segue...
Will Noble, Londonist, 21st February 2018Videos
Podcasts
TV & radio
4 O'Clock Club
Series 7, Episode 5 - Mr GarlandOwen loves wearing his granddad's coat - until his look means he's mistaken for a teacher. And Amber and Violet try to avoid the list of stupid celebrations for Darnesh's birthday.
Dennis & Gnasher Unleashed!
Series 1, Episode 26 - The Whole ToothWhen Gnasher gnashes Walter's portrait, he gets revenge with a titanium sausage that leaves Gnasher toothless and miserable. Dennis and the gang decide to stage a heist to 'borrow' some diamonds until Gnasher's teeth grow back!
Bridget Christie's Utopia
Episode 3 - The CountrysideBridget explores the countryside to see if that will make her happier.
Damned
Series 2, Episode 2Al gets a surprise visit from Sean, a boy with a transitioning parent and a troubled past.
Bliss
Episode 2Andrew takes steps to undermine Kim's self-confidence when her campaign to improve the state of local roads gathers momentum and threatens to upset the delicate balance of his carefully constructed double life.
Domestic Science
Series 2, Episode 1Maths, science and comedy with Festival of the Spoken Nerd trio mathematician Matt Parker, physicist Steve Mould and physicist-musician Helen Arney, who look at domestic phenomena that people relate to on a day-to-day basis.
Niki & Sammy's Peachy Podcast
Episode 1Welcome to the Niki and Sammy Peachy Podcast! We're obsessed with k-pop, dogs, peanut butter, chocolate and small animals. Join us as we chat conspiracies, celebs and peaches.