Love Virgin River 
Just binge watched season 1 of ‘Your Friends & Neighbors’ on Apple TV (comedy drama ) season 2 out soon. Was looking forward to season 2 of Hijack but three episodes in and IMHO not as good as the the first season.
Oh that’s disappointing 
Zone of Interest is now on Channel 4 replay. Well worth watching - this is a review
Other awards-garlanded films may come and go, but this drama will inspire awestruck discussion for decades to come. Christian Friedel – unrecognisable from his role in The White Lotus – stars as Rudolf Höss, the Auschwitz commandant who lived with his wife (Sandra Hüller) and children in an idyllic country home adjoining the notorious concentration camp. For the Höss family, domestic life continues as normal, while the screams of industrial-scale murder are often audible just over the garden wall. Jonathan Glazer’s film is an immersive historical drama, but it also makes chilling comment on our present moment, and humanity’s capacity to carry on as genocide takes place. Ellen E Jones
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In the same vein, Red Eye series two was good recently.
We’re loving “Shrinking” on Apple TV. Don’t quite know how/why but we never finished series 2 which we’re working through now before starting series 3.
The storyline is sparse and the dialogue is a wonderful mixture of sharp humour and deep poignancy and the two turn on a sixpence. Beautiful characterisations, especially Harrison Ford who only improves with age - crusty old psychotherapist with Parkinson’s and a heart of gold. All the other characters are rounded, quirky, easy to fall in love with and get exasperated with. We want them to succeed. (I hate many modern series where all the characters are ghastly - why would I care about them and want to watch their stories?)
Not sure how to perceive what happened to Joseph Merrick, the Elephant Man, in the 19th C –saddened by the cruel torment of his physical condition/appearance, or encouraged by the compassionate concern from those who perhaps knew better.
Wiki - https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Merrick
Excellent film on iPlayer, based on the true life story.
www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000hrgj/the-elephant-man
Is that the 80s version starring John Hurt? I watched it as a child. A very moving film.
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It stars John Hurt and Anthony Hopkins, film released in 1980. I found the film at times horrifying at his treatment by the public, as portrayed in the film. How he faced his plight in those days must have been dreadful.
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Yes I remember watching it too and was full of sadness at how Merrick was treated. John Hurt gave one of his best ever performances in that film. There was a similar modern film with Cher who had a son with a facial disfigurement played by Eric Stolz, can’t remember what it was called but Sam Elliot played her lover in it, again same sort of social problem caused by ignorance.
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I remember that, very sad film. It was called Mask.
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That’s the one.
Just rewatching Two Doors Down which I am enjoying all over again. The rest of the cast must have envied Christine who seems to have the bulk of the best lines!
Seen this Ghost film twice. Wasn’t sure if I was watching this evening on ITVX the same film I’d seen many years ago. All I remember from years ago was a coin sliding vertically up the face of a door, held there by Sam’s ghost, at last being able to make contact with his girlfriend Molly. A vital moment.
Whoopi Goldberg was there to help.
A good watch, which “remains a beloved classic, celebrated for its blend of romance, fantasy, suspense, and emotional depth”.
For those of you who enjoyed The Detectorists it looks like Mackenzie Crook has done it again. Good review in The Guardian. On BBC2 Small Prophets.
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Already watched the first two episodes of Small Prophets. It is excellent & hilariously funny.
Watched the first episode last night, such a nice change to see something genuinely funny, I’m looking forward to the rest of the series.
I watched all episodes of Small Prophets on iPlayer. Not saying it’s not my cup of tea, it was interesting, entertaining & funny, but I’m afraid it didn’t stir my magical cup of tea. Too quirky. Maybe if I watched the series a few more times…?
Don’t think Mackenzie Crook could ever out-magic The Detectorists. But that’s me!
I think there is much more to come in the 2nd series of The Small Prophets, assuming that it’s on its way, and hopefully soon!
On my 2nd viewing of the 1st series, I recognised the Watership Down theme song in the 3rd episode, when the black rabbit oil slick appeared, when ‘climate change’ was exclaimed by the Michael Sleep character.
What other symbolisms will appear I wonder?
Didn’t know what to watch and clicked randomly and found myself watching a documentary ‘The Beauty Queen and the Catfish’ on BBC iPlayer, a true story, with some of those involved taking part, apart from the perpetrator.
A disturbing story that hasn’t yet finished. The perpetrator is coming out of prison in March 2026, after 3 previous jail terms for the same offences, the offences having started in 2014. Will yet another offence be committed?
The question I asked myself was why were these deceptions happening? The many young women, victims of catfishing/stalking by this one person, were asking the same question.
Real life, human perplexity in particular, is definitely more gripping than fiction.