Shop Junction Blog

The Wire is a TV series made by the US cable channel HBO. Another Sopranos, you might be thinking. You’re wrong, it’s better than that! The final episode of The Wire has just screened on UK TV. Here’s my overall review of the whole series.

The Wire starts off as a slow-burning story about Baltimore cops trying to catch a drug gang. So far, so conventional. However, the real-life nature of the programme, the large cast of characters over its five seasons, and the uncompromising, but entirely plausible, storylines make this the must-watch TV series of all time in my opinion.

The fact that it has not won a string of awards is bizarre. Perhaps it is the nature of the story and the almost documentary style of the narrative that goes against it. However, give it a few episodes and you’ll be hooked like I was…

Read the rest of this entry »

I have the basic Sky TV package but friends tell me that Sky+ HD is a better package because of the ability to stop, pause, and record live TV … not to mention the greater picture quality if you have a high definition (HD) TV. I saw a demo of HD in a TV showroom last weekend and the pictures were fantastic. I might just be tempted to upgrade to Sky+ HD before Christmas.

Sky has a new HD offer running from 24th September until 30th of October. For new customers, the Sky+ HD box is £75 (normally £150). Here’s a summary of the offer

• New Customers – Sky+ HD for £75 and free standard set-up
• Existing Customers – Sky+ HD for £75 with £30 standard set-up
• Existing Customers – £30 set-up discount when you take up multi-room

» Sky+ HD Offer

Waitress is a film by the late actress-director Adrienne Shelly. It is a bittersweet comedy romance based in a small American town. Keri Russell plays the main character, Jenna, who is a pie-making waitress in a typical American diner. The story revolves around her life, married to an overbearing husband, her pregnancy, work at the diner, an affair with her doctor (played by Nathan Fillion), and the life choices that she makes.

I found the film moving and very funny but it’s not an over-the-top gag fest like some other modern films. The humour centres around the characters and their personal foibles. In particular, Jenna’s relationships with the other waitresses (Adrienne Shelly and Cheryl Hines) and the diner owner (played by Andy Griffith) are sympathetically illustrated with realism and warmth.

One of the main themes of the film is Jenna’s pie making which she uses to reflect her life. Each pie is made and named in her mind according to her daily mood. For example, “I Don’t Want Earl’s Baby” pie (an egg and cheese pie with ham!)

The film is made even more poignant by the murder of the director Adrienne Shelly in New York just after the film was finished. It’s a real life tragedy that puts everything into perspective.

If you fancy a holiday on the Cornish coast, you might want to explore Bude. It’s a small seaside town situated next to some great scenery near to the Cornwall-Devon border. Whilst I was there, I used this Bude and Clovelly Ordnance Survey map to find my way around along the coastal path and the local geography. The OS maps are fantastic for exploring new areas if you are walking, cycling… or otherwise holidaying in unfamiliar territory.

I stayed in The Cliff at Bude which is a friendly hotel on, yes you guessed, the cliff top overlooking Crooklets Beach (one of two beaches in Bude). Walks along both beaches are a good way of blowing away the cobwebs of city life. We were lucky to have some sunny September weather during most of the visit which meant that beach walks were definitely a favourite pastime.

Overall

Bude is a nice place to stay. Typical small seaside town but not too over-developed. Great coastal scenery. Surfing is very popular.

» Try the Rough Guide to Devon and Cornwall for more information about this area.

Happy Go Lucky is a film by the British director Mike Leigh who is known for his character-driven films about British culture. It centers around the character of Poppy, played by Sally Hawkins, who has on overwhelmingly positive and humourous outlook on life.

The story revolves around her relationships with friends and people that she meets. In particular, the story focuses on her driving lessons with a driving instructor called Scott, played by Eddie Marsan, who has a completely different outlook and a sometimes threatening demeanour. Poppy’s attempts to inject some humour into the driving lessons and the effect of this on Scott are brilliantly done.

The driving lessons are the main story but the film covers quite a lot of ground, ranging from Poppy’s social life, her job as a primary school teacher, bullying at the school, Poppy’s relationship with her sisters, a meeting with a tramp, and the start of a relationship with a male social worker.

Overall, the film is more cheerful than some other Mike Leigh films that I have seen and I finished the DVD with a smile. The main character really shows her compassion and positive approach throughout the film and I found that it was impossible not to like this.

Buy Happy Go Lucky at Amazon UK