Dear all,

I really don't think the content of this blog is going to surprise anyone, given that I've not exactly been a frequent visitor or contributor recently.

Yes, the time has come for me to leave. It's a real shame but- circumstances being what they are for me at the moment- I don't have the time I would like to devote here. My enthusiasm for reviewing and submitting has seriously seriously waned and I'd rather not do anything at all than do it half-heartedly.

There are a lot of people I will miss here, but thanks to the wonders of Facebook we can still be in touch.

I'd like to thank you all for reading these inane blogs and commenting and for your friendship and good wishes. You're all stars.

Thank you once again.

Good night and good luck,

With love

Terrance (aka QueerlyBeloved)

Greetings everyone,

The first QB TVcom blog of 2009!

What to say? Well I've had two interviews in the past week- one for the Tax Office (which I didn't get) and one with a company which is looking for people who can teach English as a foreign language. I have an observation session with them on the 20th. I've also completed my online enrolment for my PhD and have contacted the university to see when I need to go in and sort out the rest of it. I managed to see Mr Burmudzija when he was in Cardiff and showed him a lot of the locations used in Doctor Who and Torchwood. I have to say I'm MAJORLY impressed with the refit they've done to the Doctor Who Exhibition in the Red Dragon centre. Loads and loads of stuff in there now!

Anyway, onto the tellystuff

Demons: Oh dear. My hopes for this show weren't exactly high, judging by the trailer. A good job really. It was all a bit lacklustre. OK, I got a good perv at Christian Cooke without a shirt on (always good) and I liked Zoe Tapper as Mina and even Philip Glenister's American accent didn't suck as badly as I thought it would. But Ruby was just annoying and Mackenzie Crook's mincing camp turn as Thrip was badly judged- and the CGI was appalling. However, this Saturday's episode- with the angel- seems quite intriguing so I'll give it a punt.

Nip/Tuck: Not so much a bang as a whimper for the boys of McNamara/Troy as the second part of Season 5 kicked off with Ronnie Chase. After a brilliant start to the episode- showing exactly how the utterly psychotic Colleen (Sharon Gless) managed to get into the offices and knife Sean a couple of times- it all then gets a bit navel-gazey as Sean deals with the aftermath and Christian finds out he has cancer. However, previews for the rest of the episodes appear much more intriguing- Bradley Cooper, Portia de Rossi and Jennifer Coolidge reprise their roles as Aidan Stone, Olivia Lord and Candy Richards. Katee Sackhoff appears as Dr. Love (but the character has been recast with Rose McGowan for Season 6). Morgan Fairchild is putting in an appearance too. Kimber wants baby Jenna to go under the knife; Aidan tries to tempt Sean back into showbusiness; Liz has a sexuality crisis (one storyline I'm NOT crazy about); Sean and Julia's relationship undergoes another twist; patients include a man who wants a pen!s reduction and the return of Allegra Calderello a.k.a. 'pu$$y lips'. Perhaps the most interesting thing... Eden is back (which surprised me as I thought AnnaLynne McCord was involved in the reboot of 90210). It's going to be nothing less than interesting.

Desperate Housewives: A very strong episode with Home Is The Place. I loved Joanna Cassidy as Alex's mum Melina- her clashes with Marcia Cross were well done. The Susan/Lee clubbing storyline was inconsequential but fun, especially with the 'morning after' and Gabby's evident delight when Bob comes to call. Karen and Roberta's trip to Dr. Heller's was good- Lily Tomlin is excellent. The only part of the episode I wasn't mad about was the Gabby/Carlos strand. Other than that, a cracking episode- especially the bits with Dave and Edie.

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Musical Interlude: Click here to hear a beautiful and rather poignant song by the incomparable Tori Amos. Released in 1992, it's kinda scary to think that the song will be seventeen years old this year. Anyway, here is the touching 'China'. Enjoy.

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Please Allow Me To Introduce Myself...

Well, you'll probably all know this by now anyway but I thought I'd give my two cents on the casting of Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor. The first time I saw his name linked to the role of the Doctor was actually Saturday morning (about 12 hours or so before the big announcement) added to the 'runners and riders' list on the BBC website- which, incidentally, wasn't completely rewritten as it still said that Russell Tovey (27) was the youngest candidate in contention. So when, during Doctor Who Confidential, they mentioned going younger than Peter Davison, I immediately thought 'it'll be Matt Smith then'.

Yep, there were a load of the 'Doctor? Who?' puns flying around immediately afterwards as Matt is a relative unknown when it comes to television acting: aside from Party Animals and an appearance in Secret Diary of A Call-Girl, Matt's most high-profile roles are in the Sally Lockhart mysteries (The Ruby In The Smoke; The Shadow Of The North). However, he has a very strong stage pedigree- he's worked with both the Royal Court Theatre in London and the National Theatre, as well as touring the UK in The History Boys. I'm very intrigued by this casting- granted, he is perhaps a little on the young side- but I don't think that the production team would cast him unless they were certain. It's going to be interesting to see how he does, but from the first interview, I quite liked the vibe I was getting from him. There was something Doctor-ish in his manner.

I think the BBC have been quite canny announcing this so early. Knowing the probable reaction from some areas of the fandom, it gives everyone a good eighteen months to get used to the idea before we see him on-screen. And I have to say, I'm less worried about this than I was about the rumour that Lily Allen, Rachel Stevens and Kelly Brook have been linked with the companion role. Personally, I'd like to see Michelle Ryan. Actually, what I would like to see is a return to what happened in the original series and have a male and a female companion.

Time will tell, but they already have a script for Episode 1 and Episode 4.

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I hope y'all have a good weekend!

QB

Afternoon all,

As promised- albeit a day late- is my television review of 2008. It's quite long, so you might want to get a cup of tea and a sandwich. New Years Eve was much fun, starting with cocktails and other drinks at a friend's before hitting town. We were in a bar for 12 o'clock and then went to a nearby club where I bumped into a few people I hadn't seen for a while, and had a drink and a dance. I was home at 3am. Yesterday was a chilled day, I watched the Doctor Who Prom and then stuck my DVD of Mamma Mia! in for an ABBA singalong.

Well, it's been something of a banner year for Who fans with all three branches of the Whoniverse on screen this year (and even coming together for the fourth season finale). Let's start with the parent show: Doctor Who. Despite some areas of the press decrying Catherine Tate's promotion to full-time companion, the rapport and chemistry between her and David Tennant made for some brilliant banter. It was also good not to have a companion who was in love with the Doctor, too. Donna was more level-headed, unafraid to speak her mind and sometimes the one to stop him. Particular highlights from Season Four of Who were The Fires Of Pompeii (if you were ever in doubt of Catherine Tate's acting ability, watch this episode; she is just brilliant); The Unicorn And The Wasp (a brilliantly knockaround adventure featuring Agatha Christie and a giant alien wasp); Midnight (Lesley Sharp leading from the front in an amazing and claustrophobic episode that strips the Doctor bare); Turn Left (Rose's return and Donna seeing how the world would be without ever meeting the Doctor) and The Stolen Earth (in which the Torchwood team and Sarah Jane come together to defeat the Daleks and their resurrected leader, Davros).

Torchwood produced a consistently good second series (with only Meat being subpar in my opinion). The inclusion of Captain John Hart, played to perfection by James Marsters, was inspired as was moving Martha over for a three-episode arc (despite her not having a lot to do after Reset). It was good to delve more into the character of Jack Harkness too, seeing some of his family life. Series highlights would be opening episode Kiss Kiss Bang Bang; the sublime Adam, in which a cuckoo in the nest alters the lives of the team; the amazing Reset which introduces Martha and has one of the strongest guest performances of the show (Alan Dale as Professor Aaron Copley); the spooky From Out Of The Rain; Fragments (which shows how Owen, Toshiko and Ianto came to be working for Torchwood) and the season closer Exit Wounds. If you're not in tears by the end of it, you're made of stone. Stone, I tell ya.

Last (but not least) the second series of The Sarah Jane Adventures brought Elisabeth Sladen back with a bang. There's a shifting around of cast here too, as Yasmin Paige (Maria) left and Anjli Mohindra (Rani) came in. I think too many people see it as 'just a kid's show' and don't consider that it has any depth to it. Wrong, wrong, wrong. There's plenty of depth to it- just one example is in The Mark Of The Berserker when Clyde has to deal with his estranged dad coming back. Season highlights include the stories Secrets Of The Stars and The Temptation Of Sarah Jane Smith (both by Gareth Roberts), quite sinister guest turns by Bradley Walsh and Russ Abbott and the return of the Brigadier!

Away from the Whoniverse, there's been a lot of very decent telly around. With Robin Hood put back til 2009, the BBC instead showed Merlin. In the same vein as Hood, it's a reimagining of one of the most constantly engrossing legends- this shows Merlin as a young man, heading to Camelot but warned to keep his magical gifts a secret upon pain of death. He is charged by the Great Dragon to protect the young prince Arthur so he can become the once and future king. The first season of any show always struggles to establish a tone and this was no different- a lot of the episodes were akin to 'Monster of The Week' stories. However, there was a strong cast, with a good mix of exciting young actors (in particular Colin Morgan as Merlin and Katie McGrath as Morgana) and more established veterans (Anthony Head and Richard Wilson) with some very strong guest performances too: notably Eve Myles as Mary Collins, Santiago Cabrera as Lancelot, Julian Rhind-Tutt as Edwin Muirden, Frank Finlay as Anhora and Michelle Ryan who was clearly having a ball as the evil sorceress Nimueh. It was a good series and I look forward to seeing what they do with the second season.

Apparitions was a drama I took a chance on, almost quite by accident. It contains one of my favourite actors- the ever-brilliant Martin Shaw- as Father Jacob Myers, a priest who gets drawn into the world of exorcisms. For a show that could have been quite fanatical about the religious aspects of the script, it was remarkably even-handed. Shaw's performance was always exceptional and he was joined by a very strong regular cast and some great guest performances, most notably Rick Warden in a dual role as a homeless man called Michael and a demon called Astaruth. I have no idea if the show is planned for a second season, but I would certainly watch if it did.

There were also some good adaptations of some giants of English literature, notably Andrew Davies' adaptation of Dickens' Little Dorrit (with an all-star cast, ranging from Matthew Macfadyen and Claire Foy to people like Amanda Redman, Tom Courtenay, Ruth Jones, Maxine Peake, Freema Agyeman, Eve Myles, Russell Tovey, Judy Parfitt and Andy Serkis to name but a few) and the relentlessly gloomy Tess Of The D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy which featured a brilliant and beautiful performance by Gemma Arterton as the doomed Tess, a strong performance by Ruth Jones again as Tess' mother Joan and the handsome Eddie Redmayne as Angel Clare. There were also some good one-off dramas which I enjoyed, such as The Curse Of Steptoe and Rather You Than Me which focused on the darkness behind celebrated comedians Harry H Corbett and Wilfrid Brambell throughout the making of Steptoe And Son and the struggle that Frankie Howerd had over his sexuality. Julie Walters and Anne Reid gave excellent performances as Mary Whitehouse and Dame Barbara Cartland in Filth: The Mary Whitehouse Story and In Love With Barbara. I also caught the three ghostly stories that made up Mark Gatiss' Crooked House over Christmas and enjoyed them thoroughly. The second instalment- Something Old- was the most successful for me- really quite unnerving.

Crossing over the pond, let's see what US TV kept me interested.

The last six episodes of the first part of the fifth season of Nip/Tuck were just insane. There really is no other word for it. From the moment that the absolutely deranged Colleen Rose (a virtuoso performance by Sharon Gless, chewing the scenery at every occasion), the show- not exactly known for its restraint- went into overdrive. The episode Lulu Grandiron took things to high camp with a selection of guest actresses from 80s soaps. Meanwhile, Eden Lord's evil plan to get rid of Julia came to a head and the episodes were left on a proper cliffhanger as Sean's life hangs in the balance. What next for the series? Who knows, but the last eight episodes of Season 5 start to air from January 6. I cannot wait!

