My Sleep Pattern

Time for bed?  Not yet - first I have to take the
perfect photo of my alarm clock for my blog.

It's late evening, and I'm browsing the internet when I should instead be thinking about getting ready for bed.  What better time to write about the trials and tribulations of my sleep pattern?

I woke at 11am this morning, having slept from 2am.  I suspect this trend will continue tonight, as after I've finished writing this post, I will be drinking a cup of milk on the sofa while reading the Radio Times - seeing what programmes I could have watched.  Once my cup is empty, I will proceed to lie there doing nothing for approximately thirty minutes, too tired to get up.

Having finally summoned the willpower to leave the comfort of the sofa, I will then take my dog out into the garden and gaze up at the stars, pondering if there could be life out there, before coming back inside and filling two large bottles of water in the kitchen.  (I rarely get through more than one bottle of water per night, but have a second one on standby just in case, so I don't have to traipse downstairs to the kitchen to refill the first one.  Although if I wake in the night and need more water, the contents of the second bottle has usually gone warm, so I have to traipse down to the kitchen anyway.)

Once I finally make it up the wooden hill to Bedforshire, my trials are not quite over yet.  Now I must brush my teeth, nearly fall asleep on the toilet, and splash my face with cold water approximately three times.  By the time my head hits the pillow, my calculations predict it will be 2 o'clock.  Cue a leisurely lie-in till eleven.

Now this is all fine and dandy at weekends.  But what about when I have to get to college the next morning?  I try my best to get to bed early - usually 1am.  When my alarm clock goes off at eight, I feel like death.  I lie there, groaning and procrastinating for thirty minutes, which leaves me a further ten minutes to get dressed, go to the loo, have a wash, and find a pair of socks, before my mum chauffeur-drives me through a solid traffic jam while I glance anxiously at my watch every ten seconds.

On a night when I don't have college the next day, I celebrate by surfing the 'net until midnight.  I'm only at college on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays - and that Wednesday gap lets me slip back into bad habits, leaving me feeling like death again Thursday morning.  By the end of the week I'm exhausted, and after my midnight internet celebration, I have a mega lie-in till 11am Saturday morning.  And then I stay up until midnight again writing blog posts.

Believe me, I've tried sorting it out.  My "cup of milk at half nine" schemes rarely last more than a few days - before I know it I'm up at 2am writing blog posts again.  It's a fact of life, wired into my psychology.  The teenage brain is an untameable beast that can never be fully understood - even by the teenagers themselves.

A Review of... Oh, wait.

This blog was intended to be a fun and humorous reflection of life, the universe and everything; a place to write pointless, rambly posts that wouldn't be seen dead on my website.  Instead, it's become a collection of reviews.  Which is fine, except that it's not particularly original.  Who wants to read yet another person's opinion on the latest episode of Doctor Who - a person who doesn't write for a newspaper, and therefore whose opinion doesn't matter?

Some time ago, I wrote a great big long list of topics I could cover in this blog.  Unfortunately, the notepad which contained this list has disappeared deep into the bowels of my untidy bedroom, so I'll have to try and remember them.  The only topic I can remember writing down is Facebook.  Who on Earth would want to write - or read - about Facebook?  Let's face it, you're probably visiting this blog because you want a break from Facebook.

Whatever I write, I'll make sure it isn't a review.  (Except my mum has asked me to review a book she's written, and I have a half-written review of Pokemon Black and White that's been sitting in my Drafts folder for half a year.)  I want to write about what matters to me.  Instead of reviewing people's books and TV programmes, I'm going to review my life.  Or something.  I'm writing for the sake of writing, because I want to, and hopefully you'll enjoy reading it.  In the unlikely event that you don't, I suggest you click the back button on your browser and see if anyone's posted a new Awkward Moment on Facebook.

I've noticed that when I write in the evenings, my style becomes very delirious and whimsical.  On my website this becomes a problem, but here on my Blog, I'm going to deliberately go out of my way to ensure that I write my posts as late in the day as possible (or as early in the day as possible, depending on how you look at it).  I'd better be going for now, got college tomorrow.  They're having a fancy dress day for Children in Need, and I'm going as Ask Ketchum from Pokemon.  Good night!

P.S.
Now that I am finally officially "out" to a close friend of mine, I may write the following statement all over my blog as much as I wish:

I'M GAY!!!

There.  I've been waiting a year to do that.

