The Legend of Frenchie King (1971) - Film Review

There are not been many female lead cowboy films one I remember was “Hannie Caulder” (1971) a British-made film, staring Raquel Welch. After being gang raped following the murder of her husband, she seeks revenge and hires a bounty hunter to instruct her in the use of a gun so she can have her revenge on the three outlaws responsible. This was no comedy like the film “Cat Ballou” (1965) starring Jane Fonda, it was gritty.

There is no way “The Legend of Frenchie King” (1971), Les pétroleuses (original title) the film I am reviewing today can be called gritty it’s more pure sexploitation. The two main stars were the ravishing beauties Brigitte Bardot and Claudia Cardinale but that didn’t stop the film receiving negative reviews from critics at the time. It was release in French and dubbed into English.

Brigitte Bardot (Louise) nicknamed Frenchie King, is the leader of a woman's gang with her four sisters and a train robber to boot, all very attractive women in this female-dominated movie and on inheriting valuable property via a train robbery decides to go to the ranch for a while. There is oil on the land and the neighbouring rancher Claudia Cardinale (Marie Sarrazin) wants to take them out with the help of her four brothers. Could love be in the air?

It’s a ramshackle spoof of a western if it was played for laughs I couldn’t find them it’s more a kinky male fantasy gone south, with a botched-up Brigitte Bardot and turbo-feisty Claudia Cardinale proving that the Wild West is definitely no place for a man, especially not when it is deluged in clichés.

There are some who will doubtless derive some pleasure from watching Brigitte Bardot play the pistol-firing dominatrix for all it is worth, humiliating every male she encounters. She claims the West as her own with her band of black clad amazons, and her catfight with Claudia Cardinale is a remarkable sight (probably the silliest fight scene ever too committed to celluloid) it took a reported seven days to film. It was a scene to show off their impressive cleavage. A woman's revenge is never a pretty sight, even if she is wearing tight-fitting corsets and a low-cut bra at the time. 

Probably not the film either star would like to be remembered for, but this is campy if you approach it not expecting too much. A refreshingly different considering the wave of not-very-funny European westerns spawned by the Spaghetti craze.

You’d certainly be hard pressed to find a European Western with more sex appeal, and the cleavage enhancing outfits Brigitte and Claudia squeeze their bodies into enhances the films eye appeal. Michael Pollard is a delight as the sheriff who keeps losing track of his horse, frantically studies French so he can win Marie over and loses so many other things, he finally handcuffs himself to his pet dog. In one of the more memorable scenes, Frenchie’s sisters have no luck “torturing” the truth about the Little P ranch out of Marie’s brothers. So Frenchie lines them up, facing away from her, stark naked, and begins firing her rifle until they squeal about the oil. After they are jailed, they team up to take revenge on the town's men.

A Love Affair With Vintage Posters

Staring Jennifer Wells

Some people would call them tacky, squalid, unwholesome, subversive, funny, and horribly fascinating. I fall in the pigeonhole of the latter as I like the old vintage film posters from the 60s and 70s with a particular interest in porn film posters from that era. I use to blog them a lot along with on my other blog a long with Hammer Horror posters also a favourite of mine and more recently, I have a growing interest in Japanese horror posters.

These days’ film posters are sanitised to boredom and it’s the case of many try too hard. The porn ones can be abysmally smutty and just don't past muster these days with censorship and the right on PC brigade. Back in time they would feature outside cinemas nearly always with some scantily woman in a state of undress or danger with some provocative statement like, “she was asking for it”. Behind the Green Door famously had the wording “A Smell of Honey, A Swallow of Brine” on its poster. They seemed to cater for the male of the species in this genre.

The another Gordon

Hammer horror are all blood and guts with monsters the likes of Frankenstein and Dracula. Flipping two fingers at all notions of subtlety and elegance. Hammer posters were wilfully chaotic, crowded with cartoon-like figures and with typefaces designed to replicate dribbling blood. The taglines were appalling and brilliant: "Beware the beat of the cloth-wrapped feet!" shrieked the poster for The Mummy's Shroud, while Taste the Blood of Dracula exhorted viewers to "Drink a Pint of Blood a Day!" The majority of posters would normally have some damsel in distress barely dressed and showing plenty of cleavage.

Three Evil Dead posters, old, new and Japanese

Classic Hammer Horror poster

I was younger when in town shopping with mum or dad I would always sneak a furtive look has we walked pass has they were adult films.

A favourite

Japanese posters came later into my live thanks to the film Battle Royale one of my favourite films. The film tells the story of junior high school students who are forced to fight each other to the death on an island somewhere in the Far East in a program run by the authoritarian Japanese government. The poster is not overly specials but it open the door to Japanese pop art in general in the gene of films. I had already read and seen Manga comics and videos, which are very popular, but it the poster and film that caught my eye more.

Maybe one day the wife will let me cover the walls with them.

The Blood Spattered Bride (1972) – Film Review

First time watching “The Blood Spattered Bride” yesterday it was not a case of wow but a typical early seventies horror. The film was powerful/strange, violent, symbolic, in its own bizarre and often twisted fashion, and I liked it.

It has to do with a young virgin bride, Susan (Maribel Martin) living in the family home of her slightly older husband (Simon Andreu). Her husband is almost obsessive about seeking sexual pleasure from his young bride, and she begins to grow repulsed by his overt sexual dominance. She is also growing fascinated by the family legend of Mircalla Karstein (Alexranda Bastedo), an infamous ancestral figure who killed her husband on their wedding night. Susan starts to have violent (and I mean violent!) nightmares about Mircala, and becomes convinced that her ghost is attempting to push Susan towards killing her husband.

