The Friday News Roundup: Heatwave Edition
For those of you not in the DC local area, just an FYI, the heat has been brutal here the past few days. Sympathies to my fellow East Coasters, I know a lot of y’all have had things just as warm as we have!
Obviously, this means you should take a few minutes, kick back and stay cool by reading all the latest and greatest in this week’s News Roundup! Click through for bits and bobs on Doctor Who, Downton Abbey, Doc Martin, Copper, that upcoming American remake of The Inbetweeners, a new series starring David Tennant called The Politician’s Wife and more!
Actor Anthony Bate, best known for his role as Oliver Lacon in the BBC television adaptation of John Le Carre’s Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, has passed away at age 84.
More sad news – former Doctor Who companion Caroline John, who played Liz Shaw on the iconic sci-fi series, also passed away this week at the age of 72. There’s a lovely piece about her and her impact on the franchise over here at io9.
David Tennant and Emily Watson to star in The Politician’s Husband, a three-part serial about marriage, power and politics, for BBC Two.
Sherlock took home the award for Best Movie/Mini-Series and star Benedict Cumberbatch won Best Actor in the movie/mini-series category at this week’s Critics Choice Awards.
A brief piece on the UK’s most famous soap operas – Coronation Street really has been running a lot longer than I thought.
Downton Abbey star Allan Leech – who plays Branson, the chauffer – calls new guest star Shirley MacLaine “amazing,” says he loved working with her.
In more Downton dish, producer Nigel Merchant opens up about how long he thinks the period drama can contine, claims they “want to end on a high note.”
Kenneth Branagh received a knighthood and Upstairs, Downstairs star and co-creator Jean Marsh received an OBE during the Queen’s birthday honors last weekend. Branagh said receiving his knighthood was “a surreal experience.”
Here’s a lovely piece in Huffington Post’s travel section about Port Isaac in Cornwall, the real town that stands in for fictional Portwenn in Doc Martin.
Doctor Who star Matt Smith talks about learning to row in order to play a 1948 Olympic gold medal winner for BBC One’s Bert & Dickie.
This picture made my week: design house Spencer Hart decided to use their founder Nick Hart and Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch (who wears quite a bit of their clothes) as mannequins in the storefront before the recent GQ Recommends dinner. Extra fashion-related tidbit: here’s more from Cumberbatch’s modeling debut for Spencer Hart.
In more random bits of Cumberbatch news, the actor has announced he’d like to play Hamlet in the West End sometime in the next couple of years. I approve of this plan.
Yikes – the tour for the British version of reality series The Voice has been scrapped due to poor ticket sales and apparent “lack of interest.”
Matt Smith hints that classic villains the Ice Warriors may return to Doctor Who in Series 7.
Speaking of Doctor Who villains, several varieties of iconic monsters from the series were running around Cardiff in Wales this week, as part of a promotion for the new Doctor Who Experience.
An interesting speculative piece about who the most likely person to take over as showrunner of Doctor Who might be, whenever current headwriter Steven Moffat decides to step down.
Have you voted in BBC America’s Anglo Fan Favorites: Men of 2012 tournament yet? Some of these matchups have just been impossibly difficult to pick.
How well do you know the British Royal Family? Take the PBS quiz and see how you score. (I scored “Monarch,” just for the record!)
Sorry Queen Elizabeth, the Euro 2012 match between England and Ukraine just beat out your Diamond Jubilee for most-watched program of the year.
The BBC and the Jim Henson Co. are officially developing Muppets-style TV show called No Strings Attached.
Dream job alert: Queen Elizabeth is hiring a House Manager for Buckingham Palace. Would this make that person the Royal version of Mrs. Hughes?
Thousands of people packed among the standing stones at Stonehenge this week to celebrate the summer solstice.
BBC Director General Mark Thompson says the network “has lessons to learn” from its coverage of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.
Eastbound and Down star Jon Michael Hill is joining the cast of CBS Sherlock Holmes series Elementary.
Speaking of Elementary, here is a new promo for the CBS drama called “Meet Holmes and Watson.” I’ll let you judge for yourselves how dramatic you think my eyerolling is at this point.
I’m crying a bit inside – the American remake of The Inbetweeners is apparently real and premiering on MTV on August 20. Whyyyyy.
Possible documentary about the Spice Girls in the works?
Take a behind-the-scenes look at BBC America’s first original drama, Copper, set in 1800s New York.
Nicole Scherzinger, former judge on the first season of the US version of The X-Factor, is now set to be a judge on the original British version of the reality competition.
