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Nobody Loves You More, Kim Deal’s first-ever solo album, has been a lifetime in the making. The trailblazing singer-songwriter, whose recordings with the Pixies and the Breeders drafted blueprints for the Nineties alt-rock explosion, has always released albums at unusual intervals, La Jetée-like snapshots of her state of mind. She’s been the Buzz Bin sexpot (Pixies’ “Gigantic” for sure, and isn’t “Divine Hammer” simply Gen X’s “Tush”?), she’s been the bong in the reggae song (“Cannonball”), and the ever-moving island (Title Tk’s “Off You”). Other times,...

Out of all the late John Waynes movies, Blood Alley is one of the least discussed in his filmography, barring some titles that are known as lost Wayne movies and his Dirty Harry "rip-offs." However, Blood Alley differs from many of these films, as it is not one of the many acclaimed Western movies Wayne starred in. Set during the Cold War, the movie depicts a voyage from Chiku Shan to Hong Kong via the Formosa Strait. Wayne was cast to play Captain Tom Wilder, but another actor was meant to star in the lead role.

Robert Mitchum was supposed to play Captain Tom Wilder in Blood Alley before he was fired from the movie at the request of director William A. Wellman. Before Mitchum's firing, he had a fallout with Wellman, but the key reason for his dismissal mainly involved the producers. Because Mitchum was released from the production,...

by Chad Kennerk

Image courtesy of Sky Arts

Christopher Lee may have become famous for his iconic performance as a young, suave, debonair Dracula, but his work went far beyond the Hammer Horror roles he is most often associated with. With a commanding voice, penetrating eyes and his imposing height, he often found himself cast as the villain, but like Vincent Price and his other horror contemporaries, the villains Lee played were often the most interesting and layered performance in the film.

Following a long and expansive career that began with uncredited roles in the 1940s, he worked later in life with the biggest names in the industry, appearing in major franchises like The Lord of the Rings and Star Wars. He made five films with director Tim Burton and worked with Martin Scorsese on Hugo. Beyond his work on the screen, Lee led a fascinating life. Before his acting...

Apart from walking through several action set pieces and a thrilling drama, Canary Black also features memorable character beats driven by the compelling performances of its cast members. Directed by Pierre Morel, Canary Black is another addition to Amazon Prime Video's roster of action movies. Although its title might suggest it has something to do with DC Comics' Black Canary, the film follows an original story that focuses on a CIA agent on the run.

Canary Black's filming primarily took place in Zagreb, Croatia, and even the scenes that portray Tokyo in the movie's storyline were shot in the Croatian city of Rovinj. When it comes to the movie's cast, it features both familiar and new faces as its leads. Since many viewers may be curious about who plays whom in Canary Black's story after watching it on Prime Video, it is worth breaking down the key characters and the talented actors behind them.

The Killers are giving their hometown crowd a special treat this month!

The Las Vegas band just launched a special residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace featuring the original band lineup – Brandon Flowers (vocals), Dave Keuning (guitar), Mark Stoermer (bass) and Ronnie Vannucci Jr (drums).

The residency is celebrating the band’s 20th anniversary of their debut album Hot Fuss and their performing the record front to back for the first time ever.

The set list also includes some of the band’s greatest hits from their later albums. The residency runs through September 1 and is already completely sold out.

Head inside to check out the set list…

Keep scrolling to check out the full set list…

**This set list is representative of the first show of the residency and might not be completely accurate for every show.

1. Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine

2. Mr. Brightside

3. Smile Like You...

“It’s so great to be home … I mean that in a way that only New Yorkers know,” Madonna, who adopted New York as her hometown in 1978, told the Brooklyn audience present for the North American kickoff of her Celebration Tour on Wednesday. “New Yorkers can identify with just-not-giving-a-fuck motherfuckers. We do shit our way. New York is not for little pussies who sleep.”

Madonna certainly wasn’t tired, and that was the point of the whole show, a tour de force of some of her biggest hits paired with...

The Big Bang Theory has delivered a massive 279 episodes since it premiered back in 2007, an impressive achievement to look back on. While the overall legacy of the show probably won’t be solidified for some time, it’s true right now that there are some excellent episodes that may have been forgotten or overlooked. Here’s our pick of the 25 best episodes of The Big Bang Theory, from the emotional to the hilarious and everything in between.

