The X Factor finale 2009 - part 2

Olly Murs for Simon Cowell
Vs
Joe McElderry for Cheryl Cole.

I really hope Joe wins...

Kicking things off with all 12 finalist acts miming to Never Forget. Did I hear someone say pointless?

Round One (or Four?) - Personal favourites of previous performances.

1. Olly - "Twist & Shout"
A surprisingly good job, much better than last time.

2. Joe - "Don't Stop Believin'"
The most personality he's ever put into a song, and a great song and that. Perfect vocals.

Next up, Alexandra, JLS and Leona, the true X Factor success stories.

Round Two (or Five) - The winner's song - "The Climb".
So the rumours were true.

3. Olly.
The boy done quite good with such a big song. Far from flawless though. Unfair in a way that they have to sing the same song, this is so clearly picked for Joe.

4. Joe.
Left me surprisingly cold. Didn't put in the emotion that Olly did, but you can't fault that voice.

Next up... Macca!?!?! F*** that, where's Madonna?

And the winner is...

JOE! Hurrah!

See you back here next year. All none of you.

The X Factor - The Final 2009 - part 1

Apparently we lose one of the three tonight. I'm hoping it's Olly, given I had a dream this week that he won. I want Joe to win. We'll find out below...

Round one: Audition songs

1. Stacey Solomon for Dannii.
"What a Wonderful World"
Very nice, lacking her trademark bum notes. Well, except the wobbly last one. Good for you, Stace.

2. Olly Murs for Simon.
"Superstition"
What a time to get back on form! Excellent.

3. Joe McElderry for Cheryl.
"Dance With My Father"
Not as good as he usually is, despite the standing ovation- but that's not much of a criticism, still the best vocals tonight.

Round Two: Duets

4. Stacey for Dannii.
"Feeling Good" with Michael Buble.
The sing-off brought out the best in Stacey for sure. Another great performance from Stacey tonight.

5. Olly for Simon.
"Angels" with Robbie Williams.
Eek. Dodgy Olly's back. At least Robbie f***ed up too! Fireworks! Simon Cowell's act by any chance?

6. Joe for Cheryl.
"Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" with George Michael.
A different class. Shame Joe didn't harmonise more on the verses, as George did with Elton. But what a minor niggle after that performance!

Round Three: Series highlights

7. Stacey for Dannii.
"Who Wants to Live Forever"
The odd bum notes are back, but overall very good. 2 out of 3 ain't bad.

8. Olly for Simon.
"A Fool in Love"
Performance Olly is back, vocals better again. As with Stacey, 2 out of 3 ain't bad (though Stacey's were better).

9. Joe for Cheryl.
"Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word"
Great choice. The only hat-trick of the night. JOE TO WIN!

And leaving the competition tonight is...
Stacey! Shocker!

The X Factor - Semi Final 2009

1. Olly for Simon.
"Can You Feel It"
What has happened to Olly's vocals? He started off as Will Young and had turned into Lloyd. Well, not quite. Glad they've finally sorted out his hair.

2. Joe for Cheryl.
"She's Out of My Life"
Like that they kept it simple. Just him and his voice. Excellent.

3. Stacey for Dannii.
"The Way You Make Me Feel"
Nice arrangement, but the vocals were disappointing, despite a good start. Not a great physical performance either.

4. Danyl for Simon.
"Man in the Mirror"
Seriously bad start in the lower range, then nasal climax. No change there then. That said, easily the best performance so far- if not the best vocals. Louis is such a fucking prick.

5. Olly for Simon.
"We Can Work It Out"
Firstly, it's a Beatles song, Simon, and Olly did the Stevie Wonder version. A song that's not that well known? What is Louis on? Better than Olly's first song, definitely.

6. Joe for Cheryl.
"Open Arms"
Joe nails Journey again. A song no-one knows, Simon? It was top 5 for Mariah. Great vocals again from Joe, though he does lack stage presence. Still my winner though.

