What to watch – or not – on TV, from the Chinese Miss Fisher to The Cube to Gogglebox

By Bobi


Hello, RTV watchers. Firstly, the good news. Hot cross buns have been available at my local supermarket since all the kiddies went back to school. 

The bad news is that there is still nothing to watch on television. The world has fallen to a new low when we have to suffer through a resuscitated version of Wife Swap. Fftt.

Idk, déjà vu. So I can make this update quick. 

I haven’t been watching much. 

TAR has been such a disappointment (and I had such high hopes), and generally, the News is so depressing that I have moved into avoidance mode. 

And let’s not discuss my current non-existent ability to concentrate.  

Still, ever the optimist, I have a long list of TV shows that I am going to line up and fast forward through. The ads on Channel 10 assure me that I am going to have a fabulous and exciting time. I should be so lucky. Please. 

Remembering that I haven’t watch any of the following, this is my To Do list. 

Andy Lee’s The Cube (Ch 10): Haven’t we had something like this before and wasn’t it okay? 
Mega Zoo (Ch 9): Who doesn’t love a show about zoos. London Zoo (ABC) was such a lovely show and The Zoo (ABCMe) is a delight. The antici … pation. 

Miss S (SBS): This is the Chinese version of Phryne Fisher and I love Miss Fisher. Actually, I really love the fashion but close enough. 
Barrenjoey Road (SBS): I’m not sure about this one. It is a true crime and it may be a bit much for me at the moment. The podcast had excellent reviews. Maybe someone else can give it a go and just tell me about it. 
Why are you like this? (ABC): I was eavesdropping in a cafe on someone who liked it very much. It’s a comedy. That’s two ticks. ✅✅
Aftertaste (ABC): The same group of people liked this show. There was much discussion but the consensus seemed to be that the lead character’s behaviour bears more than a passing resemblance to Manu. Sounds good to me. 
Staged – Series 2 (ABC): I enjoyed the first series very much. Mind you, I think I am the only one. No one else in my circle thought it was worth more than a passing glance. It was supposed to be a one-off so they could seriously muck it up.

Aaaand, Gogglebox: I have always loved this show. It brings me joy. ‘Nuff said. 

I know it seems like a lot and I have no life, but, if this year’s viewing habits are anything to go by, I’m going to last a minute and half through each and every show. If the tv gods are kind, one of these shows will catch and hold my attention till I get to the end. Fingers crossed.

However, I consider it highly unlikely and therefore I would welcome any further suggestions. 

We wait. 



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136 Comments

  1. Since the stupid tennis disrupted my viewing plans tonight – with a match for which the outcome is known – , I enjoyed a very old rerun of Spicks and Specks. I’m going to iView to watch some episodes of Bluey now. Then…find a book to re-read.

    I will give The Cube a try, but it isn’t the type of show I usually like. Mega Zoo appeals and I will watch any show about animals if it’s on fta. Even SBS Food channel is boring lately, too many eps of River Cottage and Gourmet Farmer, both of which I detest.

    So, I agree, there is still very little worth watching. Off now to Bluey, since she and her family always cheer me up.

    What is your doggo asking for in that pic, Bobi? Or is he just sleeping with his eyes open?

    • I was eating a flavoured yoghurt and he was waiting for me to finish so that he could lick the container. It keeps him entertained for minutes.
      He is so lazy he couldn’t be bothered moving from his sleeping position.

    • Funny how we are all different. River cottage and Gourmet Farmer are about the only things I will watch on that channel. My pet hate is chefs travelling all over the world and analysing the food, or cooking in exotic locations. I much prefer 7Flix for cooking shows.

    • I am with you on the travel/cook shows. They are a poor excuse for a tourism show. I learn zero cooking skills and I have “views” about some elements of overseas tourism.
      I quite like River Cottage but I hate Gourmet Farmer.
      I love GBBO and The Family Cooking Show.
      Lord, can we have a break from The Cook and the Chef?

      • Me, three, on travel cooking shows. I much prefer shows that cook something I could feasibly make myself, even if I have no intention of doing so. On Netflix I like the two shows by the delightful Nadiya, who won GBBO a few years ago. And the Chef Show, because it mixes cooking with chefs’ stories of working in kitchens. And not just fancy chefs but guys who run food trucks

  2. “TAR has been such a disappointment (and I had such high hopes), and generally, the News is so depressing that I have moved into avoidance mode.”

    Agreed on all points.

    I watched a lot of CNN while America was being America, and over the Christmas period, I tried to catch the news as often as I could, but I think it’s reached a point where, I’ve just had enough. The vaccine is here in Australia but thousands (apparently) of people were marching through the capitals to protest against the vaccine being mandatory (except, it’s not mandatory and never was. So, who the hell knows what they were protesting about?).

    I definitely haven’t been watching much TV. My aunt recommended “Sanditon” to me, earlier in the year, and I managed to record all the episodes of the first series, but I haven’t made the time to sit down and watch them yet (and I should, because one of my television highlights from last year was “Belgravia”, which I loved).

    The movies continue to be a write-off. “Wonder Woman 1984” was crushingly-disappointing (my friends and I went to a burger bar and then went to see it in a big cinema, back when it first came out). But I’m really looking forward to “Godzilla vs King Kong” when it comes out in March … because it’s Godzilla fighting King Kong. I’ll be there opening day.