The main "problem" with The Blood Spattered Bride is that the first half and the second half are quite different. The first half of the film is reminiscent of Hitchcock's Marnie, the tale of a woman's sexual frigidity and its ensuing effect on her life and mental stability. The first half of the film is easily my favourite, for it manages to be probing AND erotic at the same time...not to mention extremely violent. Although The Blood Spattered Bride is not actually a "gore movie", some of Susan's sexual nightmares are among the most graphic sequences captured in cinema in the day. They are also fascinating to watch, and there is something strangely sexy about the execution of these scenes..., which is perhaps symbolic of Susan’s sexual frustration, and fear of insanity.

The second half of the film involves the appearance of Carmila, a strange woman who bears an uncanny resemblance to the woman of Susan's nightmares. I don't want to give too much away, but anyone with a familiarity of the film knows that it was one of the early films in the "lesbian vampire" subgenre, so you can probably guess where it's headed...

The second half of the film is probably more erotic almost as violent as the first half, and it pushes the female sexuality exploration in a completely new direction. However, this is where the vampire aspect comes into play in a big way, and the film at times feels more like a Hammer film. I could not help but feel that the ending was a bit of a letdown. It's not a bad ending by any means-it's definitely a major shocker-but it was also quite abrupt, really. The turning point in the film is her husband's discovery of Carmila on the beach, easily the film's weirdest and most surreal scene. And for the rest of the film, when the vampire themes come into play as her husband discovers her latent lesbianism and relationship with Carmila. No wonder the husband wasn’t getting any. As such, it could easily be interpreted as a nightmare about killing her husband and then being killed...hence the abrupt, seemingly misogynistic ending.

The Blood Spattered Bride is not a perfect film, but in my opinion, but fun to watch. The performances are all wonderful (this is some of the best casting for this European horror), and it's one of the rare Euro Horror films in which the performances are crucial to the effectiveness of the film.

My Rating

Sunday Crush – Alexandra Bastedo - Glamourpuss

One of my first crushes was Alexandra Bastedo she was one of the stars of the TV series “The Champions”. British espionage/science fiction/occult detective fiction, adventure television series she was an agent for a United Nations law enforcement organization 'Nemesis', based in Geneva.

She was born in England but I remember thinking she looked exotic, European but that came from her mother’s French, German, and Italian descent and her Canadian-born father. She worked from time to time working at 10 Downing Street to assist with translations she was multilingual, speaking Italian, Spanish, French, and German.

To me she will be always be, Sharron Macready her character from “The Champions” she was super sexy and dressed like a model. In the TV, series during her first mission with her two male companions they survive a plane crash in the Himalayas, and rescued by an advanced civilization of monks. They are each given the ability to communicate with one another over distances (telepathy) they also came away from the encounter with superhuman powers-- superior strength, memory, mind reading etc.

With my thoughts, mind reading was a worry.

It is easy to see why she is on my crush list I reckon I was around 11 when woman changed from hello to wow after my first kiss, first boobs and the other thing (we know what I mean) the thingy and I have fond memories. She was known as a glamourpuss back than and glamour was the right name she had buckets loads. I like the fashion from the fifties and sixties and her clothes just hang off her. The was plenty of sex appeal emanating from her and it was great around 10 years back to see her appear in the British soap “EastEnders” still looking great. With her being multilingual she was in demand for foreign makers films like “The Blood Spattered Bride” (1972) La novia ensangrentada (original title) which gave me one of my top 10 topless film shots, see below.

I have never found something like this when

I dig around in the sand.

Bank Holiday Special TV

Television is poor this coming week so no recommendations instead I will do a Bank Holiday special. I sit in hope of some new programming but I will have to wait. Some due to be televised in June and the summer,

Versailles, Season 3 - BBC Two 04 June

Knightfall, Season 1 - History Summer

Who Do You Think You Are?, Season 15 - BBC One Summer

The trailers for King Lear have been popping up over the BBC and wetted my appetite to be a viewer it’s a modern day up date of the classic.

5Spike The 7th Voyage of Sinbad 1pm – I always try to watch what I call a Bank Holiday film and Sinbad is deffo in that category.

While sailing with Princess Parisa to Baghdad to their wedding, Sinbad finds the Colossa Island and anchors his vessel to get supplies for the starving crew. Sinbad and his men help the magician Sokurah to escape from a Cyclops that attacks them, and Sokurah uses a magic lamp with a boy jinni to help them; however, their boat sinks and he loses the lamp. Sokurah offers a small fortune to Sinbad to return to Colossa, but he does not accept and heads to Baghdad.

The citizens and the Caliph of Baghdad are celebrating the peace with Chandra, and they offer a feast to the Sultan of Chandra. Sakurah requests a ship and crew to return to Colossa but the Caliph refuses to jeopardise his compatriots. However, the treacherous magician shrinks the princess and when the desperate Sinbad seeks him out, he tells that he needs to return to Colossa to get the ingredient necessary for the magic potion and the adventure begins.

Sky Cinema Action Aeon Flux 6:15pm – Ok it stars Charlize Theron again but I like her what can I say. In 2011, a deadly pathogenic virus has killed 99% of the Earth's population, forcing the survivors to regroup and scatter across the Earth.

