Smorgarama

I haven't done up any Smorg discs in awhile now and had an accumulation of files to do something with. I'm not going to put much information up here on them. I don't have time. Try google. Also, I spent days working these out. .avi is a dead format now and a lot of the newer stuff has to be converted from the current HD formats and when it's in a cinema aspect ratio there usually ends up being audio sync problems for some reason. The older files from video tape usually require editing. Gaps have to be filled in with something, etc. etc. Files have to be fitted to maximize space. These have been burned to disc and copies will be made with a disc duplicator. Unlike a penny candy store where you can say "I'd like one of those...and one of those"......these discs are the discs and that is how they will remain. In other words - in plain English - NO custom discs.  

Starter For 10....British comedy-drama film from 2006 starring James McAvoy, Alice Eve, Rebecca Hall, Dominic Cooper with James Corden, Catherine Tate, Charles Dance, Lindsay Duncan, Benedict Cumberbatch, Mark Gattis, John Henshaw.

Stolen....2011 BBC thriller movie about child trafficking starring Damien Lewis.

The Hardy Bucks Movie....2013 Irish film based on the mockumentary TV & internet program Hardy Bucks....and will not fit on the disc of those shows. I repeat, it will not fit on that disc. 

Tommy Cooper: Not Like That - Like This.....2014 ITV movie about the life of comic Tommy Cooper starring David Threlfall (as Tommy), Helen McCrory, Amanda Redman, Gregor Fisher.

Unfinished Sky....2008 Australian drama film that won a lot of awards.

Borgman.....A recent Dutch thriller film that received a lot of recognition at the various international film festivals...with hard-coded English subtitles.

Frank..a recent Irish/British comedy-drama film starring Domhnall Gleeson, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Michael Fassbender.

Murdered By My Boyfriend....a recent BBC drama movie starring Georgina Campbell and Royce Pierreson.

Summer In February...British romantic drama film from last year starring Dominic Cooper and Emily Browning.

The Beggar Bride....a 1997 2-part British TV drama combined here into a single 2½ hour film starring Keeley Hawes, Nicholas Jones, Joe Duttine.

The World's End....2013 British SciFi comedy film starring Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Martin Freeman, Eddie Marsan, Rosamund Pike, Paddy Considine.

Jack Taylor: Shot Down.....recent Irish private investigator TV film...6th in the series, I believe.

Locke....2013 British drama film starring Tom Hardy, Tom Holland, Olivia Colman, Ben Daniels, Andrew Scott, Ruth Wilson.

Parer's War....recent Australian TV movie about the life of WWII Australian war photographer/cinematographer Damien Parer.

Plastic.....recent British action-comedy crime film starring Ed Speleers, Will Poulter, Alfie Allen.

The Harry Hill Movie...2013 British musical comedy film starring Harry Hill, Julie Walters, Matt Lucas, Simon Bird, Johnny Vegas.

The Love Punch....recent British comedy film starring Pierce Brosnan, Emma Thompson, Timothy Spall, Celia Imrie.

Calvary is a recent Irish drama film starring Brendan Gleeson, Chris O'Dowd, Dylan Moran, Kelly Reilly.

Common is a recent BBC drama film written by Jimmy McGovern and starring Michelle Fairley, Michael Gambon.

Cuban Fury is a British romantic comedy film starring Nick Frost, Rashida Jones, Chris O'Dowd, Olivia Colman, Ian McShane, Rory Kinnear.

Marvellous is a recent BBC drama movie about the life of Neil Baldwin starring Toby Jones, Gemma Jones, Tony Curran, Greg McHugh........

Run And Jump is a recent Irish comedy-drama film starring British actress Maxine Peake and Edward MacLiam with Sharon Horgan.

The Killing Field is a recent Seven Network (Australia) mystery-thriller TV drama movie starring Rebecca Gibney.

Walter is a recent ITV police investigative comedy movie starring Adrian Dunbar, Madison Lygo, Alexandra Roach, Harry Hadden-Paton.  

A Long Way Down is a recent British black comedy film starring Toni Collette, Pierce Brosnan, Imogen Poots.

