Talking Pish

Tom's Films of 2011

2011-12-27T13:15:00.015Z

Here it is again, my annual round-up of films of the year. There's not much to separate the first four. Any one of them really could fill the top spot, but just to make things neat and tidy I've given them all their own number.

I'd love to be a bit more insightful about them all, but I held off putting the list together for so long to actually craft some genuinely profound things to say about them all would have delayed it even longer. In fact I'm not going to say much about them at all. They all have strong scripts, direction and acting, some were funny, some sad, one in particular quite difficult to watch. If you want to know more about any of them you've not seen there's the links to their websites and trailers to view.

1. Submarine (UK release date 18th March)

Directed by Richard Ayoade

Screenplay by Richard Ayoade
Based on the novel 'Submarine' by Joe Dunthorne

Starring: Noah Taylor, Paddy Considine, Craig Roberts, Yasmin Paige, Sally Hawkins

2. Animal Kingdom (UK release date 25th February)

Written and directed by David Michôd

Starring: Ben Mendelsohn, Joel Edgerton, Guy Pearce, Luke Ford, Jacki Weaver, Sullivan Stapleton, James Frecheville

Here's a link to play or download former Creative Screenwriting editor Jeff Goldsmith's podcast with director David Michôd and stars James Frecheville and Jacki Weaver.

3. The Guard (UK release date 19th August)

Written and directed by John Michael McDonagh

Starring: Brendan Gleeson, Don Cheadle, Liam Cunningham, Michael Og Lane, David Wilmot, Mark Strong, Fionnula Flanagan

4. Drive (UK release date 23rd September)

Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn

Screenplay by Hossein Amini
Based on the novel 'Drive' by James Sallis

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Christina Hendricks, Ron Perlman, Oscar Isaac, Albert Brooks

Here's Jeff Goldsmith's interview with director Nicolas Winding Refn.

5. Super 8 (UK release date 5th August)

Written and directed by J. J. Abrams

Starring: Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning, Kyle Chandler, Ron Eldard, Riley Griffiths

Play or download Jeff Goldsmith's interview with J. J. Abrams here.

6. Snowtown (UK release date 18th November)

Directed by Justin Kurzel
Screenplay by Shaun Grant
Story by Shaun Grant and Justin Kurzel

If you've already seen the film, you might want to watch the 55 minute documentary below about the real case.

7. Crazy, Stupid, Love (UK release date 23rd September)

Directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa

Written by Dan Fogelman

Starring: Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Julianne Moore, Emma Stone, John Carroll Lynch, Marisa Tomei, Analeigh Tipton, Kevin Bacon

8. The King's Speech (UK release date 7th January)

Directed by Tom Hooper
Screenplay by David Seidler

Starring: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter

9. The Fighter (UK release date 2nd February)

Directed by David O. Russell
Screenplay by Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy, Eric Johnson

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Melissa Leo, Amy Adams

10. Tinker, Tailor, Solider, Spy (UK release date 16th September)

Directed by Tomas Alfredson
Screenplay by Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughan

Starring: Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John Hurt, Toby Jones, Mark Strong, Benedict Cumberbatch, Ciarán Hinds

Jeff Goldsmith's interview with co-writer Peter Straughan is here.

11. The Ides of March (UK release date 28th October)

Directed by George Clooney

Screenplay by George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon
Based on the play 'Farragut North' by Beau Willimon

Starring: Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Marisa Tomei, Jeffrey Wright, Evan Rachel Wood

12. Win Win (UK release date 20th May)

Written and directed by Thomas McCarthy

Starring: Paul Giamatti, Alex Shaffer, Amy Ryan, Bobby Cannavale, Jeffrey Tambor, Burt Young,
Melanie Lynskey

Jeff Goldsmith interviews writer-director Thomas McCarthy and actors Jeffrey Tambor and Melanie Lynskey here.

13. Terri (No UK cinema release)

Directed by Azazel Jacobs
Written by Patrick DeWitt

Starring: John C. Reilly, Jacob Wysocki, Bridger Zadina, Creed Bratton

An interview with director Azazel Jacobs on Film School Rejects.

14. Bobby Fischer Against the World (UK release date 15th July)

Directed by Liz Garbus

15. Moneyball (UK release date 25th November)

Directed by Bennett Miller
Screenplay by Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin

Starring: Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Philip Seymour Hoffman

16. Barney's Version (UK release date 28th January)

Directed by Richard J. Lewis

Screenplay by Michael Konyves
Based on the novel 'Barney's Version' by Mordecai Richler

Starring: Paul Giamatti, Rosamund Pike, Minnie Driver, Rachelle Lefevre, Scott Speedman, Dustin Hoffman

An mp3 of The Collider's interview with Paul Giamatti is here.

A short segment on the book's author Mordecai Richler is below.

17. Bridesmaids (UK release date 24th June)

Directed by Paul Feig
Screenplay by Annie Mumolo, Kristen Wiig

Starring: Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne, Melissa McCarthy, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Ellie Kemper, Chris O'Dowd, Jill Clayburgh, Jon Hamm (uncredited)

Jeff Goldsmith's interview with co-writer/star Kristen Wiig and co-writer Annie Mumolo is here.

18. Page One: Inside the New York Times (UK release date 23rd September)

Directed by Andrew Rossi

19. Attack The Block (UK release date 13th May)

Written and directed by Joe Cornish

Starring: Jodie Whittaker, John Boyega, Alex Esmail, Franz Drameh, Leeon Jones, Simon Howard, Luke Treadaway, Jumayn Hunter, Nick Frost

Jeff Goldsmith's interview with Joe Cornish is here.

20. Fire in Babylon (UK release date 20th May)

Directed by Stevan Riley

If you want to see what made the list in 2004-2010 you can do so below.

Tom's Films of 2010

Tom's Films of 2009

Tom’s Films of 2008

Tom’s Films of 2007

Tom’s Films of 2006

Tom’s Films of 2005

Tom’s Films of 2004

Top Ten Things of 2010

2010-12-31T22:27:00.007Z

As I don’t get to the cinema that often, but don’t want to be left out and feel as if I should post something on the blog this year at least, I’ve knocked up a wee list of 10 things of note from the year from my completely irrelevant perspective. I’ll steer clear of mawkish stuff about my family who are always the highlight of the year for me and stick with more personal stuff. No particular order btw.

The Chilean Miners

Charlie Brooker pretty much summed this up on his excellent (if slightly overlong) 2010 wipe the other night, but I have to admit I shed a wee tear when the first guy came up and his wee girl came over to hug him.

This was a genuinely pleasant story, during which the vagaries of the “24 hour news cycle” seemed slightly less irksome. There was still plenty of narrative fabrication and absolutely loads of reporters standing around reporting on sod all from where sod all was happening (live!) but all in all it was nice to see the news media focus on a positive event for once rather than see them default to their seemingly natural position of spouting a generally inaccurate and ceaseless account of world wide fear, death and disaster.

Inception

This astonishing film (#2 in Tom’s annual Top Ten) was so good, it made me forget that I was watching what was in large part a fairly dry tale of industrial espionage involving the highly unethical mental manipulation of an unwitting individual. The fact that you are rooting for characters who are to say the least ethically suspect provides an aside about the power of cinema and indeed perspective. This result is achieved thanks to a series of excellent performances, (particularly from Tom Hardy) and visual effects that leave you little time to ruminate on any fleeting misgivings.