    • My friend is a mad Sanditon fan so I have promised to watch it. At the moment I am loving The Great, a black comedy loosely based on the life of Catherine the Great. It’s set in ye olden times Russia so there is much “huzzah-ing” and glass smashing. Nicholas Holt co-stars and he is brilliant in everything, from About a Boy to Skins to Warm Bodies. We are also watching WandaVision and it’s the most interested I’ve been in a Marvel offering in ages.

  3. Every time I see the ads for The Cube I think it is a rip-off of Minute to Win It. Ironically, Minute to Win it seems to be a retro youth thing at the moment. I keep hearing it mentioned, and they keep devising challenges “minute-to-win-it style”.

    Juz, I loved the first bits of Staged that I have watched. I have it on the to-watch list, but anything that requires watching on streaming is such an effort that I forget and just go to the recorded shows. But I will definitely watch Staged right through, it is my sort of British humour.

    Aftertaste is waiting on the PVR – a treat of delayed gratification. Sanditon is also on my to-watch, but purely because it looks like my style. Maybe it won’t grab me.

    Anything crime is an automatic no, unless it is twee-style crime like Midsomer Murders or Death in Paradise. Even then, I have to be in the mood.

    Like others, the news has gone pretty much. In the morning, I watch five minutes of the bulletin and that is it. DH likes to watch the 6pm news but even he now only watches to the first ad break and then wanders away. The problem for me is that the commercial news is often inane and full of celebrity non-news, and where I used to love the ABC news, in the past few years it has diminished so that there are only four basic topics, repeated and inserted into every possible story.

    My absolute addiction at the moment is “Mum”. What a little gem of a series. I think about it all week, waiting…waiting for the tiny 25 minute episode. I even got the theme music onto my phone. I really want to go back to the start because I only discovered it mid-season 3, but you can’t get it anywhere. It was on iview (as are the current episodes) but iview only keeps their shows for a fraction of time before they disappear, and the best of their shows are UK ones and not on any streaming service.

    I am not a fan of zoo shows – please don’t disown me – but I love the animal warning sign above. Best laugh today so far.

    • Mum!!!! I love, love this show. So beautifully understated. I didn’t know it was back on and I will put it at the top of list. I am sure they will repeat it at some time in the future. It is ageless.
      I started watching Season 2 of Staged. So far, it is better than Season 1. It is laugh out loud.

  4. We just finished 2 seasons of Castle Rick. Not bad considering the TV series drought we are having. I would give season 1 an 8 and season 2 between a 7 and an 8.
    Now we are watching The Outsider. So far it appears to be an 8…maybe even 9.
    They are both Stephen King but not real horror. You can watch them without being scared.

    • I saw s1 Castle Rock and quite enjoyed it and a few eps of S2 (I do like Lizzy Caplan in everything she does) so will have to get back into it.

  5. I watched 3 minutes of The Cube. It was okay. I didn’t hate it. I would just rather watch something else.
    Maybe it’s one of those shows that is better for being sampled progressively as the night goes on.

      • He might do.
        It is fun and there is zero smut. And it is heavily into slo-mo so there is no possibility of missing the action.
        But it might get a little bit repetitive. They have 9 lives so they get 9 chances at repeating each challenge.
        And there’s no competitive edge to the show. They are competing for money so much discussion about should we take the money and go. With the answer being yes, obviously.
        If he likes Survivor, my guess is that he would prefer Ultimate Tag. I am looking forward to this one. I think it would press more of my buttons.

  6. The new Bachelor has been announced.
    So, firstly, yes, I know, I am as shallow as it’s possible to be.
    Secondly, I don’t like his face. He has mean eyes.
    (I’m not even going to touch on my view of guys who use dogs in their profile pics *eye roll*).
    Thirdly, he is an ex-model. Fftt. Can we not?
    This has the finger prints of producers all over it and it’s not going to go well.
    I will take all bets up front.

    • I hate to say this, in case he reads here, but he does have an unpleasant face, like a young Charles Bronson.

    • Doesn’t look like he’s reached the age of consent. Plus he looks about as comfortable in that suit as Christian Porter did at his press conference yesterday.

    • Heh, well I guess we’ve told him!

      He doesn’t look relaxed in either of those pictures. Nice dog though.

    • Okay. I’ll forgive him that one.
      If The Price Is Right is all he’s done, no wonder he looks uncomfortable.

    • I had a huge, huge crush on one of the male models on the original series that was airing on channel 9 when I was a kid. Frank Raco. He was a defining moment in young Windsong’s life. He played a bit-part on Neighbours for a while, too. He’s apparently a web designer now.

      Actually, looking him up on Twitter, he’s a really cool guy. I love it when your childhood crushes actually turn out to be really decent people. It’s reaffirming.

  7. I have been watching a bit too much News lately.
    I watched The Drum tonight. Chanel Contos, the young lass who started collecting the sexual assault stories on instagram, was on. She is seriously impressive: well-spoken, clear, confident and considered. When I was her age I was a mumbly, shy, inarticulate blot.
    I think that there might be something about the way children are brought up these days that was lacking in my time. It gives me hope.

    • Right now, I’m feeling that watching any tv news is watching too much news. I had some on earlier tonight. Then film of the military shooting protesters in Myanmar came on, and that just broke me.

      I will limit myself to newspapers for a few days.

