So Hot Right Now #30
Welcome to The Velvet Onion – the central hub for an interconnected range of alternative comedy and more. Click through for the latest news, and see what’s so hot right now THIS WEEK below…
MAGIC UNLEASHED WITH STRANGE & NORRELL
Sunday, 9pm, BBC ONE
This week sees the long awaited launch of BBC One’s new fantasy drama Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell which features Paul Kaye and Edward Hogg amongst its hugely talented ensemble cast.
© BBC / Todd Antony
The show is based upon Susanne Clarke’s bestselling novel, and there’s a strong pedigree behind the camera, with writer Peter Harness and director Toby Haynes having previously worked on Doctor Who, Wallander and Sherlock between them. Eddie Marsan and Bertie Carvel lead the cast, which also includes Charlotte Riley, Alice Englert, Enzo Clienti, Vincent Franklin, Brian Pettifer and Marc Warren in full on ‘spooky bastard’ mode.
We’ll have a full spoiler free preview of the first episode for you later this week, as well as a catch-up with star Paul Kaye. In the meantime, we can tell you that while the serial may be slow to get going at first, the mystery and intrigue builds as the episode proceeds, the cast act their socks off, and it leaves you wanting more. Which you’ll receive each Sunday for the following seven weeks.
For now, then, set your DVRs, put a reminder in your phones or keep an eye on iPlayer, because we guarantee this is one not to be missed. Episode One airs on Sunday evening at 9pm on BBC One. US audiences can see the show from June 13th. In the meantime, you can see a trailer below.
FRESH MURDER IN SUCCESSVILLE
Wednesday, 10pm, BBC THREE
BBC Three’s new partially improvised sitcom-gameshow-hybrid Murder in Successville continues this week, with Radio 1 DJ Greg James the new rookie partner for Tom Davis unorthodox DI Sleet.
© BBC / Tiger Aspect / Ollie Upton
This week, the murdered celeb in the run-down town of Successville is none other than Reese Witherspoon, here the owner of Successville’s biggest chain of bars, in one of the daftest puns we’ve heard in a while. As ever, one of the town’s inhabitants did it – but is it the right honorable Reverend Gary Barlow (Colin Hoult), strip club owner Mary Berry (Frances Barber), or casino boss Justin Bieber (Cariad Lloyd)?
For some, the delightful aspect of Murder in Successville is watching the immersed celeb guest crack under pressure, and with Tom Davis ripping him to shreds with his gruff, no-holds barred madness, there’s plenty of that on display. For us, though, the real delight is watching the impressive cast improvise characters around the bewildered star, which never gets old when your cast is this good.
Radio 1 DJ Greg James is the poor rube dropped into the entertaining, immersive murder mystery. He’s got to work out why Reese Witherspoon, owner of Successville’s biggest chain of bars (see what they did there?), has been murdered. Playing junior to the gruff, unorthodox-verging-on-insane DI Sleet (deadpanned brilliantly by Tom Davis), he’s criticised for being “a bit camp and weird”.
Also featuring Liam Hourican, Luke Kempner and Nick Mohammed, and music by Waen Shepherd, you can catch Episode Two on Wednesday evening at 10pm. Episode One, which also featured Tony Way, is available on iPlayer now. You can see a preview clip of this week’s episode, in which Greg James is forced to tackle an unexpected phone call, below, and catch our interview with Tom Davis over yonder.
W1A WRAPS UP
Thursday, 10pm, BBC TWO
The second series of the critically acclaimed W1A ends this week, days after star Jessica Hynes received a BAFTA for her work on the show.
© BBC / Jack Barnes
In this fourth and final instalment, the corporate merry-go-round continues to turn as the recent appointment of David Wilkes (Rufus Jones) to the post of Primetime Factuality Executive hasn’t improved his ability at actually making shows work, and it’s up to Izzy (Ophelia Lovibond) to provide inspiration for content to fit inside his new title One Big Family.
Elsewhere, personable Lucy Freeman (Nina Sosanya) has been persuaded to stay at the BBC by being made Head of Inclusivity, but a difficult situation involving a BBC London weather man and a female present threatens to blow up and take the management team with it, and Freeman’s feelings towards Ian Fletcher (Hugh Bonneville) are now rivalled by those of the brutal Anna Rampton (Sarah Parish).
