What Are You Watching Now? - 2021

[megustaleer]

10 hours ago, Raven said:

 

Not the same things at all, but have you been watching Bob Ross on BBC Four?

 

The Bob Ross programmes were watched regularly by Mr meg last year, but I quickly became bored by them.  As you say, it's not the same thing at all as the "Artist of the Year" programmes.

 I did find his biography, shown some time last year, very interesting, but watching him produce what I find rather formulaic pictures, evening after evening, has lost its fascination for me. Even Mr meg only watches occasionally nowadays.

[megustaleer]

8 hours ago, lunababymoonchild said:

I like The Great British Sewing Bee.

I am enjoying watching TGBSB. I think I have watched every series.

Apart from the competition element of it, and the garments they produce each week, I am amazed at the way dressmaking has changed since I bought my first sewing machine with money I saved from my Saturday job in C&A. 

My current machine is nearly 50 years old, and is not capable (or maybe I'm not) of handling many of the modern materials, and the idea of cutting out using weights not pins to hold the fabric seems quite foolhardy to me.

There is some very skilful work being done at this stage in the competition.

 

[Marie H]

I’m watching the Roland Garros French tennis, though I haven’t actually watched a whole match yet . Also watching the highlights of French cycling Critérium du Dauphiné.

[lunababymoonchild]

23 hours ago, Raven said:

Not the same things at all, but have you been watching Bob Ross on BBC Four?

I do enjoy this from time to time but like Meg there is only so much that I can take. I do enjoy landscape and portrait artist of the year but again, from time to time.

 

11 hours ago, megustaleer said:

I am enjoying watching TGBSB. I think I have watched every series.

Apart from the competition element of it, and the garments they produce each week, I am amazed at the way dressmaking has changed since I bought my first sewing machine with money I saved from my Saturday job in C&A. 

My current machine is nearly 50 years old, and is not capable (or maybe I'm not) of handling many of the modern materials, and the idea of cutting out using weights not pins to hold the fabric seems quite foolhardy to me.

There is some very skilful work being done at this stage in the competition.

I see sewing as a chore so avoid it like the plague but this, as you say, this is fascinating.

 

21 minutes ago, Marie H said:

I’m watching the Roland Garros French tennis, though I haven’t actually watched a whole match yet . Also watching the highlights of French cycling Critérium du Dauphiné.

 

I haven't seen a whole match yet either. My father hates it so I can only see it in bits and pieces but further in to the competition I will be watching more (she says!). 
 

I'm also following The Nevers and the odd episode of Botched. I should really be reading more!

Edited June 5, 2021 by lunababymoonchild

[lunababymoonchild]

Rolland Garros final. No Nadal!

[Marie H]

21 hours ago, lunababymoonchild said:

Rolland Garros final. No Nadal!

It was a shame that it wasn’t the final with Nader v Djokovic, but the semi was the best match that I’d ever seen! Spectacular!! 

[lunababymoonchild]

32 minutes ago, Marie H said:

It was a shame that it wasn’t the final with Nader v Djokovic, but the semi was the best match that I’d ever seen! Spectacular!! 

Yes, it was!

[Marie H]

Indoor time, during the heatwave, so far watched 

The Golden Girls (the pilot episode) - Loved this before, and it very nostalgic now 

Lokl - 1st episode - Good, though I have never seen any of the Marvin series, so I haven’t a clue any other non human characters, and their party tricks.

Moominvalley, Season 1 #1 - Lovely, lovely Moomins! 

[Chrissy]

Quite a few years ago I bought the dvds of the 1990's UK series Drop The Dead Donkey. I discovered them in a box recently, so we have watched the first few episodes of the first series. We are both the right age to remember the topics / scandals / politicians etc covered, and have found the series has aged pretty well.

 

It made us chuckle to note how big the pcs (especially the monitors) look, they used videos, and, of course no mobile 'phones. How times have changed!

[Madeleine]

that was a good series.

 

I'm currently catching up with a Minette Walters TV adaptation - The Ice House, with a young , pre-Bond Daniel Craig as a detective investigating a body which turns up in yes an ice house.  It's so dated, with a phenomenal amount of smoking!  Think it was made in the late 1990s.

[Raven]

I started watching The Expanse on Amazon Prime last week.

 

I watched the first season a couple of years back (when it was on Netflix) but didn't get more than a couple of episodes into the second season as I just didn't find it that interesting at the time. 