  8. I can recommend Pembrokeshire Murders from the two episodes I saw last night. I only slid into the show after watching Billy Connolly, but I was hooked after a few minutes.

    Tonight I’m trying out Mega Zoo – am usually a sucker for any animal show.

  9. I can’t imagine why anyone would want to watch the two-hour whine fest from the Sussexes tonight, but no doubt there will be some people who are interested.

    Whoever you are, whatever your job, unless your family dramas adversely affect others, it’s really tacky to air your dirty linen in public.

    • I had dinner, took a nice bath, and watched some old Westerns on “YouTube”, actually. I know my family will be watching, but I just don’t care about these people at all. I wish them no harm as human beings, but beyond that, I just don’t care, no.

    • Anne was always my favourite royal.
      “Never complain, never explain”.
      And a bath and utube sounds delightful.

    • Von, although I am going to find her.entitled whining unbearable, I will try to watch just because it’s going to be talked about.

      But Von, like you, I am finding myself going, “Uggghhh” and walking away from the RV lately.

      • I won’t be watching, but couldn’t help but hear some of what they said. As Bobi said in another thread,the interview was being reported as news although it is basically gossip, and only from one party’s side.

        But I wonder if they’ll regret the interview in 10 – 15 years time, when they have to explain to their children, who will see this, why they went public with these accusations. Especially the one about the family supposedly discussing how dark Archie’s skin would be. I realise that bi-racial families have to talk to their children about matters that others are privileged enough to never consider. But why, why, would you make public an unproven statement from their extended family that will be so hurtful to your children?

        Enough.

        • As much as I hate myself for agreeing with the odious and obnoxious British press … I found myself nodding along, in silent agreement, at a British headline a little while ago. “Woman Who Demands Privacy Announces to 7 Billion People That She’s Pregnant.”

          I just thought, actually, yeah, that’s actually a good point.

        • I tried to avoid anything but the media saturation has made it almost impossible.
          And it’s almost impossible not to focus mostly on the idiotic statements. Like, she thought meeting the Queen was going to be similar to meeting Kris Jenner. That is such a nonsensical thing to say that it makes me doubt eVeRYtHinG that comes out of her mouth.
          Which is sad because if she was having dark thoughts then that would have been something legitimate to focus on.
          How can you say that the trapping of privilege mean nothing to you (because you are such a down-to-earth, independent woman) and then complain that your son is not going to be a prince and your FIL is depriving you of all the things that only he can buy.
          People will take out of this what they will depending upon their leanings but my overall take on this is all ugly and personal and should be private.
          Oprah should be ashamed. Journalist, my fat foot.
          Bridges have been burned and that’s on Harry. Idiot.
          Meaghan can tell porkies because she knows that the Royal Family has a policy of keeping quiet.
          This is about money.
          But I didn’t watch because I am a judgy mcjudgeface 🤣.

  10. I found the whole interview somewhat frustrating. There were so many double standards in the interview….
    I think Harry genuinely thinks he is doing the right thing by his family, and I totally understand what he is trying to do. He naturally would be suffering from his mothers death. He was such a young boy and it would be playing on his mind.
    I think Oprah’s interviewing skills left a lot to be desired. The interview was a soft conversation between friends. There was no mention of Meghans family. I felt she guided the conversation into a racist debate.
    Harry said that he had always been independent and worked. Yet he said if it wasnt for Dianna’s money he wouldnt be able to have moved.
    I thought the piece about Kate making Meghan cry was just an overreaction. I mean who hasnt had touchy words with an inlaw..
    For Meghan to say that she knew nothing about the Royals, I call BS. She was friends with Fergie and her girls.
    I dont think the interview has won many over to H and M side.

    • Good comment, Sandii.
      And yeah, I wasn’t buying either.
      I mean who says, “I want to be authentic”, while feeding chooks with perfectly done hair? 🤣🤣🤣

      And yeah, Windsong, setting her kids up for rifts with both families. Sad.

    • Re Harry being scarred by his mother’s death, of course he is, as is every child who loses their parent through death or divorce. But I think we have to remember that he was so young that very few of his “memories” are his own. Most of what he knows about Diana has been told to him, and gleaned from a million sources of the media. Compared to William, who seems to be balanced about it, Harry has a huge vendetta against the media (and possibly his family) whom he believes hounded Diana. Whether they did or not is hotly debated, but he has no firsthand knowledge and his attitude is therefore a product of hearsay.

      That is very sad, because he will never know the truth, and he is making life-changing decisions based on shaky ground.

  11. Where the hell is the logic that discussing the colour of your child’s or grandchild’s skin is racist. To me NOT being able to discuss it is racist, as if there is something wrong or shameful in being tanned.
    Grandparents always say things like, “Will he have Charles’s ears?”

    I haven’t seen much yet but wasn’t she like Paris on B&B, purring sweetly that she didn’t want to throw Zoe, I mean Kate under the bus, while throwing Kate under the bus and saying she was a “Good person”. She made sure that the insightful would think she wasn’t saying bad things about people. That’s how to slag someone off while wiping the cream from your pretty lips.

    I’m not royalist but she has a pattern of disrespect and ingratitude for family.

    • “Will the unborn be a paedophile, like Andrew?”

      The thickness of the child’s skin would be of more concern than the colour.

      I haven’t watched it, but following the bloodbath afterwards.