Alan Partride: Alpha Papa is a 2013 British comedy film starring Steve Coogan and Colm Meaney with Felicity Montagu, Simon Greenall, Sean Pertwee, Anna Maxwell Martin, Darren Boyd.
Oops! Sorry! I just discovered I already put this on Smorg 73. I only added it to this disc because it there was some space and it fit. 

Bad Girl is a 1992 episode of BBC drama anthology series Screenplay starring Jane Horrocks and Lesley Manville, David Bradley, who's been getting a lot of face time in his senior years, also shows up in this.

Snow is a bit of a mystery. Can't find anything about it online. It's a TV drama movie that aired on BBC Wales in 1990 and starred Michael Maloney (from Telford's Change to the recent series of Utopia) with Ian McNeice (Doc Martin), Rupert Frazer (recently in a couple episodes of The Honourable Woman) and is a WWII period espionage story.

The Bogie Man is a 1992 BBC Scotland TV comedy movie starring Robbie Coltrane with Craig Ferguson and singer Midge Ure.

Touch And Go is a 1998 BBC TV movie drama starring Martin Clunes and Zara Turner.

A Foreign Field is comedy-drama TV movie that appeared on the BBC anthology series Screen One in 1993 and starring Alec Guinness, the recently departed Lauren Bacall, Leo McKern, Edward Herrmann, Geraldine Chapman. This also aired in the USA on PBS Masterpiece. Written by Roy Clarke (Last of the Summer Wine, Keeping Up Appearances, Open All Hours, Spark, etc .)

A Question Of Attribution is an intrigue comedy-drama that also appeared on BBC Screen One in 1991 and starred James Fox, Geoffrey Palmer, David Calder, Prunella Scales.

Memento Mori is a 1992 BBC TV drama movie that appeared on the anthology series Screen Two and starred Stephanie Cole, Michael Horden, Thora Hird, Maggie Smith, Elizabeth Bradley, etc. This also aired in the USA on PBS Masterpiece.

The Best Of Friends is a 1991 Channel 4 TV drama movie starring John ielgud, Wendy Hiller and Patrick McGoohan. 

Black And Blue is another Screen One offering starring Martin Shaw, Rowena King, Christopher John Hall, Don Henderson.

Do Not Disturb is another BBC Screen Two offering starring Frances Barber, Peter Capaldi, Eva Darlan, Clive Russell.......

Drake's Venture is a 1980 production from the old ITV franchise Westward TV starring John Thaw, Charlotte Cornwell, Paul Darrow. This was carried in the USA on PBS Masterpiece in the 80's.

Silar Marner: The Weaver of Raveloe is a 1985 TV movie starring Ben Kingsley (who was pretty hot property at that time), Jenny Agutter, Freddie Jones, Patsy Kensit, Jim Broadbent. This was also aired by PBS Masterpiece in the USA.

Spend Spend Spend is a TV film aired on the long running BBC anthology series Play For Today in 1977 written by Jack Rosenthal and starring John Duttine and Susan Littler. Liz Smith appears as Duttine's granny, a role still very common for her 37 years later. 

Enchanted April is a 1992 British drama film starring Alfred Molina, Josie Lawrence, Miranda Richardson, Jim Broadbent, Michael Kitchen.

Milner is a 1994 BBC drama film starring Mel Smith, Deborah Findlay, John Hannah, Ronald Pickup.

Sticky Wickets is a 1990 BBC Wales TV movie that aired on Screen One starring Alun Armstrong and James Bolam.

Thacker is a 1992 BBC TV movie starring Leslie Phillips, Margaret Tyzack, Graham Crowden, Celia Imrie, Philip Jackson, Selina Cadell, Samantha Bond.

The Guilty is a 1992 Central TV movie starring Michael Kitchen, Caroline Catz, Sean Gallagher.

Birth Of A Nation is a 1983 Central TV drama movie starring Jim Broadbent and written by David Leland.

Christabel was a 1988 Dennis Potter 4-part mini-series for BBC starring Elizabeth Hurley, Stephen Dillane, Geoffrey Palmer that takes place in Nazi Germany. I'm not sure, but the original series may have been 4 one-hour episodes. This is a 2½ hour edit, probably for VHS tape release in the late 80's. This was also carried on PBS Masterpiece, but I don't recall in what format.

