Fabulous Baker Boys

I have a new obsession. I've become addicted to an English show from BBC2, "The Great British Bake Off". It's a sort of Masterchef idea, however all of the cooking challenges are related to baking. It's not on tv here so I've been watching streamed on Tube+. (It does seem to come and go a bit, the other day the show disappeared from the site altogether, only to reappear.)

The format includes Technical Challenges, where they are all given a recipe and have to replicate it for a blind judging. It also includes Signature Bakes, where they present their own recipes on a given theme, and Show Stoppers which are spectacular set pieces. Baking is an exact science as well as an art, so the contestants are allowed to refer to their own recipes, and I gather they are vetted somehow to ensure they are not just cooking something from a book by Nigella.

This show is kind of adorable, and so well mannered. All the contestants are unique characters, and so terribly polite. This is not the cut and thrust of normal competitive reality tv. (One of the contestants is even a Vicar's wife!) The hosts Sue Perkins (of "Supersizers Go...") and Mel Giedroyc are both comedians and keep the show light and fun, while woofy 'silverback' chef Paul Hollywood and British baking legend Mary Berry bring lifetimes of technical nous.

But the boys. Oh the boys. I'm a total sucker for a sweet British lad, and this show has a trio of them.

James, tall Scottish cutie who plays double bass, loves a Fair Isle knitted vest, bakes like a man with the skills of someone twice his age (he's 21!), and blushes furiously whenever he is complimented. They slayed me when they showed him walking his two dogs along the Scottish seaside. If only he had a kilt on, then I would have fallen down dead. Completely.

Stuart. Oh Stuart, Stuart, Stuart. PE teacher, rugby player Stuart. I have several fantasies involving muddy rugby kit, a locker room and a beautifully made Treacle Tart for afters. Enough said.

John. Shy, tall, cutie John. John (and possibly James) might be the gays of the competition, but then I'm only speculating. John seems like a 'nice lad' as my mother would say. Self deprecating, a bit shy seeming, a bit serious, and very well mannered. Quite adorable really.

Sweet, sexy boys and cake. What's not to love?

I'm Gutted

Sad face. One of my favourite Masterchef contestants Philip Vakos was just sent home.



Phil reminds me of a number of the Greek boys I went to school with; handsome, masculine, yet sweetly gentle and emotive. But he makes dinner.



Yes, I have a crush.

This One Is Goes Out To My Friend James O'Brien

James is one of the world's great Swede-o-philes. In fact, as I write this he'll be sitting down to his weekly Swedish lesson. Don't get me wrong, I admire the Swedes. I buy their furniture. I appreciate their massage. I think they do a natty line in pop music.

But there is a line I draw that others cross.

Anyhoo. The brief yet classic "Swedish Chemist" sketch from Alas Smith & Jones. This sketch has been a long running part of the zeitgeist amongst one group of my friends for as long as I care to remember. (Along with other gems such as the Licky Licky Bumsex Song.) Comedy gold, just the mention of "Ball? Or aerosol?" is enough to set us off.

Kish Me You Fool!

In the past couple of years soap operas worldwide have discovered The Gays and The Lesbitarians. Out, happy, conflicted, closeted, the whole gamut. Naturally the course of gay and lesbian love stories are convoluted and tortuous. Let's face it, without it there would be no 'opera' in Soap Opera right?

They're all at it! Germany has my faves Christian & Olli, as well as Deniz & Roman. In fact Christian & Olli's "Verbotan Liebe" soap opera is brimming with poofs, dykes and those questioning. You can't move for someone kissing someone else of the same gender. Hurrah! Catalonia, Spain, The Netherlands... even the good ole U S of A, it's an international festival of The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name! Youtube is brimming with gay men and their followers who post clips of the couples, their names 'Brangelina-ised' to monikers like Chrolli (or Ollian), DeRo or Nuke.

Now on the US soap "One Life To Live" we have "Kish", Oliver Fish and Kyle Lewis. As it turns out closeted policeman Oliver and out bad-boy Kyle were lovers in college. A relationship that Oliver tries to forget and Kyle is still very much living. Conflict! I have to say, despite all the soap opera craziness the relationship aspect has been well written, and the actors are giving their scenes their all.

Kish has rapidly become a love quadrangle. Kyle has been rejected and has taken up with Nick. Oliver is dating a beard his girlfriend Layla, and of course really wants to be with Kyle. Likewise Kyle really wants to be with Oliver. Drama ensues. What is very interesting is the high percentage of out gay actors playing these roles. As the rather lovely slab of beef in a uniform Oliver, Scott Evans is an out gay actor, as is Broadway fave Nick Rodriguez who plays Nick. Brett Claywell is straight, but as evidenced in this interview on After Elton is a very cool guy, and he really brings a believability to Kyle.