400 years in the future, set in the year 2415, Aeon Flux is a mysterious assassin. Four centuries after a virus nearly annihilated the human race, leaving only five million survivors in a utopian city called Bregna. Aeon is struggling to destroy the Goodchild regime led by its namesake, Trevor Goodchild, the ruler of Bregna and a descendant of the man who found a cure for the deadly virus. As instructed by the Handler, Aeon is assigned to assassinate Goodchild, but there are deeper secrets to be discovered, and conspiracies to be foiled.

BBC 2 King Lear 9pm – I have been waiting for this for weeks the Richard Eyre's adaptation of Shakespeare's tragedy, starring Anthony Hopkins as the ageing monarch who decides to divide his kingdom between his three daughters, only to turn against the youngest and banish her when she refuses to flatter his ego. The remaining sisters are corrupt and their newfound power and drive him into the wastelands, at a terrible cost to his sanity, while the land is plunged into chaos and civil war. With Emma Thompson, Emily Watson, Jim Broadbent, Andrew Scott and Florence Pugh it is a major cast.

BBC 1 Car Share 10pm - There was uproar at the end of the second and final series of Car Share when odd couple John and Kayleigh (Peter Kay and Sian Gibson) did not get together. Or rather, they did, but only in a musical dream sequence which was a bit of a cheat.

Fans determined that everything should end happily for the engaging pair and demanded the resolution they wanted. So Kay and his co-writer Gibson have made one last episode and I thank them

Apart from three charity screenings, the whole thing is being kept under wraps until tonight, at Kay’s insistence, but surely, they would not keep John and Kayleigh apart again. Or would they?

Last-ever, episode of the comedy, following on from last May's instalment in which Kayleigh finally admitted her true feelings for John - and then stepped out of his car and seemingly out of his life for good when he refused to say how he felt, naughty John.

Answering Qustion About Me And School - Mostyn RC

What were you like in school?

I felt I was a good pupil, not a troublemaker although I could fly close to the rules and step over them from time to time. I was caned a few times for breaking general school rules I remember being caught taking a short cut across the grass, cost four of the best.

What did you enjoy most about school?

Friendship was important and my group of class mates we were together for the five years throughout secondary school and  remembered happily. I was lucky my junior school was affiliated to the school being Catholics so most of my friends transferred together and we were a tight unit.

I enjoyed mitching, which was also part of my schooling everyone must have bunked off school once. The only time school began to lose the fun element was in the final year when I realised all this was ending, time to grow up and think about my future who needed that.

Getting to School

From my house it is over 5miles when I first started we had to make our way to the bus station to catch a school bus then after a term the school revised the bus routes and one stopped at the top of my street. Of course it was not always caught! If you missed it and made your own way into school you could just about miss the first two lessons. Living over three miles from the school I was issued with a bus pass.

Naughtiest thing you ever did.

Well this is a very easy one, which involves three stitches and the mysterious doctor’s certificate. On my first ever games lesson with three stitches in my foot I was told I needed a doctor’s certificate, which I dually acquired. Stitches out for my next games lesson it was not a pleasant day and with my games kit in my bag I sat there and when asked why I was not ready I just said, “I have a certificate, sir”. From then I just kept using the ‘certificate’ ruse until they just stopped asking me and for year after year until I left school I did not do physical education.

It was not until I was interview by the local newspaper years later that they found out with one of my sister who was at the school telling me the story was pinned on the staff room wall.

Best/Favourite subject.

History was my favourite lesson I did a mega project on the World War Two one year and got me my one and only 'A' in five years of schooling. I just loved learning and I also liked geography but that was about it.

Worst subject

Social studies - The teacher was ok but I couldn't get a long with the lessons they were boring. I will through in English as well my weakest lesson again I like my teachers.

Best Teacher

Mr Morris (Maths) he was the best I always enjoyed his lessons but I can truly say I liked all my teachers.

Where you a fighter

In five years I had just one fight with my best friend from junior school I can't remember why just we had the fight outside the woodwork room and I was so upset I when on the mitch for a few weeks. We kind of made our peace but he soon moved and changed school.

End of school Exams

Well after five years of school come final exams, it was Maths GCSE my only exam. Somehow, from very mediocre results over the five years, I made and passed the pass mark of 55/100 and I was shocked but my teacher Mr Morris more.

I remember as he was rolling off the names I was expecting him “Ugarte 20 or 30 something, disappointing” but no he continued “50” and still he had not called my name out. “The next names have passed, Peter Ugarte 57 congratulations” no big cheer but in my mind there was a party kicking off. Cheating was officially suggested, who I was sitting next to that kind of thing but I had no idea why my score was so high for me and putting it down to a perfect moment in time but I did not pass the real exam at the end of school exams.

Favourite school dinner.

I love the Cornbeef pie with chips, everything with chips within reason there was plenty I did not like all the ‘afters’ but for ice cream. First thing every morning I would try to find out what was on the menu, if it was not tempting some of us would nick out of school down the hill to the chippy.

650 Words - Glamorising Smoking

Lauren Bacall

Since watching the film, I reviewed the other day Atomic Blonde I am still annoyed with the glamorising of smoking. Mentioning I, was going to blog about this everyone smoked in the eighties, I disagree. The film was based in the eighties but it is pushing the point a bit saying everyone was smoking.

First, some history passive smoking aside I was around eleven when I had my one and only puff on a cigarette it was around by the end bench in our local park. My mate Peter Owen R.I.P egged me on, under a bit of pressure to look cool I had a puff and instantly disliked it that was the end of that. I do think youngster saw smoking as cool and made you think you were older. My mum R.I.P died too early in her life due to smoking and she was a heavy smoker telling me it was the glamorisation of smoking on the silver screen that turned her into a smoker.

