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Tartan Noir is thriving but are we already starting to get weary?
Tartan Noir is thriving but are we already starting to get weary?

The Herald Scotland

time20 hours ago

  • Entertainment
  • The Herald Scotland

Tartan Noir is thriving but are we already starting to get weary?

First up, BBC Scotland's award-winning re-boot of Ian Rankin's Rebus novels will return for a second series. Louise Thornton, the broadcaster's head of commissioning, describes herself as being 'blown away' by the audience response to season one and is promising to ensure the new series is 'must-see television'. Beyond that, the author himself is playing coy about what the new six-parter will bring us. 'Only screenwriter Gregory Burke knows what happens next,' says Sir Ian. Aye, right. Either way, it's good news. Before we see Rebus 2.0, however, we can enjoy the return of Karen Pirie, creation of Sir Ian's fellow Fifer, Val McDermid. It has just returned to STV and sees the plucky Detective Inspector handed a cold case – the kidnapping in 1984 of oil heiress Catriona Grant and her two-year-old son, Adam, from outside a Fife chippie. Again, good news. As played by Lauren Lyle, Pirie is one of the most watchable TV detectives so hers is a welcome return. So too the Fife setting. Finally to Shetland. Filming on season 10 of the series began in April and the smart money says an autumn transmission is most likely, given the previous release dates. Ashley Jensen returns as DI Ruth Calder while among those joining the cast are two well-known Scottish actors – Clive Russell and Ellie Haddington, best known for her roles in Motherland and Guilt – and Samuel Anderson, who plays Mal in Motherland spin-off Amandaland. Read more from Barry Didcock: No Jimmy Perez, of course, Douglas Henshall having bailed after season seven. But fans of Ann Cleeves's original novels might like to know he is returning in literary form – though just not to [[Shetland]] itself. Cleeves's new novel The Killing Stones finds Jimmy living in Orkney where he becomes involved in the investigation into the death of his old friend Archie Stout, murdered on his native Westray using a Neolithic stone. It will be published on October 7. But not everything is rosy in Scotland's crime drama garden. Sticking with fictional detectives and ending on a less salutary note, John Niven's latest novel, The Fathers, features as a central character a TV writer and denizen of Glasgow's West End who made his pile creating and writing a long-running crime drama titled McCallister. It sees a hard-bitten Glasgow detective transplanted to the Highlands and functions as a sort of Taggart-meets-Local Hero hybrid. Niven's character, Dan, is pretty jaundiced about McCallister and wants to kill the series. Speaking to the author recently I asked him if Dan's feelings reflect his own in any way. Is Scottish TV crime drama moribund, boring, safe? Where, for example, are the adaptations of novels by Chris Brookmyre, Liam McIlvanney, Louise Welsh or Alan Parks? Given the number of great crime writers we have, does he think perhaps we are actually not getting the shows we deserve? 'It seems so, yeah,' he told me. 'Especially in Scotland where you get so many fabulous authors… There's so many brilliant writers in that space that you'd think the TV screen should be saturated with really brilliant, edgy noir crime stuff. But it's not the case.' He added: 'I wouldn't name names, but I work a lot in the screenwriting space and I've had two or three in recent years where a producer will option a book and hire me to write a pilot and it will go so far down the line and then it always gets spiked at the last minute. It doesn't happen. One begins to weary.' The path from page to screen leaves many edgier projects by the wayside, it seems. Money is an issue, but ultimately it's the viewers' loss. How long before we too begin to weary? Superbams He has helmed several superhero films, written two live-action Scooby Doo movies and created something called Lollipop Chainsaw, a 'hack-and-slash' video game – so it's fair to say you'll search James Gunn's filmography in vain for even a sniff of anything as avowedly political as Spike Lee, Ken Loach or Andrea Arnold might turn out. And yet through the unlikely medium of yet another Superman reboot, the American director has set the cat among the pigeons – or perhaps that should be the feral, anti-woke moggy among the doves. Interviewed recently about the new film, which stars relative unknowns David Corenswet as Clark Kent and Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Gunn said: 'Superman is the story of America. An immigrant that came from other places and populated the country… but for me it is mostly a story that says basic human kindness is a value and is something we have lost.' James Gunn (right) on the set of Superman (Image: Warner Bros) Cue howls of derision from somewhere off to the right, who saw in his comments a criticism of recent migrant round-ups by US Immigrant and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 'We don't go to the movie theater [sic] to be lectured to and to have somebody throw their ideology on to us,' said swivel-eyed MAGA loyalist Kellyanne Conway, who served in Donald Trump's chaotic first administration. Meanwhile Fox News has taken to calling the film 'Superwoke' while anchor Jesse Watters has joked that 'Superman is fighting for truth, justice and your preferred pronouns.' As an aside, we've already had a flavour of this on our side of the Pond, though in typically British fashion our superhero-as-political-emblem wears a blue duffle coat, a battered red sou'wester hat and eats marmalade sandwiches. Yup, Paddington. So can Superman fly above politics? The New York Times asked that very question, though the answer seems obvious by now. Not a chance. Instead, the paper wrote, Gunn's comments have had the effect of 'thrusting the summer popcorn movie into an Earthbound culture war.' Mind you, the film is absolutely killing it at the box office – it had hit £300 million by its second weekend – so the culture wars haven't hurt it financially. On the whole the reviews have been good too, though don't expect more of the same when Gunn-produced follow-up Supergirl hits the cinemas in 2026. Speaking about his casting of Australian actress Millie Alcock as Supergirl, he recalled a conversation between himself and fellow producer Peter Safran. 'He's like: 'Well, who would you see as Supergirl?' I said: 'You see the House Of The Dragon?' Who was that little blonde girl on that?'' Sounds like it's back to business as usual, then. Little blonde girl? The MAGA right will love it. And finally The Herald's theatre critic Neil Cooper runs his eye over the tangled history of John Buchan's fabulous adventure novel The Thirty-Nine Steps as he enjoys a new Pitlochry Festival Theatre production by director Ben Occhipinti. The 1915 novel was originally adapted for film by Hitchcock in 1935, his version was re-shot by Ralph Thomas in 1959 and Occhipinti's take on it uses Patrick Barlow's 2005 adaption, which turns it into a four-hander. With clowns. 'An irreverent hybrid,' is Neil's take. He also watched a revival of Paul Hendy's West End hit The Last Laugh at the Theatre Royal in Glasgow, which pitches Tommy Cooper, Bob Monkhouse and Eric Morecambe into a dressing room together – what could possibly go wrong? Then it was to a very appropriate setting for Davie Carswell's stage version of Irvine Welsh's Porno, the 2002 sequel to Trainspotting – Leith Theatre in Edinburgh. Finally to music, where at Dunfermline's Alhambra [[Theatre]] Teddy Jamieson enjoyed a performance by the evergreen Lulu (though she was dressed in white and diamanté on this occasion). That soulful, rasping, rowdy voice with which she announced herself to the world as a young teenager with the single Shout back in 1964 remains intact,' is his verdict as she runs through a set featuring all the old favourites with sister Edwina on backing vocals.

