After the Screaming Stops

Great honesty shown by the identical twins, one apparently bald, one apparently sporting a full head of hair. They suffer from full on Gallagher and Davies syndrome. Yet their articulacy goes against the expected grain of a boyband. Great respect for allowing this to be exhibited, really wish I had gone to the O2 reunion now!

I watched this doc on BBC iPlayer over Christmas - you really don't need to have previous knowledge of Bros to enjoy this. If you appreciate Spinal Tap, David Brent, Alan Partridge etc you'll love this. And it's real.

Best. Christmas. Ever.

Movie night with Iris.

An unintentionally hilarious documentary on the band reunion. The 80s story is mildly interesting, but the David Brent analogies and psycho-babble are hilarious.

A music documentary about a band you have little emotional investment in is a big ask, especially when it's tracking their comeback. But this documentary is something different; for a start, love or hate their music, Bros were (for a short time) a genuine cultural force for those of us who were becoming aware of music in the 1980s. And, as this documentary makes clear, they make for unexpectedly entertaining subjects; it's not quite clear if this is deliberate or inadvertent (I tend to the latter). But this is a film full of endlessly quotable, genuinely laugh out loud moments; if's downright funnier than most comedies. For the most part Matt and Luke are the only voices we hear; and despite the humour, there are also some moments that are clearly moving; especially when they talk about the deaths of their sister and, later, their mother. The big London comeback gig - which the film builds up to - serves as a moment of genuine cathartic release for band and viewer alike; and though I still have no affection for their music, there's a sense of deeper appreciation for the people behind the music - even as I laugh at them.

Charming melange of Spinal Tap, David Brent and People Do Nothing which is compulsive viewing even for anyone who imagines that a Bros reunion gig is the last thing they fancy witnessing.