It’s also of course at its heart a love story and it is the compelling, passionate tragedy of this aspect of the story that provides the beam on which the rest of the film is balanced.

A sensational, brilliantly executed film from one of the most exciting talents in Hollywood. I cannot wait for The Dark Knight Rises.

Getting an Xbox 360

Self-explanatory really – one of the main reasons I have written nothing of any great substance this year.

Discovering Spotify

I tend to rely on Tom when it comes to finding out about new online thingamajigs and thankfully he managed to persuade me that Spotify was worth a try. And what a joy it is. As much as I’ve enjoyed the playlists of many friends and strangers alike, what I really love about it is you can find something to match your exact mood at any given time of the day. This has led me to discover that Saturday mornings are all about disco era Kiss for me, and how could I have possibly been expected to live without knowing that about myself?

Getting a Smartphone

What a revelation this was. As you may have guessed from the last entry, I am a bit rubbish when it comes to embracing new tech. This is partly because I’m not easy and need be wooed over a lengthy spell – it’s also probably because I’ve never really had the money for gadgets before so have consciously or otherwise characterised any new development as crap in order to assuage disappointment in not being able to join in.

Peer pressure eventually told. Genuinely bewildered by the various options, I got a Blackberry because all my mates had one. As soon as I joined them they almost all switched to the iPhone, as if my joining the Blackberry squad was in itself some kind of jump the shark moment. But to say I’m happy is an understatement. I can’t imagine how I functioned in what I now lovingly refer to as “the before times”.

The 75th Anniversary of DC Comics

The 75th Anniversary of DC Comics has been marked by some wonderful books and ephemera celebrating the home of Batman, Superman and many, many others.

My personal favourites have been the vertebrae crumblingly substantial “The Art of Modern Mythmaking” by Paul Levitz and "DC Comics: The 75th Anniversary Poster Book".

“The Art of Modern Mythmaking” is a 720 page, beautifully presented tome weighting in at 15.9 pounds and is genuinely difficult to read without superpowers of your own. It’s worth the extra effort though and is brim full of Levitz’s taut, scholarly prose and amazing artwork from down the years reproduced on high quality heavy stock paper. Some may find it a bit pricey at £76.23 (Price from Amazon 31/12/10).

"The 75th Anniversary Poster Book" is slightly less of a struggle coming as it does in softcover. Here, we are treated to page after page of full colour reproductions of classic DC covers down the decades, each page perforated in case you want to neatly pull one out for framing. It’s just a very nice, simple and effective encapsulation of what has made DC a veritable icon factory over the years and it’s a bit less of a strain on the pocket as well at a modest £12.49.

Getting Worryingly Enthusiastic About Toys

Bad enough really that I never chucked a lot of my old ones away, however this year has seen me buy among other things a Blammoid Batman (Series 2) and Mini Mate versions of Booster Gold and The Blue Beetle, the latter mainly so I could recreate this harrowing scene of senseless murder from classic DC crossover series "Infinite Crisis"…

Having More Money Than Usual

This year has pretty much been the first that I’ve been able to pay the bills and have some money left over. Not loads, but some. I mention this not to suggest I’ve achieved anything because of course I haven’t but really because it’s been the most unnerving and unsettling experience. Proper weird. Having never had any before, I genuinely don’t know what to do with any extra money. If I do spend some, I second guess the purchase to death and think of 10 other things I should have done with it instead. If I save it, I worry some disaster will hit the house or the family and it will be gobbled up in one. It’s been a long road leading me to the final conclusion that I’m a twat who should worry less. Now excuse me while I head over to Amazon…

News of the Avengers Movie

People who aren’t into comics, sci-fi or all that gubbins will have no idea what I’m talking about but the few of us who do will know what a huge waste of time comic/pop culture conventions are. If you actually go, you pay through the nose to fight with other allergy infested nerds for panel seats on the off-chance that someone might say something that hasn’t already been all over the internet. If you don’t, the Internet is fairly bulging with sites and bloggers dying to feed you every tiny mini-morsel of what can often be laughingly referred to as “news”.

But…once in a while, a convention produces a spine tingling moment, and so it was at the San Diego Comic Con when Samuel L. Jackson and Robert Downey Jr. brought on the full cast for the Avengers film followed by director Joss Whedon. A whispered half-rumour for such a long time, the fact that this film will finally be made with this cast and director is possibly the most exciting movie news I’ve ever heard.

Discovering Twitter

By far and away the most impactful discovery of the year for me was Twitter. Again, I have to thank Tom for persevering with me on this – I resisted for a looooong time.

As dull as it can sometimes be and as full of bots and twots as it plainly is, Twitter is also home to a huge array of just genuinely brilliant people, communicating away right in the face of all the doomsayers who tell us the dialogue is over, that people just have nothing left to say to each other. What rot.

I started tweeting in March and so far I’ve reconnected with people I’d lost touch with, made some new and very amusing pals and have even managed to make a few quid in the process.

I should have realised really that this 140-character world would be the ideal place for a lazy but attention seeking plum such as myself.

2010’s been a mixed bag really as years tend to be. A lot of good, some bad and the hardest part to get through, the vast grey bulk that makes up the lion's share. But at least there have been a few things, people and events worth pulling back the covers for. See you hopefully a bit more often on Talking Pish in 2011.

Tom's Films of 2010

2010-12-31T12:12:00.004Z

It’s that time of year you’ve all been waiting for where I unveil my top 10 films of the year. Like last year I’ve left it too late to write anything insightful about any of them, so I’ll just try to link to other people’s thoughts. So here we go...

1. Four Lions

Directed by Chris Morris
Starring: Riz Ahmed, Arsher Ali, Nigel Lindsay, Kayvan Novak, Adeel Akhtar and Craig Parkinson

Funny and surprisingly moving the eagerly awaite feature film debut from Chris Morris takes my top spot. For everything Four Lions related head over to the Cook’d and Bomb Four Lions forum thread.

2. Inception

Directed by Christopher Nolan
Starring: Leonardo Di Caprio, Ken Watanabe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page, Cillian Murphy, Tom Hardy, Dileep Rao, Tom Berenger and Michael Caine

A stunning piece of filmmaking from one of cinema’s most exciting filmmakers.

What the hell was it about? The best analysis of it can be found on the excellent blog ‘Go Into the Story’. Scott Myers offers his own and links to several other theries and opinions on it. If you’re interested start with this one.

3. The Social Network

Directed by David Fincher
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Brenda Song, Rooney Mara and Rashida Jones

A film written by Aaron Sorkin and directed by David Fincher was always going to be a must-see for me. Not much happens in the film, yet it’s still absolutely compelling. Here’s Go Into the Story again on why The Social Network should not have worked, and why it does.

If you want some more reading here’s an in-depth article on the film from New York magazine. It also goes into some detail explaining how although Sorkin’s script was credited in the film as being an adaptation of Ben Mezrich’s book “The Accidental Billionaires”, he could be nominated for an Oscar in the Original Screenplay category.

4. Up In The Air

Directed by Jason Reitman
Starring: George Clooney, Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick

A Terrific script, superb cinematography, some great acting and a story that doesn’t really go where you expect it to.

Here’s Go Into the Story on the relationship between the two screenwriters Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner.