7. Stacey for Dannii.
"Somewhere"
A big song, and she handled it well. Definitely makes up for her first song. Excellent- best of the night for me.

8. Danyl for Simon.
"I Have Nothing"
He is NOT the best singer left in the competition, Simon, and we're down to four. Listen to that first verse- bloody awful. I love this song, and this version did absolutely nothing for me.

Final three: Joe and Stacey for sure, not sure which of Simon's should stay. Would have said Olly a few weeks ago, but he's slipped so far, I'm starting to think Danyl deserves it more. But Simon needs to know Danyl is not as good as he thinks he is.

The X Factor - live show 8 - Take That & Elton John week

1. Danyl for Simon.
"Relight My Fire"
His first up-tempo number, and the vocals were dreadful. Don't know what Simon is hearing each week. But I can see why he's been sticking to ballads now.

2. Lloyd for Cheryl.
"A Million Love Songs"
Shouldn't be here and proved it again. Enough already. That said, possibly his best performance... Better than Danyl just did.

3. Olly for Simon.
"Love Ain't Here Anymore"
After the bottom two last week, Olly needed to pull his socks up, and he certainly gave his best vocals for three weeks. But he's only proving to me he shouldn't win. What is Simon watching, again? Emoted the song well? Cheesy grins and winks to girls in the audience don't go with these lyrics.

4. Joe for Cheryl.
"Could It Be Magic"
It could and it was. Perfect, yet again. Argh Louis just stole my line. Oh no.

5. Stacey for Dannii.
"Rule The World"
Well, someone had to do it, especially as they missed it on movie week. Fair play, she handled the low notes as well as the high ones. Are you paying attention, Danyl? Very good. Suck on that, Louis.

6. Lloyd for Cheryl.
"I'm Still Standing"
Not for much longer, please. Make it stop. Please make it stop.

7. Danyl for Simon.
"Your Song"
Back to the ballads, back to the tongue, back to the flat low notes, back to the big high notes. One. Trick. Pony. Yawn.

8. Olly for Simon.
"Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting"
Olly does "butch" apparently. Whatever, but he's back in the game, at last. Very good.

9. Joe for Cheryl.
"Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word"
Getting bored of writing "perfect" so many times, but can't phrase it any more accurately. The most mature and emotional performance comes from one of the youngest contestants.

10. Stacey for Cheryl.
"Something About The Way You Look Tonight"
Interesting arrangement, and it worked for her. Liked her performance enough to forgive her trademark bum notes. 2nd best artist tonight.

Lloyd and Danyl in the bottom two please. Joe and Stacey MUST be in the final.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Dexter

Finally, I have started watching Dexter. It's a show that's always interested me- I loved Michael C Hall as David in the sublime Six Feet Under, and Dexter's high-concept premise is intriguing. A secret serial killer works with the police, killing killers along the way.
A bout of illness has provided me with ample time to sit in front of the tv, catching up on all the shows I watch, as well as starting on others I've been hoping to watch. With four seasons to catch up on, I finally took the plunge on Dexter. And wow, was it worth it.
I watched all of season one within 24 hours. A great mix of characters and dynamics, a well thought-out back story and a compelling, unpredictable main plot with plenty of twists and turns- some you may guess, some you won't.
The plot line of the Ice Truck Killer's connections to Dexter was one that played out plausibly, the end result proving hugely satisfying, particularly Dexter's final dilemma.
Obviously I had no idea which characters would make it into future seasons, and it was a good sign when I found myself worrying about the likes of Debra and Angel.
After a short break to catch up on some other shows, I'm back into the show and onto season two, loving that the story arc is the hunt for The Bay Harbor Butcher- Dexter himself.
I'm now halfway through, about to start episode 7 (of 12) and there is one theory I'm interested to put out there- is Harry Dexter's actual father?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The X Factor - live show 7 - George Michael week

1. Lloyd for Cheryl.
"Faith"
Shite as always. How on Earth did he get this far? Surely his last week?

2. Stacey for Dannii.
"I Can't Make You Love Me"
Shaky Stace is back. Some great moments, but some very bad ones too.

3. Jedward for Louis.
"I'm Your Man/Wham Rap"
The singing, the dancing, the coordination, the charisma... All absent, as always.