 

The program keeps getting very good reviews and award nominations, however, and it's now on it's fifth season, so I decided to give it another go and this time around I've found it much better. 

 

The first season is a bit of a slow burner, but it really starts to pick up in season two - I had to force myself to go to bed last night, as the cliff-hanger at the end of the latest episode was a good one!

 

[muggle not]

Bosch finished the 7th and final year a few months back. It is a great police type TV series, it is one of the best. It shows on Amazon Prime.

 

I have been watching an old show from BBC, "New Tricks". I am in the 3rd season now. I watch it on Amazon Prime.

Edited August 19, 2021 by muggle not

[Marie H]

Starting watching all of The Golden Girls on Disney+. This will take some time, as there are 180 episodes in all! But I think it will be worth the time 

[Madeleine]

Loved The Golden Girls - enjoy!

[poppy]

Mr P has recently bought the complete series of West Wing, we've just gone into lockdown so he's been working his way through them. I've been watching/listening with half an ear and must admit they are very good. Great dialogue and humour.

[Raven]

Inadvertently finished the fourth season of The Expanse last night (I thought it was 13 episodes like previous 3 seasons, but it turned out to be just the 10).

 

I do like it, for the most part, but it feels like a show that is trying to punch above its weight.

 

[Lau_Lou]

Call The Midwife

[Brian.]

I watched the first three episodes of the BBC drama Vigil yesterday afternoon. It was pretty enjoyable but the submarine really could have done with having some experts advise on it's design. The first shot of the inside showed an impossibly wide corridor space and the radio panels look like sets from WWII.

[Raven]

1 hour ago, Brian. said:

 

I watched the first three episodes of the BBC drama Vigil yesterday afternoon. It was pretty enjoyable but the submarine really could have done with having some experts advise on it's design. The first shot of the inside showed an impossibly wide corridor space and the radio panels look like sets from WWII.

 

 

I've not seen it, yet, but don't the Astute class subs have some really wide corridors? I thought I saw that in a program about the class when they were first launched...

 

[Brian.]

1 hour ago, Raven said:

 

I've not seen it, yet, but don't the Astute class subs have some really wide corridors? I thought I saw that in a program about the class when they were first launched...

 

I don’t know but I’m sure they are no where near as wide parts of the sub in the show. 

[Madeleine]

I read somewhere that they weren't allowed detailed plans of a similar sub, presumably for security reasons.

 

I'm enjoying Vigil but there are some real plot holes in it, I've shouted at the screen a couple of times! 

[Brian.]

I’ve finally watched the last season of Homeland. I enjoyed the season and I like the way the ending was done. I think they was the show has developed over the years is to be applauded, especially with the way they have handled the nuances of terrorism. 

[Raven]

Finished The Expanse, last night. 

 

The 5th season certainly upped the stakes, but at the same time it was oddly flat (a comment that can be levelled at the whole show, at times). 

 

I had a good look at the nominations listed for the show today and realised that they are mainly technical (special effects/sound editing etc) or for specific episodes, but it did win the Dragon award last year for best Science Fiction or Fantasy series and it gets very high ratings on Rotten Tomatoes (I'm not 100% sure why they are so high, I would rate the series at 3.5/4 out of 5 at best).

 

There is at least one more series to come (Amazon are making he 6th, but no more, and the writers and production company making it are looking at how to continue after that) so I will have to see how it goes from here.

 

[Raven]

Monday night quiz night on BBC 2; Mastermind followed by Only Connect and University Challenge.

 

I was interested to find I know as much about Middle Earth as I do about Bond Villains.

 

[Raven]

The Orville

 

Found this on Disney+ a few weeks back and have watched both series through.

 

I must be getting older, or more picky (or both) or the quality of TV series must be dropping, because I'm finding it hard to find a series I can enjoy consistently these days.

 

Take this show; it's basically a Star Trek: The Next Generation parody, but it is also trying to do series stuff at the same time, which gives mixed results. 

 

I enjoyed the first few episodes of season one more than I thought I would, but the second series wasn't as good, with episodes that basically elevated the "b" plots from Next Gen episodes to main story lines.  The cast is good, the stories are well written, but there is no consistency and it feels like it is just missing a certain something that would take it to the next level.

 

If you really like TNG, you will probably find parts of this entertaining, but it is basically Star Trek for people who don't like change (and the occasional knob joke).

 

Star Trek: Lower Decks, which I have been enjoying, makes a better fist of parodying Star Trek.