[duncan]

Thatcher: a very British revolution. Not a universally loved figure on here I would guess but extremely good television.  Understanding Thatcher and her aggressive Euroscepticism is required background if you want to begin to understand the current shit-show.

[tomtom]

Thatcher: a very British revolution. Not a universally loved figure on here I would guess but extremely good television.  Understanding Thatcher and her aggressive Euroscepticism is required background if you want to begin to understand the current shit-show.

I heard this got a roasting for flossing over/ignoring the more controversial parts of her tenure.. notably Miners strike, Orgreave...

[duncan]

I heard this got a roasting for flossing over/ignoring the more controversial parts of her tenure.. notably Miners strike, Orgreave...

Some commentators would be unhappy if the programme was anything other than a good kicking. The miner's strike got about 20 minutes out of 60 in part 3 'Enemies', which seems an appropriate proportion given this episode also covered the Falklands, CND and Greenham, the Brighton bombing, and the rapprochement with Gorbachov. The government preparations for the strike were described and it was very clear Thatcher (and Scargill) was keen to have a confrontation.

Kinnock and Ken Clarke both made the point the strike was one of the keys to her political reputation but the success (in her terms) of the no compromise strategy also sowed the seeds of her eventual demise. A miner (can't remember his name I'm afraid) was interviewed who made it clear Orgreave was a set-up, a Thatcher advisor (Charles Powell I think) claimed Thatcher didn't know about the precise details beforehand. To what extent Thatcher conceived Orgreave was not explored further so I can see how some might feel it was glossed over. This is a good example of the tone of the series: it's about Thatcher more than Britain, it's low on overt editorialising, and is primarily told by politicians and courtiers. If we knew Thatcher was in on the detailed planning (and it seems to me likely she was: the series makes it clear she had an exceptional, obsessional, command of detail) would it change our impression of her overall? I don't think by very much.

What is more interesting to me is how her uncompromising Iron Lady persona turned to caricature and lives on. The beatification of this Maggie by a large proportion of current Tories goes some way to explaining the national and self-harm they are comfortable with inflicting for Brexit: any U-turn would be a betrayal of her holy legacy.


 
 

[SA Chris]

If you enjoyed the Kiwi film What We Do In The Shadows, the series is worth a watch;

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0005bkw

Some comedy genius moments

[andy popp]

What is more interesting to me is how her uncompromising Iron Lady persona turned to caricature and lives on. The beatification of this Maggie by a large proportion of current Tories goes some way to explaining the national and self-harm they are comfortable with inflicting for Brexit: any U-turn would be a betrayal of her holy legacy.

I've no doubt she was one of the most consequential PMs of the twentieth-century, but increasingly I feel that history will not judge her once of the best. There were deep, deep contradictions in her that she was unable even to recognize, let alone reconcile.

[Mike Tyson]

If you enjoyed the Kiwi film What We Do In The Shadows, the series is worth a watch;

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0005bkw

Some comedy genius moments

Glad someone else enjoyed it! Absolutely hilarious. Matt Berry has rapidly become my comedic hero. If you think he is funny, check out Year of the Rabbit on Channel 4. Proper funny!

[SA Chris]

I've always liked him but was put off after Toast of London. glad he's back to form

[Mike Tyson]

Really? I Ioved Toast, proper piss funny! Can you hear me Clem Fandango?! 🤣

[SA Chris]

The Clubbing episode is genius. managed to rope in a few A/B list Hollywood names for the Vampire Council.

[TobyD]

Killing Eve...

Though I enjoyed the first season, two episodes into the second I feel that it's losing it significantly, although it still has its moments.

[Will Hunt]

I've seen all of the second series. There was almost no discernible plot. Jodie Comer and Fiona Shaw (and to a lesser extent for me, Sandra Oh) carried it, but boy did they carry it. I could watch Jodie Comer watching paint dry and still be enraptured.

[TobyD]

Yes perhaps I was a little harsh. Comer, though undoubtedly pleasant viewing isn't half as good as Fiona Shaw, whose  delivery is exceptional.  I'll probably stick with it

[Falling Down]

Jeremy Deller’s “Everybody in the Place” is on iPlayer.  It’s absolutely brilliant. 

Everybody in the Place: an Incomplete History of Britain 1984-1992: www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000777d via @bbciplayer

[TobyD]

The Great Hack

On Netflix.  A flawed, terrifying but eminently watchable documentary. 

[TobyD]

Mindhunter

On Netflix,  don't know if its been mentioned before,  but its pretty good.  Season two out soon as well.

[galpinos]

The Last Climb: Eric Jones, on IPlayer.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0007vy8

Interesting look at the soloing legend, the original Alex Honnold. I still can't believe they had him soloing Cemetery Gates in the damp live on terrestrial TV on a Saturday afternoon!

[SA Chris]

Gone Fishing with Whitehouse and Mortimer Series 2 is as good as the first.

[TobyD]

Has anyone watched the spy on Netflix yet? Sounds promising but the reviews aren't terribly positive. 

Capture on BBC at the moment is good,  well the first one was anyway. 

Manhunt: Unabomber seemed pretty poor,  only going by episode one

[tommytwotone]

Blimey, we started watching Years And Years on iPlayer over the weekend. Brilliant, but also quite terrifying at the same time.

[spidermonkey09]

I've seen all of the second series. There was almost no discernible plot. Jodie Comer and Fiona Shaw (and to a lesser extent for me, Sandra Oh) carried it, but boy did they carry it. I could watch Jodie Comer watching paint dry and still be enraptured.

Finished second series of Killing Eve last night. Gets better as it progresses I think, as long as you acknowledge the absence of plot as Will mentioned. Fiona Shaw is great.

[TobyD]

The Capture on iplayer and BBC at the moment.  The first two episodes are good.

[Yossarian]

Series 3 of Top Boy on Netflix. As you may or may not know, Drake brought this to Netflix after Channel 4 cancelled it. So amazing. It makes Bodyguard look like Button Moon. Even more impressive cast, inc Little Simz, Dave (of Glastonbury Thiago Silva fame), etc. I tried to ration it to an episode per day, but failed hopelessly. Epic soundtrack as well...

[IanP]

Series 3 of Top Boy on Netflix. As you may or may not know, Drake brought this to Netflix after Channel 4 cancelled it. So amazing. It makes Bodyguard look like Button Moon. Even more impressive cast, inc Little Simz, Dave (of Glastonbury Thiago Silva fame), etc. I tried to ration it to an episode per day, but failed hopelessly. Epic soundtrack as well...

Haven't got round to this yet, thought series 1 & 2 were great so am looking forward to it.  Sounds like it more than meets expectations.

[crzylgs]

'The Boys' on Amazon Prime.

Slight dystopian twist on the usual Super Hero fare - the 'Supers' are under the control of an American corporation, mishaps are predictably swept under the carpet... so a band 'The Boys' of people who have been hurt, lost, suffered are out to expose the Supers for what they really are.

As fellow Brits you'll have to get passed Karl Urban's 'geezer' accent, but it's definitely worth it for some of the absolutely hilarious scenes (the dolphin rescue!) and dialogue. Has decent character development, plot and story arc. Highly recommend!

[tommytwotone]

On the subject of dodgy accents, I've been reminded of how awful the Peaky Blinders ones are, especially the (apparently) Glaswegian "Billy Boys" in the current series!