      • 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Dave. I heard her say, they were racist towards her but when asked to give details, she declined, “That would be painting them in a bad light”. So only half paint them racist and leave the rest to people’s Imaginations.
        Seems to me she’s cashing in because I go to the beach to get browner than she is.

    • 🤣🤣
      Suddenly Harry reminds me of Liam; that gormless look on his face as he tries to emit empathy and hurt at the same time.

      • Harry will need a large mop. They might want to do that paternity test now. Call Vinnie. He’ll fix it.

  12. Agree Daisy. She was definitely passive aggressive about Kate. Thought it was totally over the top. “she made me cry because she hurt my feelings about the bridesmaid dresses”… “but she apologised and I forgave her”
    I assume all family members of mixed race babies all have bets on the colour of the skin. We did…. gender, name, hair colour, skin colour and yes, ear size … its all wonderful

    • Yes. With our half Japanese grandkids we discussed how Japanese they looked it didn’t look. It’s part of their heritage and no one sees it as a bad thing.

    • This was the most bizarre part, how the media jumped on that statement (and the fake look of horror on Oprah’s face). All you say, I agree with, and I add that this sort of comment can be quite lovingly and innocently said. Like the speculation about eye colour etc. It seems to me that America is so raw about the race injustices of the past, that they have lost the discernment to judge fairly about anything to do with it.

  13. They had to ask about the colour of Archie’s skin to avoid the more important question, “Will he have Jame’s Hewitt’s freckles?”

  14. Thank you everyone for addressing this one. I didn’t want to go there because I might just possibly be a middle-class entitled “Karen” but I never understood all the focus on racist comments.
    I never saw any, I never heard any, and I never thought about it because I never thought of Meaghan looking any different to my neighbours, friends or even my own family – We have oriental eyes. We just roll with it *boom-tish*.
    I kept wondering about what it was that I was missing. You know, the old am-I-a-casual-racist problem?
    I get that if you grow up bi-racial in America you might have every right to be hypersensitive but it seems to be that she, and her friends, were/are playing the race card very, very, hard at every opportunity and in a more Look Over There kind of way.
    Maybe there is something about the chasm between her high expectations and reality? America is a very hierarchical, based on money, society (Hence the, do not talk to *celebrity* or look them in the eye instructions). Maybe she thought she was going to be treated as something extra special rather than just like all the other -except Andrew- working royals. She was told it was going to be a tough job but maybe she didn’t hear because her ears were too weighed down by all that blood-bling (sorry, sorry, trying not to be bitchy but resistance is futile).
    Mind you, I am no longer a purchaser of newspapers and magazines so maybe it was all there in front of me if I had paid attention and assuming I lived in England.
    I just remember how delighted everyone was that she was on the scene and what a breathe of fresh air they thought she was going to be. What a missed opportunity. They could have done so much good. Now they are going to have to do speaking engagements, until the marriage falls apart and then I’ll bet money on another tell-all I’m-still-the-victim book.
    I have a vague suspicion that I am being a little unfair. Maybe this is Harry’s fault. He should have sat her down and said, “Here’s the job description. It’s a 24 hour, 365 day a year thankless job for which you will get me, and so much money you can barely breath. And you will be the least most important person in the room, always. Seriously. Your call”.
    But to end on a cheery note, we, too, always had those conversations: was the baby going to have our olive skin, our skinny eyes, the in-laws flat nose, tall, short, curly hair etc. So much anticipation, so much fun.

    • Having dealt with the dregs of humanity on many, many occasions (and still, after all these years, being surprised at the sheer volume of them) …

      I would believe, in a heart-beat, the story that Harry and the Royal Family were receiving death threats from white supremacists and Neo-Nazis over the horror of diluting the royal blood-line by having children with someone with African-American heritage. Absolutely I would believe that, because for some reason, these ideas of genetic heritage are important to some people.

      Thoroughly awful peole. But the point stands.

      And I can absolutely imagine that Harry would’ve never even considered this, because he’s a rich, white, straight prince and naturally, he’s never encountered this sort of nonsense before (and it had naturally just never been on his radar). I imagine that sort of thing would’ve been a wake-up call to the kid, a first-hand glimpse at just how horrible bigotry can be.

      In terms of Meghan, I just keep coming back to the idea that a person can be both a victim and a toxic selfish jerk, all at the same time. I absolutely feel like she was mistreated by people, while at the same time, she’s an attention-seeking narcissist who thought she could take on the whole world … and bit off more than she could chew.

      • Yeah, well there is that. But wasn’t she actually pointing the finger at Harry’s family.

        Of course there are always freaks who think we must all be Arian.

      • Good comment, WS, and a needed insight into the other side of the issues.

        In regards to your last comment, I believe she has the narcissism problem and in her it translates to “I have all the skills and all the knowledge to right all the wrongs in the world”. So, she went into the job not with the service attitude but how she could use the platform (like Diana) to further her favourite causes. The rubber hit the road for her in two ways – 1. that she was deterred from using the platform as she wanted, and 2. that after the wedding she was placed back in the spot her marriage entitled her ie behind the Queen and all her biological family, behind Will and Kate and their children.

        Unfortunately, we have a “Meghan” in our family who has caused (and continues to cause) huge hurt to all of us, by acting in exactly the same “it is all about me” attitude. The lies she peddles through SM are couched in the same way as Meghan did in the interview, and we all sat there thinking we were watching our family member, in a bird-spattered dress.

