Doctor Who 50th Anniversary #1 - Why I Love Doctor Who!

Seeing as it's November and it's the month where the 50th special is happening I seen it as a perfect opportunity to get back into blogging and to blog about something that I enjoy very much - Doctor Who. In this blog post I'm going to be talking about why I love Doctor Who.

I started my love for Doctor Who when I was around the age of 10-12 I believe, somewhere around that age anyway. I can't remember precisely what the first episode I watched was but I'm sure it was either 'The Christmas Invasion', 'New Earth' or the very first episode of it's rerun which was 'Rose'. It was between those three but I fell in love with the show. The TARDIS, the gorgeous music, the aliens, the monsters, everything was just so amazing to me at such a young age and I was just bewildered by it all. One of the many reasons I love Doctor Who is because it's a way of escapism for me, I feel I can watch an episode of Doctor Who and to be in another reality where Daleks and Cybermen do exist. Growing up and watching Doctor Who was the perfect way to make use of my imagination. With my sonic screwdriver and my hair spiked up thinking I'm David Tennant, I run around the house blasting the sonic screwdriver to members of my family thinking they are the aliens and monsters. Doctor Who made my childhood an enjoyable, magical experience for me and it's something that I love seeing children do, dress up and pretend to be The Doctor or a companion.

My favourite Doctor is the delightful Matt Smith. Matt is my favourite because of his range as an actor and I am amazed at how he captured the old angered man but with an essence of a schoolboy and it's amazing to see how quick he transitions it one another. With Matt's Doctor I feel that it's back to the traditional Doctor; the outfit, the TARDIS, etc. I just feel that we have a much more classic Doctor than previous Doctors in the rerun. Everyone has their own favourite Doctor and that's great to see and it's great to see people bonding over their favourite Doctor.

Something that I love about Doctor Who is Tumblr. I joined Tumblr to blog about Doctor Who and to have my own blog full of Doctor Who related images, animation, etc. Tumblr is a great community where people use their creative talents and create beautiful, outstanding graphics, GIFs, edits, the whole lot... it's truly magical and exciting. There are hundreds and thousands of Doctor Who related Tumblr accounts and I just love seeing their passion for the show and their passion for the actors and actresses and amazingly, the crew. Tumblr is also a great source to find out new information about the show where there are interviews, spoilers, new filming photographs and when there is new information expressed on Tumblr I just love to scroll through the dashboard and see people's reactions to the news and there's a great sense of loyalty and passion for the show. 

I love Doctor Who for multiple reasons, it's such a fantastic British TV show and I'm proud to say that I'm a Doctor Who fan. This is a short blog post to introduce my blog posts this month related to Doctor Who and to express some reasons why I love Doctor Who. There are going to be many more blog posts about Doctor Who and some of the ideas that I have are:

• A review on my favourite episode
• A blog post about the Doctor Who Experience
• My favourite Doctor Who Merchandise
• Style tips to achieve a Doctor Who related bedroom or another room around the house
• A blog post about my favourite companion
• A blog post about the history of the show
• My Doctor Who Autograph Collection
• A review of 'An Adventures In Time and Space' 
• A review of 'The Day of The Doctor'

So, there are some ideas that I have, if you have any ideas please let me know in the comments!

There are thousands, maybe millions of Whovians all over the world and on the 23rd November we will unite and we will watch the 50th special - The Day of the Doctor. I'm going to be watching the special in the cinema in 3D but what are you planning for the 50th? Are you throwing a Whovian party? Are you going to the cinema? Are you going to watch it at the comfort of your own home? Let me know in the comments.

I hope you follow and enjoy this Doctor Who blog pots related month and enjoy the 50th special.

Thank you for reading.

Follow me on Twitter - @coreyterrett

Doctor Who: WHO'S next?

With Matt Smith leaving, I thought I'd write a little quick blog post about my views and opinions of him leaving and mainly, who I'd like to be the next Doctor.

In 2010 Matt Smith was announced as the eleventh Doctor replacing a fan favourite, David Tennant. At first, I was sadden by the news of David leaving as he brought something completely new to the role of The Doctor, but with Matt's arrival, he brought another whole level and a whole new take on the famous role. And with being sadden by David's departure, now, Matt is now my favourite Doctor. I can also imagine and know that he is also a firm favourite of other fan's of the show. Matt's an incredible, versatile actor and I'm positive, absolutely POSITIVE that he's going to go far and far.

Down below is Matt's thank you message to the fans and to the cast/crew:

It's incredibly sad to see such a great actor and such a great man leave the show, but...it's incredibly exciting to see who's going to take on the role and to step on board in the TARDIS. Here are some people who I feel could fit the bill and would play a fantastic Doctor.

