Mia

Re Owen...

****** typical.

No, she's a private investigator. I think you're thinking of Esperanza (also known in her wrestling days as Little Pocahontas, I think!) from Coben's Myron Bolitar novels?

Are they? I haven't even seen an advert for them! I just saw them in Woolies and thought I'd try one.

In the book I'm reading at the moment (Harlan Coben's The Innocent) there is a name so ridiculously stupid and unlikely that it actually jars me out of the story each time I see it - Cingle Shaker. This is a female, btw, in case you can't tell from the name! What possessed him?

I regard it as my solemn duty to test out any new choc bar I see. Has anyone tried the Kit Kat Senses? It's an exact copy of the Kinder Bueno - I'm surprised they haven't sued. Anyway, it was very nice indeed. I sense a new addiction coming on!

Last episode of the series tonight, and it looks like it'll be a good one!

Yes, all three were bad enough to go, and the girls were appalling. It was hilarious and embarrassing when they quoted

Yes, apparently it is.

In the sing-off, I preferred Francesca's voice to Amy's - hers was a bit shrieky, especially on the higher notes. I like all the judges except Denise, I cannot stand her. She can be very nasty. Yes, she has to criticise as part of her job, but she seems to do it in an unnecessarily nasty way.

I think I know who you mean... Was she one of the first ones on (if not the first), and she stood in a really ungainly way with her legs apart and stomped around really gracelessly? (Oh dear, that sounds rather nasty! But it was true.)

Anyone watching this? It's the show to cast the role of Nancy in "Oliver!". I watched the Maria and Joseph shows and actually picked the winners from the start, but I'm having a bit of trouble getting into this one in the same way. Still, I've watched it tonight and my current favourites are: Samantha (probably every heterosexual man's favourite too in that outfit!). Very good performance. Cleo - one I picked from the beginning, but she didn't have a good song to sing tonight. I hope she gets a better song next time, as she does have a good voice. Sarah - nice voice, but need to hear her again. Ashley - as above. Keisha - didn't want to pick her as she came across as very arrogant, but she did have probably the best voice tonight. So these are my picks, based on tonight's show.

Well, that was more like an episode! I really enjoyed that one. It was very interesting finding out how the Torchwood team got together. I'll put the rest in spoilers just in case...

Loads, past and present: Buffy Angel Firefly (finally seen all eps on DVD today - excellent!) American Gothic The Prisoner The 4400 Alias Heroes Dark Angel Life on Mars Lost (but haven't seen the current series. ) Doctor Who Torchwood (sometimes!) Ugly Betty QI Fawlty Towers Blackadder The Young Ones Futurama I'm sure I've forgotten more.

FishandChips - Dark Rivers of the Heart is easily my favourite out of those three. A very tense and compelling read.

I love this programme, though I came to it quite late: the previous series was the first one I saw. I think all the hype about it put me off. Anyway... I would have been happy for Raef or Nicholas to go, they were both arrogant snobs. Raef reminds me of Syed(?) from the last series in his attitudes. I couldn't believe it when the boys went to solicitors offices to sell their leftover fish, instead of restaurants like the girls did! Their bartering was hilarious when they couldn't budge the guy from

Lol, yeah! I tried not to give too much away, but I guess some of it was a spoiler. Prospero, thank you for enlightening me!

Perhaps Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons, or The Wrong Boy by Willy Russell. It would probably in reality be a Pratchett book, but how can I choose just one?!

Well, that was more like it. Friday's episode, involving the missing boy, was much better than usual. It was spoilt only by my video tape regularly jumping, as I had to tape it on Friday. Oh well, maybe someone can enlighten me...

I do like to have sample chapters of the new book at the end of the one I'm reading. The only thing that annoys me about it is that I think I have more book to read, but then the story ends sooner than expected as it's pages of trailer and not the current story!

Thanks for the reminder, ~V~! (I'm already confused about what day it is - being at home today has made me think it's Saturday.)

Normal service is resumed - I was disappointed with last night's episode! I was expecting great things, because it was written by PJ Hammond, writer of Sapphire and Steel. (If you're too young to have watched this TV programme, go out and buy the boxset immediately.) Anyway, Hammond wrote a story for Sapphire and Steel which was about people being trapped inside or being brought out of old photographs, and it was incredibly creepy and scary (probably my favourite S&S story, actually). Hammond said in Torchwood Confidential (or whatever it's called) after the episode that he wanted to build on this idea but use film instead of photos. So I was expecting great things, i.e. an even creepier version of the S&S story, but it just didn't work somehow. I can't quite put my finger on where the problem lay with this episode. Perhaps it was some of the acting? The pre-credits teaser was excellent, I thought, but then it didn't keep up the chills. Maybe my expectations were unrealistically high, with it being P J Hammond writing.

A very interesting post, DWMG, and I think I agreed with nearly everything! Regarding: it would be nice to have a female companion who doesn't fancy the Dr, I heard that Catherine Tate's character is going to fit that bill. And if you find a life, you'd better get one for me too!

It makes me very angry to be honest when I see another talentless "celebrity" has got a publishing deal. And then, to add insult to injury, someone else writes it for them!! It's disgraceful when someone who has sweated blood and tears to produce their novel can't get it accepted by anyone (even though it's good) because they're not famous. (And no, I'm not ranting from experience! ) Personally, I don't understand the fascination with celebs and their lifestyles. I really don't care at all, yet other people in the office buy all the glossy gossip mags and are absolutely fascinated by it all. I just don't get it.