Categories
Doctor Who News and events

Meteor & asteroid on the news – it’s like Doctor Who when they have the fake news bulletins

Over the past 24 hours, seeing the stories of the asteroid close-call and the meteor falling in Russia, it’s been a bit like those scenes in Doctor Who where they have a news bulletin about the latest alien invasion.

Categories
Consumerism TV

Is Big W deliberately trying to discourage people buying TVs from them?

Spotted in Big W: Spotted in JB Hifi: The key difference seems to be that the JB Hifi people know how to set up their TVs. The Big W people don’t know, or don’t care, that on almost all of the TVs they have on display, the colour is completely distorted. If you can’t see  ... [More]

Categories
TV

Every bomb you make / Every job you take

I’d forgotten this. A version of The Police’s stalker song Every Breath You Take — with new lyrics written by the Spitting Image team and sung by Sting. (Don’t be put off by Youtube’s preview frame — it’s not just a credits roll.) There is some good stuff loosely in this genre these days, but  ... [More]

Categories
Consumerism Film TV

Given the price differential, it’s hard to see that GST on imports would make any difference

Among the presents I got for my birthday was a JB Hifi gift card. This always presents a challenge: what bargains can I pick up? Browsing around the store one day, I found the two Harry Potter movies we don’t already have — the Deathly Hallows parts 1 and 2 — on Blu-ray, for $14.98,  ... [More]

Categories
Food'n'drink Friends and loved ones TV

Best birthday cake EVER

With thanks to my super-cake-baker sister Susannah. If (gasp) you don’t get it, well, you’d better watch this.

Categories
TV

Current earworm: The Professionals theme

Who remembers The Professionals? I for one was hooked on this as a teenager, despite it being, as Martin Shaw described it, a one-dimensional show. It was a major inspiration for the amateur action video series “STRIKE” which I helped on in high school. It’s amusing to look back on the original Professionals title sequence  ... [More]

Categories
Melbourne music TV

Sights of Old Melbourne Town – as seen in music videos

Dragon: Are You Old Enough (1978) — around Brunswick Street, Fitzroy, including the now-gone behaviour of riding the running board on a tram, and a Silvertop taxi back when they really did have a silver top. John Paul Young: Yesterday’s Hero (1975) — around Swanston Street Paul Kelly: Leaps and Bounds — mostly the Nylex  ... [More]

Categories
Doctor Who Food'n'drink Friends and loved ones

My super-talented sister excels herself again

This creation by my super-talented sister, for Isaac’s birthday.

Categories
Sport TV

Digital TV can sometimes look like crap

Where digital TV really fails is handling lots and lots of moving objects on screen at once. Look at these two grabs from last night’s ABC news. In the first, host Ian Henderson is shown. With little moving, the picture is very smooth — even with the slightly dodgy ABC blue screen. (See it bigger)  ... [More]

Categories
Health TV

“A pint? That’s very nearly an armful!”

Tony Hancock’s legendary line in The Blood Donor was “A pint? That’s very nearly an armful!” (I really should find the DVD somewhere and watch it again.) I referenced it the other day after going to the blood bank, and Ian noted that Tony Hancock was from Ian’s home town of Birmingham, and kindly snapped  ... [More]

Categories
Doctor Who transport

My blabbering in the TARDIS

Deep within the bowels of the ABC studios at Southbank… …there is a Triple J studio called “TARDIS”. Well, recording booths. I discovered that they’re not bigger on the inside. I was there the other day at lunchtime. My blabbering has shown up as part of a Triple J “Hack” story on the costs of  ... [More]

Categories
music TV

The Doctor catches V/Line

Spotted on Saturday after the Doctor Who/Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Symphonic Spectacular: Reports from the UK suggest Doctor Who has prompted more people to wear bow ties. I don’t know if that’s rubbed off in Australia, but there were certainly more bow ties and fezzes than I’ve ever seen around Melbourne yesterday, both at the venue  ... [More]