A Review of Doctor Who Series Six (Part 2)

Here's my verdict on the second half of Doctor Who Series Six, beginning with the Doctor's encounter with Adolf Hitler, and finishing with a very special wedding!  I thought this half of the series was an improvement over the first half, and my enthusiasm seems to show in the length of my reviews!  Be warned: this article contains a few major plot spoilers if you haven't seen the whole series yet...


8. Let's Kill Hitler

Well, that was... weird. And amazing, of course! It was great fun, and had some really good stuff in it, but suffered from the same problem as A Good Man Goes to War, in that it's too deeply rooted in the series story arc, and doesn't feel like a story in its own right. The Doctor meeting Hitler seemed like such an interesting opportunity, but it was very quickly discarded. Still, at least we got the scene of Rory locking Hitler in the cupboard, which kind of made up for it.

I loved the twist of Mels' identity (who saw that coming?!), but at the same time, it changes River as a character and I'm still not sure what to make of it. But even if River's characterisation was slightly wobbly, Amy and Rory continue to get better and better, and I was delighted to see Cailtin Blackwood return.

Overall, very funny and surreal, and full of surprises. It might be a little bit flawed in places, and some of the elements didn't quite "gel", but it was still tremendous fun to watch.


9. Night Terrors

I thought Night Terrors was rather brilliant. After two mind-mending, "arcy-warcy" episodes (as amazing as they were), the return to more traditional storytelling is much welcome. It's bursting with innovative ideas without feeling overcrowded. The Peg Dolls have to be one of the best monsters this series, the Silence aside, and were used sparingly, which ranked up the tention and made them even scarier. The guest stars were all fantastic; I'd been looking forward to seeing Daniel Mays from Outcasts, but his performance was so convincing I completely forgot he was from Outcasts until half way through the episode! And Matt Smith seemed to be even better than usual. Terrific fun!


10. The Girl Who Waited

The Girl Who Waited is INCREDIBLE. Writing, acting, music, set design, make-up, robots... the entire production is beautiful. Although it's mostly filmed in a series of small rooms, it feels epic, more like a mini feature film than a TV episode. Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill are phenomenal. It's so wonderfully dark, and poetic, and surreal (I keep overusing the word "surreal" in my reviews, but it's a vibe I've been getting a lot from this series). There are some lovely little touches, like the special glasses and the Rory robot, which really bring the story to life. The pacing is perfect; one breathtaking scene after another.

If I had to find a negative point, it would be the moment when the two Amys enter the same time stream. Old Amy's 36 years of solitude, and her conversation across time with her younger self, were suddenly made a little insiginificant as soon as they were seen standing side by side. But the script is so strong that that any tiny flaws fail to leave a dent in an otherwise perfect story.

One of my all-time favourite episodes.


11. The God Complex

Well that was rather brilliant! And who would have thought that a gorilla and a bunch of ventriloquist dummies could be almost as terrifying as the Silence? The only slight problem is that all the scariest concepts were used early in the episode, so the second half lacked the same shock factor. But it was terrific fun and I loved the characters; Gibbis provided a lot of light relief and Rita is the Nasreen Chaudry of this series: the outstanding, memorable guest star who could have been a companion. The guy who was tied up in the dummies' room (forgotten his name) was creepy and brilliantly played; it's a shame he couldn't have stayed around for a bit longer. The direction was impressive, too.

The Minotaur was an original idea for Doctor Who (the horn scrape marks on the ceiling were a nice touch) and it looked great, like something straight out of ancient Greek artwork. But in all honesty the "dreams" were more interesting and I would have liked to have seen them explored in even more depth. It's another example of two very different concepts thrown into a story that don't quite gel, but it didn't detract from the enjoyment of the story at all.

The ending was surprising and beautiful, but... surely Amy and Rory can't be leaving for good, can they? If they don't get an invite to their daughter's wedding I will be very surprised.


12. Closing Time

What's this? A sequel that's actually better than the original? Mind you, if you take everything that was great about The Lodger, and then add Lynda Baron, Cybermen and a Cybermat, it's to be expected really.

This is actually one of my favourite episodes in the series. It's a breath of fresh air, so beautifully simple, and the script sparkles. Gareth Roberts may not be the king of intricate plotting, but in this episode he wrote the Eleventh Doctor better than anyone; full of charm and warmth and wonderfully "Doctor-ish" (well, I can't imagine William Hartnell attempting to kiss someone as a distraction from Cybermen, but that's for another discussion!).

I was really emotionally invested in the story - my heart was in my mouth during Craig's apparent conversion, and I even cared more about the story arc elements than usual. I haven't been entirely convinced by the whole "The Doctor will die" thing up until now, but in this episode it really hit home. The final shot of River in the lake is strangely iconic.