I managed to catch up with season four of Desperate Housewives and as much of season five as has been broadcast. The ladies of the Lane show no sign of letting up as there was a scintillating mystery in Season 4- why had Katherine Mayfair come back? Moreover, what's wrong with her daughter Dylan? Season 4 also saw a massive hurricane sweep through the town in two of the strongest episodes (Something's Coming/Welcome To Kanagawa) and the arrival of a gay couple to the street- Lee and Bob. It also ended with quite an audacious move: a jump of five years. Season 5 picks up five years later, with Lynette's family all grown up and causing trouble, Gaby having two kids of her own and Mike and Susan no longer together. However, Edie's back- with a new man. Neal McDonough's one of the best actors the show has ever had- there's a hint of real menace behind his eyes as Dave. I will say though that I did kinda guess why Dave's so interesting in Wisteria Lane but it's going to be interesting to see how that plays off. It's also good that they've finally given Andrew something to do- moving in with a handsome surgeon. Strong episodes of Season 5 so far include Mirror Mirror and City On Fire.

Heroes Volume 3- 'Villains'- came in for a lot of flak from fans and industry bods included. I personally loved it, although it's ironic to think that what should have been the most interesting episodes- the Eclipse two-parter which saw the Heroes without their powers- were for me the most unsuccessful. I also wasn't sure about them turning Hiro into a ten-year-old but that was a minor peeve. I can see how the shifting sand of the characters- being seen as good then evil- could get annoying but that for me was what this volume was about. There are shades of grey in us all; nobody is all good, nobody is all bad. It was brilliant to see Cristine Rose have more to do as Angela Petrelli has always been a fascinating character to me. Other good things about the volume include the return of Meredith (Jessalyn Gilsig) and Linderman (Malcolm McDowell), the introduction of characters such as Eric Doyle and Daphne and a sterling turn by Robert Forster as Papa Petrelli. Although Nathan Petrelli is a *bleep*. It'll be interesting to see which turn Volume 4 takes. I for one will be watching.

Finally, 24: Redemption. In lieu of a full 24 episodes of Kiefer Sutherland snarling and shooting at things, two hours will suffice. An interesting experiment, with some great performances- notably Powers Boothe, Cherry Jones and Robert Carlyle. It'll be interesting to see how this feeds in to Season 7 proper. We don't have much longer to wait for that.

In terms of comedy, both Little Britain USA and Touch Me, I'm Karen Taylor were hit-and-miss (as is the nature of sketch shows). I just felt that the Little Britain boys just recycled sketches written for the UK for the most part, although some sketches (mostly including Bubbles) were very amusing. You can definitely tell it was a HBO production as there's no way even a fraction of that would have got onto American TV if it had been a network! Clone had some amusing moments too with nicely comedic turns by Jonathan Pryce and Mark Gatiss and a warm and empathetic turn by Fiona Glascott as acerbic barmaid Rose. However, the comedy highlight of the year was the second season of the wonderful and witty Gavin And Stacey.

Reality TV abounded this year as always. Considering I'm often a bit of a snob about certain forms for reality TV, I do appear to have watched a lot of it! Despite my best intentions, I did watch Big Brother 9 this year- it just so happened that it started off being quite interesting with Alexandra and Dennis being removed after some inappropriate behaviour. I have to admit to fancying Rex, although personality-wise he was a bit of a d!ck and I'm glad that Rachel won. Sir Alan Sugar started his search for The Apprentice again, eventually picking a bloke who admits to having lied on his CV. Isn't that a good example to be setting? There were some interesting tasks and moments throughout this year- Sir Alan's bollocking of Claire for one; the whole 'kosher chicken' fiasco and the cringeworthy tissue ads also stick in my mind. Strictly Come Dancing was interesting as sixteen celebrities foxtrotted, tangoed and cha-cha-cha'd their way towards the final. It will be remembered more for John Sergeant's shenanigans and the voting troubles had during the semi-finals probably more than any of the dancing- and I'm still annoyed that Cherie Lunghi got voted out so early. Stephen Fry In America was an enchanting look at the US of A and the various idiosyncracies and foibles of the various states through the eyes of an erudite and slightly shambling host. Meanwhile, The Last Millionaire challenged twelve young entrepreneurs to ditch the champagne life and rough it in six different cities around the world- Istanbul, Berlin, Cairo, Naples, Bangkok and Hong Kong- creating businesses from scratch. Whichever pair got the most money in a given week won and flew home. This was one competition that people were looking to get out of, rather than stay in. It was an interesting challenge.

So that was my TV year. Lots and lots. So what am I looking forward to in 2009? Well, the Doctor Who Specials (starting at Easter with Planet Of The Dead); Torchwood: Children Of Earth, the third seasons of Robin Hood and The Sarah Jane Adventures, the second season of Merlin, the conclusions of Season 5 of Nip/Tuck and Desperate Housewives, Season 3 of Heroes, the new ITV drama Demons and anything else that passes me by.

Happy 2009!

With love,

QB

Mellow greetings to you all,

Well, this blog finds QB in a contemplative mood.It's New Years Eve and so I always tend to feel a bit thoughtful today, looking back over the year, what was good, what was bad, what would I change or do differently if I could do it over again, what mistakes were made and what lessons learned. All in all, 2008 has been a more successful year than 2007 (although the only thing that would have made 2007 any worse than it was would have been the diagnosis of some terminal illness). And whilst 2008 certainly hasn't been a perfect year, it's had enough highlights to make it a middling year. Had better but certainly had worse.

Traditionally, my last blog of the year is my TV review of the year but that's going to have to wait until tomorrow. Today really hasn't gone as planned (in a kinda good way) so my time has been limited. I'm just about to go to a friend's house-party and then hitting the town in Cardiff.

So I will leave you with this...

And this quote by the late great Judy Garland:

Well, we have a whole new year ahead of us. And wouldn't it be wonderful if we could all be a little more gentle with each other, and a little more loving, have a little more empathy, and maybe - next year at this time - we'd like each other a little more.

Tonight I will raise a glass to you all, my dears. I wish you all a happy, healthy and prosperous new year- and may 2009 be everything you all want it and need it to be.

With love,

QB

What ho, me old boilers?

I hope this finds you all well. Well, I hope it finds you more well than I am. I am currently suffering with a touch of man-flu which has put a slight damper on what has been an otherwise excellent Christmas. It was lovely to be home with my folks and of course I got spoiled rotten with a load of lovely gifts. I had a Doctor Who Christmas, which is especially welcome. I received the Complete Fourth Series on DVD (with the Davros cover), a TARDIS tie, a Dalek tie, Cybermen cufflinks, a set of Dalek action figures, a Duck-tor Who (a rubber duck with a long scarf painted on it), the 2009 Calendar, a set of audio adventures and a radio-controlled Dalek. I had a murder mystery dinner party set (which I will be doing with the writers' group), some lovely clothes, new shoes, some books and two bottles of wine.

Managed to get a spot of Christmas viewing done, although not a whole lot. The Next Doctor was pretty good but I don't know if I was expecting something more: Dervla Kirwan was excellent as Miss Hartigan and some of the writing really sparkled (I liked the graveyard scene). Plus I like the title for the Easter Special, written by Gareth Roberts and Russell T. Davies: Planet Of The Dead. Can't wait! I loved Wallace And Gromit and thought it was excellent: I'm not surprised it got the highest number of viewers on Christmas Day itself. The Strictly Come Dancing special was good and I was glad that Jill and Darren won.

In Memoriam Harold Pinter 1930-2008

I was very saddened by the death of Harold Pinter, which was announced on Christmas Day. Pinter was a playwright, a poet, an actor and director, an Oscar-nominated screenwriter, a staunchly anti-war commentator and campaigner and the recipient of the 2005 Nobel Prize for Literature. His plays are full of commonplace situations that soon turn sinister and he was a master linguist. He had written a number of plays, the most well-known of which were The Homecoming, The Caretaker, A Night Out, The Room, A Slight Ache, The Dumb Waiter and The Birthday Party (a play that I know very well, having performed in excerpts from it on three separate occasions). He was a strong force in British theatre throughout the second half of the twentieth century and we shall not see his like again.

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Musical Interlude: In tribute of the late great Eartha Kitt (who also sadly passed away this week), here's some of her best and most brilliant songs. Click here to hear Eartha's amazing rendition of 'I Want An Old Fashioned Millionaire' and 'Santa Baby' (one of my favourite Christmas songs). Click here to hear the wonderful 'I Want To Be Evil' and here for the camptastic 80s hit 'Cha Cha Heels'. She's a true talent and will be sadly missed.

Eartha Kitt 1927-2008

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A big happy belated birthday to JD (aka SleepTight) whose birthday was Boxing Day and a big happy birthday to Matt whose birthday falls in the next few days! Happy birthday, boys. Hope you have/had a brilliant day!

Just to round things off, here are my five favourite songs of 2008 and five favourite movies.

Five Favourite Songs Of 2008 (Click for video!)

Glitter In The Air (Pink)

Shut Up And Let Me Go (The Ting Tings)

Black And Gold (Sam Sparro)

Rain On Your Parade (Duffy)

Take A Bow (Rihanna)

Five Favourite Films Of 2008

1. The Dark Knight

2. Mamma Mia!

3. Wall-E

4. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street

5. Lars And The Real Girl

Have a good week!

QB

Festive greetings one and all!

Well, it's that time of year again. I'm preparing to go back to my folks for Christmas. I have to be honest, I'm looking forward to it. It's been a while since I've seen my dad and it's always nice to just have a few days away. I'll be back in Cardiff on the 27th (Saturday) so that'll all be good.

Haven't seen a lot of telly the last few days but I did catch the final of Strictly Come Dancing. I wasn't that surprised that Tom won (I will admit that his showdance was head and shoulders above Rachel and Vincent's). Personally though, he shouldn't have been in the final- if the dance-off had gone ahead last weekend, it would have taken whichever of the girls he's have been against to balls it up completely for him to have stayed. Plus it seemed a bit odd that Lisa who got a perfect score of 80 out of 80 got voted out. I'm not one of these raging conspiracy theorists- the public voted for who they wanted so that's fine- but I do think something's going to have to be done with Strictly before it comes back next year.

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Musical Interlude 1: Click here for a Christmas standard (and I apologise in advance). It's a seventies Christmas tune 'Merry Xmas Everyone' by Slade. All together now... 'It's Chriiiiiiiiiiiiiistmaaaaaaaaaas'!

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Five Of The Best: My Picks For The Best Festive TV (UK)

1. The Next Doctor (BBC1, Christmas Day, 6:00pm)

As it has been since 2005, so shall it be this year- the Doctor Who Christmas special will be the cornerstone of my festive viewing. It's the first historical Christmas for the time traveller as he lands on Christmas Eve 1851. However, the city is being menaced by the Cybermen who have aligned themselves with the villainous Miss Hartigan (Dervla Kirwan). But the Doctor soon finds he isn't the only one battling the Cybermen- there's another man with his companion.... a man who calls himself The Doctor. I've been avoiding spoilers for this like the plague so it's all gonna be fresh and new and shiny. Just like the Cybermen

2. Wallace And Gromit In A Matter Of Loaf And Death (BBC1, Christmas Day, 8:30pm)

Thirteen years since A Close Shave and three years since full-length feature The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit, it's a pleasure to see them back. Inventor Wallace (voiced by Peter Sallis) and his resourceful pooch Gromit have set up a bakery called Top Bun and are doing a roaring trade. However, there's a killer on the loose targeting bakers. With Wallace's head turned by Piella Bakewell (voiced by Sally Lindsay), it's down to Gromit to track the murderer down... It's going to be great.

3. Gavin And Stacey Christmas Special (BBC1, Christmas Eve, 10:00pm)

The Welsh contingency (Gwen, Bryn and Nessa) travel to Billericay to spend Christmas with the Shipmans. However, Gavin's got a bit of news that could shake everything up... details of this show have been few and far between but it's gonna be cracking, I'm not going to lie to you. It's very gentle comedy, very observational and also very Welsh. This week it's been revealed that they're going to do a third series. Brilliant.

4. Affinity (ITV1, December 28, 9:00pm)

Master adapter Andrew Davies gives a masterful adaptation of the second novel by Sarah Waters (Tipping The Velvet; Fingersmith). Margaret (Anna Madeley) is recovering from the death of her father and volunteers at Millbank Women's Prison. There she meets and forms a strong bond with one of the inmates, a woman called Selina Dawes (Zoe Tapper)... who is a clairvoyant. Sounds very good.

