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Grayson Perry's Big American Road Trip (UK)

Grayson Perry is an English artist, and his Big American Road Trip is a three episode documentary filmed in 2019 where he traveled to a few locations in the US (Atlanta, the East Coast & Wisconsin) to examine the issues of race and class in the United States. The documentary was broadcast on UK's Channel 4 in September 2020.

He comes to the subjects from a different perspective than domestic examinations of the subjects. And while the people he chooses to interview may be a bit more extreme (in every direction) than "average" Americans, he does bring up some compelling questions about these issues which are tearing our country apart.

If art is about making you see the world differently and ask new questions, then this is definitely art.

The Goes Wrong Show (UK)

The Mischief Theatre is a British theater company which has put on several successful West End productions in the last decade. After two successful BBC television specials, Peter Pan Goes Wrong (2016) and A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong (2017), they have begun a six episode half hour weekly show on BBC One simply called The Goes Wrong Show.

In their plays the actual actors (Mischief Theatre) play amateur actors from the fictitious Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society. These actors in turn play roles in generally dreadful adaptations of famous famous plays in various genres. As the title would suggest, many things go wrong each week.

Each episode starts fairly slowly as the stage is set. But once things really start rolling, foul ups and mistakes build in a way that's reminiscent of the best Fawlty Towers scripts. The Goes Wrong Show owes much to both Fawlty Towers and SCTV, and it easily hold its own among those giants. It's just that funny.

Viewings pair well with large, boisterous groups and a couple rounds of drinks. My son has accurately stated that, "it's funnier with friends," which is indeed is true.

All Night Long (1962)

Patrick McGoohan and Charles Mingus walk into a bar...

I'll admit it. I watched this film because of the jazz and fact that it was released by Criterion. I kept watching because I was sucked into the plot of Shakespeare's Othello set in a 1962 London jazz club. 

The film mixes actors and jazz musicians on the same stage. And it quite successfully sets the scene of a private jazz club on the Thames owned by ultra-wealthy Richard Attenborough in the role of Roderigo, or in the hipster parlance of the jazz scene, just "Rod." Dave Brubeck shows up and everyone stops and says, "Hey, it's Dave Brubeck!" exactly the way that they would have in 1962.

All Night Long is definitely worth your time. It contains some amazing performances from both actors and musicians. Whenever I watch an old film like this, I invariably end up on imdb and Wikipedia reading about the lives of the actors and directors. In this case, Betsy Blair, former wife of Gene Kelly and American ex-patriot who left America because of the Hollywood blacklist, was one of the more interesting paths of discovery.

This Way Up (UK)

This Way Up is a six-episode series staring Aisling Bea and Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe). It would be unkind to call this "Irish Fleabag," but it does work in the same dramedy genre. Kinder and less biting that Fleabag, This Way Up finds its footing in the relationships between characters. I am struck by just how thin the plots are, and how much emotional depth can be found in the day-to-day goings on of two Irish sisters living in London. It's kind of like real life, that way.

Bea and Horgan have a sisterly chemistry that is wonderful to watch. And they are both genuinely funny, entertaining people. This Way Up is definitely worth you time.

Years and Years (UK)

This is a new show from Russell T. Davies (Casanova, Doctor Who, The Second Coming) that, as of this writing, has just completed its six-episode run on BBC One and is just about to be broadcast on HBO in America. 

Davies creates shows which are both deeply engaging and quirkily English. And with Years and Years he has created an ensemble drama that follows an extended family through the technological, social, and political changes coming in the next 15 years. Part Black Mirror, part The Day After, and part Eastenders, this show poignant, funny, and always very British. It reminds me quite a bit of the 1984 post-atomic war drama, Threads.

I've only watched the first of the six episodes, so far, and I'm hooked. Davies deftly creates well-formed, real characters that we can relate to, and then casts them into the world identify politics and populism. The result is a fuller picture of the motivations and attractions of our current political landscape. This can be dark stuff, but nothing as dark as the first season of Black Mirror, so far.