Hynes role as PR guru Siobhan Sharpe is, by her own admission at Sunday’s BAFTA ceremony, just one part of the talented ensemble, which also includes fellow BAFTA winner Jason Watkins, acclaimed actress Monica Dolan, and up and coming talent Hugh Skinner. The award win means we’ve unlikely seen the last of the team, and that’s no bad thing, as this episode demonstrates the show doesn’t so much go out on a high, but stays consistently magnificent from start to finish. More, please.
Catch the final episode on Thursday evening at 10pm, and previous editions on iPlayer now. The first two series are also released on dvd at the end of the month, and can be ordered for £14 from The Velvet Onion Amazon Store.
THE DELIVERY MAN CONTINUES
Wednesday, 9:30pm, ITV
Episode Five of The Delivery Man airs on Wednesday evening, once again starring Darren Boyd alongside Faye Ripley, Paddy McGuiness, Aisling Bea and Alex MacQueen.
© Monicker Pictures
This week, former policeman turned midwife Matthew (Boyd) discovers a baby abandoned in one of the hospital’s cupboards. As he desperately tries to track down the mother before the authorities are called in, he must fend off senior consultant obstetrician Luke (MacQueen), who can sense something is up. Elsewhere, Lisa (Aisling Bea) plays agony aunt and Pat (Llewella Gideon) shows her colleagues a startling artwork she has created.
You can catch the latest episode on Wednesday at 9:30pm on ITV, and previous episodes are available now via ITV Player. There’s currently no sign of a dvd release, so if you’re a fan of the show, it’s probably a good idea to savour these while you can.
ALSO ON TV THIS WEEK
There’s a chance to see Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa if you haven’t already bought it (and really, you should have done a long time ago!), as the long-awaited debut feature-film for Steve Coogan‘s irrepressible broadcaster airs on BBC Two on Saturday from 9:20pm.
© BabyCow
That’s followed an hour after it finishes by another chance to watch the sublime In the Loop – which put The Thick of It‘s Malcolm Tucker (the incomparable Peter Capaldi) on the big screen, sparring against the late James Gandolfini as US Army General Miller. Coogan makes a memorable guest appearance as irate constituent Paul Michaelson (“Five megapixels”), and regular members of TToI team also make appearances, including Tom Hollander, Chris Addison, Joanna Scanlan and TVO regular Alex MacQueen. Catch it at 11:45pm on BBC Two.
Elsewhere, Spaced legend Simon Pegg makes a guest appearance on The Graham Norton Show on Friday evening, discussing his new film, Man Up, which features Sharon Horgan and is released in UK cinemas on 29th May. We love a bit of Peggy-goodness, as his work often draws him into our peripheral vision, so if you’re in on Friday night, you could do a lot worse than tune in for this, starting at 10:35pm on BBC One.
ON STAGE THIS WEEK
There’s almost always a chance or two to see a TVO regular on stage, often in London, but as demonstrated this week, also up and down the country. Here’s where you can find them throughout the week.