5. Crooked House (BBC Four, December 22-24, 10:30pm and Dec 27, 9:00pm)

Mark Gatiss' creepy trilogy of ghost stories are on this week and shown in a ninety-minute special on Saturday. A young man (Lee Ingleby) finds an old door-knocker and takes it to a museum where the curator (Gatiss) tells him the history of Geap Manor, a house which seems to attract unpleasantness. I'm personally holding out for the ninety-minute version but it looks like a suitably twisted antidote to the usual saccharineness that you find this time of year.

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Musical Interlude 2: Click here for a more modern Christmas Number One, and a real surprise to find topping the charts at this time of year. No mistletoe, no wine, no snowfall, no happiness- and it's one of the best songs of the last decade (well, I think so). It is Gary Jules and Michael Andrews' cover of 'Mad World'. Plus it's got a Doctor Who fanvid. Bonus!

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And to just round off, here's some more funny cats- and a special tree (mine in my flat which my flatmate and I decorated). Enjoy!

There remains only one thing to do:

Merry Christmas!

May you all have a happy, peaceful and joyful Christmas. Wherever you are in the world, however you spend this time of year, may it be wonderful!

With love

QB

Festive greetings to all!

Well, it's only a week to go til Christmas Day (and a new episode of Doctor Who ) and I'm still not feeling very Christmassy yet. I've had a few get-togethers with friends and they've all been nice but I suppose I've missed the usual hullabaloo because I was so organised with the shopping et al. Ah well, I'm going to a carol service on Sunday so hopefully that'll instill some festive spirit. Failing that, there's always vodka

A few things before I get onto the tellystuff. Firstly, I've heard back from the university. As of January, I'll be starting my PhD. I've been accepted! There's a part of me going 'woohoo' and a part of me going 'oh f*%#' because now it's real. Secondly, I've booked myself a holiday. I'm going to Lake Garda in Italy for 10 days in April 2009- leaving two days after my birthday. Thirdly, I'm just gonna have a bit of a b!tch about the utterly pointless new redesign job for the site. Too much white again and what the hell was wrong with having our Mod Queues and PM bar visible? Is it any wonder people are so annoyed? The Powers That Be are not listening to us. Boo hiss boo.

Anyway, off the soapbox and onto the tellybox. (See what I did there?)

The Sarah Jane Adventures: A decent performance by Samantha Bond and a decent performance by Nicholas Courtney aside, I wasn't enamoured with Enemy Of The Bane. There were much better stories in the series. However, a big cheer as it's been renewed for a third series! Yay!

Merlin: Another of my favourites that's been given a second series. Hooray! To Kill The King had some interesting parts and a knock-out performance by Katie McGrath as Morgana's darkside emerged (although I was expecting something more magic-based). The finale, Le Morte d'Arthur, showed the Dragon's true colours and had a lovely performance by Michelle Ryan who clearly relished Nimueh's evil side.

Heroes: Now broken for the season and back in February, I believe, the third volume 'Villains' was quite exceptional overall. The final two episodes Our Father and Dual were stunning and Zachary Quinto was just brilliantly chilling as Sylar throughout the two. The cat-and-mouse stuff at Primatech at the beginning of Dual was excellent and I also liked Hiro punching Tracy to retrieve the formula (only because it was so comical and not because I advocate violence towards women). But these episodes proved, if proof were needed, that Nathan Petrelli is a *expletive deleted*. I have high hopes for 'Fugitives'.

Strictly Come Dancing: I blame Tess Daly, frankly. If she hadn't used the phrase 'to save Tom and Camilla from the dance-off', this whole farrago would never have happened. But because that was on the autocue, everyone was up in arms. Personally, I thought Tom and Camilla were the weakest of the three in the semi-final and probably should have gone. (As an aside, I was rather surprised that Austin Healey was voted off, but my mother was jubilant). But still a three person final was what they had planned and which they now have. It's still wide open as a competition. I would like Rachel to win but I think all 3 are deserving finalists.

Clone: Finally managed to catch up with this via iPlayer. It's had its moments of real laugh-out-loud comedy for me, and I think Jonathan Pryce and Mark Gatiss are absolutely brilliant. Fiona Glascott, the girl who plays Rose, is also good. Not gonna change the world, but it's fun.

I've found out that the last eight episodes of Season 5 of Nip/Tuck start broadcasting from January 6 (starting with an episode called 'Ronnie Chase' and that Season 7 of 24 finally starts with a four-hour extravaganza over two nights (January 11 and 12). I meant to say that I managed to get to see 24:Redemption and quite enjoyed it. It was good to have Jack back and there were excellent performances from Kiefer, Powers Boothe (as outgoing President), Cherry Jones (as incoming President Allison Taylor), Robert Carlyle and Jon Voight. I have high hopes for Season 7. God knows they've had enough time to get it right!

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Musical Interlude: Since it is the Christmas period, I thought I'd trot out a couple of my favourite Christmas songs and hymns. Firstly, click here to hear the beautiful 'Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas' (from perennial holiday favourite Meet Me In St. Louis) sung by Celtic Woman. Secondly, click here to hear Celtic Woman's version of what is my favourite Christmas hymn: 'Oh Holy Night'. Simply gorgeous.

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As I don't really fancy doing any short countdowns or anything, here are some more Christmas-themed humorously captioned pictures of felines. I especially agree with the third one.

I'll be blogging again next Monday or Tuesday before I head back to my folks for Christmas. Til then, have a great weekend and take care of yourselves and each other,

Much luv

QB

Hello peeps,

Something a bit different this time round. As you know, I went to see Hamlet last week. Several people have asked for a review... so here it is.

London was fun. No losing of wallet this time. Dancing til nearly 3 in Heaven after the show and a lovely (albeit very brief) meeting with Miles at Paddington station for a few drinks in the Mad Bear and Bishop pub before I headed back to Cardiff. Miles is a lovely guy, very chatty, warm and open. I would have liked to have spent more time with him.

Anyway, as promised: my review of Hamlet

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THEATRE REVIEW: HAMLET (RSC AT NOVELLO THEATRE, LONDON, DECEMBER 5 2008 )

The Royal Shakespeare Company's latest production of Hamlet, starring David Tennant and Patrick Stewart, is undoubtedly the theatrical event of the year. Such is the popularity of these two actors that tickets for the London run (at the Novello Theatre) of the play sold out in mere hours. However, I was extremely lucky to get two tickets for a friend and I. Not only were we fortunate to get a ticket for the show at all, but we were doubly fortunate to get to see David Tennant as Hamlet. A back injury forced him from the role on Monday December 8 and he will not perform again before Christmas. Whilst I have studied the play at A-Level and during my English Literature degree, I had never seen a stage production before. My knowledge of the text is not particularly strong, but from what other critics have said, Gregory Doran has taken a few liberties with it. I will admit to noticing a few omissions (most notably towards the end) but, as a whole, the production runs very smoothly.

Hamlet is one of Shakespeare's most performed plays, and is second only to Cinderella in number of cinematic adaptations. It is the longest of Shakespeare's plays and the role of Hamlet is the longest role in the Shakespearean canon. The creme de la creme of the acting world have played Hamlet: from Richard Burbage (who almost certainly originated the role), David Garrick and Edmund Kean, through to Laurence Olivier, Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole, Ralph Fiennes and Kenneth Branagh. To play the Dane must be a daunting task, given the weight of history behind it.

Despite Jonathan Miller's snide assertion that David Tennant is merely 'the man from Doctor Who' and decrying his casting as another example of British theatre's 'obsession with celebrity', Tennant is an absolute revelation as the eponymous Prince of Denmark. He pulls it off brilliantly. From bursts of manic energy when Hamlet is mad- or is he?- to moments of melancholy (the grief displayed in the first soliloquy which begins 'oh, that this too too solid flesh would melt' brought tears to my eyes) and flashes of anger, it's a real tour de force. Only occasionally does Doctor-like behaviour creep in for a moment, but I only have that frame of reference as I've seen him as the Doctor. A similarity between the two roles is the use of a neutral RP (Received Pronunciation) accent instead of his natural Scottish brogue. There are many times when he is alone on the stage- the famous 'to be or not to be' sees him alone on the mirrored stage, clad simply in a red t-shirt and jeans- and yet you are drawn in by his mesmerising and electrifying performance.

Of course, whilst the majority of critical attention has gone to Tennant, it would be quite wrong to assume that he is the only one worthy of praise. Patrick Stewart is similarly impressive in his dual roles as Claudius and the Ghost of Hamlet's father. As the Ghost, he is booming, steely-stern, forbidding and imposing, spurring Hamlet to revenge his 'most foul and unnatural murder'. As Claudius, he is softer, much more of a politician, still scheming and plotting, yet the living embodiment of Hamlet's meme 'one may smile and smile and be a villain'. Stewart is an imposing presence on the stage and, during the famous prayer scene (where Claudius attempts to pray for forgiveness for killing Hamlet's father), nothing short of brilliant. It is also interesting to note that it is after this speech- and Hamlet's discovery of Claudius in prayer- that the interval occurs. Right in the middle of the scene, with Hamlet ready to take his revenge! It may be something of a soap-opera cliffhanger but thrilling nonetheless.

The rest of the supporting cast were absolutely brilliant. It feels wrong to single people out for particular praise as every part is played well. However, some characterisations are particularly noteworthy. Oliver Ford Davies is truly amazing in his role as Polonius, adviser to the king and father to Laertes and Ophelia. His bumbling, slightly forgetful portrayal brought a number of laughs to the proceedings; none more for me than his rather hurt response to Gertrude's plea for 'more matter with less art' where he almost bridles in his response: 'Madam, I use no art at all'. The scene in which he imparts fatherly advice to Laertes is nicely played and his death is truly affecting and stylistically wonderful- rather than being ran through with a sword, he is shot- thus causing the mirror to appear cracked. Similarly, Penny Downie plays Queen Gertrude very well indeed, especially during the closet scene where Hamlet confronts her for her quick marriage. Her very mournful reading of the death of Ophelia (one of my particular favourite speeches from the play) was chilling and her death scene played rather differently than expected- rather than drinking from the poisoned chalice by accident, she almost seemed to do it wilfully to expose Claudius' treachery.

Edward Bennett- someone who I went to college with and acted in a few drama society productions with- is strong as Laertes, particularly in the later scenes when he returns from France looking for revenge for Polonius' death. Mariah Gale's performance as Ophelia starts off playful and subtle as she is counselled against seeing Hamlet by her father (and used as a pawn in Claudius' game). Yet as Ophelia loses her mind, Gale's performance shifts slightly and the final 'mad scene'- where the unhinged Ophelia gives out flowers- is disconcerting yet hauntingly sympathetic too.

Peter de Jersey makes an admirable Horatio and his final words (which pretty much end the play) brought a lump to my throat and tears to my eyes. Mark Hadfield gives a nice turn as the Gravedigger who unearths Yorick's skull- news reports suggest that the real skull being used for certain performances at Stratford was NOT coming to London. Quite frankly, at that moment, he could have been holding a lump of plasticene such was the emotion of the moment. A final mention should go to John Woodvine who brings gravitas to the role of the Player King.

The staging was impressive; done on a mirrored set. The costume was contemporary, and there was some updating done in certain respects- the aforementioned death of Polonius, Laertes coming in waving a gun around- yet the final duel was thankfully still fought as a fencing match. A brave, bold and beautiful production: the only verdict had to be a standing ovation.

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Normal service resumes on the next blog.

Oh, before I go...

Patrick Stewart signing autographs at Stage Door after the performance. Yes, I did go round. Yes, I had my programme signed. Yes, I nearly squeed. David Tennant just went straight to the car waiting for him but I caught a quick glimpse of him. I wish David a very speedy recovery.

Take care, everyone

QB

Hello everyone,

Still beggar all to tell you on the job front. I've been reworking my PhD thesis proposal so that needs to be sent off- if I'm accepted, it'll be a Research PhD in English Literature, focusing on the history of crime fiction. Will let you know how that goes.

It's December, so officially it's time to start talking about Christmas. I actually only have two small presents left to get and my shopping is all done. As I've had my days free at the moment, I figured why bother waiting? Plus the internet has been a boon too. Believe you me, I'm not normally this organised. Normally I don't do anything until December 1st. But the Christmas decorations are up already, I've been on my first Christmas meal- went to a Turkish/Lebanese restaurant on Tuesday with the book group (which discussed 'A Christmas Carol' by Charles Dickens- I'd never read it but have seen several adaptations)- but it's not feeling like Christmas yet. Maybe it's just me?

