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Written by Alex J Geairns
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Tuesday, 10 August 2010 00:00 |
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At Paradise Falls, a remote Mojave Desert petrol station and cafe, a husband, wife and daughter get stuck with car trouble – but that’s just the start of their woes. The diner’s waitress is heavily pregnant and can’t resist keeping on having a ‘crafty smoke’. Another stranger appears, just as the TV goes on the blink and ominous clouds amass on the horizon. Little do the staff and customers know that this is Archangel Michael, who has defected to the side of good, mainly as he’s not keen on being God’s spearhead for a coming Biblical apocalypse. His mission is not to save the cheerleader, but to save the waitress to save the world! British actor Paul Bettany (“Master and Commander”, “Wimbledon”, and the voice of Jarvis in the “Iron Man” franchise) plays Michael, who is joined in his quest by the likes of Dennis Quaid (“G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra”, “The Day After Tomorrow”), Lucas Black (American Gothic), Kate Walsh (Addison in Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice), and Tyrese Gibson (“Transformers”). |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 12 August 2010 14:08 )
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Hadleigh's Gazette on DVD |
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Written by Alex J Geairns
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Wednesday, 11 August 2010 07:50 |
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Gerald Harper had taken TV by storm in Adam Adamant Lives! – but his next venture would bring to life the character he is most associated with: James Hadleigh. The character begins by taking over as proprietor of the ‘Westdale Gazette’, a Yorkshire newspaper owned by his father. Created by Robert Barr and originally screened in 1968, Gazette introduced us to the charming, privileged but conscientious protagonist and his mixed fortunes that would continue to be chronicled in the sequel show Hadleigh. That series became one of Yorkshire Television’s most popular and long-running series, airing between 1969 and 1976. Right from the first episode, Hadleigh finds that the day-to-day running of the newspaper throws up thorny issues of public allegiances, the right to privacy, and potentially libellous reporting. Plots cover the controversy surrounding hunting, police cover stories, and many delicate dilemmas for Hadleigh and his reporting team to traverse through. |
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 11 August 2010 07:52 )
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Written by Alex J Geairns
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Wednesday, 11 August 2010 06:27 |
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This ITC crime drama series, loosely based on Edgar Wallace’s novel of 1905, assembles quartet of leads who rotate as being the star turn in successive episodes. These are Jack Hawkins (“The Cruel Sea”), Richard Conte (“The Godfather”), plus Oscar nominees Vittorio de Sica (nominated for “A Farewell to Arms” in 1958) and Dan Dailey (nominated for “When My Baby Smiles at Me” in 1949). Regular co-stars include Avengers icon Honor Blackman, as glamorous secretary Nicole, Lisa Gastoni as Giulia, June Thorburn as Vicky, and Andrew Keir (“Quatermass and the Pit”) as Jock. The Four Just Men garnered rave reviews from critics and proved a major success. Making early TV appearances alongside our quartet of stars are the likes of Judi Dench, Frank Thornton, Alan Bates, Jane Asher, Roger Delgado and Patrick Troughton. Making its debut in 1959, and produced by Sapphire Films Ltd at Walton Studios and on location in Britain, Italy and France, it sets the style for some future ITC productions, with its cosmopolitan flavour and picture postcard settings. |
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 11 August 2010 06:35 )
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Written by Jerry Angelsax
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Saturday, 07 August 2010 15:18 |
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Take the set design of Season 2 of Space: 1999, direction and special effects with the budget of Blake’s 7, and the costumes and dialogue style from “Barbarella” and you are probably getting close to a genetic description of “The Beast In Space”. Played out in its original Italian language with English subtitles, this is an off-the-peg story of a spaceship landing party finding out the dark secrets of a planet that they would have been better off leaving well alone. The eye candy for the lads is sufficiently “Charlie’s Angels” in aspect to satiate those of us who loved that style of female coiffure, while the male ‘talent’ is far more patchy. If ‘Space Odyssey’ is your SF of choice, then best to steer clear, but if ‘Space Opera’ is your bag, then this title is sufficiently cheesy to raise a giggle if screened late-night with an alcoholically steamed audience. |
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 07 August 2010 15:21 )
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