        • Although I tried to avoid conflict, respecting boundaries etc, etc, for differing reasons we wound up with 2 of them , Fijane, and they have badly used the kids to hurt us.
          So yeah, “The Queen and I will be fine” 🤣

  15. I thought Meghan (or Megs as she is referring to herself as) was very popular in the beginning. People were genuinely overjoyed that Harry had found happiness. There were no negative comments at the time. I think people were taking notice when there seemed to be a rift between the two adoring brothers. I think that William and Kate have proved themselves to be hard working, grounded people and particularly parents. I remember Kate having to deal with a lot to start with as well …watey Katey. Her weight, her parents, were also open for public discussion. She has certainly handled it all with grace.

  16. We are a multicultural/ multi racial family. Always have been. And we are also a bunch of comedians. We joke about anything. The only one who rolls her eyes is our SAfrican Dil, but she doesn’t find anything funny.

    My policy is, “This is Australia. If I DON’T tease you, I don’t like you. I only tease people I like, otherwise it could be offensive.

      • It’s such a delicate subject. I never know when I have overstepped these days. Life was so much easier when I was young and less was expected of me.
        Maybe you’re overthinking it? I understood what you meant.
        Sarcasm is built into my family’s DNA. I am forever saying I didn’t mean it like that to other people. You would think that I would learn but no.

  17. I have tuned into Ultimate Tag a couple of times for a couple of minutes. I wish I liked this show more.
    There’s nothing not to like, except it doesn’t hold my attention.
    Maybe it’s too long, too repetitive. Maybe I am not the demographic.
    I am sad.

  18. I am wondering what I am missing?
    The media is talking about the interview as a revelation, with bombshells, like there was something here we didn’t know, fftt. Apparently it is the best interview Oprah has ever down, fftt, a masterpiece. I’m running out of fftts.
    H & M have “escaped” but Dad is being vindictive by refusing to continue to pay millions of pounds in security costs in a foreign country … forever. Why am I the only one who has picked up on the contradiction with H&M saying that their son was not going to get security?
    Poor Meaghan and Harry are such nice people because they can still empathise with those that remain “trapped” in the Firm. Cry me a river from the drudgery of my position of having to work for a living in jobs that didn’t exactly thrill me.
    Evil Charles and Queenie are refusing to take phone calls, for a week. If my family were unavailable for a week, I would assume they were busy. I am doubting that H&M were ringing to discuss the weather.
    You get my drift.
    The only criticism I hear is on this tiny forum, and from Piers Morgan who is a bit out there on a good day.
    All I see is two entitled people complaining that FIL is refusing to support their new lifestyle and why can’t they get any pRivAcY and, out of spite, they will take their grandchild(ren) away and never talk to anyone again until they get ReSPecT.
    Yes, I know, I can hear WS and I do know that, on balance, his summation is right, but still I feel like ranting.
    What I don’t get is why it’s only being said here?
    I am a little enraged.
    It might be because it’s been a tough couple of weeks, what with people dying in Myanmar, all the focus on how badly the Government is dealing with women’s issues (Bless Barnaby Joyce for keeping his mouth shut just this once), and how it is possible to stuff up a straight forward inquiry into retirement homes – again.
    I, too, am sad for Charles, my second least favourite royal (well, third now), because he has lost a son, and the Queen has lost a grandson and a great-grandson, and those people have lost cousins, and life-long friends, and the list goes on.
    All family stuff and all because two entitled people believe they were entitled to even more.
    Okay, I am more than a little enraged. I am a lot enraged.
    I am enraged on behalf of “family” but I think mostly I am enraged because there are more important things to be enraged about than a temper tantrum thrown by some second rate American actress and her no-longer-royal husband and it so much sympathetic airtime from the media.
    I am not chill today.

    • Harry can howl about racism as much as he likes. He’s on record using a disparaging term for Middle Easterm people and was photographed wearing a Nazi uniform. He’s on thin ice.

    • Bobi, you aren’t the only one who picked up on the contradiction/hypocrisy of still wanting security….and wanting to keep their titles, whole calling the institution toxic.

      How about globally slagging of her husband’s family while his grandad lies dying. While the Queen’s husband lies dying. She has spoken has if she is above them and her words have been like a poison pen; “Kate apologized for what she did, and she’s a good person”= “I am a good person for saying this nicely”

      A friend asked me how I was today and I replied, “The Queen and I will get through this”.
      This ungrateful opportunist has pi**ed on all the Queen’s life work, and it must hurt knowing Harry is in her clutches.

      Can you find a good pick for that Bobi. And I’ll find or draw one of Madam taking out the Royal trash, holding her nose. 🤣

    • Think or say what you like about the Royal Family, they got the Dil from hell. Bobi, like you I see so much hypocrisy and I find her condescending disdain for Harry’s family and her choice to express that on global media disgusting. If you have a problem talk to them privately. It was the media who attacked Meghan, not the Royal family.
      In the beginning she was lived by the Royal family, the media and the public. Her ethnicity did not affect her being liked and her ethnicity did not change.

    • Bobi, I don’t see much SM apart from a few very select forums (like this) but the Aussies on-the-street who have mentioned the interview to me all agree with you to some extent, or couldn’t care less.

      I see a big UK versus US thing in the responses. And when I remind myself that the US is a country who thinks Serena Williams is a good role model, well that explains a lot. And Aussies look at this whole mess, and can’t understand a country who reveres actors of any calibre (we cut them down to size instead) and “celebrities” like the Kardashians (of whom we ask “what have they done?”).