Overall, a very fun, sweet and warm episode - something this series really needed. I hope James Corden comes back again.

(Leading up to this episode's broadcast, I was very excited about Lynda Baron's guest appearance, as she played Auntie Mable in one my favourite children's programmes, Come Outside.  But when I finally sat down to watch Closing Time, I completely forgot that she was in it!  I didn't realise it was her until right at the end, when it occured to me that her voice was oddly familiar...)


13. The Wedding of River Song

I'm really late reviewing this episode, but I didn't really know what to say about it. Other than the fact that it was brilliant, which isn't very imaginative!

In all seriousness though, The Wedding of River Song is brilliant. I loved the return of the "fairytale" element. The story is crammed full of amazing, epic ideas, without feeling over-the-top in any way; something that The Pandorica Opens and The Big Bang also achieved to great effect. The CGI shots are breathtaking, and although used sparingly, they are weaved cleverly into the episode to "set the scene".

More than anything, I loved the wedding scene. I was expecting something big and dramatic, the Doctor and River in a massive golden cathedral - but no. The Doctor, River, Amy and Rory, on top of a pyramid with stars twinkling above. As simple as that. And this made so much more effective; the simplicity made it all the more romantic. The dilemma of the Doctor's death felt real (as it did in Closing Time, though for most of the series I didn't care that much), and River's refusal to kill the Doctor was genuinely heartfelt. The central characters are what made this series so special. The story arc is about the characters, and that came to a head in this episode. The scene in Amy and Rory's garden rounded things off nicely.

After so much tension and emotional heartbreak, the resolution to the Doctor's death should have been a cop-out. But somehow it wasn't. The fact that I had absolutely no idea it was coming made it all the more satisfying. People have said that the overuse of the Teselecta in the "previously" segment gave the game away, so maybe it's a good job I was getting a drink of water and putting on a pair of jeans while that bit was broadcast. I literally had no idea that twist was coming at all, and completely loved it.

So in short, an immensely enjoyable story, and a very satisying end to the series. With The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang, Steven Moffat essentially wrote The Perfect Finale, so naturally, The Wedding of River Song could never quite compare. But it comes very close.

Oh and I haven't even mentioned the Silence, Madame Kovarian, the cave of skulls, Winston Churchill, the phone call, the chess match, Dorium, pterodactyls, or the "Hell in high heels" line yet...

Just one more thing I will add. It's a shame we never saw Churchill's mammoth.

A Review of Doctor Who Series Six (Part 1)

Over the course of the year, I have written a series of short reviews on Gallifrey Base, a Doctor Who fan forum.  Here are my opinions on the first seven episodes of Doctor Who Series Six, beginning with the Doctor's fateful encounter at Lake Silencio and leading up to the dramatic reveal of River Song's identity.  I wrote these reviews shortly after each episode was broadcast, so they were based on my innitial reactions.

1. The Impossible Astronaut

It took a little while to get into, but from around the point where the Doctor encounters the atronaut in the lake it really started to draw me in. The first thing that struck me was the way the episode was shot and edited; it has a much more "filmic" style than the last series. The main cast all get some nice development and there are some brilliant twists, and priceless comedy moments. And it's actually scary! Aside from the Weeping Angel two-parter, Series Five seemed rather mild and toned-down, but this is a return to form in the scary department. The Silence didn't look all that frightening in the promo pictures, but as soon as you see them on screen the Weeping Angels begin to pale in comparison.

Despite all these good points, The Impossible Astronaut did feel a little bit hollow in the centre, and I can't really work out why. But it's still a cracking series opener, and I'm looking forward to the concluding installment.

2. Day of the Moon

Utterly speechless. I didn't even know a drama could be this good without making my television explode! An epic extravaganza of self-indulgent, fan-pleasing nonsense. Casual viewers were probably left baffled, but who cares?




3. The Curse of the Black Spot

That was rather good actually. Intriguing to begin with, then just when the tension begins to sag, we're whisked off to an alien spaceship and a heart-rending climax! The only thing which spoilt it a little for me was the TARDIS scene tacked onto the end, where we're reminded of the story arc.

While not as dazzling as Day of the Moon, this is an enjoyable, surreal and very haunting episode. 


4. The Doctor's Wife

What a great little episode! With its strikingly original script, it's among the likes of Blink, Midnight and Amy's Choice as a bold, stand-alone episode that does something completely new. The TARDIS in human form - wonderful idea!