5. Precious

Directed by Lee Daniels
Starring: Gabourey Sidibe, Mo'Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey, Lenny Kravitz and Sherri Shepherd

Brutal yet, on occasion, funny. Amazing performances from Gabourey Sidibe and Mo'Nique. Yes, Mo’Nique really is fantastic in this.

Here's an interview with screenwriter Geoffrey Fletcher from the Writers Guild of America, West.

6. Big Fan

Directed by Robert D. Siegel
Starring: Patton Oswalt, Kevin Corrigan, Michael Rapaport, Marcia Jean Kurtz and Matt Servitto

A career best performance fromone of my favourite comedians, Patton Oswalt. A dark comedy in the vein of The King of Comedy.

Here’s an interview with Siegel and Oslwat from Cinema Blend.

7. A Prophet

Directed by Jacques Audiard
Starring: Tahar Rahim, Niels Arestrup and Adel Bencherif

The only foreign language film in my top ten. This brutal French prison drama was gripping, with a fine central performance from Tahar Rahim as a young man who grows in prison.

Here’s Blog on the Box talking with Rahim.

8. American: The Bill Hicks Story

Directed by Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas
Starring: Kevin Booth, John Farneti and Bill Hicks

An interesting well-made documentary that takes a device seen in ‘The Kid Stays in the Picture’ to tell the story of Bill Hicks. The DVD has a wealth of interesting extras that makes it well worth a purchase.

Here's a video interview with the directors from Screen Rush.

9. The Town

Directed by Ben Affleck
Starring: Ben Affleck, Jon Hamm, Rebecca Hall, Jeremy Renner, Blake Lively, Pete Postlethwaite and Chris Cooper

Affleck's début feature 'Gone Baby Gone' topped my list in 2008, so this film now confirms him as one of my favourite current directors. Great to see Mad Men's Jon Hamm starting to get meatier film roles now too.

Here's a screenwriting analysis of it from Go Into the Story.

10. A Single Man

Directed by Tom Ford
Starring: Colin Firth, Julianne Moore, Matthew Goode and Nicholas Hoult

An incredibly stylish film I don't think anyone on screen this year looked better than Colin Firth.

Here's an interview with director Tom Ford from The Guardian.

This has been the seventh Talking Pish round up of the films of the year. You can find the others below.

Tom's Films of 2009

Tom’s Films of 2008

Tom’s Films of 2007

Tom’s Films of 2006

Tom’s Films of 2005

Tom’s Films of 2004

The Man in the Middle

2010-10-31T20:48:00.004Z

For the last ten weeks I've been attending the SFA's referees training course. Tomorrow night I should receive my ref's registration number and whatever other paraphernalia we're awarded at the end of the course. This I'll be receiving from Scotland's newest most hated man, Willie Collum.

This of course means that the job I'm now most qualified to do is arguably the most thankless task in all of the country. I don't think there could be a worse time to become a referee. The overturned penalty scandal and the subsequent fallout would suggest it's a profession best body swerved.

This statement by Hearts doesn't exactly make you want to rush into refereeing any time soon either.

The course itself was pretty interesting and has sharpened my knowledge of the rules. Over the weeks probably the favourite thing that I have learned is that the goal shown in the YouTube clip down below is now, as it was then, perfectly legal. I'm told though that 90% of referees would disallow it.

To Jump the Shark

2010-09-13T17:12:00.003+01:00

Here's a good article from Fred Fox Jr., the man who by writing an episode of 'Happy Days' inadvertently coined the phrase 'Jump the Shark'.

Arcade Fire Live 2003

2010-09-07T15:35:00.001+01:00

Here's a 15 minute film of Arcade Fire live in Toronto in 2003.

ARCADE FIRE Live 2003 from Bennett on Vimeo.

Frightened Rabbit Live

2010-08-27T10:06:00.002+01:00

Here's a full hour of Frightened Rabbit live in San Francisco.

I'm Still Here Trailer

2010-08-17T16:39:00.000+01:00

Is Joaquin Phoenix off his nut? Possibly.

Booze, Broads and Bowling

2010-08-17T02:16:00.000+01:00

Meet Rocky Salemmo. He’s a ramblin’ gamblin’ man. A short documentary by Sean Dunne.

The Bowler from Sean Dunne on Vimeo.

Arena: The Confessions of Robert Crumb

2010-08-17T01:30:00.000+01:00

The whole documentary.

Inception Infographic

2010-07-30T20:14:00.003+01:00

If you've seen Inception then this infographic will maybe amuse you.

You may also want to compare the music from it in this clip down below.

Ok Go - End Love

2010-06-16T21:38:00.000+01:00

Another elaborately staged video from Ok Go.

Brazilian Lullaby

2010-06-10T22:16:00.003+01:00

This is my pal Natalie in the new viral for Irn-Bru.

The Last Hooray For Tuesday

2010-06-10T11:36:00.004+01:00

For my last show on Sub City (until September at least) I had Sandy Nelson and Elaine Malcolmson come in to blether and pick music. You can listen to it here.

I finished my series off with a run of guests.

You can hear my show with John Ross of Dance Monkey Boy Dance here.

Eve and Travis from Hippykiller are here.

And from the 18th of May Wounded Knee is here.

For all the people asking where the name comes from (actual count: no one) it's a song by a band called The Minders, produced by the Apples in Stereo's Robert Schneider. Elliott Smith occasionally covered it in his live shows. Down below is a video of The Minders playing it.

Some Crazy Drumming

2010-06-07T10:47:00.002+01:00

Rick K. and the Allnighters take on ZZ Top's 'Sharp Dressed Man'. But it's the drummer you need to keep your eye on.

Incredibly Sexy Firefighter Tragically Dies In Steamy Blaze

2010-06-06T18:07:00.001+01:00

From the Onion News Network, this is very funny. I think my favourite bit is the station chief talking about him.

Rue McClanahan 1934-2010

2010-06-04T14:32:00.003+01:00

I was always a big fan of The Golden Girls. It was a staple of Friday nights when I was growing up. Sad to see another member of the cast passing away.

Full of sharp writing and spot-on performances I don't think I saw a poor episode. I'm a fan of co-creator Susan Harris in general. Among other shows Harris also created Soap and either wrote or co-wrote every episode.

Above is a ten minute playlist of Rue McLanahan talking about The Golden Girls and appearing in a couple of clips from the show.

Down below is a letter she wrote to my Limmy's Show colleague Omar Raza after he sent her a fan letter. I think it exemplifies her class.

Rainn Wilson Initiated into Indie Films by Dennis Hopper

2010-06-02T16:27:00.003+01:00

Stadium Love

2010-06-02T15:54:00.003+01:00

The Video for Metric's single 'Stadium Love'. It does feature animals attacking each other in the wild, so if you don't like seeing that sort of carry on then don't click.

Clydebank 2 - 0 Ashfield

2010-06-02T12:00:00.003+01:00

Clydebank won the Central League cup last night, despite being outplayed for most of the first half. This means that they now have potentially another four games in the Evening Times Cup Winners' Cup before they can schedule their last league game and the two-legged play-off. The first of those being tomorrow night.

Then again if they do a My Lovely Horse then they'll play the last league game on Saturday and the play-offs on Wednesday and Friday of next week.

