EURO CRIME REVIEW: DEAD LINE BY STELLA RIMINGTON: AND CUTTING EDGE COMEDY
My review of Stella Rimington's Dead Line is up on Euro Crime here. Dead Line is the fourth in the series featuring MI5 agent Liz Carlyle and as Stella Rimington was Director- General of the Security Service that alone makes it a worth while read.
There are also excellent and enticing reviews from Maxine of Petrona here and Terry Halligan here of Bad Traffic by Simon Lewis, which sits on my mountainous to be read pile. It sounds like a must read.
On a less pleasant subject I watched 15 minutes of the British 'comedy' Little Britain USA the other night. Frankly I thought it was absolutely disgusting and did not see what was funny about a supposedly disabled person climbing into a lion's den, having their arm bitten off, blood spurting out of the stump and asking for a plaster. But then I don't appreciate cutting edge, or lavatorial humour, and find it very sad that British television that produced such great comedy as The Good Life, Ever Decreasing Circles, Dad's Army, Only Fools and Horses, The Vicar of Dibley, Open All Hours, Porridge, and Rising Damp has been reduced to Little Britain.
posted by Uriah Robinson at 5:55 AM
7 Comments:
I enjoyed reading your review at Euro Crime, Norman.
I agree with you about the "comedy", I can't understand what is funny about mocking disability and hurting people's feelings (it's happened to me). One of the many reasons I don't watch live TV but stick to DVDs or pre-recorded.
I have almost finished my review of Last Rituals so plan to send you the book soon. It is not "belly laugh" humour but it has a lot of dry wit and I think you will like it.
Thanks Maxine. I will enjoy the Last Rituals does it come with a photo of Yrsa. ;0)
I left out Fawlty Towers from my list of great comedy programs at the request of the Torbay tourist board. :0)
I think that Little Britain USA, and the Brand/Ross incident have shown that there are some nasty elements in the BBC who think comedy is humiliating people.
Not the Aunty BBC we used to know.
Just checked, yes, there is a nice but small one on the inside back cover.
Media, schmedia - I'd prefer to read a book. Just started Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly, as I finally weakened and bought the hardback.
I very much second your comments re 'comedy', Norman. I watched one episode of the original Little Britain series, appalled and bemused. It might as well have been an infomercial for funeral services for all that it brought me close even to smiling, let alone laughing. The Brand/Ross business seemed to me wholly beyond the pale, as also the money they are paid. Round the Horne to Brand and Ross, Rising Damp to Little Britain. It is to weep.
Yrsa is pretty damn cute, by the by. Not that I pay undue attention to such trivialities, you understand, being a man of advanced views and all. In fact, I've never even noticed what Mo Hayder, Carmen Posadas, Deanna Raybourn, Caro Ramsay and Carol O'Connell look like, to name just a few I've never noticed. You might want to click on the Galeria at carmenposadas.net, Norman, so you can see what I didn't notice.
Carmen Posadas um very nice, and the right age as well for men of a certain maturity. And I saw Yrsa looking cute even with orthodontic braces at Crime Fest at Bristol.
Sorry Maxine yes Michael Connelly is very good I must get back to reading his Harry Bosch series.
Philip distracted me there for a minute. :O)
It's my age you know.
Well I am no spring chicken, both of you! Still, I can always check out the odd pic of Viggo M while you are comparing female authors;-)
Viggo M ? What happened to the Neil Pearson fan club?
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