5 Things You Should Know Before Watching War and Peace

With BBC One embarking on an adaptation of one of the most epic novels of all time, here are 5 facts you might want to know before sitting back and watching the drama unfold...

1. There are over 600 characters in the book, but the story revolves around 5 main families

2. It is the 20th longest book at 1,440 pages, but is shorter than Les Miserables

3. Before naming his work War and Peace, Tolstoy had named it The Year 1805

4. The whole work is actually made up of 4 volumes and 2 epilogues

5. Some of the characters' speech in the text is French. This is because French was the adopted language of the Russian aristocracy. In later editions of the book, these sections were translated back into Russian.

 

Doctor Who Returns

Doctor Who returned on Saturday night on BBC1. The appearance of the Doctor's future companion shocked fans but allowed a glimpse at what is to come after the departure of Karen Gillan. Jenna-Louise Coleman (Emmerdale, Titanic) is set to take over the role of companion when Gillan leaves the show.

Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill return for 5 more episodes in the new series before leaving to let Coleman take over. The 5 episodes will be shown in the next 5 weeks before taking a break before the Christmas episode in which Coleman reappears airs over the Christmas period. A further 8 episodes then complete the sevenths series of the show.

Whovians are eagerly anticipating the reveal of just how Amy and Rory leave the show, as well as how Coleman takes over the reigns as the Doctor's new companion, Clara Oswin.

Read my review of the new series premier here.

Doctor Who: Series Premier

‘Remember me’

 Doctor Who returned on Saturday with a well kept surprise which shocked many a Who fan. The premature appearance of the Doctor’s new soufflé baking, classical music playing companion was perhaps the best kept TV for secret for years. It is a well known fact that Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) and her husband Rory (Arthur Darvill) will leave the cult show later this series (how exactly is to be debated) and that Jenna-Louise Coleman will step into Gillan’s shoes as Clara Oswin, however, she made an unexpected appearance in the first episode of the new series.

In the first episode of this series the actress appeared as Oswin Oswald a quick-witted and flirtatious space traveller. Her predicament of being trapped inside a Dalek was relatively predictable from about half way through the episode, what with the circular camera shapes and her better-than-the-Doctor intelligence. Despite this, the reveal turned into a touching and heartfelt moment. The only sign of Coleman’s future role as Smith’s companion came with the words ‘remember me’, delivered by the actress with a cheeky grin and wink. Just exactly how this comes about will no doubt be hotly debated by Doctor Who followers.

A topic similarly be debated will be the details of Pond’s exit. The dramatic scene of the Doctor carrying his friend through the chaos of a collapsing Dalek empire, prominently shown in the series trailer, also appeared in this episode, cutting such a scene out of the running. The pairing of Amy and Rory will be missed, i’m sure, as this episode showed just how important their relationship is. The apparent demise of their marriage was saddening but the chemistry between the two characters –and actors- is clear and something the show has revolved around for a while. The mentions of their past especially –Rory’s waiting for 2000 years for Amy shows just how much history these two have and how vital the pair have become to the show. So for all the doubters, perhaps moving on from two such long running companions will refresh the show and keep it moving. However, this episode was a sparkling series premiere providing more questions than answers which will ensure the audience will stay tuned for the future....

How do you think the Ponds will exit? And how will Oswald become Oswin? Let me know in the comment section below.

Aired 1/9/12 BBC1

Hiatus and refurb!

TV Junkie has had and will be having a hiatus for a few days, but will be back with a new design and feel. It will return with a different focus - less reviews and more features - and will have more of a magazine aspect.

Watch this space!

Actress of the Week: Julie Gonzalo

With the new series of Dallas finally coming to the UK in September and the UK lainch party tonight, our Actress of the Week this week is one of the new faces of the cult TV series: Julie Gonzalo.

The Argentinian born actress plays Rebecca Sutter, who marries Christopher Ewing in the pilot episode, yet has many deep secrets yet to be revealed...

Gonzalo first moved to the US from Buenos Aires when she was 8 years old, frequently returning there throughout the next few years and still speaks fluent Spanish, including often during media interviews. The actress has starred in several high profile films and TV shows including Freaky Friday, A Cinderella Story, Veronica Mars and Eli Stone.

With Dallas on its way to Britain, i’m sure we’ll see much more of the actress in the next few months, but if you want to find out more about Dallas take a look at the Dallas cast interview from This Morning on ITV1 yesterday (link below) and follow TV Junkie for features and reviews in the future.

Dallas Cast Interview, This Morning ITV1 20/08/12, Interview at 25.08 minutes through

Revenge 1.12

‘Trust me, one doesn't easily forget a deal that’s made with the devil’

The shock factor was high in the last 10 minutes of this episode of Revenge. A burning down house and the reveal of a long buried secret gave what has come to be the classic weekly Revenge punch in the gut.

This week Emily Thorne (Emily VanCamp) took her revenge to a new level by burning down Mason Treadwell’s house. Her anger was clearly shown at the beginning episode by her dramatic crossing out of the biographer’s face.  Roger Bart played Treadwell, the desperate, slimy fame seeker who had written the ‘true’ story of the David Clarke scandal, betraying the young Amanda Clarke in the process. Nolan Ross (Gabriel Mann) once again came to the rescue by providing Emily with the technological resources to bring down Treadwell (and whilst making faux Amanda actually useful for once) but along with the rest of us was also impressed – and equally unfazed - by Emily’s sheer determination and penchant for causing chaos with the arson attack

Daniel’s (Joshua Bowman) sudden transformation into ruthless businessman was slightly confusing, particularly with his unwavering loyalty to Emily coming into question with his plan to use her to get his trust fund. This uncharacteristic change is welcome though, as Bowman’s character was becoming one who was easily walked over both by his parents and friends.

The pair who had been inconsequential over the last few weeks, Charlotte and Declan,  have suddenly been thrown into the spotlight with the revelation that Charlotte (Christa B Allen) is David Clarke’s daughter, throwing a whole new light onto Emily’s pursuit for retribution and providing much anticipation for her next steps.

Aired 13/08 E4

Once Upon A Time 1.20

‘You come with me and I promise that you’ll find everything you’re looking for’

After spending the last few weeks wondering who exactly the mysterious Mr Booth was, his fairytale identity was finally revealed in a dramatic fashion.

The stranger revealed that he was the boy who found the lost baby Emma when she was transported through the enchanted tree and that his role was to persuade her that Regina’s (Lana Parrilla) curse was real. Despite his earnest honesty and conclusive proof that he was who he said, Emma, frustratingly, still didn’t believe him. This intense scene between the two was gripping and when August (Eion Bailey) attempted to reveal his real wooden nature to Emma (Jennifer Morrison), we all thought this was it, this was when our heroine would finally accept her fate. But no. The fact that Emma couldn’t see Booth’s wooden leg due to her strong anti-curse beliefs leaves us thinking, will she ever manage to save the fairytale characters from the curse?

Once again, this episode was all about the parent-child relationships. This week the focus was drawn to Gepetto a.k.a Marco (Tony Amendola) and his son Pinocchio a.k.a August Booth. The relationship between the two was touching, with Booth’s tips to Marco in his carpentry shop emphasising their past as well their unusual relationship. The second parent-child relationship in this episode was Emma and Henry’s (Jared Gilmore). Emma’s revelation that she was going to take Henry away from Regina and her leaving Storybrooke with him proves how much she is now ready to be a mother to him. But their exodus from Storybrooke at the end of the episode leaves us all wondering how far she will go to do this...and what exactly is she willing to compromise in the process?

Aired 12/08/12 Channel 5