Tuesday, 10 January 2012

I don't normally watch a lot of television, unless it's Downton Abbey. Or it's in Danish. (Anybody else vicariously enjoying all the biscuits in Borgen? I was quite put out when the PM got too fat for her frock and ordered fruit platters instead, but - tak for det - she's back on cinnamon rolls and speculoos cookies before long.)
But this has been the Dickens of a Christmas and as I sit here totting it up ...
Two David Lean epics
Dirk Bogarde in A Tale of Two Cities
Couple of episodes of the Two Cities radio serial
Great Expectations (and I think Dickens would have loved Gillian Anderson's mad, anorexic Miss Havisham)
The Mystery of Edwin Drood (which I thoroughly enjoyed as, never having read it, I hardly needed to shout at the telly at all)
And even the thoroughly irritating Sue Perkins' exposé of the Dickenses' marriage ...

I think that, in all those hours slumped on the sofa, I could probably have read one of the novels instead.
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9 comments:

  1. Mystica10 January 2012 at 20:55

    But see how much you've enjoyed the telly!

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  2. scrumptious days10 January 2012 at 21:19

    Don't forget the fabulous lampshades in Borgan!

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  3. mary10 January 2012 at 21:27

    I know, Mystica, trouble is I seem to consume more calories watching telly than when I'm reading!

    Jude, I hadn't even noticed the lampshades. I was so distracted by the biscuits and the awfulness of what Katrine wears in bed. And wondering whether it's too late to find a Danish husband ... they do seem so much more useful than English ones.

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  4. mary10 January 2012 at 21:34

    Ah, I see what you mean, Jude ... have just flicked through on iPlayer. (How sad is that!)
    And there was also some very desirable Royal Copenhagen china in one episode. I did notice that!

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  5. mary10 January 2012 at 21:48

    I'd love to have another attempt at Great Expectations, Sue ... it was ruined for me by plodding through it for A-level. And I have promised myself that this year I'll read at least one or two of the novels that I haven't attempted before. I'm drawn to Our Mutual Friend or possibly Martin Chuzzlewit. Or has anyone read Barnaby Rudge ... nobody ever seems to mention Barnaby Rudge!

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  6. Darlene10 January 2012 at 23:07

    Ooh, those biscuits would be excellent with a cup of tea! Funny name though.

    Two Saturday editions of The Daily Telegraph were presented to me at Christmas, I really enjoyed the review sections. You're right about the excellent viewing on offer lately, I say go for it!

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  7. mary11 January 2012 at 00:35

    Horrible name for someting edible. I agree, Darlene; sounds faintly gynaecological. They were selling them in M&S before Christmas at a ridiculous price that I certainly wouldn't pay for a packet of fairly plain biscuits.

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  8. rachel11 January 2012 at 11:39

    Mmmm, Dirk Bogarde.... I fell in love with him when I was about 11, still blissfully unaware of how fruitless that would be on so many levels....

    I'm re-reading Sketches by Boz (on my new Kindle, as my printed version has teeny tiny print) and enjoying it so much.

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  9. mary11 January 2012 at 12:41

    Oh dear, so many of them batted for the other side, Rachel, and we never guessed ...
    And Sketches by Boz is another one that I've never read.

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