25. “The Bakersfield Expedition”

Season 6 Episode 13

Looking back at The Big Bang Theory’s episodes, “The Bakersfield Expedition” is still one of the series’ best. This season 6 episode takes place about halfway through the series’ run, and is a great reminder of what kept people coming back to this show for over a decade. While on their way to Bakersfield Comic-Con, the guys make an unscheduled stop at Vasquez Rocks, where Star Trek: The Original Series...

Jean Boht, who played the iron-fisted matriarch Nellie Boswell on every episode of the 1986-91 BBC sitcom Bread, has died. She was 91.

Boht died Tuesday, her family announced, saying that she “had been battling vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s disease with the indefatigable spirit for which she was both beloved and renowned.”

She had been living in Denville Hall, a home in London for actors and other members of the entertainment industry.

Her husband of 52 years, Carl Davis, who composed the scores for The French Lieutenant’s Woman and Abel Gance’s epic 1927 silent film Napoléon, died six weeks ago after suffering a brain hemorrhage.

Jean Boht (1932-2023)

It is with overwhelming sadness that we must announce that Jean Boht passed away yesterday Tuesday 12 September. Jean had been battling Vascular Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease with the indefatigable spirit for which she was both beloved and renowned. pic.twitter.com/ytNC...

A new Dio box set, The Studio Albums 1996-2004, will collect the final four solo albums from the late Ronnie James Dio’s eponymous band.

The box set is set to drop on September 22nd on CD and vinyl formats. The super deluxe edition vinyl set includes the following LPs on 180-gram wax with updated artwork: 1996’s Angry Machines (on Halloween orange/black marble vinyl); 2000’s Magica on transparent blood red/black smoke double-vinyl, plus the rare “Electra” single on a cobalt blue 7-inch vinyl); 2002’s Killing the Dragon (on transparent yellow/black marble vinyl); and 2004’s Master of the Moon (on electric blue/milky clear marble vinyl).

It marks the first time all four albums have been housed in one package. Back in 2020, Dio’s estate teamed with BMG to reissue each of the aforementioned albums individually. At the time, Angry Machines received its first official LP release, while Magica,...

Earlier this year, Switchfoot took a cue from Taylor Swift and put out what they called “our version” of their 2003 album, The Beautiful Letdown. Now they’re expanding it into a deluxe edition filled with cover versions by the Jonas Brothers, Ryan Tedder, Owl City, and Tyler Joseph from Twenty One Pilots, among others. “To hear our friends and heroes singing these songs of ours — such legendary voices, such amazing talent — it’s truly a wonderful, strange gift,” Switchfoot frontman Jon Foreman said in a statement.

The deluxe edition will come out on Sept.

Milt Larsen, an illusionist and former TV game show writer best known as the co-founder of the Magic Castle, Los Angeles’ private club for magicians, died Sunday of natural causes, his family announced. He was 92.

Born in Pasadena in 1931, Larsen and his brother, Bill, both became writers for television in the 1950s. Both of their parents were practicing magicians, including mother Geraldine, who made television appearances as “The Magic Lady,” early in the medium’s rise.

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Together with William and William’s wife Irene, they transformed a mansion on Franklin Avenue, just off of Highland in the very heart of Hollywood, into a place where working magicians could perform and play. They first leased the building in 1961 and opened it in 1963, billing the Magic Castle as “the most unusual private club in the world.

Milt Larsen, who wrote for the game show Truth or Consequences for nearly two decades and co-founded The Magic Castle in Hollywood, died Sunday of natural causes in Los Angeles, his family announced. He was 92.

Larsen produced TV specials for ABC, CBS and NBC and wrote songs with Richard Sherman, the Oscar winner who partnered with his late brother, Robert, to create tunes for such Disney classics as Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and The Jungle Book.

He also was the creator and consultant for the $50 million Caesars Magic Empire at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

In 1963, Larsen and his late brother, Bill, founded The Magic Castle in a 1909 French Chateau mansion on Franklin Avenue. With its many stages, labyrinthine corridors and old-fashioned decor, the place would become a renowned private club for magicians.

Larsen wrote five joke books and three books involving The Magic Castle, penned a weekly...

Milt Larsen, the magician and TV writer who co-founded Hollywood’s famed Magic Castle night spot, died May 28 in Los Angeles. He was 92.