Made In Britain is another David Leland penned TV movie from 1982. Starring Tim Roth, Terry Richards. 

The McGuffin is a 1986 TV movie that appeared on Screen Two starring Charles Dance and Ann Todd with appearances by Roger Lloyd Pack, Chris Langham, Anna Massey.........    

Hedda Gabler was produced for Yorkshire television and starred Diana Rigg. It also appeared on PBS Masterpiece about 10 years later when Diana was hosting PBS Mystery

Precious Bane - a 2-hour BBC TV adaptation from 1989 starring John Bowe, Janet McTeer, Clive Owen, Jim Carter. This was co-produced with WGBH-Boston for PBS Masterpiece.

Wife Begins At Forty is a BBC TV comedy movie starring Liza Goddard, Ray Cooney, Tricia George, John Horsely and John Quayle.  

Return To Waterloo is a 1-hour musical drama written and directed by Ray Davies and starring Tim Roth.

The Day After The Fair - BBC adaptation of the Thomas Hardy story starring Hannah Gordon, Kenneth Haigh and Anna Massey. This also aired in the US on PBS Masterpiece.

The Imitation Game - 1980 BBC film for Play For Today that takes place in early WWII England starring Harriet Walker in her first starring role. It also has one of the earliest appearances by Brenda Blethyn and features Patricia Routledge in a military uniform (and is totally Hyacinth Bucket).

The Mind Benders is a British thriller film from 1963 starring Dirk Bogarde.

Those Glory Glory Days is a Channel 4 TV movie from 1983. Elizabeth Spriggs, Julia McKenzie, Bryan Pringle, Richard Wilson and Peter Tilbury all appear in it.  

Our Winnie is the first episode from a 1982 5-part anthology series of plays by Alan Bennett called Objects Of Affection. Starring Elizabeth Spriggs, Constance Chapman and Sheila Kelley with Lesley Manville and Jim Broadbent.

R H I N O  (Really Here In Name Only) is another David Leland written film. It appeared on Central Television in 1983. "An isolated, overweight girl with a penchant for shoplifting, gets pushed from pillar to post as the authorities struggle to know what to do with her".

Relatively Speaking is a 1990 BBC comedy teleplay starring Nigel Hawthorne, Michael Maloney, Imogen Stubbs and Gwen Watford.

Scoop - London Weekend Television adaptation of the Evelyn Waugh novel starring Michael Maloney, Michael Hordern.......

An Inspector Calls - 1982 BBC adaptation of the J.B. Priestley play starring Bernard Hepton, Nigel Davenport, Margaret Tyzack, Simon Ward.

Dangerous Davies - ITV adaptation of the Leslie Thomas novels starring Bernard Cribbins, Bill Maynard, Joss Ackland, Frank Windsor, Maureen Lipman, Patsy Rowlands, Ken Jones, Colin Baker......this was later turned into the TV series The Last Detective starring Peter Davison.

Endgame - 1989 BBC adaptation of Samuel Beckett's Endgame starring Stephen Rea, Norman Beaton, Charlie Drake

Flying Into The Wind - another David Leland film for Central Television starring Graham Crowden, Derrick O'Connor, Rynagh O'Grady

Grown-Ups - a 1980 Mike Leigh film for BBC Playhouse starring Philip Davis, Lesley Manville, Janine Duvitski, Brenda Blethyn, Lindsay Duncan and Sam Kelly. This has a little "choppiness" to it, I'm afraid. Looks like it is a transfer from tape using one of those under-powered home tape-to-disc things they sell. They usually have small processors and tend to drop frames when it can't keep up with the flow of data.

Beloved Enemy - a 1981 BBC Play For Today written by David Leland and starring Graham Crowden and Tony Doyle.

Mister Jerico - ATV adventure movie filmed in Malta starring Patrick Macnee and Connie Stevens.

Mrs. Capper's Birthday is an episode of Armchair Theatre that is not included on any of the DVD releases. Written by Noel Coward and starring George Baker, Jill Dixon, Arthur Lowe, Beryl Reid, Pauline Yates and Richard Coleman.

