TresSugar

Scenes From the First Ever Doctor Who Convention

Kelly Schwarze — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 03:12:59 PDT

It's a wrap on the inaugural Doctor Who Convention in Cardiff, Wales this past weekend. Saturday and Sunday saw 1,500 fans each day dressed in their Whovian finest to attend star Q&A sessions, special effects panels, autograph sessions, and view a sneak preview of the Series Seven trailer. We hear Matt Smith even handed fans the Doctor's favorite snack, Jammie Dodgers! A lucky few even stepped foot on to the TARDIS itself during tours of the BBC show's set.

Since not many of us could make it to Wales for the excitement, view pictures from the fandemonium in the slideshow.

Photo: Instagram User knittingsquids

BBC to Open Online Store of Archive TV Shows

Kelly Schwarze — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 12:31:42 PDT

The BBC announced today proposals to open their vast archive of TV programming for digital purchase. Currently called Project Barcelona, it would give viewers worldwide access to shows long lost in the digital vault for a "relatively modest" fee. Since the BBC is a British public service, this move must first be approved by the the BBC Trust.

This means if - we hope when - the online store begins, we'll have access to the years of Doctor Who long neglected. Imagine a world where vintage daleks can be viewed on demand from the convenience of a laptop!

Photo: BBC

Karen Gillan Dishes on the Doctor, River, and Fans

Kelly Schwarze — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 06:30:13 PST

With just about two weeks remaining until Doctor Who fans get their seasonal fix with the Christmas episode, there's a happy break in the Who absence, as Karen Gillan (who plays Amy Pond) spoke on all things Doctor to the Los Angeles Times.

Take a peek at Karen's perspective of her character's strange family tree and what she has planned for life after the BBC's popular sci-fi show. Warning: season six spoilers right ahead!

Return of the Ponds - "I have not read a single word of the next season. I know I am coming back, but that’s all I know, to be honest." In unison: Woohoo!
River Song's Reveal - "I did not know that River Song was Amy and Rory’s daughter until we got the script for that episode. Because if I’d known that, it probably would have changed the way we interacted with one another, River and Amy."
Karen vs. Amy - "I’m not anywhere near as sort of sassy and confident as she is. At all . . . But obviously there are bits of me in there, but it’s probably . . . bits that are a bit odder."

Find out Karen's strangest moment with a fan after the break.

Geek Shot: The Doctor Makes a Schoolhouse Call

Kristy Korcz — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 05:33:01 PDT

Hold on to your sonic screwdrivers, because this story is adorable. The student body at UK's Oakley Junior School got a big surprise last week, as Matt Smith showed up for a Doctor Who viewing party. Four of Oakley's writerly finest entered into a script-writing contest sponsored by BBC earlier this year for a chance to see their three-minute episode of Doctor Who come to life. The students were planning on getting a sneak peek of the episode, but weren't expecting to see Matt Smith himself. Yet another reason to love Matt Smith.

The special episode will air on BBC Three this Saturday, Oct. 1, but you can get a better look at the visit (and the sci-fi-loving students) in a video on BBC's website.

This Might Be the Wildest Makeunder Show Ever

Miriam Lacey — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 13:33:44 PST

I'm currently mesmerized by BBC Three's Snog, Marry, Avoid?, a makeunder reality TV show that promises to "transform the nation's slap [makeup] addicts into natural beauties." The show, hosted by Atomic Kitten's Jenny Frost and a bizarre CGI camera called POD, takes tanned, augmented, extensions-wearing ladies (and the occasional gentleman), makes fun of them, and then puts them in a more "reasonable" outfit with hair and makeup to match.

The show's extremely addictive, but it leaves me questioning why it's so imperative for these women to change, and why the mean jokes are necessary. Many genuinely seem to like the way they look and are self-aware about it. They know they're over the top, but it just so happens that the look is what they like. Check out model Laura Summers get "transformed" in the video below.