This time tomorrow I'll be on a train to London in order to see Messrs Tennant and Stewart in Hamlet. Cannot wait. Cannot wait. Although they WON'T be using the real skull as they did in Stratford as it's been deemed 'too distracting'. Not that it matters. It's just the raw emotion of that moment that will be the most important. 'Alas... Poor Yorick. I knew him, Horatio'.

In TVcom news, I'm up another level AGAIN. I'm now Level 43: K.I.T.T. (I liked Knight Rider when I was younger). There's another famous car. Maybe Level 44 is the Mystery Machine from Scooby Doo?

Anyway, tellystuff:

Merlin: Was disappointed with The Moment of Truth after what was a run of very good episodes; it had some good moments but all in all wasn't up to scratch. I was much more impressed by The Labyrinth Of Gedref. Frank Finlay was excellent as Anhora and the unicorn didn't actually look like a horse with a horn stuck on it. Getting ready for Saturday when Morgana's dark side comes to the fore!

The Sarah Jane Adventures: The second part of The Temptation Of Sarah Jane Smith was OK but not as good as the first episode. You knew that her parents were going to sacrifice themselves and put history back to normal. Didn't manage to see Enemy Of The Bane but will watch the whole two-parter on Monday (assuming CBBC shows Part Two).

Strictly Come Dancing: No surprise to see Jodie Kidd and Christine Bleakley voted off, although sad to see both of them go. This week is going to be interesting. All four dancers left- Tom, Austin, Rachel and Lisa- are very good indeed. It's going to go down to which dances they do and if that's enough to impress the judges. Any one of them could mess up and go- which is half the excitement, I suppose.

Apparitions: Enjoyable series. I've very much enjoyed it. Martin Shaw is always good and the scripts have been very thrilling. Episode 3, set in the prison with a young man possessed by a saint, is probably the strongest so far.

Little Dorrit: FINALLY managed to catch up with this (watched 10 episodes of it over 2 days). It's been very good indeed. Stellar cast, even for the smaller roles. Maxine Peake has impressed me as the sinister Miss Wade, Freema Agyeman is good as Tattycoram and Claire Foy and Matthew McFadyen make for an engaging central couple. I'm sure they're going to end up together . Andy Serkis is quite chilling as the villain Rigaud although for iciness, you can't beat Judy Parfitt's glacial performance as Mrs Clennam. I like the unnecessary bureaucracy of the Circumlocution Office- proof that red-tape has existed for centuries.

The Last Millionaire: From Cairo to Naples and now on to Bangkok, there are only four millionaires left. It's a very interesting programme, watching the sparks as the teams clash- often with each other- has proved good. The team that won in Naples were incredibly cold- only putting half their cash down to start to lull the others into a false sense of security.

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Musical Interlude: This song has been on my mind a lot recently. Don't know why. But here it is: click here for Eva Cassidy's beautiful version of 'Fields Of Gold'. Never fails to make me cry.

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The Torchwood countdown has been delayed again. Most likely it'll kick off the New Year.

So instead... some humorously-captioned pictures of cats in Christmas mode. Enjoy!

Take care,

QB

Good afternoon, everyone.

Beggar all to tell you on the personal front. Still waiting for a startdate with the DWP. Still waiting to hear if I've been accepted for my PhD. So it's a good job I've been watching a fair bit of telly and doing a lot on TVcom or this would just be a blank space. And how boring would that be? (Probably marginally less boring than my normal pap).

In TVcom news: I ascended to the next level. Level 42: General Lee (which is an improvement on the Sleestack). However, I've been submitting left right and centre and have picked up no less than three new people editorships, which is cool.

First up, we have the handsome and talented Colin Morgan. It was quite difficult to find info about him, because he's at the start of his career, but I found some interesting little bits of info. Secondly, one of my favourite authors here: the incomparable Minette Walters. It was really only on a whim that I decided to go looking for her- by virtue of her mentoring role in Murder Most Famous- but there was essentially a blank canvas. If you've never read any of her books, I advise you to. My favourite so far is The Scold's Bridle. Finally is Richard Wilson. For a man with such a distinguished and varied career, it was a surprise to see only the very basics on his profile page. Well, that's all changed now.

Onto the tellystuff!

The Sarah Jane Adventures: Part 2 of Mark Of The Berserker was OK. Not the best but not the worst. Daniel Anthony was quite impressive throughout- and I liked Alan and Maria's cameo. Part 1 of The Temptation Of Sarah Jane Smith was just brilliant- I felt for Elisabeth Sladen as she was talking to Luke at the memorial. Gareth Roberts' scripts are always good value. Having completely messed up the world, it'll be interesting to see where Part 2 takes us. Can't wait for the final story too- the Brig is back!

Merlin:The Beginning Of The End was quite interesting. Excalibur was much better, and my favourite so far. A glimpse into Uther's past, a nice little scene between him and Nimueh, some arresting visuals and a good script. Only four episodes to go. It's been a fairly decent series and has performed well. It'll be interesting to see if a second series is commissioned. Hey, they've given Robin Hood three.

Apparitions: A dark new drama for BBC, starring the ever brilliant Martin Shaw as a priest involved in exorcisms. Extended from a two-part special to a six episode series, it proved to be very interesting and very well done (Joe Ahearneboth wrote and directed it). Shaw is as dependable as ever and the sexuality aspect of the young priest Vimal was handled very well and was quite a surprise. This is one I'm going to stick with.

Strictly Come Dancing: I was gutted. GUTTED. No other word for it. Cherie Lunghi has left the competition. Personally I thought Lisa and Brendan's dance on Saturday was a bit ugly- the whole thing with the arms didn't look right. However, them's the rules. But now John Sergeant has quit the show! I agree that he needed to go because good dancers have gone who perhaps are more deserving of still being in the competition, but I do think he should have stuck in there and been voted off in due course. There is something quite canny about the way he's done this, but I did feel sorry for Kristina Rihanoff- she looked devastated. However in one way, the competition is now on to find the winner. My loyalty is split between Tom Chambers and Rachel Stevens- although, to wind my mum up, I've said I'm supporting Austin Healey. (she's never liked him since his rugby days).

Little Britain USA: The series ended on a whimper instead of a bang. An interesting experiment but I wouldn't necessarily count on there being a second series. Or if there is, they need to do a bit more original writing (rather than adapting sketches). Some laughs along the way though.

The Last Millionaire: An interesting idea for a reality show. 12 young entrepreneurs used to the life of luxury are dropped into a city and living at a hostel/backpackers place, told to pair up, given a small amount of cash and over the course of a week, they have to make as much money as they can, arranging events or whatever around a theme. Whichever duo makes the most money wins and the two of them fly back to the UK and back to their lives. First week, they were in Istanbul and had to arrange something around the theme of 'young people'. The team that won had one of the most obnoxious women I've ever seen in it. How her partner put up with her without strangling her, I don't know. This week, they were in Berlin and had to do something around 'art and performance'. Some good ideas. Next week: Cairo.

Stephen Fry In America: Stephen's trek across the States has now finished and it makes me want to undertake the same journey. From the mountains of Montana down to the Texas-Mexico border, across the true west to the Pacific coast (and then onto Alaska and Hawaii), it's been a fascinating glimpse into America. As usual, it's the people he meets and the stories they tell that are the most fascinating: a belly dancer in Oklahoma who works for the Salvation Army, the Madam of the largest brothel in Nevada, Mormon missionaries who are doing a topless calendar and people in Oregon who believe in Bigfoot. It's all done with a very even-handed and non-judgemental way. It's been a very interesting series.

Children In Need: I was out on the actual night so caught up with bits and pieces online. I did like the Merlin skit, especially Anthony Head's very dry 'Donate or I'll chop your head off'. Of course the main thing I wanted to see was the first two minutes of The Next Doctor which didn't disappoint. I do however, have a theory. Judging on that little bit, I will be very surprised if David Morrissey's character is actually a Time Lord. He was much too gung-ho. Although I did like the 'allons-y' bit.

Plus also, as an aside (even though I'm not watching it), I was stunned by some of the inclusions to this series' I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here. Among the former soap stars, wannabe models and washed-up TV hasbeens (as has become de riguer with this show) I was genuinely surprised by four names to the list, namely Martina Navratilova, George Takei, Brian Paddick and Esther Rantzen. I honestly thought they'd have more sense and more cl-a-ss than to sign up for such a tawdry carnival freakshow, frankly. Surely their careers aren't so much on the skids they need to resort to this kind of degradation. News that 80s telly star Timmy Mallet is joining the camp sums this up better than I ever could.

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Musical Interlude: I've been listening to a lot of Dusty Springfield lately. I love her voice. Click here to hear her beautiful version of 'The Windmills Of Your Mind' which won the Oscar for Best Song in the 1960s as it was featured in The Thomas Crown Affair.

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OK, the Torchwood countdown is taking longer than expected. So instead here's the 'third letter of your name' time-filler that's been doing the rounds. But hey, there's been a shedload of TV stuff so it's OK. Forgive me, Matt?

1. Famous Singer : Robbie Williams
2. Four letter word : Riot
3. Street : Romilly Crescent
4. Color : Red
5. Gifts/Presents : Ring
6. Vehicle: Range Rover
7. Things in Souvenir Shop : Rubbers (meaning erasers)
8. Boy Name : Robert
9. Girl Name : Rebecca
10. Movie Title : Rent
11. Drink : Redbush tea
12. Occupation : Reporter
13. Celebrity : Russell T. Davies
14. Magazine : Reader's Digest
15. U.S. City : Raleigh
16. Pro Sports : Rugby Union
17. Fruit : Raspberry
18. Reason For Being Late To Work : Ran a red light and got stopped
19. Something You Threw Away : Rubbish
20. Something You Shout : RIGHT!
21. Cartoon Character : Roadrunner
22. Song Title: Red Light Indicates Doors Are Secure (Arctic Monkeys)

That's all he wrote, ladies and gents. Take care, y'all!

QB

Mellow greetings, friends and associates,

I hope this finds you well. I'm in the middle of a busy week socially, which is kinda nice. Off to a fireworks party tonight with my writer friends then off to watch a rugby match (Wales v South Africa) with my mum and brother tomorrow afternoon. Still no news about a start-date for the job but we keep waiting. The title is a lyric from the song in the musical interlude- as has become customary- and isn't a statement about me feeling down or anything. I feel quite well, ironically enough.

There will be tellystuff in a mo, but first, I gotta get something off my chest (in a manner of speaking). I stayed up on Tuesday night to watch history being made one way or the other. Those of you who know me know that I would have voted for Obama. So I was overjoyed to see him being elected to the White House. His acceptance speech was moving and electrifying, even at 5.30am. John McCain's concession speech was amazingly gracious and dignified too. Shame the same can't be said for certain of his supporters who started to boo when McCain mentioned Obama's achievement. Yet when Obama praised McCain in his acceptance speech, there was applause. If that doesn't tell you what you need to know, nothing will. One thing people need to realise though- it's not gonna change overnight. Obama has one hell of a job on his hands, turning around the diverse catastrophes that have happened on Dubya's watch. It may take a year, or two, or maybe longer for things to happen. However, Obama's gonna be scrutinised more closely than any other president and certain media outlets are going to be ready to crucify him at the slightest provocation if it looks like he isn't bringing through the change he promised.

However, whilst I was elated at Obama's victory, I was less impressed with the result of the California Proposition 8 vote. Mere months after same-sex marriage was made legal in California, there has been a vote to make it illegal again. That the country can take such a huge step forward by electing the first black President and then strip away the right of lesbian and gay couples to marry on the same night disappoints me. Maybe it was too much to ask for both to happen? Perhaps it would have been seen as one of the signs of the Apocalypse if the same-sex marriage veto was defeated and Obama elected at the same time. Maybe the barriers need to be broken down one-by-one instead of all at once.

Anyway, off soapbox and onto tellystuff:

The Sarah Jane Adventures: the second part of Secrets Of The Stars was very good, with Russ Abbott continuing to impress as Trueman. The first part of The Mark Of The Berserker was OK- lacked a bit of the punch of the previous stories but a good performance by Jocelyn Jee Esien as Clyde's mum Carla.