The photo above is at the final whistle. You can see the top of my head out of focus down at the bottom alongside Paul in the brown T-shirt. The highlights of the game are down below.

Clydebank's Season in 6 Weeks

2010-05-31T18:43:00.007+01:00

You may (or may not) remember this time last year I was trumpeting my 50th football match of the season. Well, this year I failed to update the blog that went along with my game going. However, I've still been going along to a game once a week or more. In fact I've lost count of the number of games I've been to.

For the last few weeks I'm been going to see my boyhood team Clydebank. Having lost their senior status in 2002, they were resurrected as a Junior team the following year. As I'm never by saying to folk who aren't into football, in Scotland 'Junior' means 'non-league' and not juvenile.

Since they lost the second-leg of the Scottish Junior Cup semi-final to Largs Thistle on the 17th of April they've played 18 games. Tomorrow night they play Ashfield in the final of the Central League Cup. Should they win that game then on Thursday they'll play in the Evening Times Cup Winners' Cup.

The run of cup games is preventing the club from scheduling their last remaining league game and their two-legged play-off with Lanark for promotion to the Super Premier League.

Effectively the games with Lanark will be Clydebank's most important games since they joined the Juniors.

If Celtic or Rangers were about to play their 19th game inside six weeks you wouldn't have to read about it on a blog. The papers and radio would be exhausted from talking about nothing but that for weeks.

The video below is highlights of the 3-2 win over Petershill on Friday night.

I'm Blogging

2010-04-03T11:46:00.003+01:00

When You've Ran Out of Patter

2010-04-03T11:46:00.001+01:00

David Mills and Treme

2010-04-02T12:18:00.004+01:00

David Mills, one of the writers and producers on 'The Wire' died unexpectedly a few days ago. It was the involvement of Mills that convinced HBO to let David Simon make the 2000 TV series 'The Corner'. Mills went on to play a big part in the five seasons of The Wire, writing one of my favourite episodes, the season 5 episode 'React Quotes', where Omar gets ambushed in Monk's apartment by Chris, Snoop and Michael.

Mills was working on David Simon's new series 'Treme' when he died. Set in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, 'Treme' starts in just over a week in America. Taken from Mills' blog 'Undercover Black Man' below is a 14 minute preview of the show.

Tickets

2010-04-01T12:01:00.001+01:00

Here's a good guide to buying concert tickets in Scotland avoiding booking fees where possible, from The Pop Cop.

Neil Young - Don't Be Denied

2010-03-31T23:11:00.001+01:00

Just so that 'Pish has a post for March. Here's a wee clip from the Neil Young documentary 'Don't Be Denied'.

Justice Colombian Style

2010-02-26T11:23:00.003Z

Here's the story of Javier Florez, midfielder for Columbian football team Junior Barranquilla. In July of last year Florez shot dead a fan who heckled him for his part in a defeat.

Florez was tried for manslaughter and after agreeing to pay the victim's family 150 million pesos he received 3 years probation. On Thursday he made his return to playing for his team in the Copa Colombia.

The film below made by ESPN runs to 7 and a half minutes.

Well Done Tom & Limmy

2010-02-17T00:07:00.005Z

A big well done to the actor Tom Brogan who I'm sure you'll agree delivered some sterling performances on yon Limmy's Show what has been on the tele recently. I honestly can't think of anyone more deserving and I was proud of the big man for grabbing his opportunity with both hands and bringing the funny as only he can. No surprise to see Brian relying on him as much as he did.

As for the show itself I thought it was real step in the right direction for Scottish TV comedy. It kept well away from the cosy parochialism that has characterised output for so long and delivered a contemporary and eclectic programme that focused on an individual vision rather than the sludge of disparate ideas you can sometimes get from a multi-writer sketch show. There were ideas, characters and gags aplenty. There was also plenty of scope for the humour to give way to an uneasy, jarring sense of despair and dissatisfaction. A number of styles were handled with equal aplomb and I think therein lay the great strength of the show. There seemed a real lack of any kind of fear, of second-guessing what the audience wanted. Instead we got the confident delivery of a genuinely considered vision. It also suggested there is so much more to come but in the meantime, for me it was an assured first foray into the mainsteam for a genuine talent with a big say in how broadcast comedy is going to be shaped in Scotland for a good while to come.

Thanks For Watching

2010-02-16T00:10:00.004Z

That's Limmy's Show done. Six episodes all finished. Thanks a lot for watching, if you did so. It's been good fun seeing people's reactions to it, both online and in person.

Of the notable folk who went out of their way to comment on it Graham Linehan, Robert Popper, Grace Dent, Pearl of Pearl and the Puppets and bizarrely Joan Burnie all loved it. Unfortunately Tam Cowan and John Smeaton didn't. Can't win them all.

Thanks for all the nice comments youse have been hitting me up with. Basically I turned up on time and did what I was told, but I'll take all the praise going anyway.

Limmy's Youngest Fan

2010-02-11T14:19:00.000Z

It shouldn't be funny, but it is.

Some Funny Things in the News

2010-02-07T20:36:00.004Z

There's been a lack of posts on 'Pish of late, since we're both so busy with the chatty whirlwind of Twitter, but I thought I'd try to get a few more updates on here.

Anyway this is for anyone who missed these cracking video clips this past week. The first one is the astonishingly mental video Richard Madeley put together for The Daily Politics. In it he mounts a defence of Tony Blair, making himself out to be a prize fud.

The second one is Labour MP Jim Devine's hilariously out-of-his-depth defence of his expenses claims on the Channel 4 News on Friday night. You have to think that any defence where you used the word 'Whatdoyoucallit?' more than once hasn't gone well.

After that you've got 'Pish favourite Doug Stanhope's slot from last week's Newswipe.

The whole things runs to about 16 minutes, with Devine's blabberings taking up 11 minutes.

(If you're reading this on Facebook and can't see the videos the blog post is here.)

Hooray For Saturday in February

2010-02-06T09:58:00.002Z

Here's my Sub City radio show from earlier this morning. On it you can find some stand-up by Doug Stanhope and Aziz Ansari as well as tunes from The Auteurs, Bob Evans, Steve Burns and the Struggle, The Dears and more. Go and give it a listen.

Comics Journal Menshy

2010-01-27T18:12:00.004Z

Blogging? We don't seem to be bothering much in this age of the tweet, not that I was doing much anyway.

But now I have something to crow about so here I am.

Me and Iain Laurie and our strip Blackcape got a nice write up in The Comics Journal in this interesting article about the Scottish Underground Comics scene. I've linked to the bit that bigs me up of course, but you can skip back for the 1st part as well.

Less Than an Hour to Limmy's Show

2010-01-11T21:12:00.003Z

Just a reminder for youse all to tune in to Limmy's Show at 10 tonight on BBC2 Scotland or Sky Channel 990 should you be anywhere in the UK outside Scotland.

Here's the trailer. Very slightly different from the first one posted. This one has the fantastic Debbie Welsh in it. Briefly though it may be.

Anyway get it watched and hopefully enjoy it.

STV in Good Programme Shock

2010-01-08T11:26:00.003Z

Much to my astonishment STV showed a good original programme last night. The Football Years is a new series looking at certain years in Scottish football history. Last night they looked at 1967 the year that Celtic won the European Cup, Rangers made the European Cup Winners' Cup final nd Scotland beat England 3-2 at Wembley.

