|
Alexei Sayle's Stuff
''Alexei Sayle's Stuff'' is a British television comedy sketch show which ran on BBC2 for a total of 18 episodes over 3 series from 1988 to 1991. Cast Alexei Sayle's Stuff stars stand-up comedian Alexei Sayle, with a recurring cast including Angus Deayton, Mark Williams, Arabella Weir, Tony Millan, Jan Ravens, Owen Brenman, Harriet Thorpe, Felicity Montagu and Morwenna Banks. Synopsis Sketches are interspersed with Sayle's trademark angry stand-up monologues, delivered from increasingly odd locations. Sayle is seen traversing the country on a moped in a vague attempt to catalogue and comprehend all the "stuff" about him. The style of humour is often highly surreal and blunt. The bulk of the content was written by Sayle himself, with Andrew Marshall and David Renwick. Additional material was contributed by longtime collaborator David Stafford and comedian and promoter Huw David Thomas. Although Sayle's humour in the programme covers many bases, politics is always a favourite ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sketch Comedy
Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and is used widely in variety shows, comedy talk shows, and some sitcoms and children's television series. The sketches may be improvised live by the performers, developed through improvisation before public performance, or scripted and rehearsed in advance like a play. Sketch comedians routinely differentiate their work from a "skit", maintaining that a skit is a (single) dramatized joke (or "bit") while a sketch is a comedic exploration of a concept, character, or situation. definition 3b, Merriam-Webster online. Retrieved 5/4/2019 History Sketch comedy has its origins in[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Steamboat Fatty
A steamboat is a boat that is propelled primarily by steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S (for 'Screw Steamer') or PS (for 'Paddle Steamer'); however, these designations are most often used for steamships. The term ''steamboat'' is used to refer to smaller, insular, steam-powered boats working on lakes and rivers, particularly riverboats. As using steam became more reliable, steam power became applied to larger, ocean-going vessels. Background Limitations of the Newcomen steam engine Early steamboat designs used Newcomen steam engines. These engines were large, heavy, and produced little power, which resulted in an unfavorable power-to-weight ratio. The Newcomen engine also produced a reciprocating or rocking motion because it was designed for pumping. The piston stroke was caused by a water jet in the steam-filled cylinder, which condensed the steam, creating a vacuum, which in turn cause ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vlad The Impaler
Vlad III, commonly known as Vlad the Impaler ( ro, Vlad Țepeș ) or Vlad Dracula (; ro, Vlad Drăculea ; 1428/311476/77), was Voivode of Wallachia three times between 1448 and his death in 1476/77. He is often considered one of the most important rulers in Wallachian history and a national hero of Romania. He was the second son of Vlad Dracul, who became the ruler of Wallachia in 1436. Vlad and his younger brother, Radu, were held as hostages in the Ottoman Empire in 1442 to secure their father's loyalty. Vlad's eldest brother Mircea and their father were murdered after John Hunyadi, regent-governor of Hungary, invaded Wallachia in 1447. Hunyadi installed Vlad's second cousin, VladislavII, as the new voivode. Hunyadi launched a military campaign against the Ottomans in the autumn of 1448, and Vladislav accompanied him. Vlad broke into Wallachia with Ottoman support in October, but Vladislav returned and Vlad sought refuge in the Ottoman Empire before the end of the year. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anna Carteret
Anna Carteret (born 11 December 1942) is a British stage and screen actress. Biography Carteret was born as Annabelle S. Wilkinson on 11 December 1942 in Bangalore, British India, the daughter of Peter John Wilkinson and his wife Patricia Carteret (Strahan). She was educated at Arts Educational Schools in Tring, Hertfordshire (now the Tring Park School for the Performing Arts), where she trained for the stage. She was married to the television and film director Christopher Morahan for over forty years and often worked with him. The couple had two daughters, theatre director Rebecca and actress Hattie Morahan. In June 2019, Carteret spoke for the first time about living with bipolar disorder since she was a teenager. Films, radio and television Anna Carteret is best known for her role as police inspector Kate Longton in the BBC's long-running 1980s television series ''Juliet Bravo''. Other television credits include: '' The Saint'', ''The Pallisers'', Frederic Raphael's ''T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Juliet Bravo
''Juliet Bravo'' is a British television police procedural drama series, first broadcast on 30 August 1980, that ran for six series and a total of 88 episodes on BBC1. The theme of the series concerned a female police inspector who took over control of a police station in the fictional town of Hartley in Lancashire. The lead role of Inspector Jean Darblay was played by Stephanie Turner in series 1 to 3, but in series 4 to 6 she was replaced by Anna Carteret for the role of Inspector Kate Longton. Carteret remained with the series until its demise in 1985. The series was devised by Ian Kennedy Martin, who had already enjoyed success with another police drama series, ''The Sweeney''. Although the genre of police dramas was well-established on British television by 1980, ''Juliet Bravo'' and London Weekend Television's '' The Gentle Touch'', which started a few months earlier, were the first series that saw female officers as lead characters, having to fight both crime and th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cold Open
