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News Avoidance: What are You Watching?
Since finishing The Last Kingdom and Band of Brothers, I’ve been looking for less intense, more wholesome TV fare. I’ve subscribed to BritBox in order to get the latest season of Fr. Brown Mysteries and also stumbled onto reruns of The Return of Sherlock Holmes with Jeremy Brett, and Monty Don’s Gardener’s World (51 seasons, woo hoo!!).
On Trink’s recommendation, I’ve also been watching Tony Robinson Walking Through History in the UK. The Chauvinists have done a little touring of the UK, so it brings back fond memories as well as teaches more about the history of the place. It’s very pleasant and well done, although I do find myself nodding off in the last fifteen minutes or so. Not sure what that’s about, except maybe it’s just so relaxing.
Last night, Mr. C and I watched the first episode of Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets. And, let me tell, you’ve never seen white privilege until you’ve seen this! These people will be the first to the guillotine when the revolution reaches Britain! She starts with a visit to Highclere Castle, home of the Downtown Abbey series. Some “country house!” It’s magnificent and so very civilized. I can’t imagine how she’ll follow it up, but we’re going to find out!
And speaking of civilized and shockingly white, we’re also watching the BBC version of Antiques Roadshow. Always entertaining.
So what are you watching instead of the news? Any recommendations?
Published in General
Cold opener: Everyone jumps in the pickup and chats about the provisions in the cooler.
CBreak
Act I: Four year old inventories the cooler and tries to filch dessert. Hilarity ensues.
CBreak
Act II: Spontaneous concerns are aired on the proposed conversion of a failed reservation casino into an addict rehabilitation center. Four year old is caught opening a can of PBR
Cbreak – try Harry’s Shaves again, I got a payroll to meet.
Act III: Lunch happens when our intrepid travelers come to a stop light. Four year old puts straws up his nose. Hilarity ensues
CBreak – do we have any sponsors left?
Act IV: Opens in a hospital emergency ward, our intrepid travelers on gurneys up and down the hall debating on storage standards for luncheon meats. Hilarity ensues
Look out NCIS Industrial Complex, we’re coming to you with this winner!
I question his judgement.
Why? What’ll you have?
Thanks for the tip. Growing up, I loved the big musical, and sang and danced in four during high school, in what we imagined, was every bit as good as anything Broadway could produce. I continue to love these shows, and have seen many, but I never saw Carousel. So I was really excited to put it on last night for me and the infinitely smarter and significantly better looking half, I am Blessed enough to call wife. We loved the songs, acting, showmanship and art. We were also almost shocked by the themes and historic cultural perspectives portrayed. My wife is currently very involved with counseling groups of early release covid cons who were convicted of abuse of partners or family. Her goal is to retrain the ingrained control and abuse cycles these men have been involved in. (yes they are all men.) She gasped at the line by the daughter Louise, “is it possible to be hit hard by someone and not have it hurt?” and the response by Mom, Julie: “yes it’s possible” This after Billy abused Julie in marriage because he was a failure and didn’t have a job, and in the afterlife when he came back to “help” his daughter, and struck her too. We both talked about the mill owner who “owned” the girls and had curfews on them, and the self-imposed limits the female characters had, particularly tying their worth to the man they married. In brief retrospect, these things surprised us, not so much that they were able to be uttered and were considered “normal” 70 years ago, but how far we have changed (progressed?) since then. My wife asked that in today’s cancel culture, how could a show like this still even be aired? How is it “tolerated”. She was serious, not that she wanted it banned, but curious that it hasn’t been. My response, was more that it showed man as human and flawed, and real; and that by banning the show, or changing the themes to more gentle and genteel behaviors, with appropriate SJW shaming of Billy’s bad behavior; would result in a bland nonreal portrayal of humanity. Can’t we also learn form showing the tragic truth of humanity?
Thanks for the recommendation. We loved it, and thought too much about it.
It won’t be PBR.