The show had interviews with a lot of the main players and as well as the usual clips they showed some rare footage. So well done STV for making a good original programme for once.

Limmy's Show Trailer

2010-01-05T22:34:00.003Z

Less than a week to go now before Limmy's Show hits the screens. Here's an interview with him from The Scotland on Sunday. Down below is the trailer. You can spot my fat face briefly, you can also see me getting a bit of headbanging going. Monday the 11th on BBC2 Scotland at 10pm, or see it on the iPlayer at a time of your convenience.

Tom’s Films of 2009

2009-12-31T18:19:00.005Z

It’s that time again when I stick up my top 20 films of the year. I’ve left it far too late to spend time writing anything meaningful of insightful about why they’re all good and why I like them, so you’ll just need to be happy with the brief pish I’ve scribbled about them all.

1. In The Loop

Directed by Armando Iannucci
Starring: James Gandolfini, Tom Hollander, Peter Capaldi

Seeing this at its Glasgow Film Festival premiere definitely did add to the enjoyment of it. This, if you didn’t know is essentially the film version of the TV series The Thick Of It. I recently met someone who had never heard of The Thick Of It, so maybe you didn’t know that. Anyway, from the very first moments of Malcolm Tucker shouting and swearing at anyone and everyone around him the film is a total hoot. Tom Hollander turns in a brilliantly awkward performance as the MP put of his depth as he’s spun this way and that over an imminent invasion. Steve Coogan appears in a hilarious cameo as a moaning nutcase pestering his local MP with his petty grievances. I don’t think I enjoyed a movie more all year.

2. Inglourious Basterds

Directed by Quentin Tarantino
Starring: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Christoph Waltz

It would appear there’s a straight down the line love it or hate it with this film. Clearly I’m in the ‘love it’ camp. The lengthy first scene is edge of the seat stuff and a total masterclass in creating tension. It’s pure war-revenge porn but I see nothing wrong with that. Even the one star reviews had to admit that Christoph Waltz is outstanding. You would have to think he’s a certainty for an Oscar nomination.

3. The Hangover

Directed by Todd Phillips
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Zach Galiafainakis, Ed Helms

This is the film I saw most times in the cinema (three). Being a huge fan of Zach Galiafanakis’s stand-up comedy I was always going to be rushing to see a film where he has a major role. Chuck in Ed Helms, a guy I’ve grown to love greatly as Andy Bernard in The Office and you’ve got a winner for me.

4. Mesrine: Killer Instinct

Directed by Jean-Francois Richet
Starring: Vincent Cassel, Cécile De France, Gérard Depardieu

There’s very little to like about France’s most notorious criminal, the ruthless gangster Jacques Mesrine. The film has little real character development and moves from one violent act to another. For all that it was utterly gripping from beginning to end. I could have watched the second part right after the first. It’s just a shame that the second part Mesrine: Public Enemy No.1 only played for a week and I missed it.

5. Frost/Nixon

Directed by Ron Howard
Starring: Michael Sheen, Frank Langella, Rebecca Hall

Michael Sheen is probably the finest British actor working at the moment. He’s brilliant in this as David Frost chasing the biggest coup of his career with his interview with Richard Nixon.

6. Moon

Directed by Duncan Jones
Starring: Sam Rockwell, Kevin Spacey (voice), Matt Berry

Sam Rockwell gives not one but two of the performances of the year in this film about an astronaut about to leave his base on the moon and return home. All is not as it seems as he discovers his clone.

7. Starsuckers
Directed by Chris Atkins

A documentary that got a limited release in Glasgow and Edinburgh it really is a must see. The film exposes the underhand methods and deceit that goes into creating celebrities. The last portion of the film on Live 8 is particularly damning.

You should see it when you can, before Max Clifford and his injunction gets some of the juicy bits cut out.

There’s a bit on the website where they give you step by step instructions of how to sell your own fake story to the tabloids.

8. Zombieland

Directed by Ruben Fleischer
Starring: Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone

Now, I would have thought that zombies have pretty much had their day in movies what with the spate of zombie films in recent years. I would have been wrong however. Zombieland is a great romp from start to finish. It gets straight into the story and the characters from the off, it’s a stylish take on the genre and features an amazing cameo from Bill Murray. You can’t ask for much more really.

9. World's Greatest Dad

Directed by Bobcat Goldthwait
Starring: Robin Williams, Daryl Sabara, Alexie Gilmore

Written and directed by Police Academy’s Bobcat Goldthwait World’s Greatest Dad is funny, horrific and touching. I’m not going to say much about the plot because I knew very little about it going in and it was all the better for it.

It only got a limited release in America so the chances of it getting a proper release here (it played at the Edinburgh Film Festival) look slim.

10. Funny People

Directed by Judd Apatow
Starring: Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Leslie Mann

A film about stand-up and about relationships. It’s probably a bit longer than it needs to be, but it has a really good cast and enough laugh out loud moments to be a success.

This film was spoiled for me slightly by the clown repeatedly kicking the back of my seat all throughout it. He only stopped when I had to go all John Paul on him. As a result I’ve added Fridays to my list of no-go-to-the-cinema days. It comes to something when you can’t see a film in peace without threatening to punch fuck out of someone sitting behind you.

If you haven't watched the Raaaaaaaandy segments online get on it now. He's only in the film briefly but these are gold.

11. The Wrestler

Directed by Darren Aronofsky
Starring: Mickey Rourke, Marisa Tomei, Evan Rachel Wood

When I was about 18 I spent several weeks watching Mickey Rourke classics like Angel Heart, Barfly, A Prayer For the Dying, Diner and The Pope of Greenwich Village. I also watched pish like Johnny Handsome, Homeboy, Wild Orchid and Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man. I always knew he was a great actor even if his movie choices were increasingly awful. He credits his agent David Unger with the turnaround in his career.

Anyway he’s great in this as Randy "The Ram" Robinson a star of the 80s now performing for handfuls of diehard wrestling fans in high school gyms and community centres around New Jersey.

12. Milk

Directed by Gus Van Sant
Starring: Sean Penn, Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin

Milk charts the last eight years of Harvey Milk’s life. An outstanding performance from Sean Penn in the title role. You can read the film's script here.

13. Up

Directed by Pete Docter
Starring: Ed Asner (voice), Christopher Plummer (voice), Paul Eiding (voice)

An animated comedy adventure about a 78-year-old man who ties balloons to his house and flies away, with an 8-year-old stowaway. There’s a sequence near the beginning of this films which is as good as anything you’ll see in a film all year.

14. The Damned United

Directed by: Tom Hooper
Starring: Michael Sheen, Timothy Spall, Jim Broadbent

Michael Sheen again, this time as Brian Clough, in the cinema adaptation of David Peace’s brilliant book on Clough's 44 days in charge of Leeds United.

15. Sunshine Cleaning

Directed by Christine Jeffs
Starring: Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin

One of those wee gems that goes undetected by many filmgoers. Once the high school cheerleading captain who dated the quarterback, Rose Lorkowski now finds herself a thirty-something single mother working as a maid. Her sister Norah, is still living at home with their dad, a salesman with a lifelong history of ill-fated get rich quick schemes.

Desperate to get her son into a better school, Rose persuades Norah to go into the crime scene clean-up business with her to make some quick cash. It’s funny and moving and well worth seeing.