4. Danyl for Simon.
"Careless Whisper"
Interesting arrangement, a bit nasal, but nicely performed, mostly.

5. Olly for Simon.
"Fastlove"
Lacking his usual swagger, but better than last week. Just. Olly's not back in the competition yet.

6. Joe for Cheryl.
"Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me"
Head and shoulders, the best of the night. Go Joe!

Bottom two: Jedward and Lloyd please.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The X Factor - live show 6 - Queen week

1. Jamie for Simon (BOO!)
"Radio Ga Ga".
Almost-whelming yet again, I'll never understand what he's doing here. His vocals were drowned out, indicating even Simon must get how weak he is. That said, maybe his best performance yet.

2. Lloyd for Cheryl.
"Crazy Little Thing Called Love".
Was it my imagination or was he actually good this week?

3. Olly for Simon (BOO!)
"Don't Stop Me Now".
Shocking. Didn't know he was capable of such a bad vocal. He's in trouble tonight.

4. Joe for Cheryl.
"Somebody To Love".
He looked very uncomfortable on stage tonight. Poor song choice from Cheryl, despite the great second half.

5. Jedward for Louis (BOO!)
"Under Pressure/Ice Ice Baby".
The nightmare continues.

6. Stacey for Dannii.
"Who Wants To Live Forever".
She is turning more and more into Leona Lewis each week. Stunning, great choice Dannii. The best by a mile. Even if cunty just said the same thing.

7. Danyl for Simon (BOO!)
"We Are The Champions".
Struggling again. Don't know what the judges are hearing. Simon has no objectivity or self-awareness. Again with the tongue...

Simon's all deserve bottom 2 this week. I'm voting for Jedward.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The X Factor - live show 5 - movie week

1. Stacey for Dannii.
"Son of a Preacher Man" from "Pulp Fiction".
Oh dear. Dreadful performance. She's in trouble tonight.

2. Olly for Simon.
"Twist & Shout" from "Ferris Bueller's Day Off".
Very good, confident performance, great vocals. He's shaping up as one to beat.

3. Lloyd for Cheryl.
"Stand By Me" from "Stand By Me".
Overdoing the trills, which don't suit his voice (or anyone's for that matter). Quite liked the arrangement, shame about the vocals really. But I think he's safe.

4. Jamie for Simon.
"Crying" from "Gummo". (!?!?!)
Yikes. His worst yet. Awful.

5. Lucie for Cheryl.
"This Is Me" from "Camp Rock".
Don't know the song but it suited her well. Suck on that, Demi Lovato.

6. Danyl for Simon.
"Purple Rain" from "Purple Rain".
Haircut! Best he's done for weeks, though I've never got the appeal of this song. He should be safe again- this time he's actually earned it.

7. Jedward for Louis (BOO!)
"GhostBusters" from "GhostBusters".
What can anyone do or say? Shite.

8. Joe for Cheryl
"The Circle of Life" from "The Lion King".
Excellent, though the arrangement missed the point. This should have been awesome.

Bottom two: Lloyd and Jamie. Given Jedward are not being judged on talent.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The X Factor - live show 4 - Rock

1. Joe for Cheryl.
"Don't Stop Believing"
The best voice didn't quite kill it tonight, but it was a case of chalk and cheese, so the boy did well.

2. Lucie for Dannii.
"Sweet Child O' Mine"
The other great voice was a bit off this week, but she gave it her all and the judges were happy.

3. Danyl for Simon.
"Don't Wanna Miss A Thing"
The first verse of this was excruciating, he forgot the lyrics several times... I don't know what Simon's hearing- Dannii was spot on. However, that said, there is something about him I Iike- he doesn't deserve such public hatred.