Techrevolutionary: Chimps-Turned-Filmmakers

PetSugar — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:10:21 PST

Eleven tech-savvy chimps at the Edinburgh Zoo aren't just playing with orange boxes, they're using special cameras inside to shoot their own footage. As part of a documentary airing on BBC on Jan. 27, The Chimpcam Project shows them experiencing video streaming, using touchscreen technology, and recording their world with these orange boxes. Since chimpanzees can't yet talk (in ways we can understand), I've created my own dialogue for the "film" - check it out when you start this tech-evolutionary slideshow!

Diaries of Victorian-Era Lesbian to Be Turned Into BBC Drama

TresSugar — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:30:17 PST

The term lesbian was not coined until 50 years after Anne Lister's death in 1840, but the masculine girl from Yorkshire, England, was well aware of her sexuality from an early age. And as an adult, she lived in a surprisingly modern same-sex relationship.

Early on, Anne decided being different was not wrong or bad or a reason to change. At 13, she began her first relationship with her boarding-school roommate. Though she documented desires for a lifelong partnership in her diary, the relationship, like most first romances, did not last. Armed with the knowledge of "how to please a woman," she went on to have a series of relationships with women, which she always documented in code, marking her many orgasms with an X.

After her death at 49, her unusually understanding family hid her prolific diaries in a wall where they remained for over a century. They were found by chance during construction, and a local historian spent years uncoding the nearly four million words. Now the BBC is creating a costume drama out of it. Considering I can hang with any period piece, I can only hope this makes it to BBC America!

Source: Flickr User Camil Tulcan

All You Can Eat - Recession Buster or Fat Maker?

FitSugar — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 03:00:15 PDT

Taybarns restaurant is introducing a new dining concept to the English - all you can eat. It's nothing we haven't seen in the United States. We have all-you-can-eat baked potato and pizza bars, endless breadsticks and salad, and the kind of buffets that would make Elvis weep if he was still kickin' it in Vegas.

The Taybarns message is clear: "Enjoy as much as you like, as many times as you like. All for one fixed price!" That fixed price gives you a 111-foot counter filled with pizza, Chinese food, carving stations, fry stations, desserts, and more. The English are going crazy for the buffet-style chain, and while neighboring restaurants continue to close, Taybarns is on the up.

During tough economic times, giving people the most bang for their buck seems like a smart business model, but at what cost? As reported by the BBC, not everyone likes Taybarns. They think the chain encourages unhealthy eating habits and will cause England's collective waistline to expand.

It's a common argument, and one that's been batting around in the US for some time. Is it the fault of (insert any fast food giant here), or does the responsibility fall on the individual? Does walking into Taybarns rob a human of their free will, and why isn't healthy food more accessible to the masses?

Papa John's Founder Tells Customers Not to Overeat Pizza

partysugar — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 03:00:10 PST

Late last week, the founder of Papa John's pizza chain, John Schnatter, warned customers against eating too much pizza. The unexpected advice was given during an interview with BBC's Radio Four program in the UK. Schnatter got himself into trouble when he said:

Pizza's actually healthy for you if you don't eat too much of it. You can't eat five or six slices but if you eat one or two slices it's very nutritious.

The BBC presenter, Adam Shaw, was quick to respond pointing out that he's not sure Papa John's "investors would want to hear you [Schnatter] tell people don't eat too much of our pizzas." Although some may see this as a horrible slip, I think Schnatter is responsibly representing the everything-in-moderation diet. Perhaps, if the creator of Garden of Eatin' blue corn tortilla chips had warned Oprah not to eat an entire bag, she would not have gained the weight.

What do you think of his comment? Was it wrong for him to state the truth because it could negatively affect the sale of pizzas?

Source

Flashback: The Young Ones

GiggleSugar — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 03:00:00 PDT

Wow. I haven't thought of this show in ages. The Young Ones was an '80s BBC comedy about four unlikely roommates - a punk rocker, Vyvyan, an anarchist, Rick, a short guy who wore sunglasses all the time, Mike, and my favorite, a hippie named Neil. In this episode, Neil (poor thing, he always made tea and food for his meanie roommates), displays typical problem solving skills when he discovers the lentils he wants to cook are trapped behind precariously organized plates and bowls in the cupboard. How will he get to them without breaking everything? And will Vyvyan be of any help? Let's see. . .