16. The Hurt Locker

Directed by Kathryn Bigelow
Starring: Jeremy Renner, Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes

When a new sergeant takes over a highly trained bomb disposal team amidst violent conflict, he surprises his two subordinates by recklessly plunging them into a deadly game of urban combat. Good, edge of the seat stuff.

Here's a good interview with screenwriter Mark Boal.

17. Anvil: The Story of Anvil

Directed by Sacha Gervasi
Starring: Kevin Goocher, Glenn Gyorffy, Steve 'Lips' Kudlow

A documentary on the enduring lack of success of the Canadian heavy metal band Anvil. We see them in the process of touring to almost no one in Europe and the tensions in recording their 13th album.

The film is made by someone who has genuine affection for the band, so it’s never the point-the-finger-and-laugh film it could have turned into.

It’s very funny in places, but it’s also quite a nice film in parts and a must see for anyone who’s a fan of rock documentaries.

18. A Serious Man

Directed by Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Starring: Simon Helberg, Adam Arkin, Richard Kind

A brilliantly made film, that stays with you long after you've come out of the cinema.

19. Fantastic Mr. Fox

Directed by Wes Anderson
Starring: Meryl Streep (voice), George Clooney (voice), Bill Murray (voice)
As a film maker Wes Anderson does it for me every time. A kids' film that's not really a kids' film.

20. District 9

Directed by Neill Blomkamp
Starring: Sharlto Copley, David James, Jason Cope

Aliens in South Africa. Begins slowly but really picks up.

Other films that deserve a mention include Watchmen, Gran Torino, State of Play, Synecdoche New York and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

This has been the sixth Talking Pish round up of the films of the year. You can find the others below.

Tom’s Films of 2008

Tom’s Films of 2007

Tom’s Films of 2006

Tom’s Films of 2005

Tom’s Films of 2004

Monday 11th January 2010

2009-12-27T13:59:00.006Z

If you happened to be watching BBC2 last night between Gary: Tank Commander and The Football League Show then you would have seen the trailer for Limmy's Show. You then may also have seen me looking, as Ronnie put it, 'gormless'. You can also spot me headbanging in there too.

The actual information that you really want to take away from it though is that the six episodes start at 10pm on BBC2 Scotland on Monday 11th January. It'll be available to see UK-wide on Sky 990 and on the iPlayer. The pilot that was on in February doesn't form any part of the series so it's six fresh episodes.

The scripts were laugh-out-loud funny themselves, it was a hoot to film and as far as I'm concerned everybody in it is very funny. So do tune in.

There's a Facebook page for it here.

HMV At It Yet Again With Their Death Display

2009-12-23T21:48:00.002Z

This time Brittany Murphy gets the patented HMV treatment.

Own Goal Crazy

2009-12-14T23:24:00.002Z

Have a look at this remarkable match from the Bundesliga at the weekend. Borussia Moenchengladbach beat Hannover 96 5-3, with the help of 3 own goals. Not only that, but all of them were scored from outside the penalty area. The second one is the peach.

Death Comes to Town Trailer

2009-12-10T15:32:00.002Z

Here's the trailer for Kids in the Hall's forthcoming mini-series Death Comes to Town.

Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town - watch more funny videos

Tom's November Spotify Playlist

2009-12-01T21:15:00.002Z

Here's my Spotify playlist for the month of November. A shorter one than normal. Mind if you like any of the stuff I'm serving up to listen to my radio show on SubCity.

Pixies on Jimmy Fallon

2009-11-25T23:04:00.001Z

While I'm on about Jimmy Fallon, here's The Pixies performing 'Hey'.

Jimmy Fallon as Neil Young

2009-11-25T22:48:00.003Z

This is probably the funniest thing I've seen Jimmy Fallon do. It's a spot on impression of Neil Young, playing a song you'll probably recognise.

November Spotify Playlist

2009-11-25T17:29:00.003Z

A bit late, but here's my November Spotify playlist. Maybe some stuff on here you might like.

More Classic Keano

2009-11-20T15:12:00.003Z

I liked Roy Keane as a player, but it's as a manager he's been more entertaining for me. I keep hoping Ipswich get beat just to see him lose the nut with someone else in the post match interview on The Football League Show. Here he is fielding questions about Thierry Henry's handball in Wednesday night's game. It's Keano's usual uncompromising stuff, but watch out for the bit around 2.33 when someone's phone goes off.

Mercury Fur

2009-11-15T00:40:00.001Z

Mercury Fur is the next play up at the Ramshorn. It opens on Monday night. I'm going along to see it on Friday. This is the write up it got on Saturday in The Guardian.

Dying Day

2009-11-12T17:48:00.001Z

Here's a video of Edwyn Collins and Teenage Fanclub performing 'Dying Day' in Mono in September.

It's a Double Edged Sword

2009-11-09T17:53:00.001Z

Some great stuff from Louis CK here. Definitely NSFW and he probably says something that will offend someone watching.

Fastest Goal Ever and a Ten Goal Thriller

2009-11-09T17:13:00.005Z

Couple of football posts for you today. Both of these happened over the weekend. This is reputed to be the fastest goal ever scored in football. Nawaf Al-Abid of Al-Hilal fired it in this weekend in around 2 seconds. The Offside wonders if it really is.

Meanwhile in France, Olympique Lyon and Olympique Marseille drew 5-5. The Ligue 1 website is calling it 'The Game of the Century'. The goals are below.

FOOT L1 OL 5 - 5 OM
Uploaded by glide64. - Discover the latest sports and extreme videos.

Odds and Sods Review

2009-11-06T18:31:00.001Z

Here's a review of Odds and Sods from the Strathclyde Telegraph.

Karaoke Interviews

2009-11-06T17:57:00.000Z

A pretty amusing sketch from Funny or Die.

Karaoke Interviews - watch more funny videos

Marshall's Misdemeanours

2009-11-05T23:47:00.003Z

Be sure to tune into Radio Scotland at 11.30am tomorrow to hear Marshall's Misdemeanours. Written by our pal Sandy Nelson, it's an hilarous campus comedy. It features Sandy in the main role, along with Gavin Mitchell and Steven McNicoll. If you can't tune in at the time, it is of course available for a week on the iPlayer. Just hit up this link.

Chris Rock on Jay Leno

2009-11-04T22:28:00.002Z

Chris Rock on Jay Leno's chat show discussing, among other things Roman Polanski.

Saul Bass vs. Star Wars

2009-11-04T18:37:00.001Z

This is pretty great. If Saul Bass created the opening titles for Star Wars.

Tom's October Spotify Playlist

2009-11-03T22:35:00.002Z

A bit of a short one this month, as I was doing most of my music listening away from Spotify. But here it is anyway.

If you're enjoying my music picks then do listen in to my radio show 'Hooray For Saturday' on Sub City. You can listen to the last 6 shows on the listen again feature at the link.

The Glue Radio Pilot

2009-10-29T11:20:00.003Z

As I'm sure you've read umpteen times we had a radio pilot on Radio Scotland in January and again in August. Well, it looks unlikely that there will be any more episodes made. So if you never heard it or want to have a copy for yourself, you can now download the show as an mp3 from this RapidShare link.

This Week's HFS

2009-10-19T15:02:00.003+01:00

The latest Hooray For Saturday can be listened to online right now on SubCity. There's comedy from Stephen Lynch and Maria Bamford, plus tunes from Portugal. The Man, The Hives, Nada Surf and more.