Larsen had deep roots in the world of magic and in Los Angeles. His father, William Larsen Sr., was a prominent local defense attorney and a performing magician. His mother, Geraldine, made early appearances on TV as “The Magic Lady.” Milt Larsen worked as a writer for TV game shows including “Truth or Consequences” during 18 years of Bob Barker’s tenure as host in the 1950s, ’60s and early ’70s.

Larsen teamed with his older brother, William Larsen Jr., and William’s wife, Irene, in the early 1960s to transform a Gothic renaissance mansion on Franklin Avenue in the heart of Hollywood into a clubhouse designed to cater to working magicians. The trio created the Academy of Magical Arts, but the venue became known as the Magic Castle.

NBC’s landmark “Your Show of Shows” won its second consecutive best variety program statuette at the primetime Emmy Awards held Feb. 5, 1953 at the old Hotel Statler hosted by Art Linkletter. The 90-minute live program had strong competition- “Arthur Godfrey and His Friends” (CBS); “The Colgate Comedy Hour” (NBC); “The Jackie Gleason Show” (CBS) and “The Toast of the Town” (CBS).

Other winners that evening included another landmark series, CBS’ “I Love Lucy” which was named best situation comedy with NBC’s “Robert Montgomery Presents” receiving best dramatic program honors. CBS’ “What’s My Line? claimed the title of best audience participation, quiz or panel show. NBC’s “Dragnet” was the recipient of the best mystery, action or adventure program. Ktla’s “Time for Beany” won best children’s program, while Edward R. Murrow’s “See It Now” (CBS) received the Emmy for public affairs program.

On the acting front, Oscar-winners...

“Better Call Saul” had all the means to relitigate “Breaking Bad.” There was a courtroom and witnesses and the eager attention of every viewer keen on seeing where Saul Goodman’s (Bob Odenkirk) fate would end up in relation to his former clients’. But as it did, time and again over the course of its six-season run, the “Better Call Saul” finale opted for a road of its own choosing.

At the same time, “Better Call Saul” was never going to be able to ignore its fellow Albuquerque show completely. Doing so would fall somewhere between foolishness and hubris. The idea that Jimmy McGill’s own turn for the worse could come fully independently of another six-season arc in recent memory, involving some of the same key players, just wasn’t feasible.

So co-creators Peter Gould and Vince Gilligan helped fashion a show that was less a sibling living in...

Sales

International media group Fremantle has picked up sales rights outside Asia to Korean format “DNA Singer.” The music gameshow was created by specialty firm FormatEast and Kyung Hwangbo for Sbs and has not yet gone to air. Family members who are genetically linked with celebrities such as singers and actors perform, while the judges must guess which celebrities they are genetically related to. “Fantastic Family – DNA Singer” launches in Korea next week as Lunar New Year specials on Sbs. “It is by no means easy to sell a paper format, before the initial proposal has aired. But recently the preference for Korean content has amplified interest in our shows. We are seeing a trend for major players in the global entertainment industry to acquire our formats in advance to stay ahead of the game,” said Kim Il-Joong, executive director of FormatEast. Fremantle has produced local versions of Korean global...

The former head of the ACLU discusses some of the movies – and sports legends – that made him.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Mighty Ira (2020)

The Jackie Robinson Story (1950)

42 (2013)

Shane (1953)

Panic In The Streets (1950)

Last Year At Marienbad (1962)

The Seventh Seal (1957)

La Strada (1954)

Wild Strawberries (1957) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary

The Virgin Spring (1960) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

The Last House On The Left (1972) – Darren Bousman’s trailer commentary

A Walk In The Sun (1945) – Glenn Erickson’s review

Paths Of Glory (1957) – George Hickenlooper’s trailer commentary, John Landis’s trailer commentary

All Quiet On The Western Front (1930) – Ed Neumeier’s trailer commentary

Lonely Are The Brave (1962)

Casablanca (1942) – John Landis’s trailer commentary

On The Waterfront (1954) – John Badham’s trailer commentary

12 Angry Men (1957)

Inherit The Wind (1960)

Judgment At Nuremberg (1961)

Witness For The Prosecution (1957)

Anatomy of a Murder (1959)

The Verdict (1982)

Twelve Angry Men teleplay (1954)

The Front (1976)

Judgment At Nuremberg teleplay...