Beware Of The Weepers is an early 1963 episode of the long running crime drama series No Hiding Place. 

Rita, Sue And Bob Too is a 1987 comedy-drama film with Michelle Holmes, Lesley Sharp and a young Siobhan Finneran.

The General's Day is a 1972 BBC Play For Today starring Alastair Sim, Annette Crosbie, Dandy Nichols.

British Cinema Classics - Comedy Disc 27

British Cinema Classics - Comedy Disc 27..................
well,......sort of. 
A couple of these films are Hollywood films, but they both feature big British stars of that era (Terry-Thomas, Peter Sellers, David Niven). 

How to Murder Your Wife

I'll Never Forget What's'isname

Just like a Woman

Sparrows Can't Sing

The Pink Panther

Ray Donovan - Disc 2

Ray Donovan 

Outlander

Outlander is a new joint American-British production fantasy drama based on the well-known series of novels. It has reached its "mid-season" break and will be returning in April (by most accounts), which means the first season won't end until next June. So, in the meantime............
This has been airing, or is about to, in many countries including every English-speaking nation but one: the UK. I'm not sure why that is. 

Outlander

Chasing Shadows + Suspicions of Mr Whicher

Chasing Shadows is a new crime drama about a missing persons unit investigating serial killers. Starring Reece Shearsmith, Alex Kingston, Don Warrington......some reviewers seem to think this is an attempt by ITV to counter BBC's Sherlock. 

The Suspicions of Mr Whicher returned with two new episodes. 

The Suspicions of Mr Whicher

Winners & Losers - Disc 7

The latest from Australia's drama Winners & Losers, which returns in January.

Winners & Losers

Under The Dome - Disc 2

Under the Dome

Boomers + Siblings + A Touch of Cloth updated

2 new comedy series and an updated one.

Boomers features some very well-known actors. Alison Steadman, Stephanie Beacham, Paula Wilcox, Russ Abbot, Phil Jackson, June Whitfield, and James Smith (who isn't as well-known but was a recent regular in The Thick of It and Grandma's House). Guest appearances by Nigel Planer, Marian McLoughlin (Grafters, Thin Ice, Hometime, Doctors) and George Leyton. 

Boomers

Siblings stars Charlotte Ritchie (Fresh Meat) and Tom Stourton (stand up comic).

Siblings

Comedy/parody crime investigative show A Touch of Cloth returned for a third series of the usual 2 episodes. Starring John Hannah.

A Touch of Cloth

EastEnders 2014 - Disc 8

Unforgettable - Disc 4

Unforgettable

The Village

The Village, one of BBC's big drama's last year, has returned for a second series. The last episode is about to air in a couple hours.......

The Village

Down To Earth - Disc 5

Roger in New Zealand has kindly provided the 5th, and final, series of the comedy-drama Down To Earth. It took some extensive tweaking to get these to fit onto one disc, but eventually that was achieved. The final series of Down To Earth featured a cast of Denise Welch (Spender, Soldier Soldier, See You Friday, Coronation Street, Waterloo Road), Ricky Tomlinson (Brookside, Cracker, Playing The Field, Mike Bassett: Manager, The Royle Family, Great Night Out, In The Flesh), Zara Dawson (Family Affairs), Rob Collier, Marc Jordan, Finn Atkins (Starlings), Shelly Conn (Party Animals, The Palace, Mistresses, Marchlands, Heading Out, By Any Means). Other familiar faces pop up here and there....David Janson, Tom Ellis, singer Chris De Burgh, Brigit Forsyth, Duncan Preston, Sharon Morgan, Bernard Cribbins, Linda Baron, Paula Wilcox, Josie Lawrence.

Down to Earth

Speaking of Ricky Tomlinson, here's an interesting recent article about his past.

http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-29313261

ANZAC Girls + Our World War

Two new drama mini-series. One from Australia, the other from the UK, both about WWI.