The dark, moody element that's been bugging me since the start of the series is still present, but this is my favourite episode of the series so far and has more warmth than the last two stories, even if the "hate/kill Amy" scene was perhaps a little too disturbing for a family audience. The final scene between the Doctor and Idris was beautiful; the dialogue honest and pure. I would have liked to have seen a few things fleshed out more (more of the Ood, and Idris's backstory) but I'm sure I'll enjoy it even more on repeat viewings.

(I was right about the repeat viewings; after seeing this episode again I love it even more.  The script is nigh on perfect.)

5. The Rebel Flesh

That was cracking stuff! It felt very bold and different, with a good central concept and the interest never waned. The guest characters are nothing special, though the scene where Jennifer looks at her photo was lovely and it's great to see Rory take more of a centre stage. Some of the CGI was a little over-the-top for my liking, but didn't stop me from enjoying the story.

Though not as good as The Doctor's Wife in terms of emotion and spectacle, it feels like the most confident episode so far and has given Series Six that extra bit of "oomph" it needed to get fullly off the ground. I'm just starting to get really into this current run and it ends in a few weeks!


6. The Almost People

A fantastic conclusion that somehow manages to be even better than last week, and we're finally given some answers about Amy and the Eye Patch Lady! Still not sure what I think of the cliffhanger, it was utterly brilliant and a bit of a cop-out at the same time. I think I really need to stop picking episodes to pieces and just enjoy the ride. The scenes with the two Doctors were a hoot!



7. A Good Man Goes to War

I knew it! I knew that's who River Song would be! I'd been speculating it since the start of the series, and thinking how cool it would be. I'm really chuffed now.

Oh and the episode was good too! It's weird because half of the time it felt like nothing was really happening, even though absolutely loads of things were happening. But the four main characters made it wonderful. So surreal, such powerful emotion; more like being in a dream than watching a TV episode. And that cliffhanger!!


Stay tuned for my verdict on the second half of the series.

A Review of Ghost Hunter (Michelle Paver)

My most recent college project was to produce a podcast of a chosen subject.  I decided to do a book review; here it is in written form.

Ghost Hunter is a thrilling adventure story by Michelle Paver.  It's the sixth and final installment of the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series, which follows the adventures of a boy named Torak, in a prehistoric world of clans, magecraft and demons.  Judging by the fact that Ghost Hunter won the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize last year, you’d imagine that it must be something special.  But I’m going to give it a little review and tell you what I thought of it.

The book certainly gets off to a flying start, with Torak encountering the ghost of his deceased father, which drives his actions for a large portion of the book.  The antagonist of the book - the last of the Soul-Eaters, Eostra - is sending a series of plagues and severe weather conditions, which are described in vivid detail.  In the opening scenes, the entire Forest is covered with a swarm of grey moths, and they’re described so vividly you can almost feel them crawling on your skin.

As with any sequel, the beginning of Ghost Hunter could be a little confusing for people who are new to the series.  I think it is handled quite well though, and the story unfolds in such a way that new readers will be able to grasp the story and characters even if they don’t fully understand everything at first.  Michelle Paver prefers to get straight into the action, and explain things later, which is always a good thing.

One of the things that stands out about Ghost Hunter is its central characters.  The narrative frequently switches between the point of view of Torak, his friend Renn and their animal companion, Wolf.  Each of them has a very distinct personality and view on the world, and the scenes shown from Wolf’s viewpoint are particularly interesting; Michelle clearly had a lot of fun describing her fictional world through the eyes of an animal.  She really gets into the mind and soul of her characters, making them real and memorable.

Michelle writes in short, punchy sentences, and manages to say a lot in just a few words.  I think it’s her use of adjectives that does it; all it takes is a quick description of whirling snow, or a sputtering torch, to conjure up a really vivid image.  Her writing flows so seamlessly, you forget that you’re reading a book.  I find that if I open one of her books at random, and start reading a paragraph, I end up getting drawn into it and before I know it I’ve read several pages, even if it’s a scene I’ve read several times before.

Like the other books in the series, Ghost Hunter has a dark, haunting and atmospheric quality.  And Ghost Hunter is definitely the scariest of them all.  The descriptions of the tokoroths, the demon children, really linger in the memory, and I found myself glancing over my shoulder a few times to make sure there weren’t any behind me!  Eostra is very cold and emotionless but in a good way; it makes her really creepy.  Although she doesn’t actually appear much until towards the end of the book, she’s a powerful presence throughout.  The first scene where she does appear really made me jump, I didn’t see it coming at all.

