Tag Archives: Strike Back

Next Weeks TV Picks

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Monday 3rd
I remember when I was growing up I would never join my friends in games of Cowboys and Indians, even if they let me have the finger guns in the playground or the string and twig bow and arrow in the woods, even if I had the coolest role in the game I never played, I have concluded that this is because of my fathers habit of watching old bad westerns from the 40’s and 50’s so in my head the image of a cowboy was John Wayne and Charles Bronson, hardly the romantic, riding off into the sunset after saving the girl and defeating the Indian horde types my friends told me about. The along came an award winning western that changed my outlook on the genre, it gave cowboys an emotional side I hadn’t seen before, played to us on a last day of term history lesson that film was Unforgiven. For some weird reason I don’t own the DVD yet so I shall be tuning into ITV1 on Monday at 20:15 to watch the movie that changed my opinion of westerns.

Tuesday 4th
There are a few films that make me cry, I’m not ashamed by this, what I am ashamed by is watching The Green Mile in the cinema and weeping while sitting next to a girl a really fancied who was dry-eyed throughout the entire flick. Is it a tale about the second coming of Jesus? Is it a look at racial injustice in 1930’s America? Is it just about a simple healer? With an excellent performance by Michael Clarke Duncan as John Coffey (‘like the drink, only spelled different’) make sure you have some tissues when you watch Sky Movies Showcase at 22:00.

Wednesday 5th
It would be remiss of me to go against the thoughts of fellow Frostian Blake Connelly and recommend anything other that Strike Back, the first two episodes of which are playing back to back on Sky1 at 21:00. Supposedly a UK action/drama to rival those made across the pond, I shall be having a gander to see if it lives up to its hype (which I believe it will), and hey, they didn’t cast Ross Kemp so it can’t be all bad!

Thursday 6th
Now I think I should be sensible and advise you all to tune in to BBC1 at 21:55 to listen to David Dimbleby on ELECTION 2010 talk to learned men and women with letters after their names or ITV1 at the same time to hear Alastair Stewart to talk all things politics in the originally named ELECTION 2010 (this time probably without the politician herding of ‘BROWN’….’CLEGG’…’THANKYOU YOU’VE SAID YOUR POINT’….’CAMERON’). Both programs will be mini-bussing up and down the country hearing from different important people and Mr and Mrs Everyman about different constituencies. I for one will not be watching either of these. I would much rather hear from four funny people talking irreverently about important matters. From 21:00 onward on Channel 4 David Mitchell, Jimmy Carr, Charlie Brooker and Lauren Laverne will be hosting Channel 4’s Alternative Election Night. The quadruplet of comedy will be taking the mick, satirising the serious and generally larking about while also bringing us on the spot election results. This promises to be much more fun than watching stuffy men in over priced studios with eye abusing graphics telling us that its probably gonna be the time of the Tory’s.

Friday 7th
I mustn’t say Glee, I mustn’t say Glee, I mustn’t say Glee, and seeing as last week I suggested The Ricky Gervais Show, this week I shall tell you about what follows Ricky. Channel 4, in their wisdom, have decided to repeat the 6th series of the brilliant Peep Show (the funnier Mitchell and Webb show). A double bill of the first two episodes will be shown at 23:05 but if that’s not your thing, you can always watch Channel 4 at 20:00 for the delightful Glee…….aw shit.

Saturday 8th

After what I was expecting to be jus another doled out rock-doc I was pleasantly surprised by last weeks I’m in a Rock’n’Roll Band about lead singers, with its truly interesting interviews with some of my heroes (I understand my bias towards rock singers being a singer and a fan of rock myself). This week’s episode on BBC2 at 21:45 focuses on the other one in the eternal fight for the spotlight in a band…the lead guitarist. Interviews with Slash, Johnny Marr and Matt Bellamy, amongst others, will be giving an insight into how they develop their almost hypnotic power over the crowd. And will be full of fantastic tunes and awesome solos, so break out the air guitars.

Sunday 9th

On Film4 at 21:00 we finish the week with the thought provoking film Crash. The story of a group of L.A residents who are completely unconnected yet through chance and coincidence make an impact on each other while showing their unwarranted mistrust and bigotry of other cultures and colours. A triple Oscar winning debut by director/co-writer Paul Haggis, I have recommend this film to nearly everyone I know and now I recommend it to you.

Strike Back {TV Preview}

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Next Wednesday night at 9 o’clock, Sky1HD will show the first two episodes of its new drama series based on former SAS operative Chris Ryan’s bestselling novel Strike Back. Ryan is best known as being the only member of the famous Bravo Two Zero patrol in the first Gulf War to evade capture. After writing a book about his long journey by foot to Syria, thought to be the most difficult escape a British solider has ever made, he began a successful career as a novelist.

It’s the last of the three novels Sky bought the rights to adapt two years ago as part of a £10m commitment to home-grown drama, following Tim Roth’s starring role in David Almond’s Skellig and the excellent adaptation of Martina Cole’s The Take. The route of adapting popular fiction was taken by Sky after seeing the success of their versions of some of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld books, the latest of which, Going Postal, will be airing towards the end of May. The channel has also made other forays into producing drama, from being co-producers on the internationally acclaimed reimagining of Battlestar Galactica, to its little-known but fondly remembered witchcraft drama Hex, and for many years the long-running Premiership football soap Dream Team. But Strike Back is perhaps Sky’s most ambitious drama project yet.

Shot on 35mm film on location in South Africa, it’s clear that Sky are attempting to recreate the high-budget, high-octane action of its most popular American imports such as 24, which remains a big hit for the channel in it’s final season. The cinematic feel is noticed by star Richard Armitage, best known for his roles in Spooks and Robin Hood, who plays John Porter, a veteran of the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

“It’s an ambitious project for television,” he says. “We’ve made three feature films on a TV budget and schedule. But the advantage of that is that these three feature films are linked together so you get a really interesting character arc through all episodes. American television is being brave and doing that at the moment, and this is stepping into that area.”

The first episode begins with events in 2003, with John Porter leading a Special Forces Unit, including Hugh Collinson (Andrew Lincoln, of This Life and Teachers), across the border into Basra. Their mission ends in disaster, something which haunts Porter for many years following his return home to Britain, when he quits the army. We then jump to 2010, and Collinson is now a senior intelligence officer. A journalist is kidnapped in Iraq, and the perpetrator has links to that fateful day in 2003. He calls Porter back into action and, keen to redeem himself, he agrees.

As Armitage mentioned, over the six-episode series three separate two-hour stories play out, first in Iraq, then in Zimbabwe, then finally in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The series will be shown over three weeks, two episodes at a time, adding to the movie-like feel. Chris Ryan was closely involved in the production, acting as series consultant and script advisor. He’s enjoying seeing his novel transferred to the screen.

Ryan says, “When you produce a novel it’s like a child and to see it put onto screen opens it up to a greater audience. I class myself as a storyteller now, and to tell that story on paper is a great privilege, then to see it on screen is even better.”

The cast also includes Ewen Bremner, Colin Salmon and Orla Brady. It’ll be interesting to follow the story of Collinson and Porter’s interlinking lives, but it’ll be just as interesting to see if Sky has finally been able to come up with an action drama series that can stand alongside the big hits from across the Atlantic.

Catch Chris Ryan’s Strike Back on Wednesday 5 May, 9pm on Sky1 and Sky1 HD.