Damien Molony:

Damien, the Being Human actor is my main choice to play The Doctor. After him playing Hal Damien has shown his versatile range as an actor. He can play the scary, desperate, frantic, quirky, the comical, emotional. With the character of vampire Hal, Damien has really shown how capable of an actor he really is and I'm more than sure that he would bring such an essence of The Doctor. 

Here are some other people who I would love to play the classic role of The Doctor.

Tom Hiddleston:

Being said, I'm not a massive fan of Tom and his work. I've only seen him in The Avengers and I feel that his performance was very stale, very pantomime style of performing. However, after a couple of re-watches, I've seen something 'Doctor' in Tom, I feel that he has the look of a Doctor. I'm sure with his experience, he'll also be capable of portraying the character of The Doctor.

Emmett J. Scanlan:

The ex Hollyoaks Irish actor is a very talented actor and he's a very great actor in the emotive sense too. I think that a Hollyoaks actor wouldn't be the typical candidate for the role as being part of a soap opera. But, I feel that Emmett's talent is much more wider than that. His performance in Hollyoaks playing bad boy Brendan Brady has been taken by fans and has won several awards in such a heartbreaking story. I feel that Emmett has that aura and essence of The Doctor and I feel that if they were to take The Doctor down a much more darker route than the fun and quirky personality, I feel that Emmett would be a perfect choice.

Steve John Shepard

Another soap actor, Steve John Shepard would be another favourite candidate of mine. I feel that his performance of Michael Moon in Eastenders, he would bring his unique performance of Michael to the role of The Doctor. He's very good at the confrontational side, the emotion, the aggressive, the dramatic...he's a very versatile actor. I'm sure that he would be a great witty Doctor.


There are many other actors that could fill the bill to play The Doctor, but these are my four candidates to play the role. Out of all of them, I would choose Damien Molony just because I feel that he can bring so much more to the role and to the show.

There's also been a lot of talk about there being a female Doctor. For many years when the Doctor is about to regenerate and everyone quizzes about who's going to play the new Doctor, the thought of a female Doctor has always propped up quite often. Names from Miranda Hart, Olivia Colman, Sheridan Smith have all been linked to the prospect of there actually being a female Doctor. I, personally and others may agree with me, that I feel that there shouldn't be a female Doctor. I just feel that the role being played with a female wouldn't be...right. It wouldn't feel like Doctor Who anymore. A friend of mine also said that she would turn of the show if there would be a female Doctor. I don't think it's being sexist at all when people say they don't want to see a female Doctor it's just saying their opinion...but, is it because we are used to seeing a male actor playing the role that we are wary of the thought of there being a female Doctor?

So, that's my thoughts about Matt Smith leaving, who I would like to play The Doctor next and the thought about a female Doctor. What do you think about Matt leaving? What do you think about the prospect of a female Doctor? Who do you want to play the Doctor next?

Mrs Brown's Boys and Tour 2013: 'For The Love of Mrs. Brown'

On Saturday 22nd June 2013, I went to watch the fantastic and hilarious Mrs Brown's Boys live with the fourth play in the Mrs Brown's series. I received the tickets as a Christmas present from my sister and her partner, which they wrote on a piece of paper that we're going to see them inside a copy of the previous live DVD of the show. It made me so excited and it was one of the best Christmas presents that I received.

I've been a fan of the show since about the middle of 2012/end of year 2011. When the first first became a massive hit in the series on BBC One, I didn't see the massive love and reaction for it. I just seen the show as 'same old, same old' kind of thing. But when the BBC was repeating the episodes of series one and two ahead of series three, I knew I had to watch to see if it'll change my mind. But oh boy did it! I fell absolutely in love with it, I just knew that I didn't give the show a proper chance, I sat down and I just enjoyed the show. What I love best about the show is that they don't make themselves be something their not. It's just a classic piece of TV and I  really cherish in the fact that it's a sitcom at the end of the day and I honestly feel that this show along with 'Miranda' as enforced the love and joy of British sitcoms. Brendan O'Carroll is a comedy genius, the writing may be full of cliches but the audience relishes it and they just laugh out loud along with the show. After watching series one, I had to buy the DVD of it and I watched it all over again. Then series two came about, with it not being as funny as the first but still funny I loved it all over again and again! I  learned to love the characters, I learned about the relationships of the characters and I feel series by series, the show got more stronger as a whole and it was a joy to watch. The show has been a huge success with high ratings, award after award, merchandise after merchandise, building a stronger fan base for the show.