Youtubers final81 and bombayhighway have been recapping the love story/dramady in clips if you want to catch up on the story so far. Now, someone call Officer Fish... because I've been a very, very bad boy!

[Updated: Oh, duh. It wasn't until I just read this interview with the boys in Out that I realised cutie pie Scott Evans is mega hottie Chris Evans's real-life gay brother. The family resemblance (ie: hotness) is certainly there. Apparently their mother is even getting in on the act soon and playing Officer Fish's mother on the show!]

Wesley!

When I was a teenager I was a big fan of the original 70s Sid & Marty Krofft tv show The Land Of The Lost. The Land Of The Lost had a lot going for it, not least of all 'Will' in the form of teen heart throb actor Wesley Eure, and his mandatory 3 undone button shirt:



So I was really pleasantly surprised to see an interview with Wesley on the gay media site After Elton. Yup, Wesley's gay! It's an interesting article and speaks volumes about how times have changed in Hollywood in many ways. The gossip in me relished snippets like the fact that he was Richard Chamberlain's boyfriend at one time, and even while he was so young and playing Wesley on The Land Of The Lost he had a serious boyfriend. The gold chain he wore on the show was a gift from his boyfriend.



Sadly it seems that the Kroffts and the makers of the new movie have treated the cast of the original tv show rather shabbily, cutting their cameos from the movie, not inviting them to walk the red carpet, or in the case of Kathy Coleman (Holly) not inviting them at all. I'm not that motivated to see the movie because it has become a Will Ferrell comedy vehicle, something very different from the action adventure intentions of the original.

Check out Wesley's website and his blog. He had a longer career than I realised, and especially in the interview and on his blog he comes across as a nice guy. And the crush object of a whole generation of gay men too, it would seem!

Live Blogging The Eurovision Song Contest First Semi-Finals

I tuned in late, so only got to see the last 6 of the 18 contestants. Some would say this is a good thing, but pshaw! I say. I has a sad, I only caught a third of the semi-final action! Thank goodness for brief recaps otherwise I might have completely missed a) a nelly disco dancer, b) a Czech nerd superhero, c) Belgian Elvis, d) 5 seconds of boring in a white suit from Belarus e) a Swedish operatic diva, f) Armenian riverdance, g) Andorran Girls-Aloud, h) some boybandishness i) Turkish disco bellydance (trans cultural!) j) Israeli worthy drummingness (the sisters are doing it for themselves) k) Bulgarian Lord of The Rings/Dance and l) Iceland, without Bjork...

So far the Russian hosts are doing an awesome job. They're almost incomprehensible!

So, my thoughts on the final 6 of the first Semi-Finals:

FYR Macedonia: cock rock is alive and well and living in the country we now like to think of as The Former Yugoslavian Republic of Bon Jovi

Romania: buckets of fake tan, 4 dancing girls in floaty frocks (wtf, Romanian water nyads?), treacherous dancing in high heels on a slidy glass stage, and a sound like every other Romanian entry I can think of. Borderline awesome.

Finland: Finland still thinks baseball caps turned backwards and fire dancers are rock (and roll).

Portugal: actually kind of nice! Plus, a squeezebox on stage. (No, I'm not referring to the singer.)

Malta: whoa. Power ballad on half wattage. Trying hard not to work in a cheap shot about the Rock of Gib-Malta but suffice to say (and I quote my friend Brendan) "what a lovely big dress, and my... isn't it full!"

Bosnia Herzegovina: first impression, regional touring company of Les Miserables in all white costumes. Second impression (see first impression).

Now we're onto the voting, and can I just say that the hosts are off the hook. And a little drunk I think. Wait, is he holding her up? And why does he keep kissing her? Eww, it's like an office Christmas party in here all of a sudden.

Interlude:
Russian cultural presentation for make good the Eurovision Song Contest! Cossacks! Russian army choirs! That thing where they spin the woman in a traditional costume so her dress twirls up! Hip hop dancers! More cossacks (seriously, they must have exhausted all the red synthetic satin in Russia). A pair of fake lesbians miming desultorily to their 'big hit'!

Results:
This year there is much talk of The Magic Button, and frankly the way the Russian host keeps leering about it I'm guessing it's not something he gets to push all that often. Instead it just starts up some graphic that looks like one of those fake email notification they use on tv show computers when they can't use anything by Microsoft. Anticlimax! So the 10 winners are announced. No Elvis! No superhero!

Just pray there are some drag queens in the second semi-finals!