Little Britain USA and Touch Me, I'm Karen Taylor: Two sketch shows that have been quite hit-and-miss but have provided a few good laughs from time to time.

Strictly Come Dancing: It's about halfway through the competiton now and its really sorting the wheat from the chaff, so to speak. I thought the judges were a little harsh about Mark Foster's dancing but I wasn't surprised he'd gone. Same with Andrew Castle really. How John Sergeant has survived so long I've no idea but- as much as I like him- he needs to go soon otherwise a perfectly good dancer is going to be sacrificed for comedy value. Despite a few missteps in the last few dances, I still want Cherie Lunghi to win.

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Musical Interlude: Click here to hear the beautiful and mournful 'Wake Me Up When September Ends' by Green Day. I hadn't heard this in ages and it came on my iPod on random. It quite moved me.

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MINI-COUNTDOWN: SEVEN FAVOURITE GAY-THEMED FILMS

I was going to include this in my National Coming Out Day/Matthew Shepard memorial blog but I was conscious of space- and seven may seem like an odd number, but it's my countdown and I can have as many or as few as I wish There are plenty more that I like but these are my favourites. A word of warning: some of the clips aren't suitable for work- and be careful if your kids (or parents) are near.

1. The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
Screenplay by Jim Sharman and Richard O'Brien (based on his play) and directed by Jim Sharman

'Give yourself over to absolute pleasure. Swim the warm waters of sins of the flesh!'

Cheesy, campy, kitschy, addictive and downright fantastic, this wonderful cult movie has spawned a whole sect of devoted followers: me included. Who cannot help but love a film whose central ethos is 'don't dream it, be it?' That it is still going stronger than ever thirty-three years on is testament to the fundamental message and just how fun the whole thing is. Susan Sarandon went on to win an Oscar whilst Tim Curry is defined (rightly or wrongly) by his exceptional gender-bending turn as Frank N Furter. It's just brilliant. If you've never seen it, you don't know what you're missing.

2. Beautiful Thing (1996)
Screenplay by Jonathan Harvey (based on his play) and directed by Hettie Macdonald

'I wish I was the one that was going away. Nothing ever happens around here. I gets up in the morning, bake my face in half a ton of slap, tong my hair with yesterday's lacquer, that's it. It's the same every bleeding day.'

Obligatory mention of Doctor Who. This wonderful little gem was indeed directed by the same lady who directed Blink. The touching and beautiful story of the burgeoning relationship between two lads on a London council estate transcends most of the usual coming-out cliches and presents a very honest view of things. Stellar performances by Scott Neal and Glenn Berry as the two boys, with excellent support by Linda Henry as Jamie's mum and Tameka Empson as the boys' Mama Cass-loving friend Leah. I can't watch this film without crying, especially at the finale. Whenever I hear 'Dream A Little Dream Of Me', I think of this.

3. The Adventures Of Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert (1994)
Written and directed by Stephan Elliott

'It's funny. We all sit around mindlessly slagging off that vile stink-hole of a city. But in its own strange way, it takes care of us. I don't know if that ugly wall of suburbia's been put there to stop them getting in, or us getting out.'

Two drag queens and a transsexual go on a road-trip across Australia, baring souls and sequins along the way. The central trio- Guy Pearce, Hugo Weaving and the superlative Terence Stamp- are just fantastic. Beneath the glitter, there's darkness too which is addressed very even-handedly. The musical interludes are high-energy and divine and it's no surprise that a stage musical has been made of it. I can't wait to see it when it hits London next year.

4. Love! Valor! Compassion! (1997)
Screenplay by Terrence McNally (based on his play) and directed by Joe Mantello

'A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum where the only thing that happens is nothing. And it's not funny. And they all go down waiting. Waiting for what? Waiting for nothing. Waiting for death like everyone I know and care about is, including me'

A group of gay friends meet at a beautiful house in the country over three successive holiday weekends. They argue, bicker, fall in love, fight, dance and learn the meaning of friendship. It might sound incredibly earnest but it's a wonderful piece of cinema with a truly brlliant ensemble cast (with John Glover a particular standout as playing twins James and John, and Jason Alexander as the camp musical-obsessed and HIV+ Buzz). The script swings from zingy one-liners to truly heart-felt dialogues- none more so than when Buzz's happy facade crumbles and he faces up to his feelings for James and the illness which will kill them both. Despite that, it's a very affirming film.

5. Shortbus (2006)
Written and directed by John Cameron Mitchell

'As my dear departed friend Lotus Weinstock used to say: "I used to wanna change the world. Now I just wanna leave the room with a little dignity."'

This film proved very controversial on its release for the depiction of actual sex. That's right. Sex. The actors have sex with one another. Men with men, men with women, women with women, women with men and women... but if you're looking to be titillated, look elsewhere because beneath that lies a film about the problems people have with connecting with one another. There's a wicked turn by Justin Bond as the mistress of Shortbus and after one particular scene, I can never hear The Star-Spangled Banner without smirking. The rousing climax to the film- in more ways than one- is particularly strong.

6. Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Screenplay by Larry McMurtry & Diana Ossana (from a short story by Annie Proulx) and directed by Ang Lee

'So what we got now is Brokeback Mountain! Everything's built on that! That's all we got, boy... So I hope you know that, even if you don't never know the rest!'

Of course it had to be on here. Absolutely robbed of Best Picture at the Oscars. this brave and beautiful film deserved every critical plaudit it received. Both Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal give career-best performances as the two cowboys whose burgeoning love one summer at Brokeback Mountain continues clandestinely for years later. Given the teen-friendly performances given by Michelle Williams and Anne Hathaway, major kudos to the two of them for appearing in it. This movie affected me greatly and it's another one which makes me tear up. I've been in a relationship similar to the one portrayed here- with me as Jack, wanting more than the other could give- so it resonates deeply.

7. The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy (2000)
Written and directed by Greg Berlanti

'Everyone can't be straight. Everyone can't be beautiful. Everyone can't be the same, Patrick. Some people are just gay and average.'

Dennis is a photographer, living in West Hollywood, with a good circle of gay friends. The film follows the exploits of the group, falling in and out of love and finding out what matters to them. There's an interesting cast- which includes Timothy Olyphant, Zach Braff, Dean Cain and John Mahoney- and a script with real heart. OK, it occasionally lapses into soap-opera territory (as rightly mentioned by one of the characters when getting his hair cut) but there are some real heart-rending moments to be found within.

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Next blog, new countdown: QB'S OFFICIAL AND DEFINITIVE TORCHWOOD COUNTDOWN!

Have a good weekend, everyone!

Much luv,

QB

Good afternoon,

I hope this finds you all well. I myself am fairly chipper, despite it being the beginning of November and cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey. I went to a Halloween house party on Friday with my writer friends and we had a cracking time, listening to a radio adaptation of Sweeney Todd that two of my friends were in and also read spooky poetry to each other whilst enjoying a glass of wine and some good food. We were all dressed up as well. Luckily I don't have any photos of how I looked but all I'll say is you can always trust the gay boy to take it to the extreme Let me put it this way, my costume included a red wig, black rubber gloves, stockings and suspenders, a red velvet cape and ruby slippers. Make of that what you will.

A bit of good news though: I am one step away from re-entering the workforce. I have been offered a position with the Department of Work and Pensions! I'm just waiting for a starting date. I was over the moon when the letter arrived. I cannot wait to get back into the world of work, especially since I'm going to be doing a job that will actually help people: I'll be working for a department that facilitates people with disabilities or special requirements to get back into work. I will let y'all know when I hear some more.

I also feel I have to pass comment on David Tennant's little announcement at the National Television Awards. Whilst I am gutted that he's stepping down from the TARDIS at the end of 2009 (after the specials), I am not overly surprised. I've had a feeling for a while that- with the transition from Russell T Davies to Steven Moffat as showrunner and with Julie Gardner and Phil Collinson also leaving- there was going to be a complete seachange to take the show into the next phase, 'The Moffat Years' if you will. And that change would also include a new Doctor. Tennant's contribution to the show cannot be underestimated and he will be missed greatly by a lot of people- including me. But, be of good cheer, we still have him for another 5 episodes! Which is why I did feel it was a little disingenuous of the BBC to start talking about who was going to take over from him the day after the announcement. There'll be time enough to discuss who's going to take over. Let's just enjoy the Tenth Doctor for a little longer, shall we?

I'm also ascended to a new level here, I'm now Level 41: Sleestack. I don't like the emblem AT ALL, so I'm submitting left, right and centre and hoping to get off the level pretty soon. Good job I have active shows.

OK, a little bit of tellystuff:

Merlin: A Remedy To Cure All Ills was a fairly decent episode, with a great guest performance by Julian Rhind-Tutt as the sinister and scarred physician Edwin. Richard Wilson was also fab. This week's episode, The Gates Of Avalon, had a few decent moments- I particularly liked Katie McGrath in the episode, as Morgana finally had some stuff to do- and was a decent enough episode too.

Little Britain USA: This Friday's episode really did lay on the retread of past sketches- Bubbles meeting a rich man, the university secretary who is rude to the students, the politician admitting to an illicit affair- but some of them did raise a giggle or two from me. Tom Baker's narration is what is making it worthwhile though. (As a sidebar, I saw Tom as the Guest Host on Have I Got News For You (which is not a show I watch regularly) and he is on a different bloody planet- but it was very amusing indeed. There were a couple of nice swipes at his Doctor Who legacy- I especially liked his opening line 'I used to be Jon Pertwee'- as well as some pertinent comments on the whole Brand/Ross 'prank call' farrago).

Stephen Fry In America: I've been following this series with some interest. I like Stephen Fry and believe that, when I get older, I'm probably going to turn out to be quite like him in some ways. His trawl through the various states of America has been very interesting- the various characters he's met on the way have been fascinating, including a Jewish voodoo priestess in New Orleans, some real-life gangsters in New York and a young man with the state of Kentucky tattooed on his a$$. He's also followed the path of the Mississippi river from Louisiana to Minnesota, visited the Ben & Jerry's ice-cream factory in Vermont and worked as a dancing escort in Florida. It's all very interesting stuff and Fry makes for an erudite and affable presence. Makes me want to undertake the trip myself.

In Love With Barbara: I'm not a fan of Barbara Cartland in the slightest but I watched this drama because it has two very fine character actors in it- Anne Reid as the older Barbara and David Warner as Lord Mountbatten. The story was fairly standard (and I didnt think much of the girl who played the younger Barbara) but Reid gave a commanding performance and her interaction with Warner was particularly good.

* * *

Musical Interlude: Pink is one of my favourite singers, and her fifth studio album Funhouse was released this week. It's full of cracking songs, but I think I've found my favourite. Click here to hear the beautiful 'Glitter In The Air'.

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QB'S OFFICIAL AND DEFINITIVE NEW WHO COUNTDOWN! (PART NINE)

OK, here goes. The Top 5. I was going to recap the rest of the episodes but I think that'd take too long. I may do a full recap next blog before my new countdown begins.

5. THE EMPTY CHILD
Written by Steven Moffat and directed by James Hawes

'1941. Right now, not very far from here the German war machine is rolling up the map of Europe. Country after country, falling like dominoes. Nothing can stop it, nothing until one tiny, damp little island says "no". No, not here. A mouse in front of a lion. You're amazing.'

The episode which introduced the delectable Captain Jack Harkness to us is also a bloody creepy affair. I remember watching it in the early hours of the morning after coming back in from a night out and having to turn it off after a few minutes because I was freaked out. A very dignified performance by Richard Wilson, plus strong support by Florence Hoath as Nancy. Even now, after everything that's passed, my skin still creeps when I hear 'are you my mummy?'

4. THE STOLEN EARTH
Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Graeme Harper

'The children of time are moving against but everything is falling into place'

Spectacular in scope and executed brilliantly, the various strands of the Whoniverse draw together when the Earth is taken from its place in the sky. There's a beautifully malevolent performance by Julian Bleach as the resurrected Davros and a lovely turn by Penelope Wilton as Harriet Jones, former Prime Minister ('yes, we know who you are'.

3. UTOPIA
Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Graeme Harper

'The call came from across the stars, over and over again. 'Come to Utopia'.