Last week, just before the President’s diagnosis consumed us, Hollywood leaders joined in asking that Congress send coronavirus relief funds to exhibitors. Those were described as a life-and-death issue for theaters. A mortal threat. And who can doubt it? If the White House isn’t safe, movie houses are certainly still a question mark.

But the dramatic language of the plea—“our country cannot afford to lose the social, economic, and cultural value that theaters provide” warned a joint letter—couldn’t help but recall a peculiar truth about the movie business. That is, it is usually dying of something.

Strikes. New technology. Piracy. Star salaries. Something.

In fact, morbidity is an old habit in Hollywood. The trick is to know what is really an existential threat—this one certainly seems real—and what is just another stage death in an industry that is forever deciding the show is finally over.

Just like Bill S. Preston and Ted “Theodore” Logan wonder if they’ll ever write that perfect song to unite humanity, Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves spent years wondering if “Bill & Ted Face the Music” would ever get made — and they nearly gave up hope.

The long-awaited reunion between Reeves and Winter is finally here with “Bill & Ted Face the Music” opening on Friday, and the stars of the film told TheWrap it was only recently that all the pieces finally clicked to get the Wyld Stallyns back together.

“Not that long ago,” Reeves told TheWrap. “All of these things didn’t really come together, except for Al, like two years ago?”

“Really right before pre-pro. We got close to getting it off the ground, it would go away,” Winter added. “Keanu and I were very busy with other stuff, and we told everyone involved, ‘If it’s happening,...

Blindspot has always been one big fever dream for its five-year run.

So it was appropriate that its 100th episode and series finale, Blindspot Season 5 Episode 11, was jam-packed with hallucinations.

What an inspired way to slot in cameos by dozens of characters, some recent, others from the distant past, a few alive but most dead.

It was great that so many actors were willing to return for a final scene or two.

Frankly, Ivy, one of this season's big bads, was barely seen in this episode, with Zapata taking her out with one punch near the end.

By that point, Ivy had activated the timer on the Zip bomb, so she had become irrelevant.

The cliffhanger from Blindspot Season 5 Episode 10 was dispensed with in no time.

Jane had been trapped in a room with Zip gas all around her.

But she awoke with her memories intact, thanks to an experimental...

It always comes back to Hydra, doesn't it?

The promos for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 7 teased the terrorist organization, but their incorporation into the story was shocking.

But the real enemy seems to be the Chronicoms, who proved on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 7 Episode 1 that they will stop at nothing to erase S.H.I.E.L.D. from existence.

The fact that the Chronicoms have both brains and brawns means it's going to be a fierce battle between them and the team.

The sentential beings were able to throw the remaining agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. off their trail without even meaning too. However, that doesn't negate the ability of Coulson, Mack, Daisy, and everyone to take down the Chronicoms.

It makes perfect sense that they believed the Chronicoms were targeting Fdr and not a seemingly average guy like Freddy to erase S.H.I.E.L.D. from existence.

Deke: Navigating the past happens to be my specialty.

Thanks to a bout of syphilis contracted before the age of fifteen, Alphonse Gabriel “Scarface” Capone found himself trapped inside a prison much worse than the federal penitentiaries in which he also spent time. With almost seven years spent within their concrete walls, the notorious gangster had almost eight more to live within the confines of a rapidly deteriorating mind. We can therefore speculate about the dementia’s effect on his already volatile personality because we understand how the disease operates. Pair the fact that he was probably drifting in and out of time (while suffering multiple strokes) with the darkly violent past he enjoyed and we can begin imagining the torturous prospect of reliving his worst memories without the innate ability to numb his body to their pain.

While gangsters like him who conversely retained their faculties simply lived out their lives with zero regrets while locked away, regrets...

A decade after Drew Barrymore and Justin Long split, she has no problem celebrating her ex-boyfriend.

On Saturday, the exes responded to a “Justin Long appreciation post” on Paper magazine‘s Instagram page, in an interaction first captured by Comments by Celebs.

“Might get fired for this but. F—k it. Justin Long appreciation post,” the outlet wrote alongside a series of photos of the actor.

Barrymore — who dated the actor on-and-off from 2007 to 2010 — commented on the post, agreeing that he deserved the recognition.