4. Lloyd for Cheryl.
"I Kissed A Girl"
He can't sing a note, bless him. Dreadful. He doesn't deserve such public support, even if he is Welsh.

5. Stacey for Dannii.
"Somewhere Only We Know"
Nice arrangement. Vocals patchy as always, but some great bits.

6. Jamie for Simon.
"Rocks"
Still don't get what this guy's doing here. More sub-par copycat karaoke, but because it's Simon's act it's fine. But it's not. Far from the worst tonight, however, and easily his best performance to date.

7. Rachel for Dannii.
"One"
Surprisingly good. A few patchy bits, but her best performance so far.

8. Jon & Edward for Louis.
"We Will Rock You"
No you won't. By any definition.

9. Olly for Simon.
"Come Together"
Hate this song, but good performance.

My choice for bottom two - Lloyd and Danyl. Yes, both worse than the twins this week. Just.

-- Posted from my iPhone

The X Factor - Live show 3 - Big band week.

1. Olly Murs for Simon.
"Bewitched"
Nicely performed, nicely sang. Nothing spectacular, but he should be safe.

2. Lloyd Daniels for Cheryl.
"Fly Me To The Moon"
Totally out of his depth. Loved the backflip- "look at the dog, look at the dog", or South Park's Chewbacca defence.

3. Miss Frank for Louis.
"That's Life"
The rap actually didn't sound as out of place as it should have, but unfortunately some of the singing was. I just don't get these girls.

4. Rachel Adadeji for Dannii.
"Proud Mary"
A definite improvement, though I preferred the first half. I do hope she gets the public vote this week.

5. Jamie Archer for Simon.
"Angel In Harlem"
U2 is big band? Nothing above mediocre here, as always. I actually agree with Louis on this.

6. Stacey Solomon for Dannii.
"When You Wish Upon A Star"
Patchy vocals again, yet still elegant and likeable.

7. Danyl Johnson for Simon.
"Feeling Good"
The vocals were not great, but the peformance was. I'm starting to get sick of the sight of that tongue. Enough with the big notes already. Concentrate on the other ones for a change, they're not sounding good.

8. Joe McElderry for Cheryl.
"Sway"
Perfect vocals, as always. He doesn't quite have the performance side down, but gave it a good go. Still the favourite, surely.

9. Lucie Jones for Dannii.
"My Funny Valentine"
Sultry and sophisticated, note perfect- best of the night. She's back in the game! Glad Cheryl finally got it. Simon's a twat, he just doesn't get classy. This is Jordin Sparks's "I Who Have Nothing" all over again.

10. Jonathan & Edward for Louis.
"She Bangs"
Love that Buble critiqued their dancing. Nothing constructive could be said about the vocals, other than "stop". Louis brought out the tired Zig and Zag argument again. Yawn.

My selection for the bottom two:
Twins and Miss Frank. Lloyd and Jamie weren't great either.

The X Factor (series 6) - live show 2 - Diva week

No Louis this week, but can't say I'm missing him.

1. Lucie Jones for Dannii.
"How Will I Know"
Oops someone forgot the lyrics! Good covering though. Very disappointing performance. Patchy vocals, juvenile dancing... Only Cheryl seemed to notice but starting to get suspicious about her motives.

2. Olly Murs for Simon.
"Fool In Love"
Confident performance made up for the just-about adequate vocals. He's safe. Despite the seriously bad hair.

3. Miss Frank for Louis.
"All The Man That I Need"
Patchy, but some really good bits. Some really bad bits too. The solo bits just don't work.

4. Rachel Adadeji for Dannii.
"If I Were A Boy"
Not the most memorable performance, though the key change was pretty poor. Except for that, rather good.

5. Joe McElderry for Cheryl.
"Where Do Broken Hearts Go"
Perfect. And yet quite bland. Easily the best in the competition.