Jack's back, baby! Yes, the delectable Captain Harkness hitches a lift on the TARDIS which spirals out of control and goes to the end of the universe where an aged Professor is trying to help people get to Utopia... Derek Jacobi gives one of the best guest performances of the series as Yana, plus the end is an absolute doozy. The Master reborn!

2. DALEK
Written by Robert Shearman and directed by Joe Ahearne

'You just want to drag the stars down and stick them underground beneath tons of sand and dirt and label them. You're about as far from the stars as you can get.'

Easily Christopher Eccleston's best performance in the show, the Doctor and Rose find their way into an underground alien museum where he comes face-to-face with the last footsoldier of his true nemesis... Strong support by Corey Johnson and Bruno Langley but ironically the best performance in the episode is from Nicholas Briggs as the voice of the Dalek. It's a proper tour-de-force, tinging the metal screech with anger, sadness and confusion. Brilliant.

1. SCHOOL REUNION
Written by Toby Whithouse and directed by James Hawes

'Do you know what the most difficult thing was? Coping with what happens next. Or what doesn't happen next. You took me to the furthest reaches of the galaxy, you showed me supernovas, intergalactic battles and then you just dropped me back on Earth. How could anything compare to that?'

There really was very little to separate these five episodes but School Reunion stood out. Not only for the return of Sarah Jane and K9 (although for nostalgic reasons, that does rate highly) or for the outstanding guest turn by Anthony Head- the showdown between the Doctor and Finch across the swimming pool is nigh on genius- but it's the perfect example of what Who can do: monsters with a convincing motive, a fair smattering of humour, some creepy moments and the entire cast on top form. The scene between Sarah Jane and Rose with the oneupmanship of what they've seen is just brilliant and if you don't get a lump in your throat at what K9 does at the end, you're made of stone.

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OK, before I go, it's time to get serious again. On November 4, the USA goes to the polls to elect a new president. Please, please, please... if you are eligible and registered to vote, please use it. Who you vote for is between you and your conscience- I'm certainly not about to start preaching on who you should vote for (although if you know me, you'll probably have guessed where my affiliation would lie), but I have always believed it is vital to take part in the democratic process. Besides, if you don't vote, you can't complain if things don't go the way you wanted them to So please get out and use your vote this coming Tuesday. Make it count.

Thank you and have a pleasant tomorrow

Much luv

QB

Greetings,

I didn't realise it had been so long since I blogged. No real reason behind it, although I have been kinda busy with one thing and another recently. I was away for the weekend last weekend again for another friend's birthday- this time was Manchester. It was much with the fun. Still nowhere near on the job front. I've applied for jobs with Zurich Insurance, ING Savings and- gulp- the Tax Office. One very good thing though: one VERY good thing indeed.

I'm going to London to see David Tennant and Patrick Stewart in Hamlet!

Thanks to eBay, I managed to get a ticket for the first Friday evening performance- December 5th. It's made even more special by finding out someone I went to college with- and was in the drama society with- is playing Laertes. So that's cool. I am SO psyched by this, it's unbelievable. I might even make a weekend of it, do a bit of Christmas shopping. We'll see.

Anyway, a bit of tellystuff:

The Sarah Jane Adventures: Part 2 of The Day Of The Clown was good. I barely recognised Bradley Walsh and he pitched it nicely, not too menacing but not too camp either. I don't like clowns tho. It was good to see a little bit of Sarah Jane's past. I think Part 1 of Secrets Of The Stars is the best so far. Again, Russ Abbott gave a nicely sinister turn. I'm interested in astrology so it's good to see that being addressed. Plus they used the New Theatre in Cardiff for Trueman's show!

Heroes: I'm slightly ahead of the curve with Season 3 (guess how?) and am loving it immensely. I think it's the strongest story arc so far. I'm loving Daphne- she's cool. I'm also loving what they're doing with Mohinder and Sylar. It's also good that they're doing something with Sandra Bennet as well- bringing her in. It's good to see Jessalyn Gilsig back in the show too. I do like Malcolm McDowell and the whole Tracey/Niki thing. Dying Of The Light ended on a doozy of an cliffhanger- it's gonna be great to see where it goes from there.

Merlin: Lancelot was a fairly solid and enjoyable romp, with Santiago Cabrera quite impressing as Lancelot. The CGI Griffin did look a bit cheap though. The press release for A Remedy To Cure All Ills sounded a bit meh, but the trailer looks very good. Can't remember if I mentioned it, but I got the editorship for the show, which is cool.

Little Britain USA: It's all a bit hit-and-miss really, but that's the risk with a sketch show isn't it? They seem to be recycling a lot of the sketches and changing them to a US setting. The Bubbles sketches have been very funny and Tom Baker's narration is always worth it.

Strictly Come Dancing: The boys and girls have now started competing against one another, but I really didn't think that Don Warrington was the worst last week. I want Cherie Lunghi to win- she's a great dancer, very elegant and graceful.

* * *

Musical Interlude: Click here for the video to 'Unintended' by Muse. It's a song I recently rediscovered whilst going through some old CDs. I forgot how good this song- and their earlier stuff- was. Might not be to everyone's tastes but I like it.

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QB'S OFFICIAL AND DEFINITIVE NEW WHO COUNTDOWN! (PART EIGHT)

OK, we're in to the Top 10. Next blog, I'll give a rundown of all the other episodes then reveal my Top 5.

10.THE FIRES OF POMPEII
Written by James Moran and directed by Colin Teague

'That is how I see the universe. Every waking second, I can see what is, what was, what could be, what must not.'

A powerful wallop of an episode after the fun but lightweight season opener. Catherine Tate thoroughly impressed me throughout as Donna challenges The Doctor about abandoning the people of Pompeii to their terrible fate. Great guest performance by Peter Capaldi too. I especially liked the Latin sounding like Welsh running joke and the Spartacus bit.

9. THE SHAKESPEARE CODE
Written by Gareth Roberts and directed by Charles Palmer

'Upon this night the work is done, a muse to pen Love's Labours Won!'

Undeniably there are better episodes but I really enjoy this one, and it doesn't get old. For a Shakespeare geek like me, there are plenty of references to the Bard's works to spot and there's a real sense of fun throughout. Dean Lennox Kelly and Christina Cole shine and there's some of Murray Gold's best work in the score (especially 'The Carrionites Swarm').

8. THE GIRL IN THE FIREPLACE
Written by Steven Moffat and directed by Euros Lyn

'One may tolerate a world of demons for the sake of an angel.'

This is an episode that I horribly misjudged on its first broadcast but on repeated viewing, it's become one of my favourites. A beautifully radiant performance by Sophia Myles as Madame de Pompadour anchors the whole thing and the clockwork robots are quite freaky.

7. BLINK
Written by Steven Moffat and directed by Hettie Macdonald

'Don't blink. Don't even blink. Blink and you're dead. They are fast, faster than you could believe, don't turn your back, don't look away, and don't blink.'

Yep, another Moffat script makes my Top 10. This is one of the most highly regarded episodes of the series to date- quite ironic that David Tennant barely features. A wholly more successful Doctor-lite adventure than Love & Monsters, it's utterly creepy and very funny in equal measures and Carey Mulligan is just fantastic as Sally Sparrow.

6. DOOMSDAY
Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Graeme Harper

'If you really want to know. That's the Doctor. Five million Cybermen. Easy. One Doctor? Now you're scared'

The best season finale of the show to date. The Daleks v Cybermen smackdown is something that fans had been waiting for for ages. However, even that plays second fiddle to the pure emotion of Rose's heartwrenching departure from the Doctor. I cannot watch this episode without crying like a child. Some of the best work either David Tennant or Billie Piper did on the show.

Just five episodes to go. I'm gonna have to think of something to replace it. Any ideas?

Anyway, I hope you all have a good weekend.

Much luv

QB

Greetings all,

Today's blog is going to be something a little different, to celebrate National Coming Out Day (for some reason, it's today (12th) in the UK, and the 11th everywhere else) but also to honour the ten year anniversary of the death of Matthew Shepard. The Who countdown won't be present today- I'll pick that up (and possibly even finish it off) next time.

First, I got the editorship for Merlin which I'm v. pleased about. The Poisoned Chalice was a decent adventure romp (even if the spiders did freak me a little- well, a lot).

Secondly, I met Russell T. Davies and Benjamin Cook at the booksigning of Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale in Borders Cardiff on Friday. I queued for two hours but it was worth it. He was very friendly and effusive, chatting to everyone and making time to talk as well rather than just signing the book and onto the next. It was a great afternoon actually, as you can imagine there were loads of people waiting so we were all chatting and talking about various aspects of Who. We are a very friendly fandom (for the most part).

* * *

Musical Interlude: Click here for a rather lovely and quite sensual collection of man-on-man kisses set to the quite lovely and rather sexy 'What Would Happen (If We Kissed)' by Meredith Brooks. Should go without saying, but this ain't exactly suitable for work and be careful if your folks (or your kids) are around.

* * *

OK, now it's time to get a little serious. As it's National Coming Out Day, I thought I'd share with y'all one of my coming out stories. To be honest, I think coming out is an ongoing process. Every new situation you're in begs the question 'do these people need to know my sexuality?' I was not out at my last place of work, because I didn't think it was anyone's business and it didn't affect how I worked. Being a large company though, there were a lot of gay people around. Anyway, I digress. I first started having feelings for boys when I was 14. When they still persisted three years later, I thought I might be bisexual. So I started telling a few of my friends, who were mostly cool with it. Went off to college, had some experiences (with both men and women) and came to the conclusion that I was actually gay.

The biggest 'coming out', I think, has to be to your family. I come from a very close family and, growing up, I had it instilled into me that family is all and you don't do anything to damage or hurt them. That's part of the reason why it took so long for me to come out to them. I envisioned it causing a rift between my brother and the rest; I was convinced my brother would never speak to me again. Anyway, it got to summer 2004 and I decided enough was enough, they had to know. I went home four or five times with the express intention of 'this weekend I'm gonna do it'. Well, I didn't. Just couldn't find the right way or the right words. So many times I'd be on the train back to Cardiff virtually in tears and feeling like such a coward.

It was a performance night that nailed it.

I was doing a performance evening with the writers' group and had selected a very autobiographical piece about the start of a relationship between two guys. There is no way that anyone who even vaguely knew me couldn't spot it was about me and my ex. I knew my mum and my sister were coming to the performance and I didn't want to hijack the night and make it all about that. So they needed to know.

So, one wet Sunday morning in November 2004, I told my mum I was gay She looked at me over the top of her glasses (she was sewing a pair of my dad's jeans at the time) and went 'Oh. OK.' I thought 'is that it?' She looked at me and said 'Are you OK with it?' 'Yes, I am' I replied. 'Well, that's all that matters' she said.

I started crying then. Mum asked if I wanted her to tell my dad but I said no, I thought I should do it. So I told my dad and he was OK with it too. I started crying again and the only thought that came into my head, and the only thought I could verbalise was 'you must be so disappointed'.

'Don't be stupid,' my mum said. 'Did you really think we didn't know?'

'Why couldn't you have told me?' I asked.

'It doesn't work that way' said my dad.

We've never really spoken about it since. They know, they're OK with it. That's all that matters.

Today is also the ten year anniversary of the death of Matthew Shepard. In October 1998, Matthew was robbed, beaten and tied to a fence and left to die. Five days after the assault, he died- and two young men were charged with his murder. During the trial, they attempted to use the gay panic' defence- Matthew was gay he made advances towards them and they decided to beat him to a pulp and leave him in the cold Wyoming night to die. Thankfully, justice prevailed with one of the young men pleading guilty and the other found guilty. As a young man dealing with his own nascent sexuality, this event had a very deep effect on me. I know enough about STIs, HIV and all the rest to know to protect myself when it comes to sex. But you can't protect yourself against the narrow-minded thuggery of another human being who decides that just coz you sleep with men that your life is not worth anything. Matthew's senseless murder was the catalyst for hate crime legislation. It's just a shame that someone had to die for it to happen.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a good week. Take care of yourselves and each other.

Much luv

QB

What ho me old boilers?