It was regarded cool, cheap, and socially acceptable and on the screen actresses like Lauren Bacall made it cool. She ended up living longer than my mum and died after suffering a massive stroke. Back then, there were no health warnings and by time there were being talked about it was too late for mum and any of her age they were addicts.

Today there is no excuses have you seen the shock tactics on the packaging and the cost now I laugh to myself every time they swing open the cabinets where this filth is now kept.

Forget the film being 1980s based. Here and now, the actress Charlize Theron was smoking like a trooper and after watching the movie my thoughts drifted to why was it because she did it for the role (method acting) or she was a regular puffer. Not just her, many actresses, and models are picture puffing away on a cigarette and many others but this is about the so-called beautiful people and you will see why soon.

They talk about being healthy they eat the right things look after the body and are happy to sell books, DVDs, and themselves in TV and newspapers. I find it a bit laughable they sprout healthy with a packet of 10 or 20 in their purse and pocket and the same goes for pretty men who trade on health.

Possibly one of the most iconic film posters ever but

would it but just as good without the cigarette

Take Natalie Portman she was only 12 when she starred in Léon and her role called for her to smoke but her parents were worried about the smoking scenes. So they worked out a contract with the film’s director saying Portman could only have five cigarettes in her hand throughout the entire film, she would never be seen inhaling or exhaling smoke, and her character would give up smoking during the course of the film.

A friend once told me he thought smoking is wrong but watching women smoke turns him on I fired back you may has well kiss an ashtray. I like the idea I read a while ago the French were of a mind to ban smoking in French films but Hollywood would never follow. Why not go further and make films run a graphic anti-smoking ad, and I mean shocking if there is smoking in the film. How can some with a black lung inside their body be healthy?

While looking into some of my favourite actress I was shocked to see Keira Knightley in a list of heavy smokers but in her more modern films, she does like a puff or two as a kid she could smoke and in front of her mother. In film, look no further than Domino although she is now a mother maybe so has stopped. It is simply you can tell people of your healthy living with a cigarette dangling out of your mouth you have a charcoal lung.

The Sunday Charts Old Style

Top end technology in its day

The charts mean little to me today, just not my cup of tea and way off my musical taste anyway. There was a time when the charts were important major influences on my music. Back in my youth especially on a Sunday, listening to the charts from the BBC. There was Top of the Pops and I also like Juke Box Jury on the TV but it was the radio where it was happening. 

In the early 70s, we had a new addition to the family a cassette recorder opening a completely new world. It was fantastic for home recording with the handy microphone and on a Sunday, you could find me somewhere ready and waiting for that tune/song to record.

Old style cassette tape

You would need a quiet room for your recording session. The last thing you wanted to record family shouting or slamming doors on your recording. I would lay on my bed primed and ready to push the red record button. Not so easy has it sound sometimes the red button would be stuck and you had miss the start of the song you wanted to record. You had to make sure the batteries were ok because it they were low on power your cassette player wouldn’t work properly.

The dreaded birds nest

There were drawbacks to cassettes tape. If your equipment was misbehaving, your tape could start unwinding in the machine, leaving you with a mess. The classic way to get the cassette back to normal was to stick a standard pencil in a tape spool and spin it to tighten the tape back together. If the tape was broken, however, you were probably out of luck. There was nothing worse than not getting the whole song taped. It sometimes didn’t help by an overzealous presenter queuing up the next song towards the end of the song you were taping. Some would tape the whole top twenty, not me, I was interested in cherry picking the songs I liked. It was all guesswork back in the 70s who would be in the top twenty. The BBC had the official chart show and if you missed it, you would have to wait for the newspapers on Monday, the mid-week music papers, or Top of the Pops on Thursday.

Today the top twenty is everywhere with the big difference sales. They have drying up to next to nothing compared to my youth when you needed to sell hundreds of thousand to make to top selling single. Today a few thousand can get you in the top twenty.

Nostalgia TV - Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads

I spent the morning on a nostalgia fest watching episodes of an old favourite ‘Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads’ a sequel to the earlier The Likely Lads. Rarely does a sequel turn out better than the original but this is the case here.

The lads are now older but certainly not wiser. Bob is now a rising executive on the verge of marriage to childhood sweetheart Thelma. Terry following a spell in the army is returning home and has not changed, and is proud of his working class background and always the chancer.

In the first episode, Terry and Bob are reunited, but first they past like a ship in the night at a Soho strip club. We then see Terry sitting in the train carriage and has Bob walks in the lights go off, standard British Rail back in the day. After a few pleasantries, Terry mentions he is just out of the army.

This leads Bob to tell him about his best mate who followed him into the army has he could not stand being parted and joined up as well. But Bob was release with flat feet leaving mate (Terry) in the army for three years. He does not know he is actually telling his old mate Terry.

So when the lights came back on Terry is fit to bust but he soon calms down until he makes derogatory remarks about Bob’s future wife Thelma. Terry gets off the train at Doncaster and when Bob sees him thinks he left him on the train and jumps off and confronts Terry who informs him “it’s not Newcastle” looking up at the station sign.

Unfortunately for Bob, when he gets on the next train he jumps back off having left the present he bought for Thelma in the waiting room. At the same time Terry is jumping on the train with the present leaving Bob stranded at Doncaster railway station with the train pulling out. His waiting fiancée is none too pleased when it is Terry who turns up at Newcastle not Bob.

