The
recent Netflix
House of Cards series starring Kevin Spacey was a remake of a very popular British political thriller of the same name that aired during the 90's. The show
begins by tracking the dark political machinations and skullduggery of an urbane Chief Whip of the Conservative Party, who is conspiring to become Prime Minister after Margaret Thatcher's resignation.
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posted by zarq
on Jun 11, 2013 -
91 comments
Hammer House of Horror was a 1980 British anthology television series produced by the eponymous film studio. It was followed by
Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense and there were a couple of other notable, similar themed, series around at the time,
Beasts and
West Country Tales. They might now seem a little crude and simplistic, but they employed an interesting array of writers, directors and actors and the best can still raise a definite chill
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posted by fearfulsymmetry
on Oct 31, 2012 -
8 comments
The Victorian Kitchen Garden is a 13-part TV series that aired in 1987 on BBC2. It follows the month-by-month restoration of the Victorian walled kitchen garden at the Chilton Foliat estate in Wiltshire, England.
Almost all the episodes are available to watch online.
(via hark, a vagrant) It had three sequels -
The Victorian Kitchen,
The Victorian Flower Garden, and
The Wartime Kitchen and Garden - and inspired more recent historical reconstruction programs:
Tales From the Green Valley,
A Tudor Feast at Christmas,
Victorian Farm,
Victorian Farm Christmas,
Victorian Pharmacy, and
Edwardian Farm.
(Victorian Farm and Edwardian Farm previously.) [more inside]
posted by flex
on Feb 26, 2012 -
29 comments
"You're going nowhere, son. Just you, me ad the walls. So wipe that bloody grin off before it's shot off, and don't slouch. You toe rag. You bin
. Pay attention when I break you. And break you I will, boy. You're in my manor, now." Buck up! It's Terry Finch's
THE REPRISALIZER! Follow
Bob Shuter, whose mission of reprisal against his brother's killers, their families, associates, progeny and property takes him across the desolate wasteland of 70s Britain, primarily Kent AKA
FINCHLAND. Finch, writer of The Reprisalizer and
DRAW!, the cowboy whose name means death, is soon to be the subject of
a major motion picture from Matthew Holness, creator of
Garth Marenghi's Darkplace.
posted by Artw
on Dec 13, 2011 -
15 comments
Years after its final broadcast, the award-winning, pond-hopping, cult comedy hit
Whose Line is it Anyway? is returning to television! Sort of! Tonight in just a few minutes,
Drew Carey's Improv-A-Ganza (
promo,
sample segment) makes its debut on GSN, reuniting Carey with popular "Whosers" Ryan Stiles, Colin Mochrie, Greg Proops, Brad Sherwood, Wayne Brady, and
many more. Though the show will air every weekday, you don't have to wait around for new episodes to get your improv fix -- in spite of the lack of DVD box sets, there's a veritable treasure trove of past content available free from multiple online sources, including
the complete run of the American Whose Line on both YouTube and
fansite WatchWLIIA along with
every episode of the original UK run from Channel4's official YouTube channel and
their streaming video site 4oD. Too much content? Look inside for selections of the show's most hilarious moments as sampled from
the show's burgeoning TVTropes entry. See also:
Fan guide -
American episode guide (
UK version) -
List of game types [more inside]
posted by Rhaomi
on Apr 11, 2011 -
49 comments
Broadcast on Halloween night 1992
Ghostwatch - a live investigation into a haunted house - was one of the most controversial and terrifying programs the BBC has ever shown.
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posted by fearfulsymmetry
on Oct 31, 2010 -
36 comments
Back in the 80s when
Doctor Who was mired in a creative and ratings slump, the programme's creator Sydney Newman was asked how to revive it. His
answer - regenerate the Doctor as a woman.
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posted by fearfulsymmetry
on Oct 12, 2010 -
102 comments
"Working in art film or commercial cinema is like dancing through a mine field, and every broadcaster is now racing down market in a desperate attempt to survive. But what is happening at the BBC is the real scandal: it is bigger than all the rest combined, it is free from direct commercial pressure and its public service obligations carry cultural responsibilities. There are no excuses." Veteran producer
Tony Garnett, has launched a
blistering attack on the current process of drama commissioning at the BBC
posted by fearfulsymmetry
on Jul 15, 2009 -
17 comments
In Bed With Chris Needham (
1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7)
A BBC video-diary documentary from 1991 depicting the trails and tribulations of a teenage metal fan as he tries to knock his band, Manslaughter, into shape for its first gig, with many digressions into his philosophy of life along the way. Some NSFW swearing.
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posted by fearfulsymmetry
on Jun 8, 2008 -
12 comments
