Nigella Bites, DVD news and reviews, Fake TV, New Wallace and Gromit

The Antiques Roadshow Goes on Forever

The other day, while doing a Tivo search for Antiques Roadshow, I was shocked, though happily so, to find episodes of the beloved appraisal program as ubiquitous as Simpsons re-runs throughout my channel lineup. Five different channels carry the original, and frankly superior, British version while all three local PBS outlets also offer the newer Stateside incarnation.

Check out PBS for new episodes of Antiques Roadshow UK, BBC America for less recent reruns and Bravo for yet more vintage episodes. Add these to the multi-channel offerings of Bargain Hunt and you have collector's nirvana - now if they'll only bring back The Great Antiques Hunt

DVD News and Reviews

Jeeves and Wooster : The Complete Third Season
Not, I'm sorry to say, a patch on the first two seasons but reasonably jolly good fun none the less. This third section includes the "American" episodes that are among my least favorite of the entire run. Britain trains some of the finest actors in the world but 99% of them can't do an American accent (any version from Brooklyn to Beantown to Baton Rouge) to save their SAG cards. Even so, Fry and Laurie are still marvy as Wodehouse's evergreen odd couple and the DVD releases are a small but welcome upgrade on the VHS versions.

Upstairs Downstairs Volume 2
While the series is as riveting as ever the transfer on these discs leaves something to be desired. It's a shame that of the couple of hundred DVDs in my collection three or four of the most disappointing transfers are of classic British telly. Still highly recommended for devoted fans.

Also new to DVD racks this month is Stephen Whittaker's excellent mini-series adaptation of Charles Dickens' Nicholas Nickleby starring Charles Dance, James D'Arcy and Sophie Myles.

In February watch for Absolutely Fabulous - Series 4 featuring commentary by Jennifer Saunders and Jon Plowman, deleted scenes and, as a very nifty bonus, the one off special Mirrorball, the demise of which as a series led to AbFab's resurrection. French & Saunders: At the Movies, a collection of cinema spoofs comes along a couple of weeks later.

Catherine Zeta Jones fans can peek in on the sultry actresses past and enjoy top flight British comedy with five discs of The Darling Buds of May, also starring the irrepressible David Jason

Lord Peter Wimsey: Clouds of Witness, with, hopefully, a better transfer than the previous releases.

Sets five and six of Space 1999, Brother Cadfael - The Rose Rent, and Secret Agent AKA Danger Man, Sets 2 and 3 help round out the month's releases.

Later on look for the complete second season of

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