The whole of the first season is leading to the wedding of Bob, Thelma, and her worrying that the reappearance of Terry to the safety of her upcoming marriage and the destruction of their old stomping ground due to redevelopment. There are some classic episodes my favourite is,

No Hiding Place

They try to avoid learning the result of an England football match before the TV highlights are shown that evening. Flint (Brian Glover) tries to spoil it for them, having bet them £10 that they won't get through the day without learning the result. The Lads get to the TV highlights none the wiser about the score, except for Terry seeing a newspaper headline that says "England F...". When Flint tracks them down to Bob's new house, an angry Terry pays him off with £10 (borrowed from Bob). After all that, the match turns out to have been postponed due to a waterlogged pitch: "England – flooded out..." and ice skating was on instead.

The second series sees them uneasily settling into domesticity with Terry on hand to stir the pot from time to time. The dialogue is consistently superb as are the performances throughout. There was a Christmas special and a big screen made in 1976, which was pretty much a remake of the first few episodes with Terry returning home once more and having trouble settling into society.

In Terry and Bob, writers Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais created down-to-earth characters who also reflected the rapidly changing social climate. And they liked a drink and they were funny.

Atomic Blonde (2017) - Film Review - Bond in Suspenders

After the wedding and the football last night I tried and failed to reintroduce Saturday night film night but the wife was more interested in watching Casualty on her laptop, I had control of the TV, so I sat back to watch Atomic Blonde. I had not previously heard of it even with one of my favourite actresses Charlize Theron, in this 2017 film.

Over in Berlin days before the wall being torn down a hard-bitten MI6 agent Lorraine Broughton (Theron), arrives in Germany after Britain’s man in Berlin has been murdered trying to get a Stasi informant out of East Germany. Gliding through the airport at the beginning of the film she looked every bit the model with bucket loads of attitude, she was hot.

We first meet her completely naked in a bathtub filled with ice, a bonus. She's badly beaten up now cue the rest of the movie in unfolding flashbacks.

Dangerously sexy Lorraine has been sent to Berlin to clean up a mess that involves another British spy (James McAvoy, as reliably fun as ever), who for a spy makes plenty of noise. Also, there is a dangerously sexy Frenchwoman (Sofia Boutella) to look out for who gets together with Lorraine for some girl on girl action another bonus. You get the idea of what kind of movie this is. Everyone are after a top-secret list containing the real names of hundreds of spy. They’ll all be targets if the list gets out making Stasi officer with the information very valuable.

If you feel like you’ve seen that plot before in other espionage movies, you definitely have! But plot isn’t everything it’s all presented in flashback, framed by Lorraine’s interrogation by both MI6 (Toby Jones) and CIA (John Goodman), both so hostile you assume there’s something personal underneath it all—and we anticipate disaster around the corner of every action scene. And the film is full of them.

During her investigation into the dead British operative who in fact was her lover, Lorraine becomes involved in the sensual tryst with beguiling French operative Delphine, played by seductive Sofia Boutella. Is theirs the genuine romantic diversion or a clumsy plot device? Maybe both. However, in a nice character unconcealed Delphine tells Lorraine that her eyes change "when you tell the truth". Melancholy Lorraine admits, "and that could get me killed one day."

The fight scenes throughout the film are pretty hard core, a kind of 80’s half fashion ad as Lorraine owns the gritty runway in black and white 80s costumes, fierce heeled footwear, platinum tresses and even stockings and suspenders n is deadly espionage thriller there are some similarity to John Wick. If I have one point to make there is too much smoking in the film it was like before sex, during sex, after sex and hey why not in the shower, just too much.

Set to a score of eighties new wave pop hits and driven at a pace that helps whiz by the creaky plot mechanics, it’s a pop action confection, all adrenaline and momentum and style grounded in the icy stare and furious moves of Theron. Given all that, and a springboard twist in the final minutes, it’s surely up for a sequel. I’m up for a series featuring Theron as an icy distaff answer to James Bond kicking ass through eighties Europe. It does answer that one big question! Can a woman play Bond and after watching this film, what do you think.

The ending: I was disappointed, but let it slide. I was expecting much more. If there's an alternate one, I'd stick with that.

My Rating

What has happened to Street Parties?

Pomeroy St, Prince Charles street party

We would enjoy a royal occasion and a street party. I believe there are under 10 street parties for the whole city of Cardiff for the wedding. We knew our neighbours back then I am not sure people today are the same. Where I live I know a handful of neighbours (two), a few more I say morning to, that is it, and I have lived here about 20 years.

Back in the day, it would start with a knock on the door with a group of mums outside with an exercise book and pen to collect money for the party. Most of the street would put up some bunting, pictures in their front window and soon the whole street was decked out with flags. Today council red tape and insurance to cover the event and some councils want paying for closing roads put some people off planning a party. On the day, we would lend our table and any chairs and mum would be asked if she could help with the food, it was a big community thing.

It was not just our street. Just about every street joined in with the celebrations some streets had to remain open for access so people living there would be welcome at other parties. There was always a bit of a competition between streets for the best display, which we always won, other streets of course may not agree. The memory is so strong you would think it happen regularly but I only took part in one such celebration for the Investiture of Prince Charles but I did go to two parties. Although I was around for the Queens Jubilee in 1977 but was too old now but watched and looked after my sisters.