Why Lucy Punch Decided To Face Her Fears On Shark! Celebrity Infested Waters
Why Lucy Punch Decided To Face Her Fears On Shark! Celebrity Infested Waters

Graziadaily

time21 hours ago

  • Entertainment
  • Graziadaily

Why Lucy Punch Decided To Face Her Fears On Shark! Celebrity Infested Waters

Lucy Punch's acting career has taken her from the school corridors of St Trinian's to her maisonette in SoHa (south Harlesden) in Amandaland to 'the shark capital of the world' with ITV. Despite often being cast as snooty, posh characters who think getting the bus is below them, the real life Lucy was brave enough to submerge herself in shark infested waters in the name of entertainment on Shark! Celebrity Infested Waters. With an impressive list of credits up her sleeve, here's everything you need to know about Lucy, including the noughties films you may have seen her in before. Lucy Punch is an English actress from Hammersmith in London. She performed with the National Youth Theatre between 1993 and 1997 and then enrolled at University College London before dropping out to pursue acting. She is perhaps best known for her role as Amanda in Sharon Horgan's hit series Motherland , which earned her a spin-off show called Amandaland which launched in February this year. Lucy is 47 years old. She was born on 30 December 1977. Lucy has starred in everything from the Woody Allen film Into the Woods to A Series of Unfortunate Events on Netflix, Bad Teacher and the How to Build a Girl series where she played Sylvia Plath. Speaking about her triumphant role as Amanda in Motherland and Amandaland, Lucy said, 'I've always thought of Amanda as an arrested teenager. She's a mean girl. Now it's almost like she's coming of age, growing up a bit, having to make friends, having to try.' Of course, Lucy's most recent project took her to the Bahamas to conquer her fear of sharks. 'We really are right in the middle of nowhere in the sea on our own with a load of sharks but I'm hoping when Tristin comes he's going to reassure us about what we are doing and that it's safer than it looks,' she said in the first episode. She is joined on the new show by Helen George, Ade Adepitan, Rachel Riley, Dougie Poynter, Lenny Henry and Ross Noble. Lucy has reportedly been with her partner Dinos Chapman since 2014 and they live together in LA. Dinos is one half of the visual art duo The Chapman Brothers. He has two daughters from his previous marriage to Tiphaine de Lussy. While Lucy has two sons aged nine and three. No, Lucy is notoriously private about her personal life and does not have social media. Shark! Celebrity Infested Waters is on Mondays on ITV1 at 9pm or you can stream the entire series on ITVX. Nikki Peach is a writer at Grazia UK, working across entertainment, TV and news. She has also written for the i, i-D and the New Statesman Media Group and covers all things pop culture for Grazia (treating high and lowbrow with equal respect).

