The News Roundup: Black Friday Edition
If you’re a Black Friday deal hunter, the blog Anglotopia has compiled a list of some of their picks for the best deals for Anglophiles on this super shopping day.
The Hour star Ben Whishaw is now confirmed to play gadget designer Q in the newest James Bond film, Skyfall. A bit of fun trivia: Whishaw is 12 years younger than Bond actor Daniel Craig, so this marks the first time that Q will be younger than Bond.
Jonny Lee Miller and Sherlock’s Benedict Cumberbatch are the first in history to be named joint Best Actors at the Evening Standard Theater Awards, for their performances in Danny Boyle’s Frankenstein. Watch the video of their acceptance speeches here, it’s pretty cute.
Speaking of Cumberbatch, the actor is ostensibly doing press for the American premiere of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy at the moment, but he seems to spend most of his time talking about getting ready to film Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit. Since they’re actually filming him doing the motion capture for Smaug himself and apparently crawling around on the ground and all, I wonder if that means he’ll be acting opposite Martin Freeman again?
Go behind the scenes of the second series of Downton Abbey with a photo set in the December issue of Vanity Fair.
Dame Helen Mirren to co-host this year’s Nobel Peace Prize concert on December 11.
Filming begins on the BBC/Cinemax co-production Nemesis with Alias' Melissa George, who stars as a spy who survives an assassination attempt by her own team.
Steven Moffat weights in on the possibility of a new Doctor Who feature film, comparing the possibility of a reboot to an ill prepared trip to the moon, as the film has no script, production team, cast or premise in place. The executive producer’s tweet - “Announcing my personal moonshot, starting from scratch. No money, no plan, no help from NASA. But I know where the moon is – I’ve seen it,” certainly does sound less than impressed.
In more Who news, have some more pictures from the upcoming Christmas special, “The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe.”
The first promotional photo for the Absolutely Fabulous Christmas special! I can’t get over how virtually everyone in the cast looks exactly the same (and apparently haven't aged?), even though they show hasn’t aired in years.
Fancy a date with Colin Firth? The Oscar winner is auctioning off a chance to attend the American Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy premiere with him (and go to the after party!) to benefit Oxfam America.
First look photos at the new BBC Great Expectations that will air on Masterpiece next year. This includes The X-Files’ Gillian Anderson as Miss Havisham, Poirot’s David Suchet as Jaggers, Ray Winstone as Abel Magwitch, Vanessa Kirby as Estella, and Douglas Booth as Pip.
The Hollywood Reporter has an interesting story about why the Golden Globes asked star Ricky Gervais back to host the ceremony this year, despite the ruffled feathers which resulted from his previous appearance. :
Singer Adele is slated to return to performing following the cancellation of her tour due to a throat condition, as part of the UK X-Factor finale.
And this was just too cool – a sweet story about an elderly couple that had a real-life Downton Abbey romance – she was a scullery maid and he was a lorry driver – celebrates their 70th anniversary by returning to the Edwardian manor where their love story began.
And, finally, for our literature enthusiasts, the Bronte Parsonage Museum, based in West Yorkshire, has launched campaign for the public to donate funds to buy a “lost” Charlotte Bronte manuscript that will be auctioned by Sotheby’s in mid-December. “Young Men’s Magazine Number 2” was written by Charlotte when was fourteen, and contains stories set in “Glass Town,” an imaginary world created by the Bronte sisters and their brother Branwell as children.