Shrove Tuesday, Of A Sort

I've never been a tall and physically imposing person, but to confuse reality with metaphor, right now I'm flat as a pancake. Run through the mangle. Micron thin. It's only Tuesday and I feel as tired and jaded as if I've worked a few weeks without a break. All it has taken has been a couple of nights of broken sleep, some Wintery weather, a chesty cough (still) that just will not go... and... well that's probably enough. Work isn't even particularly stressfull at the moment, that mayhem happens in the first half of every month. (So next week, yay.)

On the upside I had a lovely phone call with Tall & Handsome, another call from my friend Stephen in Queensland, and now I'm watching the Indian episode of my favourite new program, the visually stunning Around The World In 80 Gardens. Let me tell you if there's one thing those Mughals knew how to do, that was gardens and stately pleasure domes decree.

And so to bed for an early night.

Oh but before I go, here's an interesting factoid. If you've read this blog for a while you might be familiar with the fact that I was put on a drug a while back to cure my restless leg related sleep problems. A very special drug that comes in a mink lined rosewood box, each tablet gold leafed by hand and inset with a semi-precious stone. Or at least, they should be given that they cost me $134 for a month's supply. Anyhoo, there's a new generic version on the market! Now they come in a silver gilt version in a lovely cedar box, with velvet lining for the princely sum of $100. So there's a saving right there. I'd rather they cost me $34 and I saved the $100, but you can't have everything right? So, my point (I do have one) is that the new tablets are a very curious shape. They're small, pink 10 sided polyhedrals.

Yes gamer nerds, every night now I take one small pink d10 with water before retiring.

Dr Evadne Hinge & Dame Hilda Bracket

One of the curiousities of the English is the esteemed role that drag, or female impersonators, has had in mainstream entertainment. Danny LaRue was a huge favourite of my parents'. Paul O'Grady in the guise of Lily Savage was a more frequent guest on Michael Parkinson's chat show than almost everyone else. All part of a tradition that owes it's popularity to Music Hall, all male 'gang shows' and the English love of saucy (but never crass) ribaldry and double entendre, I guess.

My all time favourites though were those elegant Victorian ladies Dr Evadne Hinge and Dame Hilda Bracket, as played by George Logan and Patrick Fyffe. Many people probably haven't heard of them, but they were big stars in their day. They had their own tv show "Dear Ladies" (now on DVD!) that ran for a number of seasons in the 80s, were regulars on popular variety shows such as "Good Old Days", performed a number of times on Royal Command Performances, and even had a star turn in a British production of "Die Fledermaus".

Not to mention their own Gala Evening With Hinge & Bracket show:

A clip from Season 1 of "Dear Ladies":

The older of the 2, Fyffe sadly passed away from cancer in 2002 at the age of 60 and as one friend of theirs' once commented, as they got older Logan and Fyffe began to resemble their characters more and more. Good naturedly snipping at each other and constantly trying to upstage one another. Just as it should be! Now I really need to find those DVDs...

TOTP!

Top Of The Pops that is, bitches. Pop songs mimed sung live in front of a studio audience of British teens.

Noosha Fox "SSSingle Bed", 1976. Centre partings. Spread collars. I'd bet any money that dress is Biba.


Yes it's the same song, but this is another awesome TOTP outing for Noosha. And hello, can we see where Alison Goldfrapp got her inspiration? Plus, OMG capes are awesome.


Heaven 17 "Temptation", 1983. There isn't a single thing about this song that wasn't magic to me in 1983.


Chumbawumba "Tubthumping", 1997. Singing live with the word "pissing" curiously inaudible! Wow, mysterious microphone malfunction.

Hot Cops

Or cop singular. Rookie, actually. Ladies and ladies I bring you Belgian hottie Nicolas Gob (let's overlook the name at this point), who plays out gay police rookie Kevin on the French show "Les Bleus" (The Rookies). The show has been around for a little while, and just started its second season in France. I first heard about the show on the media blog After Elton, but only recently got around to checking it out on youtube.



Nicolas does a lovely job. Late in the storyline a loved one ends up in hospital, and Nicolas gets to excercise his acting chops. Not just a pretty face... and a hot set of pecs.



Kevin falls for fellow cop Yann. Kevin slowly outs himself to all his workmates. Meanwhile fending off the advances of his closest gal pal.



In between there are bits and pieces of police procedural stuff, although the youtube clips are pretty much only really of the Kevin and Yann storyline. Youtube user Ztube31 has a playlist of 19 subtitled clips of Kevin's storyline in the show.

I cannot overstate how much we love this blue muscle shirt.

It's worth checking out. Not just for the blue muscle shirt.

