A bit on the quiet side last week, with not much happening to write home about, so I didn’t. Too busy working on the 101 Best Crime Series book which meant I’ve been too involved in watching TV to do anything else. Especially as my dear friend Nick (The Web Wizard) David has dug me up some box sets of old TV series. And I mean dug up, as in some cases they look like something from the graveyard. Check out these B&W babes. No Hiding Place, Z-Cars and 156 (Count ‘em) half hour episodes of Highway Patrol. Yeah, I know, my mum told me about them. But one classic series turned up as well. Prospects, starring Gary Olsen (sadly deceased, too young) and Brian Bovell, set on the Isle Of Dogs when it was still an Enterprise Zone. Bloody marvellous. I loved it when it was on Channel 4 in the eighties, and I think I love it even more now. All these came from a company called (I think) tv- memories, although all that’s on the covers is Memories & Nostalgia, nothing more. No info, just photos of everyone from Dixon Of Dock Green to Jimmy Nail in Spender. Anonymous. I hope they’re street legal.
So as for reading I’ve done bugger all, so I’ll have to go back to the new Mark Billingham, as I’ve forgotten all about it, before I can do a review.
Talking of reviews, my crit of the new John Connolly is in the Indie On Sunday today, and if you haven’t read it (And why not?) I expect it can be found somewhere in the net as soon as.
Also I was on the Robert Elms show on Radio London 94.9, and DAB on Friday lunchtime. What a nice bloke. Plugging everything I could of of mine, plus lots of other stuff including Luther (starring Idris Elba from The Wire) the new BBC 1 crime series. It’s had mixed crits but I loved it, and it goes straight into the book.
I meant to give Nick a mention too, but just as I was going to, they had to go over to Bow & Bethnal Green to announce the result of the election, and I got so disconbobulated, it went right out of my head. Sorry mate, next time I promise.
Music wise, a whole bundle of old vinyl this week including Wanda Jackson, Bobby Darin, The US T-Bones and The Fleetwoods amongst others.
By the way, last time I mentioned the Voidoids on Fruits de Mer records. should’ve been Vibravoid. Apologies to all concerned, the vinyl was such a beautiful shade of pink, it reminded me of strawberry ice cream and I wanted to eat it.
More soon.
Spender was brilliant… such a shame it finished in it’s prime. Who’d have thought Jimmy Nail would make such a fantastic tv cop? Why, oh why, are decent shows like this NEVER repeated??!
I remember lots of these. Must be your Mam’s age!
Spender was great and his sidekick, Stick, was wonderful. Sad he died too soon too.
My all time favourite TV detective series was Harry O. Brilliant scripts by Howard Rodham and a well rounded character so well portrayed by David Janssen. There’s another who died too soon! Just wish they’d put the series out on DVD. I assume it was just too good for the US market at the time where they were obsessed with stupid car chases and increasing violence. They cancelled it and we got shows like Charlie’s Angels!