The climax is very important, as it isn’t just the climax of Ghost Hunter, but of the entire series.  I don’t want to give anything away, but it’s full of surprises I didn’t see coming.  I did think it felt slightly rushed; you get this sense of something really big being set up, and then it’s all resolved in a single chapter.  But it’s still definitely a very satisfying pay-off, especially for those who have been following Torak’s adventures from the beginning.

Overall, I think Ghost Hunter is a terrific read, and it works on many different levels.  It’s a satisfying series finale for devoted readers, but can also be enjoyed as a stand-alone story.  It’s an edge-of-your-seat adventure story for older children and young people, but adults will also be enchanted by its rich prose and vivid settings.  If you want an epic, thrilling, emotional and original story to be absorbed by over the summer holidays, then Ghost Hunter is well worth a look.  And its snowy, wintery descriptions will definitely cool you off…

In Memory of Elisabeth Sladen 1946-2011

As a fan of both Doctor Who and its spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures, I was to devastated to hear the news that Elisabeth Sladen - who played Sarah Jane Smith for 38 years - passed away on 19th April, aged 63.

Lis first appeared in Doctor Who as a companion of Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker's Doctors, and made some guest appearances from 2006 onwards alongside David Tennant.  In 2007 she became the star of a new CBBC series, The Sarah Jane Adventures, which saw Sarah Jane working as an investigative journalist, assisted by her adopted son, Luke, and alien supercomputer, Mr Smith.

I first saw Lis in the 2008 Doctor Who story The Stolen Earth/Journey's End, but there were so many other characters - not to mention Daleks - in these episodes that I wasn't able to get to know her character very well.  It was while watching The Sarah Jane Adventures that I really began to appreciate her as an actress.  Her skill at conveying emotion made Sarah Jane a loveable, diverse and memorable character; brave, cheeky and nurturing.  And if the comments of those who knew her are anything to go by, she was just as kind in real life as her on-screen counterpart.  With someone as special as Lis in the lead role, it was no wonder that the show became so well-loved, both by its young target audience and adults alike.

Lis was a hero and role model to thousands of children all over the country.  She became such a powerful and iconic presence that she seemed indestructable; whatever happened, Sarah Jane was always there. 

Never before have I been so affected by the passing of someone I never met.  I can't even begin to imagine the loss that must be felt by her family, and everyone who was fortunate enough to have worked with her.  My thoughts go out to all of them.

While this is a sad time, we musn't forget to celebrate this great person and her work.  Elisabeth Sladen may no longer be with us, but the character she so lovingly created will live in our hearts forever.

Outcasts: The BBC's Hidden Gem

I'm sure it happens to us all.  You're flicking through the Radio Times or similar TV listings magazine, you see a new programme advertised and think, "Wow, I want to see that!"  And then the day comes, and you're either eating dinner, engrossed in Facebook or simply can't be bothered to pick up the remote.  And you clear your conscience by saying, "Ah well, it probably wasn't very good anyway."

I'd been intrigued by the listing for Outcasts, BBC2's new sci-fi drama, but I was feeling lazy that night and let the first episode slip by.  That was, until I received a telephone call at 10pm, immediately after the broadcast:

"Did you see Outcasts?  It's brilliant!  Has your dad seen it?  It's ******, ****** good!"

So I decided to catch up on iPlayer, and it turns out my nanny was right.  Episode one has an intriguing set-up: a group of humans on the extrasolar planet Carpathia are anxiously awaiting new arrivals from Earth.  It's a little slow to begin with, but you find yourself getting wrapped up in the lives of the characters, and there's a gripping sense of mounting tension as well as some very human, emotional moments.

The next three episodes live up to the high standard, with each installment having a unique feel which sets it apart as a stand-alone story in itself.  The cast - led by Liam Cunningham as President Tate and Hermione Norris as Stella Isen - are excellent, though Fleur (Amy Manson) and Tipper (Michael Legg) in particular really stand out for me.  Each character has been intricately crafted so that you really care about them, giving the thrilling (and occasionally chilling) plot even more impact.

After such a good start, I'm surprised that low viewing figures have forced Outcasts to be rescheduled to a later slot.  So much care, thought and hard work as gone into the series; if I'd been a member of the production team I would have been very disheartened to see my pride and joy pushed away into the late hours of the night.  Still, it won't stop the fans, who will continue their weekly visits to Carpathia until the very end.