“Your [sic] not wrong! He’s great,” the actress, 45, replied.

After seeing her comment, Long, 41, jokingly responded,...

The CW’s Arrow let fwip! with its final season trailer on Tuesday, and the 90-second video is a veritable “Oliver Queen, This Is Your Life!”

When last we tuned in, Oliver and Felicity’s bliss as new parents was abruptly interrupted by the arrival of the Monitor, who came to collect on the deal Oliver made during “Elseworlds” — to do “whatever the multiverse requires to survive the crisis that is looming.” The Monitor went on to say that he has seen Oliver’s “inexorable and unavoidable” future, where the archer dies during said crisis. And while Oliver’s passing cannot be prevented,...

Caroline Preece May 17, 2019

As the final season draws to a close, we look back at The Big Bang Theory's 25 most memorable episodes...

This article comes from Den of Geek UK.

The Big Bang Theory has delivered a massive 279 episodes since it premiered back in 2007, an impressive achievement to look back on. While the overall legacy of the show probably won’t be solidified for some time, it’s true right now that there are some excellent episodes that may have been forgotten or overlooked. Here’s our pick of the 25 best episodes of The Big Bang Theory, from the emotional to the hilarious and everything in between.

25. "The Bitcoin Entanglement"

Season 11, Episode 9

One of the very, very few examples (scroll all the way down for one more) of The Big Bang Theory capitalizing on a particular cultural moment, "The Bitcoin Entanglement" has the guys realize that a cryptocurrency investment they...

Craig Carton, a figure of some New York renown who used to host a popular morning show on Wfan and CBS Sports Network, was sentenced to 42 months in prison by a federal judge Friday for perpetrating a massive ticket fraud.

Facing millions in gambling debts, which he blamed on an addiction to betting, Carton took part in a scheme that defrauded ticket buyers of $7 million. He had promised victims VIP tickets to sporting events and concerts. Instead of making good on the ducats, he used the proceeds to pay his debts and personal expenses. After his arrest in 2017, he resigned from Wfan. After initially insisting he was innocent of all charges and pleading not guilty, he was convicted last fall.

Prosecutors had recommended a prison term of five to seven years, while Carton pushed for leniency and no prison time. According to a Law360 report from the courtroom, Carton told U.

[Editor’s note: Spoilers follow for “The Walking Dead” Season 9, Episode 5, “What Comes After.”]

This Week On “The Walking Dead”

Writing Rick Grimes off “The Walking Dead” is not an enviable task. From the show’s opening moments, Rick Grimes has been our eyes as we watched the world slide into zombie hell. Sure, the show became an ensemble before the end of its short first season, but through all the years Rick has been the constant; he’s the character everyone else orbits around, the one who leads, the one guy you know won’t be killed each episode (no matter how much of a drag that becomes). But now, here we are, with Rick’s much publicized departure. How does the show handle it?

What episode writers Scott M. Gimple and Matthew Negrete have settled on for Rick’s exit is “noble sacrifice punctuated by ‘Christmas Carol’-esque visitations from past cast members,” which...

It’s been several years since Jon Bernthal’s character Shane was killed on The Walking Dead, but now, The Punisher star will be returning for an appearance in the blockbuster ninth season of the AMC show, which also is Andrew Lincoln’s last season. That said, Bernthal is likely to appear on the yet-to-be-officially announced Walking Dead panel in Comic-Con’s Hall H in July.

Bernthal’s character died at the end of season 2 when Rick stabbed him, but he appeared in Season 3, haunting Rick’s imagination. That being said, he probably won’t be magically resurrected or return as a walker, obviously. From what sources tell us, Bernthal most likely will appear in flashbacks in a sort of This Is Your Life final hurrah for Lincoln’s Rick Grimes as it will be the last season for the character. AMC did not respond to a request for comment on Bernthal’s return.

Kent McCray, producer of the classic Little House on the Prairie series, died of natural causes on June 3 at his home in Los Angeles. He was 89 years old.

As native Hartford, Conn., McCray’s career spanned more than 50 years. He was born on June 7, 1928, and is the second son of Thomas Chapman McCray, who was an executive with the NBC Radio Network as well as Dorothy Baldwin McCray who was a singer and a musician.

