The View From Lower Down

 This might be the fastest review I’ve ever written. We saw Peter Pan Goes Wrong (henceforth PPGW ) at the Birmingham Alexandra Theatre (I probably won’t bring it up again, but henceforth known as The Alex). All of our party (and probably most of the audience) had seen the TV version (link goes to iPlayer; I think that it is available worldwide paid on Amazon Prime) so we were familiar with a lot of the material. Therefore, this review will be diving into the bits removed from the televised version. Firstly, did you know that before it was a book or a movie, the original Peter Pan was a play? PPGW is almost verbatim that play, with additional (mostly physical) jokes added. For example (this was in the televised version as well), the narrator has an opening monologue, which Chris (as Mr Darling) keeps interrupting too early. Before we go on, some housekeeping: I own a copy of the script and currently have it open to remind me of bits I’ve forgotten. I had read it before and th

Here's one that's a bit out of nowhere. I want to talk about the plot of Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist , and the musical adaptation Oliver! : This is the plot (cut down from the musical and missing a lot more of the book than you'd think): Oliver is a boy who lives and grew up in a workhouse in (fictional) Mudfog; he asks for more gruel one mealtime and as punishment, the beadle, Mr Bumble (workhouse overseer), sells him to an undertaker (Mr Sowerberry); Oliver gets in a fight with the undertaker's other apprentice; Oliver runs away 70 miles to London; he is adopted by a group of pickpocket children; on his first outing as a pickpocket he is caught by his victim Mr Brownlow and brought before a magistrate; at his trial, Brownlow intercedes for him and takes him home; Brownlow realises Oliver is his grandson; the gang kidnap Oliver to stop him revealing their existence; Nancy, one of the gang, tries to take him back but her husband Bill Sikes kills her; Mr Brownlow a

 Ooh, a theatre review before the show left the theatre! What? I didn’t know he could do that! DISCLAIMER: THIS REVIEW OF BHANGRA NATION WAS COWRITTEN BY MY BROTHER JOSH BECAUSE HE SAYS MY REVIEWS ARE TOO LONG. ALSO, AT THE TIME OF WRITING, HE HASN’T SEEN BHANGRA NATION, THE TOPIC OF THE DAY MAJOR SPOILERS FOR BHANGRA NATION AHEAD I would normally include some background information about the journey to add colour to the review, but as this is the short version, I’ll limit my comments to the following: We had a lot of trouble finding somewhere to park; when we tried to leave, the Queensway was closed so we went a very roundabout way, and we encountered at least one street sign that said Cuba.  Additional context over! There is one part which I have forbidden Josh from editing, namely that when we went in the usher said: “You have to turn off your phones during the performance [Okay; standard procedure], but only until the confetti cannon goes off [Less standard]” Of course, they have t

Longtime readers might remember the Viewies as the awards I give out for movies every year (I did it badly, exactly once). This is a hard reboot of the Viewies. This time, there are four major awards available (Best Original Score; Best One Liner, Best Trailer and, of course, The Dick Van Dyke award for Worst fake accent). All other awards are very specific so no other movie would have a chance of beating them. Every movie is capable of winning one. So what are the rules? 1. I have watched it between 1 January and 31 December 2024 2. The movie does not  have to be released during that time 3. I have to be watching it for the first time  during that period 4. For Best Trailer, the quality of the movie itself is irrelevant and I only have to see the trailer for the first time during the year 5. ALL movies must win at least one award 6. The four major awards are attainable by any movie and the winner will be crowned in January 2025 The original awards: Shortest Training Montage: Boys in t

 I'm trying to reclaim that acronym. Back in my day, BTS wasn't a Kpop band; it stood for Behind The Scenes. So, I thought you might want to see some of the work that goes into making Tangents: The Game , starting with the poster that Deirdre saw in the London Underground waiting room  (In case you were wondering, that idea of the London Underground comes from the following clip from A Fish Called Wanda (relevant line at 1:10): The poster used was this: You may have noticed that something looks a little off about Frankie. maybe it's the strange green spot next to her neck? The red patterned dress with white outline? The fact that she's got 