      In light of the way the US brain seems to work, it seems to me that it wouldn’t matter what Meghan said, her words would be hailed as honey dripping from flowers. She is American, an actor (of sorts), and can claim black heritage (after she tells people, because she looks anglo), and on every count that makes her a hero to them.

  19. The Royal Firm must be delighted for the distraction from Pedo Prince’s pedoing.

    But the racism issue they brought up, we have to keep in mind that this is a far bigger topic in the US. The way things are handled are so different to what we do in Europe, or Australia. And yes, I would find it extremely questionable to inquire about the baby’s skin colour. It is disrespectful. Although Oprah’s reaction, wow, she’s BAD. At acting suprised AND and interviewing people.
    The headlines regarding Meghan were horrible, she got shit for the same stuff Kate did, who was praised for it. And yes, it had racist undertones.

    I don’t like Meghan and Harry, or anyone from those Royals, but let’s face it, there was this Nazi daughter (she’s German and claims she never knew her father was a SS officer. Sure Jan, sure…) who married a cousin of Lizzy II and wore a Blackamoor brooch when she met Meghan the first time. What a coincidence…?
    In the end they are all inbred, extremely privileged, racist people. Good for Harry (guess he changed quite a bit compared to his own Nazi ambitions in the past) to realize it and leave. But please, stay out of the limelight…

    PS: The best thing that happened during all of this is this mothertucking Piers Morgan getting called out. And storming off the set. Love it.
    https://twitter.com/nowthisnews/status/1369496482953396229

    • Oh yes, seeing Piers Morgan spit the dummy and leave off is the best thing to happen in this mess. He’s a real bottom feeder.

    • I am calm now and moving rapidly back into disinterested mode. Mind you, if it is still the first headline tomorrow morning, I could be triggered.
      I hear what you are saying though and I take your point (s).
      I am glad to get agreement on Oprah and Piers (come join me in my bubble).
      I love The Brady Bunch reference. What an awful woman to have worn that broach.
      And I especially like Pedo Prince’s pedoing.
      I still think though that with all the goodwill that was being sent Meg’s way, she should have seized the opportunity. Katie put up with cr*p for years and came out the other side incredibly respected, just as one example (Not saying it was right but you have to keep your eye on the prize). Meg didn’t have to put up with much of that. She and H were beloved from the get-go. All that political capital wasted.
      I remember all the good that Diana did for AIDS awareness, mental health awareness, and the list goes on. H&M could have continued all that good work. What impact are now? People are going to be more entrenched in their views and the occasional voice over for a Netflix wildlife documentary is going to nothing to change that.
      There are no winners here.

      • Oh yeah, and I forgot…Oprah dragged herself through the mud, feeding off a nasty situation like a vulture.

      • Bobi, I, too, have run out of ffftts to give. You may be triggered again tomorrow. I got home from shopping, turned on the tv news, and they were still rabbiting on about the interview. Opened up the news.com.au page just now and there were six articles about it. Enough already, media. Stop.

        Harry needs to grow up and stop blaming every unpleasant thing in his life on how his mother was treated. William lost his mother too. It was sad for them, of course, but it was 20-something years ago. Move on. She was not a saint.

        Meghan – is not a good enough actress to convince me she had no idea what life in the royal family would be like. One last pffftt and a severe eye roll from me for her.

        Both of them need to step back and consider how all this bridge-burning and alienation of family will affect their children. Or, you know, just shut the fuck up. The world has plenty of more important things to consider than their hurt feelings.

        The queen put out a response today, and every single word is being analyzed over what it meant. It meant what it said. What did everyone think her response would be, groveling apologies and begging for forgiveness? Ha. She is the adult in the room.

        • Von, love it. Yes she wants to tell us that on the one hand she was naive, then the next minute a strong woman with a voice to be a spokesperson.

          Haha, if she had no idea about the Royal family, she could have googled…or looked at a women’s magazine. 😝

      • Oh, they could have used the goodwill in the beginning indeed. My guess is though that Harry always tried to get away from the Royal Firm, he knew he will never be anywhere close to getting the throne anyway. Meghan was the perfect excuse to get away. The problem only was those two dimwits thought they can keep all benefits and the money but still step down. Fact is, those two aren’t smart enough to properly pull this off.^^^

        Regarding the racism again, I think it also depends a bit on the generation, I am a Millenial, like Harry and Meghan etc. We have a bit of different views and I think we are much more triggered and try to be “politically correct”. 🙂 But trust me, Generation Z is far worse, they try to cancel EVERYTHING from Friends over Eminem to Skinny Jeans (don’t you dare and take away my Skinnies and try to make me wear carrot mom jeans!!!). In my specific case I worked for an American company for years and I did support customers from ANZ and the US. The difference between you guys was astounding. I could actually tell Australians that they themselves caused the issue and how to fix it. But you could NEVER tell someone from the US something like that. They immediately felt bullied and treated unfairly. And this was also the case with racial insensitivity. I grew up with “Nazis are bad, you are German, don’t be a Nazi!”, but the US stuff was so much more… nuanced. Sometimes it drove me crazy because even though I was always really strict and see “Arsehole” as an insult while most of my co workers did nit, the US harassments we had to investigate after they were reported, were next level. I learnt a lot about what you can say in the US and what you should avoid.