New Rabbits Video

2009-10-16T13:04:00.002+01:00

Here's the video for the new Frightened Rabbit single 'Swim Until You Can't See Land'.

Update: This is the amended link with the dodgy sound fixed.

Odds and Sods Soundtrack

2009-10-15T11:04:00.003+01:00

Here's a Spotify Playlist of all the songs played during 'Odds and Sods'. There's three nights left. Saturday has sold out, so that just leaves tonight and tomorrow if you want to come along.

The Dots at The Grand

2009-10-13T11:05:00.003+01:00

If you're not coming to see Odds and Sods on Friday then what about a music gig? My pals All About The Dots are playing the Classic Grand in Jamaica Street.

They're playing support to Doll and the Kicks, and from what I can make of the four act line-up they'll probably be on first, so get there early to see them. Doors open at 7pm and it's a mere 6 quid to get in.

You can download a couple of songs from their website or head over to their MySpace page and hear a few more.

Hooray For Saturday

2009-10-12T23:36:00.002+01:00

I've began presenting my own radio show. It's called Hooray For Saturday, I know it sounds like a kids' TV show, but trust me it's not. It's on Glasgow Uni's station Sub City.

So far I've had three shows and they've all went all right. No major disasters or nothing. I've been playing music, some comedy and gibbering, although I try to keep the talking to a minimum. I have been touting the idea of having some comedy guests on in the future, but I've so far been slow in organising it.

You can listen live on the Sub City website from 9am to 10am on a Saturday or listen again at the link at the top of the post. All three shows are there just now.

There's a fan page on Facebook. Gonnie join it and save it being just me.

The Marriage Ref

2009-10-12T13:59:00.002+01:00

Here's an interview with Jerry Seinfeld from The Guardian. In it he talks about his appearances on the new season of Curb Your Enthusiasm as well as his new gameshow 'The Marriage Ref'.

He doesn't think much has changed in the pitching process since he was talking to NBC about Seinfeld in the 1980s. "Broadcasters still use the word excited to mean nervous," he nods. "Like, Endemol saying they have loads of shows out here that they're excited about." He gives a sly grin.

It's Tonight

2009-10-12T11:42:00.003+01:00

'Odds and Sods' opens tonight at the Ramshorn Theatre in Ingram Street, Glasgow. It finishes on Saturday. The last night has sold out, and some of the other nights are selling well. Still plenty of tickets left for tonight however. Monday and Tuesday are the cheap nights at £6 or £4 concession.

Fraser and I are pretty happy with the way it's shaped up. The cast are all excellent, we've got the best stage manager in town and the set looks great too. So come along and see it.

Odds and Sods - 6 Days to Go

2009-10-06T13:05:00.003+01:00

There's less than a week to go before Fraser and I's play 'Odds and Sods' opens. You can get yourself a ticket for it by calling the Ramshorn Theatre on 0141 552 3489, by e-mailing ramshorn dot theatre at strath dot ac dot uk, or by calling the Collins Gallery on 0141 548 2558.

There's a Facebook Event for it, where you can click to say you're no' coming should you wish to do so and there's a website where if you want to you can download a press pack and have a look at some more photographs.

As for the play itself, we have high hopes it'll be funny and well acted.

Talking Pish October Playlist

2009-10-05T21:54:00.005+01:00

Tom will no doubt come along and do a much better more refined October list, but here's my first go at a spotify playlist. Hopefully you'll find something you like.

Limmy's Show - That's a Wrap

2009-10-04T19:30:00.005+01:00

That's five weeks filming on Limmy's Show done. It'll not be a surprise to you if I say every second of it was a total pleasure. I had a great time on it from start to finish. Everyone on it was great to work with all throughout the production. I have no doubts that it will be very funny once it hits the TV screens come late 2009 or early 2010.

My set of photographs can be viewed by clicking this link. You'll notice that there are very few photos of me in there. Should you wish to see some of me looking fat and daft, you can hit up my fellow cast member Omar's Flickr page for some of his photies.

Over at Brian's blog he's running a Q & A on the show, so go and join in if you haven't already. He's also got a new video up on his YouTube page.

Classic Keano

2009-10-04T18:28:00.002+01:00

On watching The Football League Show last night I had to laugh at Roy Keane's interview. After the latest Ipswich Town loss, the BBC reporter asked Roy if he'd be staying on in the job. The look on his face was a picture. You can watch the interview yourself, by going onto the BBC site.

Who's Bootlegging Who?

2009-09-30T23:06:00.001+01:00

This is a really good piece by Grace Maxwell, Edwyn Collins' wife and manager. She talks about music copyright and how the big companies aren't quite the victims they make themselves out to be.

Eddie Izzard - Believe

2009-09-30T23:05:00.000+01:00

This is a trailer for Eddie Izzard's new documentary'Believe'.

Talking Pish September Playlist

2009-09-30T10:38:00.002+01:00

Here's this month's Spotifty playlist. Not much new music on it this time. There's Richard Hawley, Wilco, AC Newman, Ian Brown and The Weakerthans in there. Hope you enjoy it.

HMV At It Again

2009-09-28T21:16:00.002+01:00

HMV Sauchiehall Street get their Death Display sorted again. They may as well just have a Recently Deceased section.

Dead Man's Merchandise

2009-09-15T22:35:00.004+01:00

Patrick Swayze, the poor fucker, was still lying with a sheet over his face somewhere when HMV sorted out this display to shift some of his films and telly work.

Limmy's Show Photos

2009-09-14T20:16:00.004+01:00

As most of you will know anyway I've just started my third week on Limmy's Show. I've been taking the odd photograph here and there and this is a set of the best of them. I'll be updating it over the next three weeks. As a bonus here's a couple of me taken by my colleague Omar.

The Seinfeld Reunion on Curb

2009-09-11T18:56:00.000+01:00

Odds and Sods

2009-09-10T23:05:00.004+01:00

You may be interested to learn that the play what the boys from 'Pish have wrote is on at the Ramshorn Theatre from Monday the 12th October until Saturday the 17th of October.

Tickets are priced: Mon - Tues £6/4 Wed - Sat £9/6. You can reserve and pay on the night by phoning the Ramshorn on 0141-552-3489 or e-mailing ramshorn dot theatre at strath dot ac dot uk.

There's a Facebook group here, do join and spread the word.

If you fancy a double bill of theatre that week, do what we'll be doing and go see Sandy Nelson's play Glimmering Nymph at Oran Mor in the afternoon. The Facebook group for that is here.

Talking Pish August Spotify Playlist

2009-08-30T21:33:00.002+01:00

Here's my 'Pish playlist for August. On it you can find a selection of the stuff I've been listening to this month. There's Wintersleep. The Victorian English Gentlemens Club, Harry Nilsson and Coconut Records as well as many others.

Fraser is also now on Spotify so you may well get a playlist from him soon too.

"Somebody's Left the Old Comedy Game a Bit Late"

2009-08-30T15:31:00.001+01:00

Apparently the six part series Limmy's Show starts filming tomorrow. Here's the man himself to tell you why it's all coming a bit late.