A cold open (also called a teaser sequence) is a narrative technique used in television and films. It is the practice of jumping directly into a story at the beginning of the show before the title sequence or opening credits are shown. In American television, this is often done on the theory that involving the audience in the plot as soon as possible will reduce the likelihood of their switching from a show during the opening commercial. A cold open may also be used to recap events in previous episodes or storylines that will be revisited during the current episode. The cold open technique is sometimes used in films. There, "cold opening" still refers to the opening moments or scenes, but not necessarily to the full duration before the title card, as the title card might appear well after the start. Development In the early 1960s, few American series used cold opens, and half-hour situation comedies almost never made use of them prior to 1965. Many American series that ran f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mariachi
Mariachi (, , ) is a genre of regional Mexican music that dates back to at least the 18th century, evolving over time in the countryside of various regions of western Mexico. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, two trumpets and at least one guitar, including a high-pitched vihuela and an acoustic bass guitar called a guitarrón, and all players taking turns singing lead and doing backup vocals. From the 19th to 20th century, migrations from rural areas into Guadalajara, along with the Mexican government's cultural promotion gradually re-labeled it as ''son'' style, with its alternative name of ''mariachi'' becoming used for the 'urban' form. Modifications of the music include influences from other music such as polkas and waltzes, the addition of trumpets and the use of charro outfits by mariachi musicians. The musical style began to take on national prominence in the first half of the 20th century, with its promotion at presidenti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zorro
Zorro ( Spanish for 'fox') is a fictional character created in 1919 by American pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in works set in the Pueblo of Los Angeles in Alta California. He is typically portrayed as a dashing masked vigilante who defends the commoners and indigenous peoples of California against corrupt and tyrannical officials and other villains. His signature all-black costume includes a cape, a hat known as a , and a mask covering the upper half of his face. In the stories, Zorro has a high bounty on his head, but is too skilled and cunning for the bumbling authorities to catch, and he also delights in publicly humiliating them. Because of this, the townspeople started calling him ''"El Zorro"'' due to his foxlike cunning and charm. Zorro is an acrobat and an expert in various weapons, but the one he employs most frequently is his rapier, which he uses often to carve the initial "Z" on his defeated foes, and other objects to "sign his work". He is al ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Wanderer (Dion Song)
"The Wanderer" is a song written by Ernie Maresca and originally recorded by Dion, released on his 1961 album ''Runaround Sue''. The song, with a 12-bar blues-base verse and an eight-bar bridge, tells the story of a travelling man and his many loves. The song is ranked number 243 on the ''Rolling Stone'' magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. History Maresca had co-written Dion's previous number-one hit, " Runaround Sue", but originally intended "The Wanderer" to be recorded by another group, Nino and the Ebb Tides. They passed on it in favor of another Maresca song, so Dion was given it as the B-side of his follow-up single, "The Majestic", a song which his record company had chosen for him. The record was turned over by radio DJs who preferred "The Wanderer", which duly entered the US charts in December 1961 and rose to number 2 in early 1962 (behind " Duke of Earl" by Gene Chandler). It also reached number 10 in the UK and number one in Australia. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dion DiMucci
Dion Francis DiMucci (born July 18, 1939), better known simply as Dion, is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. His music has incorporated elements of doo-wop, pop, rock, R&B, folk and blues. Initially as the lead singer of Dion and the Belmonts, and then during his solo career, Dion was one of the most popular American rock and roll performers of the pre-British Invasion era. He had 39 Top 40 hits in the late 1950s and early 1960s as a solo performer, or with the Belmonts and the Del-Satins. He is best remembered for the singles " Runaround Sue", " The Wanderer", "Ruby Baby" and " Lovers Who Wander", among other hits. Dion's commercial popularity waned in the mid-1960s, and toward the end of the decade he shifted his style with more mature and contemplative songs, such as "Abraham, Martin and John". He remained popular in the late 1960s until the mid-1970s, and continued making music. During the 1980s, Dion produced several Christian albums, winning a GMA Dove Awar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mickey Mouse Club
''The Mickey Mouse Club'' is an American variety television show that aired intermittently from 1955 to 1996 and returned to social media in 2017. Created by Walt Disney and produced by Walt Disney Productions, the program was first televised for four seasons, from 1955 to 1959, by ABC. This original run featured a regular, but ever-changing cast of mostly teen performers. ABC broadcast reruns weekday afternoons during the 1958–1959 season, airing right after ''American Bandstand''. The show was revived three times after its initial 1955–1959 run on ABC, first from 1977 to 1979 for first-run syndication as ''The New Mickey Mouse Club'', then from 1989 to 1996 as ''The All-New Mickey Mouse Club'' (also known to fans as ''MMC'' from 1993 to 1996) airing exclusively on cable television's The Disney Channel, and again in 2017 with the moniker ''Club Mickey Mouse'' airing exclusively on internet social media. It ended in 2018. The character of Mickey Mouse appeared in every sho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
