augustian

I was looking forward to watching this episode when a car to be featured was a De Dion Bouton, a car my father owned back in the 1930s but when it was said that the owner of this particular car was an old friend of Derek's, I got a bad feeling about what was to come. Sure enough the old friend featured prominently, with lots of ho ho hos with just about every sentence. I realise that he was an old friend but the program is called Bangers and Cash, not, Some Guffawing Old Geezer and Cash. Even when the car was shown, it seemed mostly of a flat tyre and bits of brass fittings and we did not get a proper view of the car when it was on the transporter, disappearing into the distance. Things were little better at the new owner's garage when someone decided to film the car from the back of a pile of rubble, Who thought that was a good idea? To say that I was seething by this point is an understatement. In the preamble of the program, Derek mentions the connection that people have with the cars on sale, and my connection was sorely tested with this episode. By contrast, one of the other items on sale was a small Traveller's Caravan and that got a better showing than the De Dion. Definitely the worst episode I have ever seen.

I suppose everyone knows the story of RMS Titanic, but how do you put the story of a huge ship and two thousand people onto a provincial theatre stage? This fantastic production is the answer. Focusing on the hopes, dreams and lives of the passengers on a minimalist stage, the tragedy unfolds to its terrible conclusion.

The whole production is wonderful, with expert stage management to impeccable choreography, faultless timing, effective lighting and the use of a mobile stepladder. The songs are also in keeping with the story, starting on a high, then apprehensive and then the realisation of impending doom. This is indeed an epic production of the most (in)famous seafaring tragedy of all.

As an aside, I do not understand why the IMDb title page does not list all the cast members, so just to fill in the gaps: Emily George as Kate Murphy; Luke Harley as Andrew Latimer; Emma Harold as Lady Caroline Neville; Abi Hudson as Maid; Paul Kemble as Joseph Boxhall; Matthew McDonald as Charles Clarke; Danny Michaels as Joseph Bell; Janet Mooney as Head Maid; Joseph Peacock as Bellboy/Wallace Hartley.

Delia Sheppard, an actress who made her name in the erotic thriller genre of the 1990s provides the narration for this whistle-stop tour of the more outrageous sex venues and industries of the time. Being nearly thirty years after the fact, many of the people and places may not be around anymore, such as the annual Défi festival held in Perpignan, France. Anyway, the fourteen segments document the wilder sex kinks such as the fetish shops and services such as tattoos and body piercings for the more intimate body parts; and Michelle's XXX, a nightclub for mainly women's entertainment; and even the development of sex aids. Anyone for electric genital stimulation? Whatever your wish, there would be some-one to satisfy it. However, this film was made around 1995 so quite a lot would now be provided via the internet and social media sites so this film is a bit of nostalgia.