6. Danyl Johnson for Simon.
"I Didn't Know My Own Strength"
Bad song choice, Simon. No-one knows this song here and it's not great. Sorry but not one of the best tonight.

7. Lloyd Daniels for Cheryl.
"Bleeding Love"
How to make a great song sound tedious. Still, a pleasant surprise after last week's car crash. Instead of "taking responsibility", why didn't Cheryl say it sounded good? She obviously didn't think so.

8. Jonathan & Edward for Louis.
"Oops... I Did It Again"
They certainly did. Genuinely jaw-dropping. This show has lost its last shred of integrity.

9. Rikki Loney for Cheryl.
"Respect"
K. A. R. A. O. K. E.

10. Jamie Archer for Simon.
"Hurt"
Started brilliantly. Then went all Simon-Cowell-pleasing. At least we now know he CAN sing if he chooses to. Arrogant fucker though. It wasn't as good as he obviously thought it was.

11. Stacey Solomon for Dannii.
Patchy, but mostly good. I'm liking Stacey despite myself.

My selection for the bottom two:
Twins and Lloyd. Again.

Private Practice (season 3)

As a fan of Grey's Anatomy, I've had a mixed relationship with Private Practice. I really resented the fact that its pilot was used as an episode of Grey's, and found the characters extrememely irritating.

As the first season progressed, very little changed. I warmed to Pete and Violet, and have really liked Taye Diggs since movies "How Stella Got Her Groove Back" and "Go" over a decade ago, but still wasn't warming to the show.

However, the infamous writers' strike cut the first season short and I felt that I wanted to give the show a fair chance at redemption. And my patience was indeed rewarded. The second season catapulted the show into another league, and soon became better than its parent show (see my Grey's Anatomy blog for more details).

The finale of the second season was truly gripping, with a devastating cliffhanger. So now that all the shows are returning, this is the one I've been most anxious to see.

The X Factor (series 6) - live show 1

Turns out it's idols week, not just Robbie songs. So Kandy Rain's idols are Robert Palmer...? Okay...

1. Rachel Adadeji for Dannii.
"Let Me Entertain You"
Rave reviews, but left me wanting. Very heavy on the backing vocals.

2. Kandy Rain for Louis (boo!).
"Addicted to Love"
When singing in unison, they actually sounded pretty good. The first girl has a good voice. Harsh comments from the female judges, but they made a point. If you want to make people forget you were strippers, don't dress like strippers. If you're proud to be strippers, then just say so.

3. Olly Murs for Simon.
"She's The One"
A good job for such a medocre song, but what was up with the hair? Not as confident a performance as I'd expected, but it's early days and I think he's here for a while yet.

4. Rikki Loney for Cheryl.
"Back to Black"
Done in a jazzy style, Simon was right when he said it fell flat. Hope did a better job last year with that song and that says a LOT.

5. Stacey Solomon for Dannii.
"The Scientist"
Interesting to hear this sung by a woman. It certainly sounded unique, and in a good way, if not flawless.

6. Miss Frank for Louis (boo!).
"Who's Loving You"
Formed especially for the competition from three female rejects, this was a brave choice after Shaheen's amazing version on BGT and Jacko's memorial. Needless to say, they came up short by comparison. Bad job Louis, they're better than this. The judges liked it though. Loved Simon's bookends comment!

7. Jamie Archer for Simon.
"Get It On"
The afroman's voice just wasn't up to this. Having to resort to bellowing to get an audience's attention does not a good performance make. Again, the judges liked it. Go figure.

8. Lloyd Daniels for Cheryl.
"Cry Me A River"
The first of two Welsh hopes tonight. Oh dear. He won't see November. I don't know what the judges saw. Maybe I'm just in a bad mood. Louis obviously has a thing for blonds.

9. Lucie Jones for Dannii.
"Footprints in the Sand"
The one whose audition I saw in person, and easily the best vocalist in the competition. Love that she could sing it without having to belt it. Then belted it. Don't know what Simon heard. Actually agreed with Louis, even if our motivations were very different.

