The News Roundup: Gorgeous Saturday Edition

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Happy Saturday, Telly Visions readers! Hope it’s as gorgeous wherever you are today as it is here in the DC area. It’s actually painful to not be outside, it’s so pretty. But, I suppose we’d better enjoy it, as it will last at maximum two weeks.

It’s a fairly slow news week around the world of British entertainment – largely I think because everyone in the UK has Downton Abbey fever, and can’t think or talk about anything except the fact that Series 3 premieres there tomorrow. Not that I am bitter or jealous or anything like that.

However, a few worthwhile tidbits have popped up this week that seem worth sharing – so take a look through this week’s News Roundup for bits and bobs on Doctor Who, Downton Abbey, Sherlock, Wallander, Red Dwarf, The Paradise, Outnumberd, Strictly Come Dancing and more!

This is really fascinating: Archaeologists believe they may have found the remains of King Richard III.

Sir Kenneth Branagh would like to do a final series of Wallander films.

A ton of new cast pictures have been released from the upcoming new series of Red Dwarf.

Fun: A spoiler-free review of the premiere episode from the new series of Red Dwarf.

Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch will apparently be reading a short story for the new Friendly Fires album. Seriously, is there anything this man can’t do?

The BBC has officially moved up the premiere date of their department store drama The Paradise to get it out there before ITV’s Mr. Selfridge.

An excellent two part Downton Abbey interview from The Daily Beast: Part One covers Series 2 and the Emmys, while Part Two delves into spoilery territory and discusses the upcoming third series.

Rob James-Collier and Siobhan Finneran discuss Thomas and O’Brien’s Series 3 status in Downton Abbey.

10 Teasers for the First Episode of Downton Abbey Series 3 (possible spoilers!)

There is seriously an official edition of Sherlock Cluedo and you can actually buy it.

More awesome merchandising: The Unofficial Downton Abbey Cookbook!

10 Reasons We Love BBC’s Sherlock.

The full lineup has been revealed for the 2012 season of Strictly Come Dancing.

Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson has been cast in Series 2 of Charlie Brooker’s acclaimed Black Mirror.

A former singer featured on BBC’s The Choir has branded the reality series “misleading.”

Interesting read in The Hollywood Reporter about the challenges and opportunities facing George Entwhistle, who takes over as the head of the BBC next week.

A second season of Richard Hammond’s Crash Course is set to premiere on BBC America October 22.

Sherlock, Benedict Cumberbatch and Doctor Who were all winners at last week’s TV Choice Awards.

Should Sherlock end after its third series? Seriously, everyone, calm down about this out-of-nowhere impending cancellation rumor!

The Royal Family is suing Closer magazine for breach of privacy, after they published photos of Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge sunbathing topless.

Robbie Coltraine and David Haig are both set to appear in UKTV Gold’s remake of classic sitcom Yes, Prime Minister.  

Doctor Who companion Karen Gillan is featured in the latest Rolling Stone – Whovians, we’re so mainstream now!

John Simm and Maxine Peak to star in new BBC drama The Village, which will follow the residents of one English village across 100 years.

Melissa George talks about the difficult physical training she had to do for her new spy drama Hunted.

Apparently there’s going to be a Downton Abbey album? Rebecca Ferguson is reported as recording for the Downton Abbey: The Essential Collection compilation.

Bad Sugar and I’m Spaztacus are both set to return to Channel 4.

How I know it was a slow news week: this is a legit article about how much Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch apparently quite enjoyed going to see a concert by band The Killers.

Drama surrounded popular comedy Outnumbered this week: Star Tyger Drew-Honey insisted that the show’s fifth series would be its last. However, now Hat Trick, producers of the comedy, insist that no decision about Outnumbered’s future has been made at this point.

Torchwood star John Barrowman has actually written a Torchwood tie-in novel, called The Exodus Code, that’s now available.

Watch three trailers for tonight’s Doctor Who installment, A Town Called Mercy.

New trend: British men playing American presidents! The full trailer for biopic Lincoln starring Daniel Day Lewis has arrived and, oddly enough, Oprah Winfrey herself has tweeted us all a photo of Alan Rickman as Ronald Reagan in The Butler.

The Thick of It creator Armando Iannucci says that the BBC should be more “aggressive” in fighting back against critics of its programming in government and the media.

Another new clip from the new series of Red Dwarf!

 

 


Lacy Baugher

Lacy's love of British TV is embarrassingly extensive, but primarily centers around evangelizing all things Doctor Who, and watching as many period dramas as possible.

Digital media type by day, she also has a fairly useless degree in British medieval literature, and dearly loves to talk about dream poetry, liminality, and the medieval religious vision. (Sadly, that opportunity presents itself very infrequently.) York apologist, Ninth Doctor enthusiast, and unabashed Ravenclaw. Say hi on Threads or Blue Sky at @LacyMB. 

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