Mrs Brown's Boys hasn't just been a hit BBC One series, it's been going on now for a couple of years. With radio shows, touring the country with their plays...it's been a massive comedy hit. Especially in Ireland where I believe lies it's biggest fan base. The show isn't just about family, it stares almost every member of Brendan's family, which I think is great as they get to share the momentum of the show and get to perform together. His children, his wife, his sister, his daughter-in-law are in the show being part of the Mrs Brown's clan.  The audience all has their own favourite characters with most of them being the neighbor next door and Agnes' best friend, Winnie. She's just a really likable character and the actress plays her with such realism and beauty. Such a glorious character. Another firm favourite character of the show has to be Buster Brady, Dermot's best friend who's always included in crime and in love with Cathy. I think my favourite characters has to be Maria, Winnie, Buster and Granddad. Along with Agnes of course, but them four especially are my favourite. 

So, the tour of the show landed in Cardiff and with every seat full and the atmosphere rife with laughter and just a massive love for the show and the entire cast, it was a very good night. Yes, they could of added new material instead of just using series two and series three material, but I really didn't mind as I was watching it live for myself! I loved it when Brendan went of the script and kept trying to put of Fiona O' Carroll (Maria) and Amanda Woods (Betty) by asking random questions, not expecting them to answer. Which they did and the audience cheered along. All in all, it was a fantastic experience seeing them perform it live...actually live for myself and I really want to go again! The show is only going to have more popularity not just in Ireland and the UK but worldwide as the Mrs Brown's Boys clan is heading of to Australia for a tour! Also, they're going to be filming the movie of the show, 'Mrs Brown D'Movie' in September for a June 2014 release. It's rumored that Hugh Bonneville is going to star in the movie. Also at Christmas time, the show is going to return for two more specials on BBC One, I just can't wait where they'll grow from here. Hopefully a fourth series would also be in the bag! 

From hating the show at first to falling in love with it, I absolutely love it and I can't wait to see the charismatic Agnes Brown next. If you're going to see the show on tour, prepare to laugh your socks off! Brendan and co really do bring the house down and makes everyone belly ache with laughter.  

Review: Miranda, Series 3, Episode 4 - Je Regret Nothing

Episode four review of Miranda time! This episode is entitled, 'Je Regret Nothing'. In this episode, Miranda has been caring for her mother for the last five days, stuck in her flat with her needy mother Penny, she is forced to think about her life regrets. As the episode continues, Miranda falls ill and nobody has any sympathy for her.

So, an ill Penny is something that Miranda doesn't enjoy, well...at times Penny can be very demanding, pushy, but an ill Penny makes it even worse. An ill Penny with a bell? A whole different story. We have Penny naming the remote controls 'dooberries', such fun! We have Doctor Gale back, and we have Tilly aspiring to be a life coach. I absolutely loved Miranda and Penny's relationship in this episode, at times it felt very much like the therapist episode. Miranda's frustration and Penny's orders is very entertaining to watch, the way that Miranda is 'planning' Penny's 'death' is also very funny yet incredibly slapstick. Something that made me laugh within the first couple of minutes is when Penny's phone starts to ring, Miranda is approaching her with a pan about to 'hit' Penny, Penny screams and Miranda falls to the floor. I couldn't stop laughing. The relationship and interaction between Miranda and Penny is one of my favourite parts about the show, and it is definitely my favourite part about the episode. Miranda and her moustache straw, eh? I say this a lot but, typical Miranda! Where can I get those straws? Anyone? No? OK. We then see Miranda using over gloves as footwear, sporting a fan and pretending to be a geisha, kindly pointed out by Penny. We then see Miranda doing some slight ballet moves, pretending to be Darcey Bussell, again, kindly pointed out by Penny. I just love this mother-daughter relationship, Miranda and Patricia play it perfectly and they have great chemistry! 

We then witness Miranda finding her first grey hair, and what does Miranda do? Colour it in with a marker pen of course. Miranda opens the front door to reveal a dartboard with Penny's face on it, Miranda throws darts at Penny's face, which I did find a little 'silly' but I couldn't resist but laugh. Penny then asks the question, "Where are my reading glasses?" which are clearly on her head. A frustrated Miranda tells her that they're on her head but does Penny listen? Of course not. Such fun! Miranda then mistakes her deodorant for hairspray...I'm not even going to say "Typical Miranda" anymore...oh wait, I just did. But, I suppose many people have done the same thing in the past. 

Can we just talk about the wonderful Tilly? She's my favourite, she has been since the show has started - she's brilliant, isn't she? She's gorgeous, she's hilarious and she makes up her own words. Even better word's  than Nicole Scherzinger. I like how she's always exaggerating, how she's got to make everything about her. I adore Sally Phillips (Tilly), I think she plays the role with ease and made the character her own. I love the use of her saying "Bare with" whenever she has something to say or is checking her text message. Which, I have started doing. In this episode, Tilly decides to become a life coach. Let's leave it there shall we? I think so...