10. Jonathan & Edward for Louis (BOOOOOO!!!!).
"Rock DJ"
The Irish twins everyone's been talking about for all the wrong reasons, and boy did they live up (or down) to expectations. Bye, guys.

11. Joe McElderry for Cheryl.
"No Regrets"
Great song, an unexpected choice, and well performed. Very good vocals, definitely the strongest male voice.

12. Danyl Johnson for Simon.
"And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going"
The most memorable audition of the early shows, the guy with the eyes straight out of the drug driving advert ends the show. Odd choice of song to put it mildly, but he did a great job. Best of the night, what a note to end on. Literally. Was it my imagination or did Dannii just out him?

My selection for the bottom two: Jon & Edward (obviously) and Lloyd.

Who was? Kandy Rain and Rachel.

Who left? Kandy Rain. Ridiculous.

Incidentally, on the live show, Robbie's performance was bloody awful, Alexandra's was good, but poorly mimed. Swizz.

Heroes

I'm a relative newcomer to Heroes, only getting into the series (from the start) this year. I had tried twice before to get into this show, but both times I had given up by episode 4.

The first problem I had was with how they chose to start the story. Volume 1 is called Origins, yet this is not what we get. We see characters testing their special powers, not discovering or obtaining them.

However, the biggest hurdle I faced was Ali Larter's character, Nikki. She would look in the mirror at a different version of herself nodding and smiling mysteriously, with no explanation as to what the hell was going on. I didn't feel intrigued to find out, I felt irritated at being forced to wait so long for an explanation so I could at least follow what I was watching.

Little was I to know it was only an episode or two away, so the third time I was determined to make it through at least the first season- and was eventually glad that I did. Great characters, nicely interwoven stories, fabulous special effects, and some interesting ideas.

Season 2 was unpopular with fans, but I was fine with it. It was the first half of season 3, aka Volume 3: Villains, where the show started to lose me.

The biggest problem this time was Arthur Petrelli. Nothing against Robert Forster, I love him in Jackie Brown. It was the way his character only served to undermine Angela, who by now was revealed as something of a secret puppet master. Suddenly she was relegated to the role of wife to the puppet master. Fortunately, he was killed off, and Sylar was allowed to step forward as the true villain of the show once more.

By the start of Volume 4, Fugitives, I was up-to-date and kept waiting week by week like everyone else. Step in podcasts 9th Wonder and 10th Wonder to keep me excited between episodes (and beyond). This coincided with a vast improvement in the show, as the cast was streamlined and the story was refocused, giving Angela her chance to finally tell her story.

So here we are at the shortened series 4, aka Volume 5: Redemption. Here's hoping they live up to the title, given the show has lost a lot of respect (not to mention viewership) after the first season became a phenomenon.

The X Factor

Now that the auditions and boot camp are over, and the live shows are about to start, this seems the perfect time to reflect on the situation so far.

Firstly, me. I'm a big fan of these shows. Popstars, Pop Idol, American Idol, Fame Academy, Britain/America's Got Talent, even World Idol. I watch every episode (with a few early exceptions) and buy the music. Last year, for the first time, I stopped watching. Why? Two words; Louis Walsh.

For me, the most talented vocalist was clearly Austin Drage. The first time he was in the bottom of the public vote, Louis voted out the competition, desperate to keep his only remaining act in. The very next week, Louis did the same thing to Laura, and there was a public outcry- it was even raised in Parliament. This was the last straw for me too, and the unthinkable happened. I stopped watching.

The only reason I saw the finale was because it was on while I helped my mother trim the Christmas tree. What a debacle it was. Eoghan Quigg was still there...? Alexandra's breakdown in front of Beyonce wasn't moving, it was embarrassing.