At the start of January, I sent out a survey for people to make suggestions to improve my Christmas quiz. I got seven responses, and I'd like to share some of the results: Most people chose to keep the signup notification on the first of November  Four people preferred clues on Monday-Friday, but three people preferred Monday-Saturday Most people preferred clues to be released at 11 (one person said 11:04 to be awkward - joke's on them; I'm asking them to help me automate it) Most people wanted to let people join partway through the quiz The rest of the survey was casting a dream version of A Christmas Carol. Special mention should be made to Teanbame, who said for every answer that they wanted to know the real identities of the other teams, but these are my favourite actual answers for each character (unfortunately only one person gave an answer for every character so most of the answers will be from Looks Like Rain Dear): Ebenezer Scrooge: Boris Johnson Bob Cratchit: Davi

This is part of an interactive adventure. To return to the start,  click here . Well, Chris is off on his date, maybe with that girl Frankie. For you, however, it’s time to put your feet up. As you may remember, Tangents: the Game About Something Else is based on a play; this is where the interval is. But what should you do in the meantime? Maybe check out my PLAYlist, a list of play reviews I've written for this blog Go for a walk Watch something on YouTube Try playing the game again; There are multiple ways to get this far; how many can you find? Continue playing Act II

  T his is part of an interactive adventure. To return to the start,  click here . This is the recipe that Chris used to make chicken risotto: 1. Make a risotto 2. Put chicken in it Bon Appetit! Go back

T his is part of an interactive adventure. To return to the start,  click here . “Mm, this is good; What’s in it?” You ask as you tuck into your food. He’s not very culinarily blessed, but he makes a good risotto. "It's a chicken risotto. It's a risotto and there's chicken in it", Chris says. Want to taste what Chris and Deirdre are eating? This is the recipe that Chris used Talk about the date Talk about Chris’ work

This is part of an interactive adventure. To return to the start,  click here . “I spoke to You-know-who earlier.” You announce, “Did you come to a conclusion?” Chris asks, “Yes actually. He’s going to set you up with someone. I’m expecting a message any minute. Your phone pings with a Sharkweb notification; it’s Macavity. “Is that him?” Chris asks. You check the message. It’s just an address and a time; cryptic as always. “Yes. It says to go to Il Ristorante Elegante at 7:30 tonight.” “The posh restaurant? I’ve already eaten.” “Well, just have something light. Wait, isn’t that place right next to your lab?” “A couple of doors down, yes. I’m sure it’s just a coincidence though.” Talk about Chris’ work Talk about the food Whathappens next? (Time for a break)

  This is part of an interactive adventure. To return to the start,  click here . “So how was work? Did you get any further with that computer thing?” You ask. “Well, sort of. We managed to restore COLIN, but his memories were all missing so we tried to reboot him.” “Did that work?” “We don’t know yet. He started rebooting; he’s been unresponsive since just after lunch.” “So when can you check on him?” “It’ll have to be Monday now; the lab’s locked up over the weekend.” Talk about Chris’ date Talk about the food

This is part of an interactive adventure. To return to the start,  click here . Pic Click places in the picture where the Stranger might be hiding; alternatively, click the links below for each location Look behind the bins Look at the Give up and go home

This is part of an interactive adventure. To return to the start,  click here . By the time you get home, it’s 18:00; Chris is already home. Fortunately, he’s had the presence of mind to make dinner for both of you, so you sit down at the kitchen table and start to eat. What do you talk about? Talk about Chris’ work Talk about his upcoming date Talk about the food

This is part of an interactive adventure. To return to the start,  click here . The Stranger hurries throughout the city, taking every twist, turn and back alley. You manage to keep up with him most of the way, but as you follow him round a corner, suddenly he has disappeared; do you look around for him? Look around the alleyway (minigame) Go straight home