Recommended Television Programmes

[LMcD]

On the recommendation of a family member I streamed Ep 1 of Ripley yesterday eve & found it glacially slow -- my ennui amplified by the self-conscious art(y)ficiality of the B&W photography and my inability to care about any of the characters, except possibly the ancient hotelier. I don't watch Netflix much now, and am considering cancelling since in June the basic ad-free subscription will be hiked from £7.99 pcm to £10.99 - an eye-watering 37.5% increase !

There are - at least for now - very few ads if you go for the £4.99 a month option.

[eighthobstruction]

'Dopesick' (BBC2 and iPlayer) is an 8-part dramatization of Beth Macy's book about the opioid scandal in the USA, dealing specifically with OxyContin, the Sackler family and the actions of various governmental and non-governmental bodies. I'm gripped (I've tried to avoid using certain other words!) after Episode 1. Admirers of the recently screened 'The Dropout' and Michael Keaton, and anybody else looking for a well-crafted drama on an important topic, might well find it worthwhile giving this series a try.
(There's also a Netflix series about OxyContin, called 'Painkiller', which I haven't seen, but which seems to be regarded as a far less satisfactory treatment of the subject).

....very good (initially confusing and fast, but settles down quickly....whizzes around abit ref timescale /cronology....great to see Michael Keaton playing straight....in the light of many things happening in US, thought provoking (after reading bits about it in media over the years
ref urban culture decaying because of fentanol)....yes gripped....

[Maclintick]

There are - at least for now - very few ads if you go for the £4.99 a month option.

Thanks LMcD. That's worth knowing. The ad-free Netflix hike now makes it more expensive than Apple TV+, which I might investigate for the free week in order to sample Slow Horses -- with lowered expectation levels as it's another recommendation from the same family member. One free channel I value, though one has to put up with dismal ads for Texan automobile franchises and suchlike, is TUBI TV, which allows me to wallow nostalgically in British 60s series The Prisoner, The Saint et al, all beautifully restored. Classic Brit TV is popular in the US, as I understand it.

[Serial_Apologist]

Thanks LMcD. That's worth knowing. The ad-free Netflix hike now makes it more expensive than Apple TV+, which I might investigate for the free week in order to sample Slow Horses -- with lowered expectation levels as it's another recommendation from the same family member. One free channel I value, though one has to put up with dismal ads for Texan automobile franchises and suchlike, is TUBI TV, which allows me to wallow nostalgically in British 60s series The Prisoner, The Saint et al, all beautifully restored. Classic Brit TV is popular in the US, as I understand it.

Similar retro stuff to what Talking Pictures TV transmits, then.

[LMcD]

Similar retro stuff to what Talking Pictures TV transmits, then.

It seems to me that TV series, as against movies, now account for an increasing share of TPTV's schedules - not that I'm complaining, as I'm currently enjoying 'Budgie'!

[Maclintick]

Similar retro stuff to what Talking Pictures TV transmits, then.

Not really -- TUBI has a different mixture of ancient & relatively modern, and is a free streaming service rather than a TV channel. American content predominates, of course, but films I've watched recently include -- 49th Parallel, Jackie Brown, the 1967 Thomas Crown Affair, Modern Times, The Lighthouse, Capricorn One, & the infamous Pete-&-Dud 1978 version of the Hound of the Baskervilles. So, a pretty eclectic mix, much of which is available elsewhere, but not necessarily as freebies.

[Roger Webb]

Today (Sunday) 19.00 BBC 4. Michael Palin goes to the Med in search the view in one of his Scottish Colourist paintings. Followed at 19.30 by a programme examining the history of this fascinating group of artists.

[vinteuil]

Today (Sunday) 19.00 BBC 4. Michael Palin goes to the Med in search the view in one of his Scottish Colourist paintings. Followed at 19.30 by a programme examining the history of this fascinating group of artists.