Well Done Kevin

2009-08-26T15:41:00.002+01:00

Congratulations to Kevin Bridges who has been nominated for Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Festival in the awards that used to be The Perriers. The winner is announced on Saturday. Hope he takes the trophy home.

"I'm Having a Sandwich"

2009-08-20T12:57:00.004+01:00

Graham Linehan writes a great blog post on the misleading newspaper articles about the worth of Twitter. The Guardian in particular appears to have begun a trend of allowing people to write articles on topics they know little about, just so long as their article takes a negative slant.

If you use Twitter it's well worth a read and if you don't use Twitter cos you think it's just people letting you know they're having a sit down then it's perhaps an even more worthwhile read.

Twitter's so good there's even people plugging a radio sketch show.

Off to a Good Start

2009-08-15T09:58:00.003+01:00

Thanks to all the folk who tuned in to our show last night and listened on the iPlayer. We're currently "most popular" on the BBC Radio Scotland iPlayer page.

If you haven't listened in already, please give it a bash.

Radio Scotland at 6.10pm Tonight

2009-08-14T11:25:00.004+01:00

It's The Magic Glue where you can hear Fraser and I being dafties, with the help of Darran Lightbody, Moira Byrne and Alison May. Please do give it a listen. It'll be on the iPlayer for a week afterwards if you can't hear it at the time of broadcast, or indeed if you want to listen to it again and again.

Here's the link to listen on the iPlayer.

The Hurt Locker

2009-08-13T15:34:00.001+01:00

Here's the trailer for Kathryn Bigelow's new film The Hurt Locker. It played in the cinema before Mesrine and it's the first time in a long while I've been totally wrapped in a movie trailer.

Mesrine

2009-08-11T17:57:00.002+01:00

I went to see this yesterday, I'll probably be back to see it later this week. The best gangster film in years and one of the best films of this year. Mesrine: Killer Instinct. I cannot wait for the second part.

The Magic Glue this Friday

2009-08-11T15:35:00.004+01:00

Radio Scotland is repeating our pilot The Magic Glue this Friday at 6.10pm. If you didn't listen when it was on in January please give it a shot this time round. If you heard it then and liked it please get the word out to your muckers. If you heard it and didn't like it, get it up ye, what use are you to me?

So that's Friday 14th August at 6.10pm on Radio Scotland FM & MW. It'll also be on the BBC iPlayer for a week afterwards, so if you can't listen on the night you can hear it at a later date on your computer.

San Diego News

2009-08-03T16:50:00.007+01:00

For anyone interested in comics, cult TV or movies, The 2009 San Diego Comic Convention - for years the biggest of the big pop culture events in the US - has just wrapped up for another year.

There was little to grab all but the die-hard this year other than news Gary Oldman let slip that Batman 3 will be along sooner than expected.

The other big news of the con for me was that Marvel have sorted out the complex legal mess entangling the much loved character Miracleman and have bought all rights to the character, who will revert to his original name of Marvelman.

Why is this potentially good news? Well, Miracleman/Marvelman was re-vamped in the mid 80's by none other than Alan Moore and latterly Neil Gaiman but was never properly finished and the stories, considered some of Moore's greatest early work, was never effectively collected. Now it looks as if fans will now get the chance to see why wealthy comic junkies pay top dollar for the hard to find original issues and ultra-rare collected editions.

Here's a digest page of all the news and announcements made during the con from Newsarama.

July 'Pish Mix

2009-08-02T14:53:00.003+01:00

Here's a Spotify mix featuring some of the stuff I was listening to last month. It features some old tunes as well as some new stuff. You can expect to hear The Apples in Stereo, Marina and the Diamonds, The Fall and Hotel Lights among others.

The Fantastic Mr. Fox

2009-07-30T21:50:00.003+01:00

Another movie trailer. This time it's Wes Anderson's forthcoming The Fantastic Mr. Fox.

A Serious Man

2009-07-30T17:49:00.001+01:00

The trailer for the new Coen Brothers movie.

Raaaaaaaandy Part 3

2009-07-27T23:08:00.001+01:00

Your favourite bad comic is back. It's Raaaaaaaandy Part 3. Raaaaaaaandy shows us his TV pilot and injects his comedy with a message.

Raaaaaaaandy - Part 3 (Funny People) from Aziz Ansari

Funny Friends

2009-07-24T00:17:00.000+01:00

Later this morning you can hear Limmy being interviewed by Susan Calman for Suan's programme Funny Friends on Radio Scotland. The show will be on Radio Scotland at 11.30am. If you miss it you can catch it for a week or so on the BBC's iPlayer. You can still listen to last week's episode with Des Clarke until about midnight on Friday.

The Mighty Boosh on Jimmy Fallon

2009-07-23T15:39:00.001+01:00

The Mighty Boosh make their US chat show debut on Jimmy Fallon's show.

Kevin Bridges on 8 Out of 10 Cats

2009-07-22T22:41:00.003+01:00

Rapidly rising comedy star Kevin Bridges was on 8 Out of 10 Cats last week. Needless to say he knocked it out the park.

The whole show is down below in three parts.

Randy's Process

2009-07-20T22:00:00.001+01:00

Here's the second part of the Raaaaaaaandy documentary. Not quite as funny as the first part for me, but still good. Here, Randy shows us his process for being funny. If you've seen 'Comedian' you might notice what appears to be a wee dig at Orny Adams in here.

Raaaaaaaandy - Part 2 (Funny People) from Aziz Ansari

Emergency Pizza Delivery

2009-07-17T22:09:00.003+01:00

This is Doug Stanhope involved in a Game for a Laugh style prank from Spy TV. Stanhope plays one of two rogue doctors operating on a patient when the pizza delivery guy arrives. It's worth watching for the last 15 seconds.

Packaging Design at its Worst

2009-07-16T14:44:00.002+01:00

I really hate supermarkets going over the top in packagaing foodstuffs. This is a slideshow of some of the worst examples from Treehugger. Surely Morrisons realise that bananas come in their own packaging?

The Wild Whites of West Virginia

2009-07-16T14:29:00.003+01:00

This is worth a watch. Richard Metzger interviews Julien Nitzberg, director of the documentary film, The Wild Whites of West Virginia. The film follows a wild out of control hillbilly family living on the edge of the law in Boone County, West Virginia.

It runs for 20 minutes, but watch it for the film trailer at the beginning at least.

DANGEROUS MINDS 003: metzger/nitzberg from Richard Metzger on Vimeo.

Scott Agnew in Attitude Magazine

2009-07-15T18:38:00.004+01:00

Odds and Sods' Jordon, Scottish Comedian of the Year and our mucker Scott Agnew is seen here profiled in Attitude magazine. Click on the picture to go to the full size and read the profile.

Christopher Mintz-Plasse's Anti-Piracy Ads

2009-07-15T18:24:00.002+01:00

"Piracy PSA" with Christopher Mintz-Plasse from Judd Apatow

"The Mclovin' Fund" with Kristen Bell and Christopher Mintz-Plasse from Kristen Bell

Raaaaaaaandy

2009-07-15T17:54:00.002+01:00

Definitely not safe for work this is a film done to plug Judd Apatow's new film 'Funny People'. This is a documentary starring Aziz Ansari as Randy. I lost it when it gets to the bit with his DJ. Check out more of Randy at his website Laugh Your Dick Off.

Raaaaaaaandy - Part 1 (Funny People) from Aziz Ansari