James I begs to quibble, from the First Charter of Virginia, 1606:
That is a stripe straight across the continent. Of course, there were other quibblers in the day and some say that the Pacific was thought to be not far to the west of what we call the Appalachian Mountains and James, et. al., had no concept. Unlike his much more enlightened modern counterparts.
We all have to learn sometime.
@westernchauvinist
Having been a long time admirer of Western Chauvinist’s remarks on this board, I figured I might like what she recommended.
So “Longmire” was eagerly selected, and it did not disappoint. In fact, neither of us could offer the first episode anything but praise. The title character has that authentic cowboy mystique down better than anything I have seen since the 1950’s, back when I sat on my dad’s knee and watched Cheyenne.
I love that show! I mean the names of the towns alone! Lower Pampling, Badger’s Drift, Martyr Warren! But also the murders are hilarious. Well I mean not hilarious exactly, I mean someone is dead. But one time the murder weapon was a cricket bat, and another time the motive was that the dead person’s ancestor had beaten the murderer’s ancestor in a church-bell ringing contest 500 years ago hahaha!
Hang on…that’s my cat’s favorite brand:
I just noticed this. That’s a lot of Monty Don! We have enjoyed some of his shows in small doses. But 51 seasons?! (I know, British “seasons” or “series” are sometimes only a few shows each.
I never knew before seeing this show that the English countryside was such a hive of chicanery, adultery, general purpose deviance, and murder.
My kind of place!
The Spanish might have had objections.
Yes, but no one ever expects the Spanish Inquisition.
I haven’t read all of these comments but I just want to say I loved Antique Road Show when I lived in England.
It is excellent. Even better than the older shows.
Right now I’m watching the BBC production of The Lady Vanishes (on Amazon Prime), starring Tuppence Middleton haha (in case you weren’t sure it was British).
Hey, do you think Virginia would have consumed Kansas? I haven’t checked a map obviously because I’m lazy. But being a Virginian has a better ring to it than being a Kansan. Who cares what the people in between think about the matter – let’s vote on it!
Obviously given what triggered the conversation it would be Rainier beer.
Was talking to my mom tonight. She reminded me that the trip to the orthodontist was actually 3 hours. But you got the day off of school, so it wasn’t a total loss.
Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and about 2/5ths of California out of the middle, give or take a little. Of course, as it stands our Governor Northam is overwhelmed with this wee remnant, the full glory would pop his head like a tick.
He’d probably try to do the Michael Jackson moonwalk.
Besides, they made a TV series called The Virginian. No one ever made a TV series called The Kansan.
Pride and Prejudice is the best feel good movie I know. The one with Colin Firth as Darcy is the best, but all the productions are good.
I really like this. It’s so good I’m afraid to watch another production.
I agree. No point in watching another.
I own all of them including the 1939 version with Greer Garson and Sir Lawrence Olivier.
My thoughts exactly. Exactly. Interesting, isn’t it? But, my word, Billy and Mr. Snow had magnificent voices, and the ballet by Julie and Billy’s daughter was pure elegance. The orchestra was phenomenal. I didn’t think this role had good songs for Kelli O’Hara. She seemed to waver between opera and the Disney pop tone. I found it troubling. I can’t imagine what happened. Her performance in the King and I was so much better. But she was the right actress for the part of Julie.
I can’t bear to watch Oklahoma because it plays to so many negative stereotypes, and it’s quite violent really. This one was a little easier.
In all fairness, when Audra MacDonald introduced Carousel, she said the story was about poverty and violence. And the entire point of the story was that he had wronged Julie. It was set in 1873. Striking her was not acceptable even back then. Carrie says to Julie when Billy dies that she’s better off without him.
The music was so delightful.
What was really hilarious to us was Carrie’s and the carousel owner’s Bronx accent. They couldn’t get up to Maine to hear how Mainers talk? :-) :-)
I’m so glad someone else watched it. :-) I’m trying to find others that the Lincoln Center may have produced and put on YouTube. I’d love to see Brigadoon and South Pacific. :-)
It could happen to anyone.