  20. Regarding Meghan, I actually got into a little fight with someone on Facebook who believes the theories about Queen Charlotte being a black woman are completely true. In my opinion, without DNA proof, it is just that, a pretty awesome theory.
    Even if this theory was true, between the supposed black woman and Charlotte are 500 years. And during that time, the bloodline was so watered down, she simply was German…
    I would like the idea of a biracial queen in the 18th century, but given her whole line of ancestry, she simply would not be biracial. *eye roll* The problem is now that thanks to Bridgerton, some people really believe she was black.
    https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/5-things-you-didnt-know-about-queen-charlotte-180967373/

    We are basically all Africans anyway as this was the continent where our earliest modern human ancestor lived.

  21. The conclusion of the Pembrokeshire Murders tonight was interesting. The dramatization went through finding further evidence against Cooper, and the trial and guilty verdicts.

    The rest of the show had interviews with the cops and forensic people who actually worked the case, film of some of Cooper’s interrogations, more details of the evidence, and some facts that were glossed over a bit in the dramatization. That part gave me the creeps, and made me feel so much more for the victims than the tv version did. It was an effective way to wind up a show about a murderer.

  22. Any Taskmaster fans here? I flicked on SBS last night and they were playing Taskmaster Norway. This is their “Greg” and “Alex”.

      • Bobi, I just watched an episode of Taskmaster Champion of Champions on SBS On Demand. It’s from pre-Covid

        • Thank you.
          I found the Norwegian one difficult to watch.
          I don’t have a problem with foreign films, etc but I do have a tendency to watch mainly French, Italian and German because I have a smattering of the languages so I can easily flick between the images and the subtitles.
          Norwegian is something else again. I had to keep rewinding to follow the storylines.
          Or else, it genuinely wasn’t as funny as the English version. I will persist.
          Champion of Champions is just lovely.

  23. I started the evening watching WA election results. I didn’t have to watch for very long, although I was surprised the ABC guy called the result so early.

    I almost feel sorry for Zak Kirkup. Almost. He seemed to like it under the bus, since that’s where he threw his colleagues, his party, and ultimately himself four weeks ago. It was cringey watching his fellow Libs trying very hard not to call his actions those of an effing idiot as they watched the bloodbath progress.

      • Mark was circumspect about polls results over the past few weeks. But he, understandably, couldn’t help but wear a big grin last night after the election results were obvious. As did I.

    • I sat up and watched the coverage for a little while before I went to bed, last night.

      Mostly because I remember thinking, the Murdoch press just *loves* it when conservative political parties get utterly smashed. And this was just a one-sided annihilation. Yikes.

      My take, and YMMV, is that a lot of the time, oppositions will look for answers to explain a result, and they’ll tend to focus on single issues (because it’s an easier way to digest the result). But I definitely think there are bigger pictures with these sorts of things.

      This result? It wasn’t entirely about how McGowan handled covid, but, surely that had a part in people’s thinking. And I doubt it was a rejection of the dumpster-fire that is the current federal LNP … but, again, surely that had a part in people’s thinking.

      • I haven’t voted Labour since about 1976 and I didn’t even contemplate anyone but MM in this election. It wasn’t even a vote for Labour but a vote for the man who “closed” the borders and stood firm in the face of fire from Slomo, Gladys, Clive and a small section of WA residents.

        From reading MM’s FB, it looks like there were many other 1st time Labour votes who did the same thing for the same reason.

        Also there was no way in hell Liberal could have won it. There attitude toward covid has been, “Open the borders”.

      • It is funny how covid has divided Australia in its opinions about state premiers. Eighteen months ago, I couldn’t have named the SA, NT, WA or TAS premiers, and I am a relatively politically involved person. Yet, now, on my part of the eastern seaboard, Anastacia is viewed as an alarmist who ruined her state’s economy and now wants to be bailed out. And MM, from WA, is usually spoken of within the context of a joke, as in the nervous-nancy who slams the door shut if he hears a sneeze in Vic. He would never have been re-voted in here.

        Seeing the result over the weekend was quite baffling, although I suppose we can understand the need to feel safe, and how powerful it is if you can claim to be the person who created the safety.

        I think in the wake of covid that it is doubtful whether any of the oppositions will be able to win their next election. The Victorian one might be able to if they can find a new strong, charismatic leader before the election. The current man burned his reputation by refusing to work in a bipartisan way when they were at their lowest point.

    • I felt sorry for the Libs too. It was an humiliating defeat. But it was far more about MM winning, than them losing, although they didn’t even look good against the Nationals. Hatred for Slomo might have something to do with that.

      • Newspoll today has the libs dropping 3% primary vote (influenced by the current women’s issues), but ScoMo’s preferred PM still sits at 62% (slight drop of 2%). I’m not sure that the negative view is as widespread as it might appear.

  24. Mary Berry is back on Tuesday nights with a new season.
    I am feeling a warm glow in my stomach region just thinking about it.

    • I’m feeling hunger pangs just thinking about it. She makes everything look so easy that I want to run out and buy the ingredients of everything she makes.

