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Peep Show peeks into the lives of two young British lads who think they’re normal, however, they’re anything but. They have major problems with relationships, with work, with family and life itself. But it sure is hilarious to watch them struggle.
The show, and the lives of these guys, is like a train wreck. You know it’s going to be gruesome, but you can’t keep from looking. And not only do you get to see their lives through their points of view (the show is shot POV style), you get to hear their innermost thoughts, thoughts that we may have ourselves but never would admit to.
Mark Corrigan is supposedly the more responsible character in the show. He has a respectable job at JLB Credit, owns his flat and pays for pretty much everything. He’s obsessed with World War II, especially the battle of 
Stalingrad, his knowledge of which he uses to try to woo women. Mark is on a never-ending search for the woman who is “The One.” Pretty much any female he comes across could fit the bill. He’s pessimistic, paranoid, socially inept, would rather read a book than meet new people, but he does bake a mean lasagna.
Mark’s best friend and flatmate is Jeremy Usborne. He’s a hopeless, struggling musician, even though you hardly ever see him play an instrument. He claims that he can’t have a real job because it will interfere with his creative process. He milks his mother for money, then trashes her when she decides to cut him off. His attitude may be more optimistic than Mark’s, but he’s still as messed up. Jeremy has a way with the ladies, much more than Mark, but can never seem to sustain any long-term relationship. Casual sex and recreational drug use are his hobbies.
And then there’s Jeremy’s fellow “band” member Super Hans, who is almost always wacked out of his head on some drug or other, his favorite being crack cocaine.
Sophie is one of Mark’s co-workers and could possibly be Mark’s true love… or not. Mark may be obsessed with Sophie, but she has an eye for fellow co-worker Jeff. Not sure what she wants for her life, she bounces between both guys for a good part of the series.
Mark’s Type A boss at JLB Credit is Alan Johnson, or just Johnson. Mark is weirdly attracted to Johnson and tries at every opportunity to impress him.
Mark and Jeremy may be thought of as an odd couple, polar-opposite personalities, but I think they are more alike than they’d like to admit. Though they’ve been best friends for more than 10 years, each never passes up the opportunity to stab the other in the back to make themselves look good. They never learn from their mistakes, destined to repeat them, and they do.
Late last year, I spent a few days and watched the 42 episodes of Peep Show back to back. I couldn’t stop myself. Some of the storylines are pretty warped, but incredibly funny. You almost wish they would end happily, but then again, you don’t. Like a train wreck, you’re morbidly drawn to Mark and Jeremy’s suffering.
At this point, all the episodes are only available via Netflix download, but that could change at anytime. That’s why I usually list the number of seasons available on Region 1 DVD. If I go by that, only Season 1 is available.
MAIN CAST:
David Mitchell – Mark Corrigan
Robert Webb – Jeremy “Jez” Usborne
Olivia Colman – Sophie Chapman
Matt King – Super Hans
Paterson Joseph – Alan Johnson
Neil Fitzmaurice – Jeff Heaney
Total Seasons: 7 (42 episodes)
Seasons Available on US Formatted DVD: 1
In Production: 2003 – 2010
Viewer Discretion: Language
I had Lark Rise to Candleford on my list of shows to see for quite a while and never got around to watching it. But once I did, I couldn’t stop. I was totally addicted.
Some have called it a British version of Little House on the Prairie and I guess there are some overall similarities — a daughter named Laura from a large family learning all about life and love. But as far as I’m concerned, the similarities end there. I find Lark Rise to Candleford to be much more entertaining and elegantly produced.
The incredible ensemble cast is made up of characters you grow to know and love as the series unfolds. My favorite character is Thomas Brown, played by Mark Heap. But only because I’ve seen other characters that Mark Heap has played and they are so totally different than Thomas Brown. A lot of the shows Mark is in are comedies, so to see him play a more dramatic role is very impressive. I love actors who have range and can successfully play all different types of roles. And when it comes to range, compare Julia Sawalha as Dorcas Lane in this series to her role as Saffron Monsoon from Absolutely Fabulous. Totally different.
I know what you’re thinking, how many more TV and movie versions of the Sherlock Holmes stories can there be? How can this one be so different? Well, it is. Though the characters have the same names as the ones in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s books, this series takes place in present day London. So with computers, cell phones, the internet, the science of DNA, forensics and all the other fancy stuff we’ve got at our disposal today, these Sherlock Holmes stories are totally contemporary, quite clever and very, very entertaining.
This version of Sherlock, played delightfully by Benedict Cumberbatch, is young, fearless and ingenious. Of course he is, he’s Sherlock Holmes. This Holmes does live at 221B Baker Street, but he doesn’t play the violin or have an addiction to cocaine (just nicotine patches). And being a 21st century version of Holmes, he’s now able to use all the latest technology to help solve cases. The first episode, “A Study In Pink,” has Holmes texting the word “Wrong” to the police and reporters during a press conference, letting them know they’re totally off base with their inquiries.
Waking the Dead follows a unit of detectives and scientists as they investigate unsolved murders. With new evidence, the science of criminal profiling and the latest forensic technology, they successfully solve these cold cases.
The other members of the unit are: Detective Inspector Spencer Jordan, who often is good cop to Boyd’s bad cop; Detective Sergeant Amelia “Mel” Silver (for 38 episodes), the youngest of the group; and Dr. Frankie Wharton (for 38 episodes) as the forensic pathologist. As the series continued, several character changes were made: Dr. Felix Gibson as the forensic pathologist, then replaced by Dr. Eve Lockhart in Season 6; DC Stella Goodman (Season 5), replacing Mel; Detective Sergeant Katrina Howard (Season 8) and Detective Superintendent Sarah Cavendish (Season 9).
