Was Dot Branning Robbed?

Having worked my way through the annual back-slapping awards ceremony that is the
BAFTA Television Awards on Sunday night, one thing above all else struck me. What's that you ask? Well, where the hell was June Brown's award?

Despite being nominated (and thought to be a shoo-in) for her incredibly moving monologue episode of EastEnders, the artist also known as Dot Branning (nee Cotton) was passed over for the Best Actress award in favour of Anna Maxwell Martin's role in Poppy Shakespeare. Now while Ms Martin was indeed rather excellent in her portrayal of a young woman with mental health issues, I really think that the award should have gone to June. An actress who has consistently acted her socks off during her long tenure in Albert Square, it's high time she got the recognition she deserved - particularly after her astonishing one-woman performance in last year's episode.

Check out the clip from the episode in question and let me know if you agree... click here.

Everybody's Favourite Serial Killer Is Back...

In the mood for some amoral antics? Well, you're in luck because everybody's favourite serial killer, Dexter Morgan, is finally coming back to our screens for a third series. It starts on FX in the UK on Friday, April 24 and, judging by the two previous series, it's going to be brilliant.

I'm a big fan of the show, so I've been counting down the days until the new series and have been trawling through the net to find anything that will calm my anticipation. Luckily, I came across an interesting interview in which on-screen brother and sister Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter talk the show (and their real-life marriage). In the interests of caring and sharing, I've posted it below so you can take a look too...

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Frak me! They're Selling Off Battlestar Galactica!

If, like me, you're still totally gutted that Battlestar Galactica, you can take solace in the fact that an opportunity has arisen that will give you the chance to continue the adentures of Starbuck, Apollo et al - all you need is a lot of disposable income.

It turns out that BSG's parent company NBC is auctioning off the majority of the show's props on eBay. Want to know what's up for grabs? Well, where do we begin?!

The biggest item for sale is an actual Raptor fighter ship used in the show. "It has a full, functional interior with light-up panels and monitors throughout..." is how the ship is being plugged on eBay. After 43 bids, the price was $28,100.00 but this didn't meet the auction's reserve, so it's now up for grabs at a "live" auction beginning on May 8 in Pasadena.

If that's a little out of your price range, you could always plump for a cigar box, jumpsuit or napkin, all of which have been featured on the show and are marked with a hologram of the BSG logo to verify its authenticity.

Now, we're told by H+ Magazine that there's no reserve price set for any of the props ("whatever it goes for, it goes."), so while I can't really justify stretching for a Raptor I might just see if there's change in my pocket for a genuine cubit note or two. What about you? Fancy owning a genuine piece of Battlestar Galactica memorabilia?

The Gene Genie Is Back

At a time when the news is full of stories about police brutality and global economic breakdown, when fashion has taken two big decade-spanning steps backwards and political correctness is keeping everybody on their toes, we need a hero who doesn't mind throwing a few punches, dressing up in a few dodgy suits and chucking about some decidedly un-PC insults to remind us that we really shouldn't take life quite so seriously.

That man is none other than DCI Gene Hunt and, thank the lord, he's back. The second series of Ashes To Ashes is back on BBC One on Monday, April 20 and I can't wait.

When the first series started early last year, I didn't think it could possibly live up to the legend that was Life On Mars but, thanks to Philip Glenister's brilliant performance as the hard-drinking, rough-fighting, straight-talking copper's copper, the show has moved from its 70s setting to the 80s with ease. With the difficult first season out of the way, we can now fully immerse ourselves in a show packed to the gills with action, wit and hilarious in-jokes as well as hopefully coming closer to the revelation about why DI Alex Drake (Keeley Hawes) has found herself trapped in the decade that taste forgot - I for one can't wait

To get you in the mood for a brand-new series of the Gene Genie's brilliant one-liners, take a look at the video below...

Kumar Goes To The White House

BEFORE WE START, THERE ARE SPOILERS AHEAD!

Being a big fan of House, I was shocked by the hear about the sudden departure Kal Penn in the most recent episode - death by suicide of all things, told you it was shocking. And now I've discovered that one of the most devastating twists in recent TV history has taken a further step into the unexpected... It turns out that the talented Kal wasn't sacked from the show, as many netheads first thought, but he has instead quit acting (at least for the foreseeable future) to take a job at the White House - yes you read that right.

Empire, Screenrush and EW are all reporting (hell, EVERYONE'S reporting this) that Kal has managed to blag a job in Barack Obama's administration.

I'll let him explain: "I was incredibly honored a couple of months ago to get the opportunity to go work in the White House," says Penn. "I got to know the President and some of the staff during the campaign and had expressed interest in working there, so I'm going to be the associate director in the White House office of public liaison. They do outreach with the American public and with different organizations.... It's similar to what I was doing on the campaign."

Kal is a naturally gifted actor and he was great during his time on House (not to mention the Harold & Kumar movies, which I find hilarious despite myself), so here's hoping that he's not permanently retiring from the thespian life. That said, it's good to see a Hollywood star proving there's more to life than money and fame - hang on, what am I saying?

Check out the tribute to Dr Lawrence Kutner's greatest moments... we will miss him!

What to watch this week-end..

As I was wondering on the web last night what to watch during the week-end I came over Screenrush's latest picks of the week!
That's featuring The day after tomorrow on Saturday, The Searchers on Sunday afternoon, one of Hollywood's long time Western classics, and The company of men on Sunday night with Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep ! Check out the feature here and have a great week-end !