I can remember the excitement of the party growing and a week or so before the investiture Prince Charles (not the Prince of Wales yet) drove past the top of our street on a tour of Wales. Came the day all us kids were just dying to dive into the food and get stuck in but we were constantly shooed away. Then when it was deemed time we would take our seat and then like a swarm of locusts, attack the food, pop and ham sandwiches what more did I need. After everyone was done with the food, there were games, sweetie bags, and fun.

My kids who were born between 1986/1989 have never been to a street party mainly because where we lived people were not interested.

Watching the TV coverage of today’s celebrations it was good to see coverage of street parties it took me back. It was great to see all the activity and kids running most of whom may never had such freedom to run around their street.

Question Time going off the Boil

I am back early from a short planned break from blogging after last night watching my regular fix on a Thursday night of Question Time on BBC 1. I have been a fan since it started, it really is essential viewing to me has I love politics, David Dimbleby is the perfect host but is the format becoming too boring or the main guests.

Each week a guest panel take questions from the public and argue their beliefs or mainly there parties beliefs. The panel consist principally of politicians from each of the main parties and when the show travels to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland a more local panel are called for. They are all hamstring by party lines at rarely answer the question these days more than in the earlier shows asked them any question and the majority of time they reply right along party lines. Who cares about history someone always goes back in history reminding others of their policy from yesteryear when I want to hear about now and the future.

I like the non-politicians they can be more interesting and some like journalists can even break cover from their newspapers political allegiances and theirs as well. We expect anyone from the Daily Mail to be more right wing of Genghis Khan and a guest from the Daily Mirror to be left wing with a well thumb copy of Karl Marx in his pocket but unlike the politicians tend to have a mind of their own and go off script.

Outside the politicians, you get an interesting group of guest so diverse and the best are those who may have political allegiances who are not nailed to the mast and answer questions. Always on offer, a healthy discussion can become very heated towards the politicians who try to snake their way out of a question. The odd guest to the show was controversial I am thinking about Nick Griffin leader of the far-right British National Party, when he was invited on the panel there was up roar with demands for him to be banned but the BBC would not relent and he got his platform for all the good it did him.

His attack on Jack Straw’s then-Justice Secretary left many speechless when BNP leader Nick Griffin launched a vile attack on his father’s wartime jail spell. "My father was in the RAF during the second World War while Mr Straw's father was in prison for refusing to fight Adolf Hitler".

Then you watch personal finance expert Martin Lewis chewing up a politician over student finance for using it as a "political football" and has made young people think they cannot afford to go to university. Labour's Chi Onwurah said tuition fees are "an obstacle" for people from working class backgrounds and should be scrapped. But Mr Lewis says they should not be "framed as a debt" and a generation has been "mis-educated" about how it works.

Last night Dianne Abbott was one of the panellist normally a red flag for me, as I am no fan and she turned up in the strangest of outfits. Grenfell was always going to be the first question up with the end of the Grenfell Tower review and Conservative Housing, Communities and Local Government minister Dominic Raab was on hand for a roasting a lady in the audience managed to get an apology out of him. Something I have notice the audiences have become more boisterous with the panel more so since Brexit also on the show were ex-Met Police commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, Guardian columnist Aditya Chakrabortty and Camilla Cavendish, former head of policy for David Cameron.

The discussion on Grenfell took up much of the show, which was bound to happen with some passionate questions coming from the audience who lived around Grenfell. Next the controversial move of the US embassy to Jerusalem, and the death and wounded of Palestinian protesters again the was plenty of passion from the audience and with most of the schedule programme time over there was just about a enough time for a third subject, knife crime.

In London, it’s bad and beginning to spread further a field. A somewhat boisterous encounter for some of the panel but why do people go on and on about youth clubs like it’s a fix for all evils but joking aside that is no fix to the problem. At the end of the day I think Question Time could do would out the politicians.

Romper Stomper the TV series - TV Review

It has been a while but on checking BBC 3 on the iPlayer, I got a bit excited seeing some new programming for a later date. However, my eye drifted straight away to Australian television series and sequel to the 1992 film Romper Stomper set 25 years after the events in the film. I love the film. ok it was about far right skinheads. It was brutal, in your face and without political leanings just hate.

The six-part series follows a new generation of fictional far-right activists and their far-left, antifa counterparts, with the story focussing on a fictional far-right anti-Islamic group Patriot Blue, led by Blake Farron .

The film launched Russell Crowe’s career, the action has moved from the neo-Nazi skinheads on the fringe to the hate speech disguised as free speech of mainstream Australian politics. Moreover, the targets are now Muslims, rather than the Vietnamese migrants of 1992. Also, there is one of the best chase scenes in the film Crowe and his mates a chased by a baying band of Vietnamese

1992

The new focus is a worryingly familiar breed of racists – hyper-organised “free speech” advocating White Nationalists. The shady group at the centre of this tale is an amalgamation of several real-life organisations that calls itself Patriot Blue, and, basically, their idiotic idea of a great night out is harassing the local Muslim community and brawling with their arch-enemies, a far-left group called Anti-Fasc.

The series opens with Farron’s group protesting a Halal food festival in Melbourne when the extreme-left Anti-Fasc (the series’ version of Antifa) appear and it turns violent.

2017

In the ensuing melee, a Muslim university student, Laila, unwittingly becomes the face of her community. Also on the scene is Kane (Toby Wallace), the son of Gabrielle (Jacqueline McKenzie, reprising her role from the 1992 film). His arrival into this powder keg escalates things quickly as the group turns to street violence against anyone “not worthy” in their warped creed.