After graduating from Kimball Union Academy in New Hampshire — where his love of storytelling grew — he studied theater arts at the University of Hartford under Dr. Elemer Nagy. After receiving his diploma in 1948 he worked for the Central City Opera Association in Colorado and then went on to build his television career in Los Angeles.

He was a production coordinator on the All-Star Revue and The Colgate Comedy Hour at NBC and then worked for...

“Little House on the Prairie” producer Kent McCray died of natural causes in Los Angeles on Sunday. He was 89.

McCray was born on June 7, 1928, the second son of Thomas Chapman McCray — an executive with the NBC Radio Network — and singer Dorothy Baldwin McCray. A Hartford, Conn., native, McCray found his passion for entertainment early on during his time at the Kimball Union Academy prep school in New Hampshire. While at Kimball, McCray built sets, directed, acted, and sang in several school theatrical productions.

Three years after graduating from the University of Hartford, McCray began his television career at NBC in L.A. as a production coordinator on the “All Star Revue” and “The Colgate Comedy Hour.” Other assignments followed quickly, including “The Red Skelton Show,” “The Ralph Edwards Show,” “This Is Your Life,” and “You Bet Your Life” starring Groucho Marx.

When NBC announced its shift away from live television into filmed entertainment,...

Actor Joseph Campanella died on Wednesday, May 16. He was 93.

Campanella, who received a Tony Award nomination in 1962 for best supporting actor for his performance in "A Gift of Time" along with Emmy nominations for Days of our Lives and Mannix, died of natural causes, his daughter-in-law, Sandy Campanella, said.

Campanella received his first Emmy Award nomination for playing private eye Joe Mannix's boss on the first season of the 1967-75 CBS series Mannix. His character's name, Lew Wickersham, was a sly reference to then-McA head Lew Wasserman and Lankershim Boulevard, an entryway to Universal Studios.

However, Intertect, the heartless crime-fighting corporation that Wickersham headed, was written out after the first season as Mannix (Mike Connors) went out on his own, and Campanella's contract was not renewed.

The actor also appeared in the recurring role of Ed Cooper, the ex-husband and father on CBS' One Day at a Time,...

"This is your life - what do you want to do?" Ambi Media Group and Spotted Cow Entertainment debuted an official trailer for an indie coming-of-age film called In Search of Fellini, which is indeed about a young woman's search for Fellini. Ksenia Solo stars as a shy small-town Ohio girl who discovers Federico Fellini's "delightfully bizarre films" (see IMDb) and sets off on a journey across Italy to find him. Along the way, she discovers herself and romance and tasty Italian candy and much more. The cast includes Maria Bello, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Beth Riesgraf, Andrea Osvárt, and David O'Donnell. This looks quite adorable, and cute, very much a film-lovers adventure, though it does seem a bit cliche with its story. Enjoy. Here's the first official trailer (+ poster) for Taron Lexton's In Search of Fellini, direct from YouTube: In this coming-of-age adventure, Lucy (Ksenia Solo), a shy...

Actor best known for playing the officious Arp warden William Hodges in Dad's Army

In his early days as a cabaret artist, the actor Bill Pertwee, who has died aged 86, did a manic cricket revue sketch at a fashionable club in central London. A haughty and inebriated diner kicked over his stumps and shouted: "How's that?" Pertwee punched him in the stomach and was escorted out by the head waiter, who informed him that the customer was always right. "As far as I'm concerned, he isn't!" retorted Pertwee.

This bubbling belligerence was successfully incorporated into the bossy character that made Pertwee famous: Arp Warden William Hodges in the celebrated BBC television series Dad's Army (1968-77), written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft. As Hodges, he perpetually clashed with Captain George Mainwaring (Arthur Lowe) of the Home Guard.

The inspiration for the way Pertwee played the warden came from his boyhood during the second world war,...

Actor best known as the haughty department store supervisor Captain Peacock in the TV comedy Are You Being Served?

The actor Frank Thornton, who has died aged 92, had a flair for comedy derived from the subtle craftsmanship of classical stage work. However, he will be best remembered for his longstanding characters in two popular BBC television comedy series – the sniffily priggish Captain Peacock in Are You Being Served? and the pompous retired policeman Herbert "Truly" Truelove, in Roy Clarke's Last of the Summer Wine.

