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Tom's Guide
17-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Tom's Guide
3 best Prime Video miniseries you (probably) haven't seen
With the warm-weather season upon us, nobody wants to spend all of those precious sun-filled hours watching season after season of a TV show, which is where a miniseries comes in. Compact and concentrated, a miniseries or limited series manages to grip you with only a handful of episodes, still delivering compelling storylines and plenty of drama with far less screentime than a traditional television serial. And Prime Video has plenty of great miniseries on offer, so much so that you might have missed some of these titles during your browsing due to the sheer scope of the streaming service's library. Whether you're in the mood for a British spy drama starring Florence Pugh and Alexander Skarsgård or a police procedural led by Alexander's dad, Stellan Skarsgård, here are three Prime Video miniseries that you might have overlooked the first time around but should add to your watch list ASAP. Before she was starring in mega-hit movies like "Thunderbolts," "Dune: Part Two" and "Oppenheimer" and becoming an Academy Award nominee for" Little Women," Florence Pugh was leading this 2018 limited series as Charmian "Charlie" Ross, a radical left-wing English actress in the late 1970s who gets sucked into the high-stakes world of international espionage. While in Greece, Charlie meets a mysterious man named Gadi Becker (Alexander Skarsgård), who ends up being an undercover Mossad agent sent by Israeli spymaster Martin Kurtz (Michael Shannon) to recruit the actress as an Israeli secret agent to take down an assassin. The six-episode drama drummed up a stellar 95% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, where the critical consensus praises: "'The Little Drummer Girl' marches to a steady beat of assured plotting, extraordinary art direction, and a uniformly terrific cast that makes the show's smolderingly slow burn pace bearable." Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Watch "The Little Drummer Girl" now Created by Adam Kay and based on his memoir of the same name, this hilarious and heartfelt BBC medical miniseries focuses on the lives of a group of junior doctors working on an obstetrics and gynecology ward in a National Health Service hospital. With a cast led by Ben Whishaw ("Black Doves") and Ambika Mod ("One Day"), the seven-episode series profiles their professional and personal lives and explores the emotional effects of working in a stressful work environment. The 2022 series was widely praised by critics, with Rotten Tomatoes reporting a 95% approval rating and consensus singling out Ben Whishaw's" live-wire performance of an exhausted doctor" which "powers 'This is Going to Hurt,' a smart drama full of humor and pain. Watch "This is Going to Hurt" now In this 2015 British procedural, Stellan Skarsgård stars as Detective Inspector John River, a brilliant but brooding Swedish-born police officer who is haunted by visions of his recently murdered colleague, Detective Sergeant Jackie "Stevie" Stevenson (Nicola Walker). He struggles with the loss whilst investigating Stevenson's murder, all while battling his own inner demons and the scrutiny of his superiors. Across six installments, the gripping thriller becomes "more than just crime drama," wrote Sam Wollaston in The Guardian: "It's about personal tragedy, demons; it's a study of loss and grief (which it shares with the greatest Nordic noir of them all: the first series of 'The Killing'). It's also a study of that — killing — and why people do it." The crime drama miniseries boasts a perfect 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Watch "River" now


Korea Herald
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Filmmaker Park Chan-wook to speak at Seoul International Book Fair
Cannes-winning director joins diverse lineup alongside author Bora Chung, actor Park Jeong-min, star chef Choi Kang-rok Filmmaker Park Chan-wook, renowned for his visually striking and psychologically complex films, will participate in the 2025 Seoul International Book Fair, the annual book fair's organizer announced Wednesday. Park has often drawn inspiration from literature, adapting several novels into screen productions including the HBO series "The Sympathizer" (2024) and the BBC series "The Little Drummer Girl" (2019). During his talk on June 20, titled Park Chan-wook's Literary Anchors, Park will discuss elements of novels that captivate him, the process of translating literature into cinema, and the books that have deeply influenced his creative vision, according to SIBF. The 2025 SIBF, organized by the Korean Publishers Association and held June 18-22 at Coex in Seoul, invites visitors to reflect on the idea of personal refuge in uncertain times under the theme, "The Last Resort." This year's fair will welcome over 530 publishers and literary organizations including 100 overseas publishers from 16 countries. A diverse lineup of Korean authors will be present, including Kim Ae-ran, Kim Cho-yeop, Kim Ho-yeon, Park Seo-lyeon, Sohn Won-pyung, Jang Ryu-jin, Cho Ye-eun, Cheon Seon-ran and Choi Jin-young. International Booker-shortlisted author Bora Chung of "Cursed Bunny," will debut her new release, "The Children's House," while Korean American author Kim Ju-hye of "Beasts of a Little Land" will discuss her latest novel, "City of Night Birds." Actor and publisher Park Jeong-min will also join the lineup, and star chef Choi Kang-rok from "Culinary Class Wars" will unveil his new book. Taiwan has been selected as this year's Guest of Honor. Featured events will include a conversation between Rex How, writer and publisher at Locus Publishing Company, and picture book artist Lee Suzy. Illustrator Bei Lynn and graphic novel artist Keum Suk Gendry-Kim will also have a book talk. Tickets are available at a 50 percent early bird discount (6,000 won) until May 27. From May 28 to June 17, a 30 percent discount (8,000 won) will apply. Standard adult admission is 12,000 won.