  25. In my circle, all the Premiers are spoken of with respect. Even old Gladdy, but in a half hearted way: tough job, done reasonably well and better than the alternative. Minor hiccups everywhere *shrug* but no-one’s perfect.
    The vote for Federal is still split, unmovingly, along party lines. No great fondness for ScoMo (even less for Dutton and that other guy) but no desire to punish the Government during tough times. Governments lose elections, Opposition doesn’t win them.
    As an aside, there is a belief that Christian Porter was always going to lose his seat at the next election. The only guy who didn’t know was Christian. McCormack is an idiot but has to be tolerated – like Barnaby.
    Tolerance everywhere during these “unprecedented times”.

  26. Did I miss something on Gogglebox tonight? It was advertised as a special episode. While I didn’t pay much attention while they were watching that bloody Sussex interview, I did see the rest of the show and there was nothing special, unusual or astounding. Anyone?

    • I didn’t watch.
      If I don’t give a stuff about the Sussexes, then it follows that I don’t give.a stuff about anyone else’s opinion of the interview.
      The media are really overdoing with this one. There mustn’t be anything else on telly 🤣🤣🤣.

      • No, I can’t believe it’s still a thing.

        Facebook keeps recommending threads, to me, where people are still talking about the Sussexes, and, it’s been more than a week, and I just don’t care anymore. It’s like, damn Facebook, c’mon.

  27. I was looking for a particular item that I was pretty sure I could find in the comments on a TTV General Chat from around the time the pandemic was declared.

    I scrolled through some chats and found what I was after. Then, because there is nothing worth watching on tv tonight, I started reading some of our comments. My plan to keep a journal of the pandemic lasted about two days, but TTV comments threads turned out to be an informative and interesting journal of how things progressed from last March to now. So many emotions were there, from mild consternation, to worry, to distress, to anger, and back and forth.

    Of course, there were some personal misfortunes and sad events, too. I don’t mean to minimize those, but aside from them, we’re almost a little pandemic history channel.

    • Bobi, your loss from around that time still made me sad. Your little old boy just touched something in me.

      • Hi. Thank you.
        I am feeling a little sad. He was a beautiful boy and I still expect to see him when I walk into the room. Some dogs just get closer to you than others and he was one of those.

    • Adding to your journal, there is some good news and some bad news here.
      My brother and his partner have had the COVID vaccination (India), and they are about to wing there way home.
      They are coming home for a family emergency but still, home.

      • Ah, not my family emergency. That was a poorly worded sentence in this forum. Sorry.
        His partner’s mother is ill, so not great news. It gets them on a plane.

        • At least they’ve had their vaccinations and can get home.

          Spoke to my pharmacist today trying to get info on when the covid vacc will actually be available to me. I’m not worried, I know how to keep myself safe, but the government website was pretty useless, I only wanted information. After quite a long chat with my pharmacist telling me of various obstacles and glitches in the vaccine roll out that he knows of here, he described it as a cluster fuck. I had to laugh, because he is very staid and usually circumspect.

          So guys, when you have a chance to get the vaccine, get it. Doesn’t matter when or where, or if it’s your turn. Get it. Waiting for the roll out to be organised and orderly could be a long, long time.

          • My doctor’s surgery is not doing it . Local pharmacist can’t give a date. Cluster fuck in SA, too. Earliest I’ve heard is a friend in Sydney in group 1 b in early May. I’m in that group and am about to TRY to shedule Covid vax. Doctor’s told me to wait til after Easter for ordinary flu vax.

            But, yeah…….rollout my ar$e.

          • I got appt for Covid Vacc 28/4. Earliest possible for me in Group 1b. I’ll probably walk there.

        • I rang my doctor to get the flu shot and they told me they couldn’t schedule anything. Apparently the Covid rollout is getting in the road. Everything is a cluster fuck.

    • First day to see any blue sky since Saturday 13th March. It is just glorious. Grey skies really affect my mood.

      Most of the worst seems to have gone around our area. It is sad to see the footage on the news, yet for most, the choice to live on the (Hawkesbury) river includes knowledge of the risk. There have been many of these floods in recordable history. The biggest problem is the push to create more housing on the river flats, then suckering in buyers who think the river is a long way away.

      My knowledge of the northern rivers is little, so I feel for anyone affected there in an unusual flood. And, of course, losing houses who have not been tied down to their footings! Just awful.

  28. Can I just say that I find Gladys and Slomo bobbing their heads when they lecture us annoying and demeaning.
    They both speak and nod like they are lecturing or reprimanding a child. And if I was a child, I would find it intimidating.

    • I haven’t noticed Gladdy nodding, but ScoMo drives me crazy. I find him almost unwatchable sometimes.
      It’s not that he’s nodding. It’s that he’s using his chin to point at me, repeatedly. Like he thinks I am slow. The equivalent of poking me in the chest.
      I find it very aggressive.
      Rumour has it that he is.
      Mind you, I don’t know anyone who has met him, nor anyone who has met anyone who has met him. You need to be careful of rumours like that. I only mention it because maybe his television persona reinforced a preconceived view I already had.
      Still, I can’t believe that his PR people haven’t told him to stop it. Maybe some people just don’t listen 🤣🤣🤣.

  29. The second series of Old People’s Home For Four Year Olds starts tonight. on ABC.

    Last night’s What The Hell Just Happened was watchable and sometimes funny. I thought is was a one-off, but seems not. Next bit is something like What Happens Now, which likely will be the debacle that is the vaccine rollout, and that ain’t funny.

    • I love this show but I will watch it on iview later so that I can pause it.
      It’s one of those shows that makes me very happy and cry at the same time.

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