I trust this finds you well. As promised, normal QB blogging service resumes with all the usual junk. On a personal level I'm OK. Still heard naff all about the jobs I was interviewed for, but there we go. I've applied for a Christmas relief job with the Royal Mail so waiting to see what's coming of that. I went to Stafford on Saturday for a friend's 30th birthday. It was a surprise for him and we had a good time. I was exhausted though for most of Sunday and yesterday.

Anyway, TV-related stuff (and there's quite a bit!)

Merlin: I really did enjoy The Mark Of Nimueh (despite Michelle Ryan not having that much to do really). There's a lovely foreshadowing of events with Uther's remark toward the end. The final scene between Morgana and Merlin was funny and Gwen is so sweet (although were sandwiches actually around at that time?) Plus, a bit of a bonus in that it looked like the Afanc was prosthetic rather than CGI.

The Sarah Jane Adventures: Yep, sad as it is, I'm watching them. The Last Sontaran was a fairly standard affair, although there was some attempt at creating an atmosphere of menace during the opening scenes. I also caught a re-run of Invasion Of The Bane (which I had never seen before). Thank God they got rid of Kelsey- how annoying was she? Nice turn by Samantha Bond as Mrs Wormwood. The first part of Day Of The Clown was on yesterday. I don't like clowns. They freak me out. However, a good start by Anjli Mohindra as Rani and I didn't recognise Bradley Walsh at all!

Heroes: Did a breakneck run through Season 2 (thankfully its only 11 episodes) in anticipation of Season 3 starting here last week. I have to be honest, by watching S2 in approximately 2 days, it did away with one of the major criticisms of the series- that things were happening too slowly. I liked Maya and Alejandro and their interactions with Sylar. It was great to see Nichelle Nichols as Micah's grandma. I was a bit confused by the Takezo Kensei/Adam thing, to be honest, but have just gone with it. Nice cameo by George Takei too. As for Season 3, I enjoyed The Second Coming greatly- even if the timeframe is a little twisted. The Sylar/Claire scenes reminded me a lot of Halloween. And why was that guy calling Niki Tracey? Unless it isn't Niki, of course. I particularly liked the chocolate tones of Sendhil Ramamurthy narrating W.B. Yeats' 'The Second Coming' at the end of the episode- it's one of my fave poems.

Little Britain USA: Not as good as it could have been. A couple of funny sketches- I did like the Grandma and grandson sketch where she admits to all the drugs she's done, the Bubbles sketch at the end was good and I thought Rosie O'Donnell's cameo at FatFighters was probably the best of the lot. I wasn't surprised to see it was done by HBO- I doubt they'd have got away with half of it on a regular network. I'll keep watching tho.

Strictly Come Dancing: No surprise to see Gary Rhodes foxtrot off this week. Of the guys, it does seem like Austin Healey and Tom Chambers are the men to beat, although I have to say both John Sergeant and Don Warrington surprised me. I did like the ladies' group dance too.

Tess Of The D'Urbervilles: A resolutely downbeat ending to the four-part story, but beautiful performances by Gemma Arterton and Eddie Redmayne as the doomed Tess and Angel (who proves to not be so angelic). Hans Matheson was also strong as the repugnant Alec d'Urberville who- in my opinion- gets exactly what he deserves. Having only ever read the story, it was interesting to see how it would translate on-screen. Very well, it turns out.

* * *

Musical Interlude: Not one, not two, but THREE songs from the Angel soundtrack Live Fast, Die Never. First up is Christian Kane doing the beautiful 'LA Song' (taken from the Season 2 episode Dead End). The second song is Andy Hallett vamping it up with LaBelle's 'Lady Marmalade', before taking it down a notch for the sweet 'It Ain't Easy Being Green' (both taken from the Season 4 episode The House Always Wins). Click here to listen.

* * *

QB'S OFFICIAL AND DEFINITIVE NEW WHO COUNTDOWN! (PART SEVEN)

15. HUMAN NATURE
Written by Paul Cornell and directed by Charles Palmer

'Sometimes when you look in his eyes, you know, you just know that there's something else in there. Something hidden, right behind the eyes, something hidden away, hidden in the dark.'

An outstanding episode and brilliant start to a touching and creepy two-part epic. In a boys' boarding school in 1913, teacher John Smith dreams of a strange blue box and of living the life of an adventurer called The Doctor. However, when an alien threat finds them, Martha must restore the Doctor. Strong guest performances throughout.

14. THE DOCTOR DANCES
Written by Steven Moffat and directed by James Hawes

'Everybody lives, Rose. Just this once! EVERYBODY LIVES!'

Not as successful as its opening part, but there's an undeniable sense of glee in Christopher Eccleston when he wildly proclaims 'EVERYBODY LIVES!'. Plus Captain Jack redeems himself and is therefore saved too. Has some creepy bits- especially in the Child's room- but some wild streaks of comedy too (Jack trying to shoot the Child with a banana).

13. THE UNICORN AND THE WASP
Written by Gareth Roberts and directed by Graeme Harper

'There's a murder, a mystery and Agatha Christie'

There are undeniably better episodes but this- like The Shakespeare Code- combines two of my passions and does it excellently. There's a lovely playful tone to the episode and a true sci-fi twist with the killer not being the butler but an giant alien wasp. A very dignified performance by Fenella Woolgar as Agatha, ably supported by a great ensemble cast,

12. ARMY OF GHOSTS
Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Graeme Harper

'In forty years time, fifty, there'll be this woman, this strange woman, walking through the marketplace on some planet a billion miles from Earth. She's not Rose Tyler. Not any more.'

The beginning of the end for the Doctor and Rose... The sighting of ghosts all around the world leads the Doctor to Torchwood- and to face the Cybermen. However, if things couldn't get any worse, a sphere kept in the vaults begins to stir... A truly exceptional cliffhanger and a strong episode throughout.

11. TURN LEFT
Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Graeme Harper

'Turn right and never meet that man. Turn right and change the world!'

Whilst it will go down in Who lore as 'The One Where Rose Comes Back', there's so much more to the episode- starting with a pivotal performance by Catherine Tate. As Donna changes history and never meets the Doctor that Christmas, the whole world dissolves into chaos... and a blonde traveller from across the stars must help Donna make a dreadful choice. Truly exceptional and with a doozy of a cliffhanger!

* * *

Well, that's all he wrote. Have a good week, everyone, and remember: take care of yourself and each other.

QB

Greetings, all.

Well, I hope those of you who took part in the BlackOut day of action yesterday found good and constructive ways to fill the time that would have been taken here. I managed to get a few things sorted with my PhD application, so that was time well spent indeed.

Normal QB blogging service will resume in the next blog, but here are my Top 5 Changes that I would like CBS/CNET/TVcom to address.

1. The white background needs to be changed - it's not easy to look at.

2. There is ABSOLUTELY no need for duplicate guides for non-US shows being broadcast in the US- International Airdates can easily be added to the show pages. The encouragement of plagiarism is not good.

3. Cast submissions are all over the place at the moment- some aren't showing up, some are being duplicated. This needs sorting out.

4. Please fix the s-t-y-l-e and c-l-a-s-s errors for blogs - this problem has gone on FAR too long.

5. Please reinstate the longer list of watched blogs.

I look forward to seeing if any of the concerns raised are addressed. It would also be cool to have an official figure of how many people took part.

QB

Mellow greetings, friends and associates,

Thought I'd sneak another one in before tomorrow. I hope this finds you all well. I'm OK. Had an absolute nightmare of a train journey back from my folks last night. I didn't leave til 7pm because it was supposed to be a straight-through journey to Cardiff. We got to Swansea where we were then told that there'd been a signal failure so we had to get a bus. We waited 40 minutes for the bus to arrive and then trundled off, finally getting to Cardiff at 11.30pm, so I got in just before 11.45. Not a happy bunny.

A little TV stuff. I'm thoroughly enjoying Tess Of The D'Urbervilles. I studied it at university and so was looking forward to seeing it. Gemma Arterton is brilliant as Tess, really conveying the confusion and innocence of the girl. Ruth Jones is excellent as her mum and the stunningly handsome Eddie Redmayne is particularly strong as Angel Clare. Of course, being later Hardy, there's no chance for a happy ending. But at least it's not as bad as Jude The Obscure.

I was surprised to see Gillian Taylforth foxtrot off Strictly Come Dancing as I thought Jessie Wallace was the worst of the night. That said, I certainly couldn't do a fraction of what the celebs are putting themselves through so it's a little disingenuous to criticise, but I did think Cherie Lunghi and Rachel Stevens did well, and the male celebs group merengue was fun to watch. Merlin was good this week too- no real surprises, but it's how you get to the inevitable conclusion that's the fun part. I even softened a little towards Arthur this week. Just a little.

Finally, a small tribute to the late great Paul Newman who sadly passed away this weekend. His legacy is amazing- not just the brilliant body of work he leaves behind (like The Hustler, Cool Hand Luke, Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid, Cat On A Hot Tin Roof and The Color Of Money) but his philanthropic endeavours too. If I can achieve a fraction of what he did in my time here, I'll consider myself immensely blessed. He was a fantastic actor, a devoted husband and father, a truly humble man with no trace of ego at all. During an interview, he once said: "I'd like to be remembered as a guy who tried — tried to be part of his times, tried to help people communicate with one another, tried to find some decency in his own life, tried to extend himself as a human being. Someone who isn't complacent, who doesn't cop out." He will be remembered for that and so much more. One of the greats and a true gentleman. I was truly saddened to hear of his passing.

* * *

Musical Interlude: I was quite intrigued by the cover comparison I did last time with Total Eclipse Of The Heart, so I thought I'd do it again- but the song's a little classier this time. It is the sublime and heartwrenching 'Hallelujah', originally written by Leonard Cohen. As I've said before, I like Cohen's songs when they're sung by other people but as a lyricist and poet, he's excellent. Anyway, here is Leonard Cohen's version. Two best-known covers come from Jeff Buckley and Rufus Wainwright. Which do you prefer? I think Buckley's version just gets it.

* * *

QB'S OFFICIAL AND DEFINITIVE NEW WHO COUNTDOWN! (PART SIX)

20. JOURNEY'S END
Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Graeme Harper

'The Doctor. The man who keeps running. Never looking back because he dares not, out of shame. This is my final victory, Doctor. I have shown you yourself.'

I still can't shake the feeling of being a little underwhelmed by the latest season finale, given the cracking start made by The Stolen Earth. Still, Julian Bleach is excellent as Davros and there's a real sense of bleakness to the end as what the Doctor has to do to save a companion's life is truly a fate worse than death.

19. BAD WOLF
Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Joe Ahearne

'This is what I'm going to do: I'm going to rescue her! I'm going to save Rose Tyler from the middle of the Dalek fleet, and then I'm going to save the Earth, and then, just to finish off, I'm going to wipe every last stinking Dalek out of the sky!'

Some nicely-observed gameshow parodies- especially the luscious John Barrowman stripped to the flesh in a twisted What Not To Wear- but there's also substance. The last-minute reveal of the Daleks as the enemies of the piece was quite shocking, plus we get a great companion-in-embryo with Lynda (with a Y).

18. FOREST OF THE DEAD
Written by Steven Moffat and directed by Euros Lyn

'Now and then, every once in a very long while, every day in a million days when the wind stands fair and the Doctor comes to call, everybody lives'

Not quite as good as its predecessor (below) but still a satisfying end to the Library story. It would be the hardest heart not to be melted by River Song's sacrifice. The Doctor's stand against the Vashta Nerada-possessed Anita was good, and Catherine Tate knocks it out of the park in the alternate reality scenes.

17. SILENCE IN THE LIBRARY
Written by Steven Moffat and directed by Euros Lyn

'Count the shadows. For God's sake remember if you want to live, count the shadows.'

Steven Moffat just knows what's going to play on your primal fears and here he uses it to good effect, making the shadows and the darkness the villain. There are brilliant performances by Colin Salmon and Alex Kingston (as River Song) and there's a real sense of menace.

16. THE FAMILY OF BLOOD
Written by Paul Cornell and directed by Charles Palmer

'He's like fire and ice and rage. He's like the night and the storm in the heart of the sun… He's ancient and forever. He burns at the centre of time and he can see the turn of the universe.'

Heartwrenching, a little scary in places and with some of the best acting David Tennant's ever done on the series, the conclusion to Human Nature is sublime. The two scenes that stand out for me are the Doctor's final conversation with Nurse Redfern and the scarecrow attack on the school- where you see some of the boys crying as they fire. Superb.

