Tag Archives: Lee Mack

Not Going Out. Christmas Special 2023. Television Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast: Lee Mack, Sally Breton, Hugh Dennis, Abigail Cruttenden, Deborah Grant, Geoffrey Whitehead, Richard Syms, Francesca Newman, Max Pattison, Finlay Southby, David Hargreaves, Delroy Atkinson, Angela McHale, Ketorah Williams.

To get a British comedy series to a hundred episodes is no mean feat, it is rare, it takes perseverance, and a following that almost pleads with the makers to continue the story line of a much-loved character and those who are family, friends, and the recipients of the farce that often ensues.

Not Going Out. Christmas Special 2023. Television Review. full post

(353 words, estimated 1:25 mins reading time)

Not Going Out. Series 13. Television Comedy Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast: Lee Mack, Sally Breton, Hugh Dennis, Abigail Cruttenden, Deborah Grant, Geoffrey Whitehead, Francesca Newman, Max Pattison, Finlay Southby, Selina Griffiths, Chris McCausland, Melvyn Hayes, Kiana Wu, Melanie Gray, Rich Keeble, Bryan Hands, Mukamajule Michelo, Sanchia McCormack, Viss Elliot Safavi, Tanvi Virmani, Jonny Dixon, Adam Boardman, Dan Linney, David Ajao, James Benson, Naveed Khan, Sabrina Sandhu, Matt Weyland.

Despite the loss of Bobby Ball as Lee’s Father, series 13 of the acclaimed comedy Not Going Out stands out as one that is unafraid to tackle certain sensitivities that come as life’s journey winds on.

Not Going Out. Series 13. Television Comedy Review. full post

(480 words, estimated 1:55 mins reading time)

Inside No.9: 3 x 3. Television Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Cast: Lee Mack, Tiajna Amayo, James Bailey, Kiran L. Dadlani, Gemma Page, Mary Keegan, Ronay Poole, Jim Rastall, James Tucker, Saskia Wakefield.

A piece of television that keeps you awake during the night, that has taken your reason out for a long walk and left it at the roadside attached to a pole and driven off at high speed, is to be congratulated for the sheer audacity in which it has been conceived and executed.

Inside No.9: 3 x 3. Television Review. full post

(401 words, estimated 1:36 mins reading time)

Not Going Out. Series 12. Television Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Cast: Lee Mack, Sally Breton, Hugh Dennis, Abigail Cruttenden, Deborah Grant, Geoffrey Whitehead, Tony Gardner, Colin McFarlane, Samantha Spiro, Joselyn Jee Esien, Katie Redford, Jolyon Coy, Gwyneth Powell, Joe Wilkinson, Stephanie Langton, Anil Desai, Max Pattison, Francesca Newman, Finley Southby, Max Willis, Rich Keeble.

It may be a huge claim, but few have scaled such a height in British television comedy that they can be compared so favourably to the legendary, and beloved Tony Hancock.

Not Going Out. Series 12. Television Review. full post

(580 words, estimated 2:19 mins reading time)

Not Going Out (Christmas Special 2021).

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Cast: Lee Mack, Sally Breton, Deborah Grant, Geoffrey Whitehead, Hugh Dennis, Abigail Cruttenden, Jason Donovan, Rick Astley.

The trick is to so all you can to stay fresh whilst never betraying the core values of what made you popular in the first place; if you can master that then the world of entertainment and art is at your beckoned call.

Not Going Out (Christmas Special 2021). full post

(375 words, estimated 1:30 mins reading time)

Not Going Out: Driving Home For Christmas. 2019 Christmas Special. Television Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Cast: Lee Mack, Sally Bretton, Bobby Ball, Deborah Grant, Geoffrey Whitehead.

The absurd lengths that some people will go to deliver the perfect Christmas is rarely seen as being a laughing matter, a day of peace hijacked by the sheer need to be triumphant and the one-upmanship of being considered the best parent in the world drives many to actions they wouldn’t even dream of committing the rest of the year.

Not Going Out: Driving Home For Christmas. 2019 Christmas Special. Television Review. full post

(387 words, estimated 1:33 mins reading time)

Not Going Out: Halloween Special. (2019). Television Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Lee Mack, Sally Breton, Bobby Ball, Marcia Warren, Stephanie Levi-John, Ben Crowe, Billy Lydon, Michael Fenton-Stevens, Francesca Newman, Finlay Southby, Max Pattison.

You either love Halloween or you hate it, you can see it as a night of childish fantasy, or an import, a moment in which we party at the expense of someone else’s culture, the trick or the treat, whichever way you look at it, it is only for one night.

Not Going Out: Halloween Special. (2019). Television Review. full post

(499 words, estimated 2:0 mins reading time)

Film Review. Horrible Histories: The Movie-Rotten Romans.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * *

Cast: Sebastian Croft, Emilia Jones, Nick Frost, Craig Roberts, Kate Nash, Kim Cattrall, Derek Jacobi, Rupert Graves, Warwick Davis, Alexander Armstrong, Kevin Bishop, Alex MacQueen, Lee Mack, Chris Addison, Ella Smith, Sanjeev Bhasker, Tony Way, Lucy Montgomery, Tony Gardner, Ben Ashenden, Samantha Spiro, Katy Wix.

Film Review. Horrible Histories: The Movie-Rotten Romans. full post

(532 words, estimated 2:08 mins reading time)

Not Going Out -Live. Television Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Cast: Lee Mack, Sally Breton, Hugh Dennis, Abigail Cruttenden, Deborah Grant, Geoffrey Whitehead, Mark Kempner,

There is always a concern when it comes to attempt to pull off the live show, especially when it a comedy, particularly when it is one comfortable in its own skin of being one that can be rehearsed to the point of exhaustion to make it seem sharp and on the ball. The trouble is with recording weeks or even months in advance is that relies far too eagerly on the set-up and not enough on the natural skill of the performer in which to bring the element of surprise, the ability to rise above the fluffed line with the spur of the moment quip or ad-lib in which to keep the momentum moving.

Not Going Out -Live. Television Review. full post

(449 words, estimated 1:48 mins reading time)

Doctor Who: Kerblam! Television Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7/10

Cast: Jodie Whittaker, Bradley Walsh, Tosin Cole, Mandip Gill, Claudia Jessie, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Lee Mack, Callum Dixon, Leo Flanagan, Matthew Gravelle.

It is the scream of vile objectification, of trying to make someone feel superiority over you, no matter what situation you find yourself in, especially when it is concerned with the arts, there will always be someone who snidely looks down upon your choices, and shouts viciously, “Why don’t you get a proper job?”

Doctor Who: Kerblam! Television Review. full post

(600 words, estimated 2:24 mins reading time)