Miranda then thinks she's got thrombosis, she then asks Doctor Gale to reassure her that everything is OK. This was one of my favourite moments of the lines, here's part of the script:

DOCTOR GALE:

I'll give you half an hour.

MIRANDA:

Half an hour to live? I knew I was ill! Someone take me to Disneyland, there's no time. Have sex with me Doctor!

I just couldn't stop laughing at Miranda's line. Miranda then tries to open her Midsomer Murders DVD, like most people she finds it is a challenge to undo the wrapping...I hate that. Miranda seems to do this a lot in the series, the earphones, the duvet now this, it happens in real life. A lot. With Miranda being ill, none of her friends and mother doesn't feel any sympathy for her, Stevie is rude to her, slating her looks, her breath and her odor, Tilly calls her a drunk Princess Anne, Gary has some sympathy for her by giving Miranda a hug but ruining the moment when he tells her that he went to a ballroom class and met Jacinta, Penny says she's going to audition for Velma in a production of Chicago. 

Something that just makes Miranda and is one of my highlights of this series is Miranda pretending that she's performing in Wembly, thanking Michael Bublé for being her warm up and then performing with 'great friends' - The Spice Girls. Just brilliant...until Miranda is rumbled when everyone walks in on her singing/dancing/miming to "2 became 1". Then, everyone else (Tilly, Gary, Stevie and Penny) fall ill and Miranda is having her own music festival. 

I really enjoyed  this episode, at times it was a bit over the top, a bit cheesy but never the less, it was still rather enjoyable, there was some amusing moments, hilarious lines and these are some of my favourites:

"Do you want to come home with me? Please say no."

"Like a drunk Princess Anne."

"PLUNGE MY CRACK!"

"Someone take me to Disneyland?! There's no time...have sex with me Doctor!"

If you missed this episode, you can watch it here!

Thank you for reading.

Follow me on Twitter - @coreyterrett

Review: Call the Midwife.

It's back in its second series following from a smash hit first series and a very well received and loved Christmas Special. This type of show is something that I tend to avoid - babies are not my type of thing. But, I have fallen in love with this show. It's a proper gritty, dramatic, humorous (in some parts) and a perfect viewing for a cold, wintry Sunday night.

The series is based around the memoirs of Jennifer Worth and is set in east London during the 1950s. The show its self is created and written by Heidi Thomas. The show has a marvelous cast and play the parts brilliantly. The cast include: Jessica Raine as Jenny Lee, Miranda Hart playing Chummy Browne, Jenny Agutter playing Sister Julienne, Pam Ferris playing Sister Evangelina, Judy Parfitt playing Sister Monica Joan,  Helen George as Trixie Franklin, Bryony Hannah playing Cynthia Miller, Laura Main as Sister Bernadette and Cliff Parisi as Fred. The cast are just brilliant! My favourites include Miranda Hart (Chummy), Helen George (Trixie) and Pam Ferris (Sister Evangelina). 

From domestic abuse, poverty, prostitution, messed up relationships, Call the Midwife makes excellent viewing and is just a joy to watch. The show is preferably aimed at women, I can't help but help but ravish this brilliant drama. I love seeing how life was during those times and the way that people used to live, work, deliver babies and its rather interesting seeing how the generations have changed. 

I was deeply affected by the fantastic Christmas special, it was set around three stories: Mrs Jenkins, Chummy organising the nativity play, and a baby being left outside the convent. The Mrs Jenkins story was the one which affected me the most, Sheila Reid's performance was sensational, emotive and award winning in my opinion. (It is Sheila Reid, isn't it? - Who cares, whoever it was, she was superb). The story of Mrs Jenkins sees Jenny get involved with Mrs Jenkins who mistakes Jenny for her daughter whom she lost whilst she got admitted to the workhouse. It's a real hard-hitting emotional story especially when she sees the gravestone. (How perfect for Christmas viewing, isn't it?)

The ratings for the show are just excellent, going above 10m watching the episodes. The second series has just started on BBC One airing on Sundays at 8pm. If you've missed the first episode of the second series where Jenny tries to help a woman in an abusive relationship, Sister Evangelina and Trixie delivering a baby aboard a ship! It's truly a great episode, here's the link. http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01q9xlp/Call_the_Midwife_Series_2_Episode_1/

You can purchase series one, the Christmas special now on Amazon and other retail stores. I hope you enjoy watching the second series as much as the first and the Christmas special! I know I will! 

Thank you for reading. 

Corey.

You can follow me on Twitter - @coreyterrett