If it’s purely for entertainment, then you have to question the wisdom of exploiting the politics of division, and depicting these white nationalists, these violent, so-called defenders of Australian values, gloriously speechifying about how it’s been assaulted.

While the show is better than the film at countering time spent with the racists by giving some insight into the other groups — this time, the anarchists and the Muslim community — it still gives a lot more airtime and complexity to the white nationalists. There’s a real danger in that imbalance. I have no interest in the subject matter of both the film and the TV series I was hoping to be entertained but the TV series was a let-down.

Riding off the back of the film this was not worthy of an hour of my time but did just about enough for me to watch the second episode. Yes, it’s heavy on the racism, hatred with a few punch-ups but it could be two groups of any gangs like football hooligans or street gang defending the neighbourhood or postcode. It doesn’t take long before Kane is slipping one to Farron’s young wife/girlfriend, I did see that happening.

One highlight Jacqueline McKenzie who plays Gabe in both the original movie and the new TV series who I had a major crush on in the film and now I would say hotter now and moving over the line from crush to lust.

Cardiff Met v Barry Town United European Play Off Semi-Final

When I posted about the Welsh Cup Final last Sunday and said if Connah’s Quay Nomads won there would be no semi-finals, I was wrong. One of the play-off games will be played with the winners going on to play Cefn Druids on Sunday 20th May for a place in next season's UEFA Europa League.

Later today, there is a tasty fixture between Cardiff Met and Barry Town United, local rivals, (Kick-off 5:15pm) at Cardiff Mets Cyncoed Campus ground. The game promises to be a cracker and will be televised on Welsh TV channel S4C and various digital platforms.

The Met, came within a whisker of winning a place in Europe themselves a year ago, will fancy their chances after beating Barry 3-0 in Cyncoed earlier this season while Barry won the corresponding fixture 1-0. They also met in the Quarterfinal of the League Cup with the Met winning 2-0 but on recent form (last five games); they have only managed just the one win while Barry won three with no defeats over the same number of games.

Barry have seen European football under their former name of Barry Town but after a battle for survival against a former chairman and the FAW, they re-emerged as Barry Town United. Has for the Met they are the first University team to play in a top national league. If they were to win and the play-off final as well, they would be the first university team to represent their country in a major European competition I believe. Cardiff in the Premier league and European football back in Cardiff with the Met sounds good.

With a large crowd anticipated for Saturday’s match in Cardiff, supporters have been encouraged to arrive early, many had been stuck outside after the team’s previous Cyncoed clash on New Year’s Eve had already commenced.

Entry to the game children is FREE, accompanying adult - £2 CCFC fans with a valid Season Ticket holder - £1 the ground capacity is only 1,620.

Must see TV - Week beginning Sat12 May 2018

I have been bereft with the lack of TV over the last month but this upcoming week tele got busy. Take Thursday I have pencilled in five recommendations for those interested there will be some time issues so I will have to be inventive with watching them. The Eurovision Song Contest is my big treat of next week some of the music may be iffy but Graham Norton and the voting makes up for most of them. I am intrigued with “Missions” on BBC 4 Thursday and looking forward for its airing.

Saturday – BBC 1 – The Eurovision Song Contest 8pm ***New***

Graham Norton returns to the commentary box to cover all the action from the Grand Final, live from the Altice Arena in Lisbon, following Portugal's triumph last year. Salvador Sobral ended his nation's 53-year wait for a victory - or even a top-five finish - in Kiev with his song Amar pelos dois, finishing above Bulgaria and Moldova. Singer-songwriter SuRie will be flying the flag for the United Kingdom with her entry Storm, which the country is hoping will become the sixth winning song from the UK and the first since Katrina and the Waves' Love Shine a Light way back in 1997.

Sunday – BBC 1 (Wales) The Family Farm 6pm ***New Series***

In this ambitious new four-part series, the Morgan’s from Tenby, the Burtons from Manchester and the McNulty family from Glasgow are taken out of their comfort zones and pushed to their limits with early starts, late finishes and dirty jobs in all weather conditions on Gareth Wyn Jones’s family hill farm.

The families will have their regular daily farm chores and will live on site in a special tented village. At the same time, they will be given a set of challenges, designed to show how our food gets from gate to plate. Each week experts with Gareth and Kate Humble will choosing one exceptional individual to receive a shepherd’s crook for their good work will judge their efforts.

Sunday – BBC 1 – The Bafta Television Awards 8pm ***New***

Sue Perkins hosts the awards ceremony from London's Royal Festival Hall. The shows in the running include Black Mirror, Line of Duty, The Crown, and Three Girls, while nominees for awards include Joe Cole, Thandie Newton, Claire Foy, Molly Windsor Brian F O'Bryan, Anna Friel, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Samson Kayo, Anupam Kher, Jack Rowan, and Sandi Toksvig. John Motson, will receive the BAFTA Special Award in recognition of his outstanding contribution to sports broadcasting.

Sunday – Sky Atlantic – Patrick Melrose 9pm ***New Series***

Drama based on the novels by Edward St Aubyn, following the life of witty and wealthy aristocrat Patrick Melrose, as he attempts to recover from a severe drug addiction he developed as a way to deal with memories of a deeply traumatic childhood. In the first episode, hearing the news that his father has passed away, Patrick travels to New York to collect his remains. Starring Benedict Cumberbatch

Monday – Fox – Lucifer 9pm ***New Series***

The premise of the series focuses on Lucifer Morningstar, the Devil, who is bored and unhappy as the Lord of Hell. He resigns his throne and abandons his kingdom for Los Angeles, where he ends up running his nightclub "Lux". He becomes entangled in a case and is subsequently invited to be a consultant to the LAPD. Chloe's faith in Lucifer is tested, while the pair look into the murder of a stand-in actress.