ITV star Martin Lewis makes his acting debut as beloved BBC comedy returns tonight
ITV star Martin Lewis makes his acting debut as beloved BBC comedy returns tonight

Daily Mirror

time2 days ago

  • Entertainment
  • Daily Mirror

ITV star Martin Lewis makes his acting debut as beloved BBC comedy returns tonight

Motherland star Diane Morgan returns tonight as her alter-ego Mandy Carter, in hilarious 15-minute comedy shorts about a woman who just can't hold down a job - however, there's one particular guest star who fans may be surprised to see. Tonight's (Monday 21 July) series four debut will see ITV star Martin Lewis make his acting debut in the BBC comedy, which sees Diane look for a new career. ‌ Back at the employment centre, Mandy confesses she only managed to last 40 minutes in her latest gig as a dog food taster, but she did walk off with some (stolen) freebies. ‌ ‌ It's one sacking too many, so Mandy is put on a 'restart scheme' to get her back to work, which involves a cringey meeting in a town hall. Everyone says her image is part of the problem, so poor Mandy tries to shop for a new look, but the staff don't even want her in the shop. Later, minding the desk at her friend's nail salon, Mandy runs into her high school nemesis. Look out for guest stars including ex- EastEnder Cheryl Fergison, Car Share's Sian Gibson and even money saver Martin Lewis! Mandy airs tonight at 10pm on BBC Two. ‌ The best of the rest Female Fishermen: Beyond the Buoys When it comes to male-dominated careers, fishing has to be near the top of the list – of the 10,000 fishermen currently working in Britain, only 1% of them are female. But the tide is turning. An increasing number of young women are discovering this profession, and many believe female recruits could revitalise a flailing industry. Brooke is only 20 years old, and enjoys going out on the boat, even though she's not a morning person. Alongside her work as a nail technician, she also makes a living hauling in shellfish off the Isle of Skye, and has been nominated for a prestigious industry award. Over on the West Highlands, we meet Erin, who spends a fortnight at a time battling the dangerous conditions of the North Atlantic to bring home delicious prawns. She admits that it can be tough sharing cabins with men and coping with rough seas, but she loves seeing the world from the water. Meanwhile, Emma skippers her own creel boat after following in her father's footsteps. ‌ She has proved herself (winning the same award Brooke is nominated for), but her proud dad admits that women face significant prejudice in the industry, with many fishermen not ready to accept this could be a woman's world. Brooke faced similar attitudes, but was determined to prove her doubters wrong. Erin reflects on the declining numbers of young people going into the business, and explains people need to accept women if they want fishing to thrive in the UK. Female Fisherman: Beyond the Buoys airs at 7pm tonight on BBC One. Human ‌ So many natural history programmes give us insights into other species, but this landmark series reveals the fascinating secrets of our own. Incredible advances in DNA mean that we now understand that all humans alive today who do not have African origins, descend from a small group of Homo sapiens, who migrated to the Middle East. They were the first group to leave Africa, and proved incredibly successful in their quest for survival. Paleoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi explains how these humans managed to travel to Sri Lanka and make a home in the inhospitable rainforests there, hunting monkeys with hastily fashioned bone arrowheads. Ella also visits the Indonesian Island of Flores to introduce us to a species of human affectionately known as the 'hobbits', because of their likeness to the petite heroes of Lord of the Rings. How did this small but mighty species evolve and why did it fail to survive? Human airs at 9pm tonight on BBC Two. ‌ Emmerdale Mack is stunned when Pollard lets the cat out of the bag about Charity's surrogacy offer. After a blazing row with Charity, Mack gives her an ultimatum. Meanwhile, Jacob can't believe his granddad has abused his trust, but Pollard is unrepentant. Liam goes back to Owen's house. When he doesn't answer the door, Liam calls the police, who find Owen dead. DS Walsh finds the planted 'suicide note', and John feels like his awful plan is working. But Robert has suspicions… ‌ Emmerdale airs at 7:30pm tonight on ITV. EastEnders The Slaters are getting excited at the thought of Kat running The Vic, but there's a fly in the ointment when it comes to the finances. Meanwhile, Alfie calls Jean with a message for Stacey, but she gets distracted and doesn't pass it on. Cindy's not impressed when she hears Ian is planning to sell Beale's Eels so that he can bid for The Vic. ‌ Phil is worried when Julie turns up in a panic, revealing that Nigel has gone missing. EastEnders airs at 7:30pm tonight on BBC One. Coronation Street Debbie has an altercation with a hotel guest, who films her on his phone. Ryan saves the day, but he's shocked when Debbie thanks him with a kiss. Ryan has a word with Ronnie. ‌ Todd tells Billy that Theo is comfortable with his sexuality now, and their relationship is rosy. But Billy hears Theo talking about the new woman in his life, and confronts him. Sally visits Lou in prison. Lou begs her to take a loan and help with legal fees. Coronation Street airs tonight at 8pm on ITV1.