Robertson Hare, the great Whitehall farceur, told him: "You'll never do any good until you're 40." And, said Thornton, "he was quite right." In the event, he was 51 when David Croft, producer of another long-running British staple, Dad's Army, remembered the tall, long-faced actor from another engagement and decided to cast him as the dapper floor-walker in charge of shop assistants played by Mollie Sugden, Wendy Richard,...

A BBC Four drama on the life of Carry On actress Hattie Jacques was seen by more than 1.6 million on Wednesday evening, the latest audience data has revealed. Hattie, starring Ruth Jones, averaged 1.66m (7.1%) for BBC Four between 9pm and 10.30pm, by far the biggest multichannel audience of the night. An episode of This Is Your Life on Hattie Jacques brought in 1.15m (6.6%) on the channel from 10.30pm. Live coverage of Arsenal's Fa Cup replay victory against Leeds was watched by 5.14m (22.2%) between 7.30pm and 10.15pm, outperforming a screening of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, which had 4.74m (19.9%) on BBC One from 8pm. Earlier on BBC One, The One Show entertained 4.4m (20.4%) from 7pm, before Rip Off Britain pulled in 5.03m (23.7%). Film 2011 with Claudia Winkleman grabbed 1.31m (10.4%) from 10.45pm. On Channel 4, Will (more)...

Norman Wisdom, one of the Britain's best-loved comedy stars, has died aged 95. We look back over his career in clips

Rex Harrison urged him to take up a career in showbiz; Charlie Chaplin named him his favourite clown. Yet Norman Wisdom remained that most modest of British superstars, unpretentious, full of humility, despite a dizzying rise to international fame. Or, rather, extreme popularity in the UK, and extraordinary adulation in other slightly unlikely other countries, most notably Albania, where he was, notoriously, the only Western actor whose films were allowed in the country during the dictatorship of Enver Hoxha.

Wisdom had a tough upbringing - sleeping in the same room as his whole family; a spell in a children's home, then employment by the Merchant Navy at a young age - which left little time for him to be a child. It seems striking then that his stage and screen...

The siege of Asgard continues, Indigo becomes the new choice of color and Captain America “officially” returns in this latest edition of The Pull List Comic Reviews! Due to time constraints and unforeseen delays, this week’s column is abbreviated. As always, Warning: Spoilers Ahead.

Pull Of The Week:

Atom & Hawkman #46

DC Comics – $2.99 Us

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artist: Ryan Sook

Score: 9/10

Ray Palmer, known better as the Atom, has been knocked down more than most during his career as a costumed crime-fighter, but he always manages to pick himself up. Not surprisingly, that compassion of his has earned him an Indigo ring, and with the dead seemingly winning the war, Ray has figured out a way to swing the battle to the good guys; even if the good guys aren’t all necessarily “good” to begin with.

I would never have thought that, of all the Blackest Night-themed “continuation” issues,...

BBC Two's night of programming themed around June Whitfield Cbe was a ratings success last Tuesday (December 29). The veteran actress and future DS Icon was celebrated in the documentary The Many Faces Of June Whitfield, which averaged 2.44m (10.4%) in the 9pm hour. Earlier, a rerun of the 1995 episode of This Is Your Life featuring Whitfield - then OBE - appealed to 2.28m (9.7%) between 8pm and 8.30pm, after which the 1985 festive special of Terry and June kept hold of 2.05m (8.6%). A classic episode of Absolutely Fabulous drew 2.16m (10.6%) from 10pm. The concluding half of The Day Of The Triffids was seen by 5.6m (24.3%) between 9pm and 10.30pm on BBC One. The audience was down around 500k on the first episode. Earlier, Holby City took 5.86m (24.8%) for BBC One in the 8pm hour, easily trumping ITV1's Funniest Ever (more)...

When people think of Michael Aspel, they often throw back the criticisms "dull", "old-fashioned" and "ordinary". Here at Digital Spy however, we prefer to use the words "distinguished", "all-rounder" and "dependable". Whether he was handing out his big red book on This Is Your Life or bringing celebs down to the ground on Aspel and Company, the Battersea-born star always had a relaxed, easy-going charm - not too dissimilar to your granddad after a few too many glasses of sherry. In the world of entertainment, Aspel has been there, done that and got the T-shirt. Whether it's (more)...