ANZAC Girls

Our World War

Noah's Ark

Noah's Ark is a 1997-1998 drama series starring Anton Rodgers as rural veterinarian Noah Kirby. Anton is well-remembered for some of his TV roles such as Fresh Fields, French Fields, May to December, Zodiac, Murder Most English, and Lillie. Angela Thorne (To The Manor Born, Farrington of the F.O., Three Up Two Down) played his wife, Val. Kate Alderton, the daughter of John Alderton and Pauline Collins, was also in this. Written by Johnny Byrne, who also wrote a lot of All Creatures Great & Small, One By One, Space 1999, some Doctor Who and was the creator of Heartbeat.
Noah's Ark 

Donald Sinden 1923 - 2014

Donald Sinden has died. His co-star in Two's Company, Elaine Stritch, just died a few weeks ago.

Donald Sinden dies

The Gingerbread Girl

Doctor At The Top is nothing new here, but.............

The Gingerbread Girl is a 1993 comedy starring husband/wife Janet Dibley (The Two Of Us, Fat Friends, The Chase, Doctors) and Tyler Butterworth (Fiddler's Three, The Darling Buds of May) with Tracie Bennett (Rich Tea and Sympathy, Making Out, Joking Apart, Next of Kin, Burn It, Scott & Bailey).
The Gingerbread Girl

In The Club + The Secrets

Two new drama series from BBC.

In The Club is a serial written by Kay Mellor (Band of Gold, Playing The Field, Fat Friends, Between The Sheets, The Chase, Strictly Confidential, The Chase, A Passionate Woman, The Syndicate) featuring a "big" cast: Hermione Norris (See You Friday, Berkeley Square, Cold Feet, Wire in the Blood, Kingdom, Spooks, Outcasts, The Crimson Field), Katherine Parkinson (Doc Martin, The IT Crowd, Fear Stress & Anger, The Old Guys, Whites, The Honourable Woman), Jill Halfpenny (Peak Practice, EastEnders, Waterloo Road, Lightfields), Christine Bottomley (Early Doors, The Street, Massive, Hope Springs, Land Girls, Great Night Out), Hannah Midgley (Emmerdale), Will Mellor (Casualty, Hollyoaks, Sorted, Two Pints Of Lager, White Van Man, In With the Flynns, Broadchurch), Jonathan Kerrigan (Casualty, Heartbeat), Sacha Dhawan (The Last Train, Five Days, The Deep, Last Tango in Halifax), Tara Fitzgerald (Waking The Dead, The Body Farm, Game of Thrones), Brendan Patricks (Downton Abbey, Mr. Sloane), Shobna Gulati (dinnerladies, Coronation Street), Neil Pearson (Chelmsford 123, Behind The Lines, The Booze Cruise, The State Within, Drop the Dead Donkey, All The Small Things, See You Friday), Victoria Carling (Bonjour La Classe).
In the Club 

The Secrets is an anthology series of five stand-alone dramas featuring the likes of Alison Steadman, Olivia Colman, Sarah Solemani, Steve Oram, Helen Baxendale, Joanne Froggatt, Ben Chaplin and Emilia Fox.
The Secrets

Cuckoo was back, but.........

The comedy Cuckoo returned for a second series, but it will be back in about 3½ months with a Christmas special.

Cuckoo

Hope And Wire

Hope And Wire is a drama mini-series from New Zealand that aired back in early July. First, I had a lot of technical issues to deal with that I couldn't resolve with any satisfaction. Colin in New Zealand kindly provided a solution to that issue and then I held off for a spell hoping to come up with something else to add to the disc. The 3 episodes are all 90-minute feature-length so it requires about 2/3 of the disc. I think I would end up waiting a long time for something else that small. Since a lot of people in the UK are only interested in things British, I'll add that one of the major stars of this series is Bernard Hill. This is going to be screened at the Vancouver International Film Festival next month, so perhaps it will be hitting the satellite feeds in other countries in the future.
nzonair
Hope And Wire

Coronation Street 2014 - Disc 8

Emmerdale 2014 - Disc 9

Casualty - Series 28 Disc 5

Holby City - Series 16 Disc 5

Holby City

House Husbands - Disc 3

Australian drama House Husbands returned for a third series.

House Husbands

Falling Skies - Disc 4

Falling Skies