© Paul Foot
Monday 11th May
Aisling Bea with David Elms, Evelyn Mok, Jack Barry and John Hastings – The Pleasance, Islington, 8pm, £5
Tuesday 12th May
Aisling Bea and Diane Morgan – The Old Queen’s Head, London, 8pm, £7
Wednesday 13th May
The Colin Hoult Comedy Collab – The Warren, Brighton, 6:30pm, £8.50
Cariad Lloyd as part of the Comedy Store Players – The Comedy Store, London, 8pm, £17
Thursday 14th May
The Colin Hoult Comedy Collab – The Warren, Brighton, 6:30pm, £8.50
Paul Foot: Hovercraft Symphony in Gammon Sharp Minor – Slaughterhouse, Liverpool, 8pm, £12.50
Friday 15th May
Alien with Science Commentary by Richard Sandling and Adam Rutherford, hosted by Helen Arney – Old Town Hall, Chelsea, 6:30pm, £11.00
Channel 4 Comedy Gala with Aisling Bea, Alan Carr, Jack Dee, Jason Byrne, Jon Richardson, Josh Widdicombe, Katherine Ryan, Kevin Bridges, Michael McIntyre, Paul Chowdhry, Rich Hall, Rob Becektt, Romesh Ranganathan, Sara Pascoe, Sean Lock, Seann Walsh and Shappi Khorsandi – o2 Arena, London, 7:00pm, £44.75 to £165.75
Cariad Lloyd – The Camden Head, London, 8pm, Free
Paul Foot: Hovercraft Symphony in Gammon Sharp Minor – Alhambra Studio, Bradford, 8pm, £14
Saturday 16th May
Paul Foot: Hovercraft Symphony in Gammon Sharp Minor – Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal, 8pm, £12.50
Sunday 17th May
Paul Foot: Hovercraft Symphony in Gammon Sharp Minor – Nuffield Theatre, Southampton, 7:30pm, £10-£15
Cariad Lloyd as part of the Comedy Store Players – The Comedy Store, London, 8pm, £17
Kevin Eldon & Tony Law with Adam Buxton, Adam Hess, Bec Hill, Benny Boot, Darren Walsh, Marcel Lucont, Mat Ewins, Nick Helm, Pete Johansson, Sophie Hagen and Michael Legg – Leicester Square Theatre, London, 7:30pm, £20-£25
AND THE REST…
As always, there’s so much going on at the Velvet Onion, it’s easy to miss things. As well as our News pages, the best way to keep track is via our Twitter feed, so here are a few highlights from throughout the week gone by. Until next time, keep on peeling!
Happy birthday to the man with the tiny eyes. Sending best Velvet Onion wishes to Julian Barratt xxx
— The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 4, 2015
Apparently it’s time for me to “BREAK THE INTERNET” ! You wanted a naked “selfie” for 50,000 followers. Here it is! pic.twitter.com/7DR9kOTwvw — Paul Foot (@paulfoot) May 4, 2015
If you love ‘Inside No 9’ & think it deserves a bluray release for its darkly brilliant series of short films follow @InsideNo9Bluray & RT.
— .. (@InsideNo9Bluray) May 5, 2015
TVO caught up with @BigTomD for a quickfire chat about Murder in Successville – starting tonight on @bbcthree http://t.co/5jWEalBuuv — The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 6, 2015
Huge amounts of telly on tonight. Five shows with TVO stars in them! http://t.co/S9xWoCVYp8
— The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 6, 2015
TVO editor @DidymusBrush joins broadcaster @OfficialCDJ to discuss Doctor Who & The Velvet Onion in a free podcast. https://t.co/V4cRUvma8f — The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 7, 2015
As Ronan Keating once observed, you say it best… When you say nothing at all. Here’s @JohnnyBigface doing that. https://t.co/c2XxaB3MTF
— The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 7, 2015
Can’t stretch to a painting? You can now buy postcards of @noelfielding11‘s watercolours: http://t.co/adwRkJFP4k pic.twitter.com/PrMdQPCAio — The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 8, 2015
Aw look it’s Candy Bumgardner -Ed Miliband’s charisma coach. Pity it was in vain #AltElection https://t.co/kZMnWupru9 pic.twitter.com/SJwMFMs4C8
— Aisling Bea (@WeeMissBea) May 9, 2015
If you haven’t heard already… TVO’s favourite new comedy in a long time has been given the chop. 😦 http://t.co/HgMx2DnNMG Fare thee well. — The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 9, 2015
Katherine Parkinson, @RebeccaFront & Dan @Tetsell star in new sci-fi drama HUMANS coming to Channel 4 soon. http://t.co/GY3XaZPG1m
— The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 9, 2015
Divorce, a new comedy from @SharonHorgan, starring Sarah Jessica Parker, gets a full series commissioned by HBO: http://t.co/HSYhZi2KB7 — The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 10, 2015
Huge congratulations to @porksmith for his BAFTA win! Much deserved. Love from the whole team at TVO. x https://t.co/5U4ySkYxQm
— The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 10, 2015
“@BAFTA: .@JefficaHoons wins her first #BAFTATV award: http://t.co/dwLc9Hm4GR pic.twitter.com/bNmfnH8B6f” HUGE congratulations from TVO! — The Velvet Onion (@thevelvetonion) May 10, 2015
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