* * *

Well, that's it for me. Obviously I won't be here tomorrow- September 30th is Blackout Day. It may be tough to do, but I have plenty to do that will occupy the time (for example, the boxset of The Trial Of A Time Lord is out today). I'll be back on Wednesday with my Top 5 Changes list, after which normal blogging service will be resumed.

Will the last one to leave please turn out the lights?

QB

Greetings to you all,

I realise it's been a while since I blogged so I thought I would. I've not long got in from another performance evening that I did with the writers' group. It went very well. I was incredibly nervous, as I was doing two pieces that could really have gone either way with the audience- one was a monologue set in a shop where you could go and find your perfect man, the other a poem about the murder of Matthew Shepard (an event that had a very deep effect on me)- luckily, they were both received very well.

My job interviews were on Monday- I feel quite confident about the DWP interview, less so about the sales job (I think I shot myself in the foot when I mentioned that I'd applied to go back to college for my PhD). It's gonna be another 3-4 weeks before I hear from DWP, but I may know about the sales job by the end of the week. But the application process continues apace, I'm not resting on my laurels at all.

OK, onto a bit of TV-related stuff. How sad is it to admit I'm actually looking forward to the return of The Sarah Jane Adventures on Monday? I think it's gonna be good and (in the absence of both Doctor Who and Torchwood) a very serviceable substitute. The title of the Christmas Special has been released by the BBC Press Office- don't know if it was meant to- but apparently the title is going to be... The Next Doctor. Obviously, David Morrisey is 'the next Doctor'. Have a read of this which confirms it. Blink and you'll miss it, though (FYI, it's in the fifth paragraph from the bottom of the page).

Merlin was quite good. Surprised by the quality of it, to be honest. Considering she didnt have much to do, I warmed to Morgana muchly and Gwen was cool (a nice foil for Merlin). Colin Morgan was fab as Merlin, but I didn't think much to Arthur as a character (although Bradley James was good). Eve Myles was excellent as the malign Mary Collins and the final scene was fairly creepy. Loved the design of the Great Dragon and voiced to perfection by John Hurt! I'll be staying with this one methinks. I also watched Strictly Come Dancing but Austin Healey, Mark Foster (yum) and Andrew Castle aside, the rest of em looked like they had two left feet. It'll be interesting to see which of the girls gets shown the door. I think Rachel Stevens might do well- given all her experience with S Club 7 she's no stranger to choreography. We'll see how it progresses!

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Musical Interlude: Here we have a few versions of a song that I do like indeed: 'Total Eclipse Of The Heart'. For fans of the original, here is Bonnie Tyler giving it her all. Alternatively, here's Tori Amos doing a storming cover version of it live on tour (it might be blasphemy but I think I actually prefer Tori's version!). Or, if you like it a bit dancy, here's Nicki French's version. Take your pick!

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QB'S OFFICIAL AND DEFINITIVE NEW WHO COUNTDOWN! (PART FIVE)

25. THE PARTING OF THE WAYS

Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Joe Ahearne

'Do you know what they call me in the ancient legends of the Dalek homeworld? The Oncoming Storm. You may have removed all your emotions but I reckon there's one little spark left, and that's fear.'

One of the stronger season finales, I cheered, I cried and I shivered with fear as the Doctor, Rose and Jack faced the hordes of Daleks on the Gamestation. Even the hamfisted conclusion to the Bad Wolf arc can't diminish what is a very strong episode.

24. TOOTH AND CLAW

Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Euros Lyn

'I don't know who you are, the two of you, or where you're from but I know that you consort with stars and magic and think it fun. But your world is steeped in terror and blasphemy and death, and I will not allow it.'

The foundations of Torchwood are laid in this mini monster movie which pits the Doctor and Queen Victoria (a suitably imperious performance by Pauline Collins) against a sinister brotherhood of monks and a beautifully realised CGI werewolf.

23. PLANET OF THE OOD

Written by Keith Temple and directed by Graeme Harper

'Our children will sing of the Doctor-Donna, and our children's children, and the wind and the ice and the snow will carry your names forever.'

The Doctor and Donna get involved in a very heavy situation as they discover what makes the Ood so subservient. Big themes of slavery and the notion of freedom get examined in an occasionally thrilling and oddly touching episode. Big kudos to Paul Kasey as Ood Sigma too.

22. MIDNIGHT

Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Alice Troughton

'This little bunch of humans. What do you amount to? Murder? Because this is where you you decide who you are. Could you actually murder her, really or are you better than that?'

Lesley Sharp deserves some sort of medal for what she went through playing Sky. Lesley Sharp deserves some sort of medal for what she went through playing Sky. OK, that's creepy. OK, that's creepy. Stop it. Stop it. Fair enough. Paranoia, fear and mistrust build in this expertly crafted theatrical piece made all the more unnerving by the fact that it strips the Doctor bare. Ooer.

21. THE SOUND OF DRUMS

Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Colin Teague

'We used to call it The Shining World of the Seven Systems, and on the continent of Wild Endeavour, in the mountains of Solace and Solitude, there stood the citadel of the Time Lords'

The Master has become Prime Minister of Britain and the Doctor, Jack and Martha are being hunted. Several thoroughly brilliant scenes (the Simm/Tennant phonecall especially, as well as Vivian Rook's ill-fated convo with Lucy Saxon) plus some cool stuntwork and a great car-chase sequence make this a properly enjoyable episode. Plus it's cracking to see Gallifrey!

(At least numbers 20-16 next time!)

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One more thing, before I head off. Please go to Glenn's blog to learn more about the proposed 'blackout day' on Tuesday September 30 as a protest to the changes rolled out on TVcom. I give this my full support- as the nausea-inducing white space is really doing my head in (I'm actually posting this from MovieTome coz I can deal with that colour scheme). Please, please, please, if you're not a fan of the new changes, have a read of Glenn's blog and then join us in a day of protest- 24hours where you don't log in, don't submit, don't comment, don't blog, don't visit the site at all. For this to have a true impact, we need numbers.

I will attempt to blog again before the 30th- I'm off home to the 'shire for the weekend to see the folks so may well do it when I get back on Sunday.

Be good, and if you can't be good... be careful!

QB

Evening all,

Well, got quite a bit to cover so without further ado, I'm gonna jump straight in!

First off, I've FINALLY ticked over to the next TVcom level. So now I am Level 40: Bewitched (we just need to add Bothered and Bewildered to it and we're sorted). By the end of the year- which might be a bit ambitious, but I'm gonna give it a shot- I want to be Level 45 and I'd also like my 5000 subs badge. Like I said, ambitious. But I'm aiming for a few more people editorships and maybe even a show. Who knows?

Next: job front. The Department of Work & Pensions (hereafter DWP) assessment centre. After a false start (I received two letters- one with the 11th on and one with the 9th saying the first letter was wrong- and it turns out the first letter was RIGHT) it went OK. There were nearly 50 of us sitting the tests. Eep. Not only that but there's 50 in there already sorting out their tests and another 50 after us as well. It really was like being back at school. All done in pencil, so we could rub out any mistakes. The literacy test was fairly straightforward, or I thought it was anyway. The numeracy test was a bit more advanced- it involved taking info from various tables of data to get the correct answer (although it was multiple choice, so not so bad). What surprised me was that after the literacy tests, the invigilator said 'we'll just get these marked now so you'll need to wait about 15-20 minutes so we can give you your results today'. I assumed we'd get them in the post. I tell ya, it was like something out of The X-Factor.Once the tests were completed and marked, they called out about 30 people, leaving the rest of us in the room. Then they called out about 5 or 6 more. Then the invigilator came back in, closed the door behind her and said 'Congratulations everyone! You've passed the assessment centre and we're offering you final stage interviews!'

Upshot is, on the same day as the sales job interview (which I'm still waiting to be confirmed), I will have an interview for the DWP. At least I can get them over and done with in one day. The DWP's in the morning. Although I gotta say, I would prefer the sales job if it's offered to me. But I'll tell you more about that one in another blog.

The birthday bash in Birmingham went well. Nobody attempted to nick my camera which is always good. Met a lot of lovely interesting people. Well, I went on my own and only knew 2 people there (my mate and his boyfriend), so I just had a few for dutch courage and went into gregarious party-guy mode. Because I was in a tux, I did have a vodka martini. Big mistake. It was pure alcohol- basically, two double shots. Some of the other cocktails the place did were interesting to say the least. It was fun.

A few more things in the life of QB. Tomorrow evening (Wednesday), my mum and I are going to see medium John Edward which we're both looking forward to immensely. I dunno whether any of you believe in mediumship- some of you might, some might dismiss it as smoke and mirrors or pure mummery- but I believe in it- I've seen and experienced too much to be able to dismiss it out of hand. I'll let you know what happens with that. A week tomorrow, the writers' group I go to will be doing another performance evening which will be fun indeed.

I caught the Torchwood: Lost Souls radio play last week. I rather enjoyed it even if some of the dialogue was a bit expositionary, especially when it comes to the science of the LHC. The characters transposed quite well to radio and, given the budget, it would be cool to see it being filmed, especially the glowing 'angels'. It's a personal thing but I would have preferred to have heard the distinct voices of the 'ghost' characters rather than a generic tone- if you've heard it, you'll know what I mean. But all in all, trez interesting.

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Musical Interlude: Click here to hear a lovely rendition of the Leonard Cohen song 'Dance Me To The End Of Love' done by chanteuse Madeleine Peyroux. Much like Bob Dylan, I like Cohen's songs... when they're sung by other people

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QB'S OFFICIAL AND DEFINITIVE NEW WHO COUNTDOWN! (PART FOUR)

(Because there's quite a bit of stuff above and I don't want to overextend the blog, it's only 30-26 this time round- at least 25-21 next time round)

30. THE LAZARUS EXPERIMENT
Written by Stephen Greenhorn and directed by Richard Clark

'If you live long enough, Lazarus, the only certainty left is that you'll end up alone.'

Whilst some people see it as a subpar monster movie in miniature, I actually hold this episode in quite high regard. Strong performance by Mark Gatiss as Lazarus and a nicely philosophical meditation on mortality, it's enjoyable. Plus the Doctor gets a slap by Francine which is cool!

29. THE UNQUIET DEAD
Written by Mark Gatiss and directed by Euros Lyn

'Christmas 1860. It happened once. Just once, and it's… gone, it's finished. It'll never happen again. Except for you. You can go back and see days that are dead and gone, a hundred thousand sunsets ago.'

Stellar performances by Eve Myles as Gwyneth, Alan David as Mr Sneed and the great Simon Callow as Charles Dickens enhance this creepy and atmospheric episode where strange blue elementals reanimate the dead at Sneed's funeral parlour. Also contains the line 'I love a happy medium'.

28. THE SATAN PIT
Written by Matt Jones and directed by James Strong

'I've seen fake gods and bad gods and demigods and would-be gods. And out of all that, out of that whole pantheon, if I believe in one thing, just one thing… I believe in her.'

As second parts go, it's still pretty good (although not quite up to the opening ep). The design of the Beast is truly impressive but the real sitting on the fence as regards religion is a bit annoying. Cool effects with the spaceship and Jefferson's death is truly affecting.

27. THE IMPOSSIBLE PLANET
Written by Matt Jones and directed by James Strong

'The Beast and his armies shall rise from the pit to make war against God.'

Creepy, atmospheric and not a little scary in places, the Doctor and Rose find themselves at the furthest reaches of the universe beneath a black hole. Good ensemble cast- Claire Rushbrook, Will Thorp and Shaun Parkes especially- and a truly chilling cliffhanger.

26. GRIDLOCK
Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Richard Clark

'They say people go missing on the motorway. Some cars just vanish, never to be seen again, cos there's something living down there in the smoke.'

This episode has improved on repeated viewings. The Doctor's reticence to discuss Gallifrey coupled with the truly emotional end scene between him and Martha is lovely. Certain moments are incredibly heart-rending: if I just say 'The Old Rugged Cross', that'll be enough. Plus Sally Calypso used to be my text message tone.

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Before I sign off, as promised, here's a pic of me in the tux for my mate's birthday! Not quite up to the standard of Mr Tennant (see The Lazarus Experiment pic) but silk purse created from sow's ear nonetheless

Have a good week, y'all!

QB