Game of Thrones

My more academic friends are quick to dismiss Game of Thrones as a sex-and-swordplay soap opera with silly names, but it’s been pointed out by many that George R R Martin’s cycle of ‘The Song of Ice and Fire’ books follow a theology and social structure much closer to our own heritage than, say ‘Lord […]

‘Did IQs just suddenly drop while I was away?’ I asked the same question Ripley asks at the start of ‘Aliens’ when I saw the public reaction to ‘Game of Thrones’. I don’t ‘do’ fantasy, a cheesy mash-up of the only things kids can remember from medieval history lessons plus the drawings they made on […]

In the century since the major film studios first settled in Hollywood, audiences have never demanded more video than they do today. In 2014, we watched an average of 163 hours of video content per month (17 hours more than in 2007). But despite the proliferation of content, consumption and access, the value of the home […]

Well, it’s over. Farewell, Hobbitses, and thanks for all the fun. Last night I saw Borimir, Chlamydia, Moulinex, Fafnir, Ariel, Moomin, Thorax Oakenfold and Legoland go into battle for the last time, bringing together an end to a thirteen-year film cycle all the more remarkable for its consistency of tone. This time for ‘The Hobbit: […]

Demographically speaking, childhood now ends at around the age of nine. The transference of what were once called children’s shows into teen dramas is complete. The BBC has long wanted to ditch that peculiar band of little people’s entertainment, and with good reason. Every few years there’s a demographic shuffle, and the closure of ‘children’s […]