Fleabag (UK)

Series two of Fleabag just finished airing in the UK. So the caveat here is that I've only watched series one so far. But I love it.

I hesitate to call this a comedy. It is funny and vulgar and moving and at times deeply disturbing. And it is absolutely riveting television. How have I survived this long without knowing about the work of Fleabag's creator and star, Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Killing Eve, Crashing)? 

And since I'm already recommending a television show that I haven't finished watching, I'll also recommend an article about it that I haven't finished reading. The Guardian's culture writers have compiled a list of what to read, watch, and listen to after you have finished watching Fleabag. Liz Phair is counted among the cultural touchstones that vibrate on a resonant frequency with Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and for good reason. Phair's profane debut album, Exile in Guyville, struts with the same raw emotional honesty as Fleabag.

Fleabag covers difficult, intimate material without sugar coating or pulling punches. It's always funny and never cringey. But I will need a few more days to recover before I start series two.

Update: I've finished series two, and it stunning. I never binge-watch shows, but I binged-watched this one because the episodes flowed together so seamlessly. It's more like a play than a TV show. The complexity, intelligence, and emotional depth of the characters really comes through in the second series. These are interesting people doing interesting things. It's a year later, and Fleabag has matured.

There is a wonderful bit of criticism of series two over at FilmSchoolRejects.com, but please watch series two first, as article this necessarily discusses many of the plot twists.

Summer of Rockets (UK)

I have been describing this six-part BBC Two drama as a "six and a half hour documentary about the creation of the pager," which isn't completely facetious. Set in England of 1958 when the cold war was beginning to heat up, Stephen Poliakoff's drama centers on the family of Samuel Petrukhin, a Russian jew in England who owns an electronics business that builds high quality hearing aids for high-profile clients such as Winston Churchill. 

This is a gripping story that builds tension and suspense around sometimes trivial and absurd plot twists. Sometimes it feels like a staid BBC drama and at other times it feels like a Monty Python sendup of a staid BBC Drama. But at the end of the day, it is well-written, well-directed, and well-acted. Which translates into the fastest six and a half hours of television that I can remember watching.

Cast standouts include the always wonderful Keeley Hawes (Spooks (MI-5 in the US), Ashes to Ashes),Lily Sacofsky (who I've never seen before, but I'll be watching out for), and the always entertaining Mark Bonnar (Castastrophe).

So take a chance on this one, really. 

Ghosts (UK)

Ghosts is a new comedy series currently airing on BBC One. The premise, which is established in episode one (no spoilers), is that a modern couple inherit a dilapidated English manor house that happens to be haunted by some previous inhabitants.

This is silly, light-hearted fare that's appropriate for the whole family. But it is so incredibly well done that it appears effortless. Give it two episodes to really get rolling. Then it is laugh-out-loud funny, especially on repeated watchings. Highly recommended.

Secret Scotland (UK)

In this travel documentary 4'11" comedian Susan Calman travels around her native Scotland uncovering the secrets behind famous historical places. 

Scotland is gorgeous, and this documentary is both beautifully filmed and genuinely informative. But the draw here is Calman's folksy presence. Her everywoman style serves as the perfect counterpoint to 1,000 year old castles and sweeping, majestic landscapes. The show moves at a wonderfully relaxed pace, and it will keep you grinning every step of the way. 

Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy (UK)

File Under: How did something this bizarre ever get made?

After an amazingly successful 10-year run as half of The Mighty Boosh, Noel Fielding's next project was Luxury Comedy, a showcase for his surreal, experimental brand of humor. This comedy takes many risks, and it certainly isn't afraid to fail. But when it works, it's mind-blowing.

My strong recommendation is to start with Series One, Episode Two: The Jelly Fox. Series one of Luxury Comedy is a psychedelic sketch show, while series two more of a surreal sitcom. When Luxury Comedy works, it blends the Noel's childlike surrealism, the amazing music of Kasabian's Sergio Pizzorno, and Noel's amazing art. All three hit their heights in this episode. The Jelly Fox skit, itself, is a wonderful peek at what goes on inside the the brain of Noel Fielding.