BBC Saturday Kitchen's Matt Tebbutt red-faced after guest's brutal swipe live on air
BBC Saturday Kitchen's Matt Tebbutt red-faced after guest's brutal swipe live on air

Daily Mirror

time4 days ago

  • Entertainment
  • Daily Mirror

BBC Saturday Kitchen's Matt Tebbutt red-faced after guest's brutal swipe live on air

Saturday Kitchen star Matt Tebbutt was left red-faced after a guest was left unimpressed by his food Saturday Kitchen star Matt Tebbutt was left red-faced after a guest's brutal swipe. ‌ During the July 19 edition of the hit BBC cooking programme, the presenter was joined by drinks expert Helen McGinn and chefs Hasan Semay and Luke Holder. ‌ Motherland and Cunk on Earth star Diane Morgan also appeared on the show to promote the fourth instalment of her BBC comedy series Mandy. ‌ During the live show, Matt made a plant-based cheesecake for Diane after she recently changed her diet. However, the actor soon looked unimpressed with the dish after having a mouthful. "How is it?" Matt asked, with Diane hesitantly replying: "Yeah it's nice." "You can't be that fussy!" Matt then said, causing the rest of the studio to erupt into laughter, before the host quickly changed the subject.

Diane Morgan says Mandy season four will bring ‘more violence and catastrophe'
Diane Morgan says Mandy season four will bring ‘more violence and catastrophe'

Leader Live

time15-07-2025

  • Entertainment
  • Leader Live

Diane Morgan says Mandy season four will bring ‘more violence and catastrophe'

The 49-year old, who created and wrote the show, will reprise her role in the comedy series to play the chaotic and jobless Mandy Carter whose adventures typically end in disaster. The fourth season, which is expected to air on July 21, will see more of Mandy's misadventures. Speaking about the new season, Morgan said audiences can expect: 'More of the same Mandy madness really, with perhaps less gurning but more sheer bloody violence and catastrophe. 'Mandy is still being forced to do jobs that she doesn't like and isn't any good at. Which I think everyone can relate to. 'She hasn't evolved at all, that's what makes her charming. She's learned nothing. Just keeps making the same mistakes, like all of us.' Speaking about the inspiration for the obscure situations Mandy finds herself in, Morgan added: 'They're all based on absolute fact. A lot of them are inspired by things that have happened to me. 'I've had a number of jobs that I've been fired from. Some I haven't even lasted an hour in. Acting's about the only job I've lasted more than a week in. So I have to stick with it. Morgan also said the make-up products used throughout production was entirely 'cruelty free'. She said: 'We decided to use only cruelty-free make-up products that haven't been tested on animals. We warned all the actors what we were doing and none of them had a problem with it. 'I think there should be a special logo at the end of the show to prove it. Most of the actors were amazed that some products aren't cruelty-fee. Some, well-known brands still test on animals and most people aren't aware of that.' The pilot episode aired in 2019 and was followed by its first season which consisted of six episodes plus a Christmas special which was transmitted in 2020. Speaking about how audiences received the show, Morgan added: 'It's complete surprise to me. I think it would just be a pilot that would disappear without trace… Some viewers have reacted to it in unusual ways. 'I've heard that at least four of them have turned vegetarian after watching an episode of the last series where Mandy gets a job in an abattoir, so that's good. Especially for cows.' Morgan is also best known for starring in BBC series Motherland and the mockumentary show, Cunk On Earth where she plays the ill-informed investigative reporter, Philomena Cunk – a character who was originated from Charlie Brooker's television review programme Weekly Wipe. In the series, Philomena is joined by experts who answer her questions about the progression of society as she tries to uncover humankind's greatest achievements and discover how humans came to be. The first episode of the new season of Mandy will air on BBC Two at 10pm.

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