Tuesday – Channel 4 – The Windsor’s Royal Wedding Special 9pm ***New***

As the comedy returns to celebrate the royal event, Harry and Meghan are excited about their impending marriage. However, before their big day, they must take Charles to America to meet Meghan's mum, Doria. It will be in very bad taste but should be fun. With Harry Enfield, Richard Goulding and Kathryn Drysdale.

Tuesday – Sky One – Bulletproof 9pm ***New Series***

This is, allegedly, a police drama with a difference. Instead of being all about the procedural, Bulletproof promises to be an action-packed homage to US buddy cop movies. There’s strait-laced Pike (Ashley Walters) and unpredictable best friend and colleague Bishop (Noel Clarke) who together must “bend the rules”, confront “ghosts from the past” and take on other cop show clichés.

Crime drama following cops Bishop and Pike as they chase down hardened criminals in London's East End. In the first episode, one of the duo's informants is killed in front of them, beginning a desperate operation that lands one of their own in hospital.

Wednesday – Channel 4 – 24 Hours in A&E 9pm ***New Series***

It is back and will make the wife very happy indeed and I must admit I enjoy it. In this opening episode Maria, a 52-year-old woman who suffers from MS, is brought in with suspected sepsis. Her husband Duncan talks about their life together and supported each other through her diagnosis. Meanwhile, Eve, who's 83, is in A&E with her husband John after she fell down the stairs into her basement, suffering an open ankle fracture. Elsewhere, six-year-old Grace has come to hospital with her dad Ben after getting a piece of tissue stuck inside her ear.

Wednesday – Dave – Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier 10pm ***New Series***

In this first episode, comedians Josh Widdicombe and Suzi Ruffell join Richardson to discuss matters of the home. “Home is where the heart is,” he explains. “It’s also where you’re most likely to be burgled or involved in a serious accident.” There are good moments to be had in this Room 101-esque format, namely Richardson’s inimitable forensic analysis of how to load a dishwasher correctly. We’ve all been doing it wrong.

Thursday – BBC 2 – Million Pound Menu 9pm ***New Series***
Fred Sirieix presents this new show, which follows people who work in the food business as they seek major investment to launch their own restaurants. They have their concepts and branding - all they need now is the financial backing. First up is Epoch, comprising Manchester chef Ruth and sommelier Emily, who have an idea to pair British wines with the best seasonal produce. Meanwhile, Scotsman Ewen Hutchinson hopes to take his award-winning street food to the next level by opening his own establishment.

Thursday – Channel 4 – Humans 9pm ***New Series***

Return of the sci-fi drama. One year after the dawn of consciousness, Max, Mia and Flash are living in a designated area known as the Railyard as they try to broker peace with the human world, while Laura fights for basic rights for Synths - but a job offer from an unexpected source could give her a platform to bring her message to a larger audience. Meanwhile, Niska is living with Astrid and passing herself off as a human and Mattie is reeling from the guilt of releasing the consciousness code upon the world.

Thursday – BBC 4 – Missions 9pm ***New Series***

Two tech billionaires locked in a race to send manned missions to Mars. Sound familiar? This French space series may be au courant in its subject matter, but its low-budget, character-driven treatment harks back to 1970s sci-fi.

We follow the crew of the Ulysses, funded by Swiss billionaire William Meyer, as they approach the Red Planet after ten months in space. They’re a bit of a ragtag bunch for such a long and high-stakes mission, with an accompanying psychologist who’s a last-minute replacement.

It’s a bit contrived, but when things start to go wrong and there’s an intriguing discovery, the claustrophobic setting and dysfunctional crew ratchet up the tension.

Thursday – Sky One - The Week That Wasn’t 10pm ***New Series***

Comedy show that takes clips of the week's events and revoices them with help from impressionists including Alistair McGowan and Ronni Ancona.

The show will be finalised close to transmission, but a taster tape included an interview in Vince Cable’s hilariously scruffy kitchen (he’s miffed he hasn’t won an award for it), as well as a mischievously re-imagined encounter between Emmanuel Macron and Donald Trump, with their hands glued together. YouTube fans may be reminded of Bad Lipreading videos, but that’s no bad thing.

Thursday – National Geographic - Ice Road Rescue 8pm ***New Series***

Deep in the frigid mountains of Norway, brave rescue workers help stranded people stuck in the snow and clear the roads in some of the most dangerous areas. I love this kind of TV  and add a bit of danger I am hooked.

Thord risks his life to keep the roads open during a winter storm, while Jo Roger and his son are dealing with enormous amounts of snow further north.

Friday – BBC 2 - Frankie Boyle's New World Order 10pm ***New Series***

Frankie Boyle is back for more passionate sideswipes at the world and the people who run it. It’s filmed close to broadcast, and the format sees him run various outrageous, swear statements past his panel – with Sara Pascoe, Katherine Ryan and data journalist Mona Chalabi returning to the fray from the last series.

Their roles tend to involve chipping in extra sprinkles of wit to Boyle’s unremitting tsunami of contempt and sarcasm. But would you dare disagree with him? And there’s the fact that his savage wordplay does, at times, border on genius.