Euronews
18-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Euronews
Lost book bound in skin of notorious murderer on display at UK museum
ADVERTISEMENT Talk about a morbid read... A book bound in the skin of one of the UK's most notorious murderers is about to go on display at Moyse's Hall Museum in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, UK. The tome, reportedly made using the skin of William Corder, who was convicted of killing Maria Marten in the Red Barn Murder in 1827, was found on a bookshelf in the museum's office. Unlike the previously known copy of the book, "An Authentic and Faithful History of the Mysterious Murder of Maria Marten" by James Curtis, which was completely covered in human skin, the new find only has skin inserts on the spine and corners. The first book was put on display at Moyse's Hall Museum in 1933 and it wasn't until recently that curators realised, after looking through the museum's catalogue, that there was a second book that had been overlooked... Scene of the Red Barn Murder Public Domain - For those of you not familiar with the bleak tale, Maria Marten was shot dead by William Corder. Her body was discovered in a local landmark, the Red Barn, after her stepmother Ann Marten reported disturbing dreams pointing to the burial site. It is believed that Corder and Maria Marten were lovers and that he lured her to the Red Barn, saying they would run away to Ipswich to get married. Corder was arrested in London, tried in Bury St Edmunds, and publicly hanged in 1828. After the execution, the criminal's body was anatomized, and his skin was used to bind the report of the murder and the story of his trial. The Red Barn Murder has provoked numerous songs, plays and TV series. Most recently, a 1971 song recorded by folk singer Shirley Collins and the Albion Country Band was performed by Florence Pugh in the (brilliant) 2018 TV adaptation of John Le Carré's spy novel 'The Little Drummer Girl'. The two books Moyse's Hall Museum 'The murder continues to be interpreted and reinterpreted in popular culture to this day,' said Daniel Clarke, heritage officer at West Suffolk council. 'Do we think all books bound in skin should be on display? That would be debated on a case-by-case basis,' said Clarke. 'In this instance, it is a stark and emotive set of artefacts that give us the chance to discuss the anatomising of the criminal corpse. Uncomfortable history, yes, but if we are to learn from history we must first face it with honesty and openness.' Clarke added that the museum does not 'deal with this as a salacious artefact but as a window into the past'. An Authentic and Faithful History of the Mysterious Murder of Maria Marten Facebook - Moyse's Hall Museum The rather gruesome book binding practice was a common procedure in the 19th century, known as anthropodermic bibliopegy. Famous examples of anthropodermic bibliopegy include editions of Holbein's 'Dance of Death' and the French book 'La pluralité des mondes habités' by astronomer Camille Flammarion. Legend has it that a female admirer of Flammarion bequeathed her skin to bind his book – which is stamped 'reliure en peau humaine, 1880 ('human skin binding, 1880'). Due to containing human remains, books bound in human skin are considered by many to be problematic. ADVERTISEMENT Last year, Harvard University removed the human skin, stolen post-mortem off an unidentified female hospital patient, from 'Des destinées de l'âme," due to 'the ethically fraught nature of the book's origins and subsequent history".
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Lost book bound in skin of notorious murderer on display at UK museum
Talk about a morbid read... A book bound in the skin of one of the UK's most notorious murderers is about to go on display at Moyse's Hall Museum in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, UK. The tome, reportedly made using the skin of William Corder, who was convicted of killing Maria Marten in the Red Barn Murder in 1827, was found on a bookshelf in the museum's office. Unlike the previously known copy of the book, "An Authentic and Faithful History of the Mysterious Murder of Maria Marten" by James Curtis, which was completely covered in human skin, the new find only has skin inserts on the spine and corners. The first book was put on display at Moyse's Hall Museum in 1933 and it wasn't until recently that curators realised, after looking through the museum's catalogue, that there was a second book that had been overlooked... For those of you not familiar with the bleak tale, Maria Marten was shot dead by William Corder. Her body was discovered in a local landmark, the Red Barn, after her stepmother Ann Marten reported disturbing dreams pointing to the burial site. It is believed that Corder and Maria Marten were lovers and that he lured her to the Red Barn, saying they would run away to Ipswich to get married. Corder was arrested in London, tried in Bury St Edmunds, and publicly hanged in 1828. After the execution, the criminal's body was anatomized, and his skin was used to bind the report of the murder and the story of his trial. The Red Barn Murder has provoked numerous songs, plays and TV series. Most recently, a 1971 song recorded by folk singer Shirley Collins and the Albion Country Band was performed by Florence Pugh in the (brilliant) 2018 TV adaptation of John Le Carré's spy novel 'The Little Drummer Girl'. 'The murder continues to be interpreted and reinterpreted in popular culture to this day,' said Daniel Clarke, heritage officer at West Suffolk council. 'Do we think all books bound in skin should be on display? That would be debated on a case-by-case basis,' said Clarke. 'In this instance, it is a stark and emotive set of artefacts that give us the chance to discuss the anatomising of the criminal corpse. Uncomfortable history, yes, but if we are to learn from history we must first face it with honesty and openness.' Clarke added that the museum does not 'deal with this as a salacious artefact but as a window into the past'. The rather gruesome book binding practice was a common procedure in the 19th century, known as anthropodermic bibliopegy. Famous examples of anthropodermic bibliopegy include editions of Holbein's 'Dance of Death' and the French book 'La pluralité des mondes habités' by astronomer Camille Flammarion. Legend has it that a female admirer of Flammarion bequeathed her skin to bind his book – which is stamped 'reliure en peau humaine, 1880 ('human skin binding, 1880'). Due to containing human remains, books bound in human skin are considered by many to be problematic. Last year, Harvard University removed the human skin, stolen post-mortem off an unidentified female hospital patient, from 'Des destinées de l'âme," due to 'the ethically fraught nature of the book's origins and subsequent history".