... and (for some of us) perhaps of equal or even greater interest - today Sunday 21:00 BBC4 - Michael Palin on Vilhelm Hammershøi, from 2005

"In 2005, Hammershøi's life and oeuvre was featured in a BBC television documentary, Michael Palin and the Mystery of Hammershoi, with the British comedian and writer Michael Palin. In the programme, Palin, fascinated by Hammershøi, whose pictures he conceived as having a distinct enigmatic coolness and distance about them, sets out to unlock the mysteries and find out about the background of Hammershøi. Palin, wanting to know of his inspirations and the reason for these mystical pictures, started his search in the Hayward Gallery in London, goes to Amsterdam and finally to Copenhagen."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vilhelm_Hammersh%C3%B8i

,

[Roger Webb]

... and (for some of us) perhaps of equal or even greater interest - today Sunday 21:00 BBC4 - Michael Palin on Vilhelm Hammershøi, from 2005

"In 2005, Hammershøi's life and oeuvre was featured in a BBC television documentary, Michael Palin and the Mystery of Hammershoi, with the British comedian and writer Michael Palin. In the programme, Palin, fascinated by Hammershøi, whose pictures he conceived as having a distinct enigmatic coolness and distance about them, sets out to unlock the mysteries and find out about the background of Hammershøi. Palin, wanting to know of his inspirations and the reason for these mystical pictures, started his search in the Hayward Gallery in London, goes to Amsterdam and finally to Copenhagen."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vilhelm_Hammersh%C3%B8i

,

Thanks for that Vinteuil, I hadn't seen it.....my examination of the TV schedules rarely extends beyond 9.00 and after spotting the first two I was inclined to think that BBC 4 had done me proud, and it would seem greedy to expect any more largesse!

[LMcD]

Thanks for that Vinteuil, I hadn't seen it.....my examination of the TV schedules rarely extends beyond 9.00 and after spotting the first two I was inclined to think that BBC 4 had done me proud, and it would seem greedy to expect any more largesse!

I enjoyed John Wilson's interview with Michael Palin even though the latter was born in the same year as me but looks at least 15 years younger!
Alan Bennett is occupying the second part of the evening on BBC4, and I've set my TV to record his discussion with Nicholas Hytner.

[Nick Armstrong]

Alan Bennett is occupying the second part of the evening on BBC4, and I've set my TV to record his discussion with Nicholas Hytner.

Caught the interview the other evening, so am looking forward to seeing Sunset Across The Bay (recorded earlier this evening), about which AB had some interesting things to say

[oddoneout]

Last night's episode of The Piano was very heavily weighted to the backstory angle - at the risk of sounding snobby I found the music side not very inspiring, modern ballad emote type vocal stuff not being my thing, but the Kenyan lad chosen at the end - Teddy - was interesting, a story of how determination and a dollop of serendipity(music teacher in the right place at the right time) can win through.
I hadn't noticed that a documentary about the previous winner, Lucy, followed this week's episode until it came up at the end, but I'm glad I caught it. A number of important points were covered, quite apart from the human interest aspect of the relationship between teacher and pupil and how it got them to The Piano. The bombshell at the end of the programme about the appearance at Windsor Castle was quite something - I had read about it but to see it played out in the documentary was even more shocking.

[Roger Webb]

A live Beethoven Ninth for the anniversary......,and with four conductors for the price of one!

https://www.arte.tv/en/videos/119591-001-A/beethoven-symphony-no-9/

Note the odd start time (there's a helpful 'count-down' clock) I make it 20.39....was this the time Beethoven raised his baton in 1824?

[Nick Armstrong]

The 1987 serialisation of Le Carré’s A Perfect Spy surfaces this evening on BBCFour (preceded by a short retrospective by Peter Egan who played ‘Magnus Pym’) - Dame Peggy & all

As far as I know, this hasn’t appeared on You Tube (as some series of a similar vintage have) - looking forward to watching it (concluding 4 episodes next Wednesday night)

.

PS I just noticed that all 7 episodes are currently available on iPlayer

.

[LMcD]

The 1987 serialisation of Le Carré’s A Perfect Spy surfaces this evening on BBCFour (preceded by a short retrospective by Peter Egan who played ‘Magnus Pym’) - Dame Peggy & all

As far as I know, this hasn’t appeared on You Tube (as some series of a similar vintage have) - looking forward to watching it (concluding 4 episodes next Wednesday night)

.

PS I just noticed that all 7 episodes are currently available on iPlayer

.

I think this is normal practice for these 'Wednesday Night Treasures'
Peter Egan said he thought that BBC drama production values were at their highest in the mid- to late 1980s, and I think that goes for British TV drama in general. This was the decade that brought us The Jewel In The Crown, The Singing Detective and Inspector Morse, to cite just a few examples..