Fortunately, the very shrewd Mr Simon Cowell knew that the song of the moment was Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah. Thanks to Jason Castro's performance of this song on American Idol, the Jeff Buckley version had recently shot back up the American charts, and it was making appearences in auditions and performances here in the UK too. X Factor winner Alexandra Burke took her big ballad version all the way to the coveted Christmas #1, selling over 1 million copies, making it the most successful X Factor single ever. Even Jeff Buckley was propelled to the Christmas #2. Even writer Leonard Cohen himself went on to have his first ever UK top 40 hit as a performer with his own original version. And all because of The X Factor.

This year we have seen various songs re-enter the charts thanks to the show's auditions, and this is only set to continue as we move to the live shows. Tonight they sing Robbie Williams songs, as does the man himself, and Alexandra debuts her new single.

A couple of months ago, I was given the opportunity to see the auditions for myself, live in Cardiff. Amongst these was Lucie, now in the top 12 as part of Dannii's group of girls. And boy, is she good.

Dannii and Cheryl have both picked wisely for their categories, and Simon had the toughest decision, though I would have made different choices to him. He opted for the three most likely You Tube auditions rather than the three best singers. And as for Louis, he's plumbed deeper than even his own depths with the Irish twins. Surely (PLEASE!!!!) we lose them first tonight.

It's looking like a good year, with some great talent in at least 3 of the 4 categories. Let's just hope the useless judge doesn't fuck it all up again this year.

-- Posted from my iPhone

Forthcoming TV updates

Now I'm back from holidays and the big US TV season has started, not to mention The X Factor, there's a lot of TV I'll be watching, and have already
made a start. I'm not sure what form the blog will take from here, but hopefully I'll get around to blogging about them very soon. Watch this space!

TV shows most likely to be covered:

Bones (season 5)*
Brothers & Sisters (season 4)
Curb Your Enthusiasm (season 7)*
Desperate Housewives (season 6)*
Dollhouse (season 2)
Flash Forward (season 1)*
Gary Unmarried (season 2)*
Ghost Whisperer (season 5)
Grey's Anatomy (season 6)*
Heroes (season 4)
Home Time (series 1)*
House (season 6)*
How I Met Your Mother (season 5)*
How Not To Live Your Life (series 2)*
Hung (season 1)*
Medium (season 6)
Modern Family (season 1)*
Private Practice (season 3)
Smallville (season 9)*
So You Think You Can Dance (season 5)
The Big Bang Theory (season 3)*
The Mentalist (season 2)
The Vampire Diaries (season 1)*
The X Factor (series 6)
True Blood (season 2)*

*indicates show/season I haven't started watching yet

Derren Brown - Lottery (part 2)

So, it was "Deep Maths".

Don't believe it for a second, but don't care, it was great TV. He's such a wind-up merchant.

So I'm going to try it- if I can get enough numbers.

Watch this space...

Derren Brown - Lottery

Watched Derren Brown successfully predict last night's lottery numbers.
He'll tell us how he did it tomorrow night (or, technically, tonight).
Most popular current Twitter theory is split-screen.
I'm hoping for something a bit more spectacular, but there's going to be a twist that we've been conned somehow. Either way, the man is a genius.

On a (sort of) unrelated note, just found out he came out 2 years ago! Didn't call that one.

Psychoville

Despite hating "The League of Gentlemen", I have decided to give this series a go.
LOG co-creator Mark Gaitiss is reduced to a cameo this time round, while the remaining members of the team- Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton- take on writing duties alone.
I must admit it was the appearance of Dawn French in the cast that drew me in, and she has certainly been given one of the juicier characters.
Whilst similarities with LOG are there, something about this series works far better for me. Playing it straight with humour (as opposed to other way round) seems to work better for their bizarre and twisted imaginations.
I have now completed the series and must admit I thoroughly enjoyed it. Although, obviously, the finale raises more questions than it answers. If there is a second series, I'll be tuning in- though not sure I'd buy the DVD.

Welcome!

This blog will hopefully soon contain various information about TV shows that I would find interesting.

This may include reviews (my own/others), news, ratings info, airing dates, Top 10s etc.

Watch this space!