Spangas

One of the things I craved when I was young was to see images of gay people in the media that I could relate to. Yes it was a different world back then. (Little Gypsy Gay was about as gay it got, and that's in name only.) Except for the homos of the raunchy evening soap Number 96 that is, but I couldn't particularly relate to them either. When I was a young teen I can't think of many other gay images, positive or negative.

Anyhoo. It certainly is a different world, and in some corners of this world it's even more different. The Dutch have a reputation for being progressive, and the pro-diversity teen drama Spangas (official website - in Dutch) certainly enhances that rep in relation to gay youngsters.

Flip and Tobias are identical twin high school students. Flip is gay, and Tobias is straight. Flip has a crush on Tobias's best friend Koen, which turns out to be reciprocated. Flip and Koen start dating, and although Koen at first wants to keep it secret it isn't long before they out themselves to all as a couple. The only negativity seems to come from Tobias, not because he really has a problem with gay people but because he's jealous.

This first clip is really just setting the scene, introducing the fact that Koen is receptive to Flip's crush.

The show is on 5 times a week and youtube user (and blogger) gaydaytime has been posting clips with subtitles daily. What is interesting is that the show is produced by a Christian station, and I gather a rather progressive one at that.

To quote The Gays Of Daytime blog:

Meet the students and teachers of Spangalis, the Zubaran of the Lowlands. This show is on 5 times a week on NEDERLAND 3. I won't go into the complicated ways Dutch public television is organized - suffice it to say, there are several broadcast groups that get allotted time on three networks and each group represents a segment of society. There's a traditional 'workers' broadcaster, one for Catholics and SPANGAS is broacasted by NCRV which stands for 'Dutch Christian Radio Organization', which is also the oldest public broadcaster in the Netherlands.

But still, NCRV is diverse and allows a gay storyline in this show. Meet Flip and Koen. Thing will get complicated, I'm sure, because Flip also has a twin brother called Tobias. Let's see where this will take us...

Pretty cool huh? The young actors, especially the boys playing Flip and Koen, do a nice job. It's most definitely a teen drama with all the small crises that entails. Plus, at times I find the sound of Dutch oddly amusing, with all the aaaaaaargh and glottal sounds it makes me think of a bunch of pirates clearing their throats.

[More clips and info at the Gays Of Daytime blog, and all his Spangas posts are here.]

Revisiting The Recently Revisited

w00t! Pardon me those who live on foreign shore, but my fellow Australians, the 1981 mini-series of Brideshead Revisited starts tonight on ABC2.



It was only earlier this month that I saw the recent movie version, yet it's been 25+ years since I saw this original tv version of the Evelyn Waugh novel. That's a whole person's lifetime ago! Actually, it feels like my entire lifetime ago.

Oh, and it's up against "2 And A Half Men" or "Don't Forget The Lyrics". I call no contest.

[Updated: Ep 1 just finished. Better than I remembered. Curiously, whole slabs of it I don't remember at all. All the extended army bits at the beginning... who knew? Oh, and those who commented that they Upped The Gay in the new movie. Not. I'd forgotten the voice overs, when Charles is heading off to his first Plover's Egg Feast with Sebastian and chums, the lovely long piece about wanting to love, about heading towards finding the low door in the wall that leads to love and Sebastian. Not exactly The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name keeping shtum. Oh, yeah and not to mention the fantastic (and quotable) Ant-t-t-tony B-b-b-b-b-lanche!]

[Even More Updated: Squee! Right after "Brideshead" I'm now watching "ShakeseaRe-Told: A Midsummer Night's Dream" with... one of the cutest of The Ruperts, Rupert Evans. Hot dish in a wet shirt and (surprisingly) hairy chest. Num! Colour me King Of The Fairies all of a sudden.]

Amir & Harel

New obsession! It may surprise you to find out that I like insanely hot Israeli men gazing into each other's eyes and kissing, but I do. Make one of them a butch wedding gown designer and well, he had me at guipure lace overlay. This little treasure is from the Israeli tv show "'Til the Wedding". Harel meets Amir; hijinks, romance, duo bathing and some dramas ensue.

Youtube user matan4il has a playlist of 10 clips so far. The clips have had little pop up English subtitle speech buttons added, which are a bit inconsistent in whether they decide to show themselves or not. If you can't see them, try stopping and replaying the clip, that seems to encourage them to come out of hiding. Oh, and read fast because some of them fly by! [Updated: Clip #9 uses Closed Captions, so make sure you don't have the Closed Captions option turned off if you don't get any subtitles at all. Click the triangle icon in the bottom right of the clip for the on/off options.]

Clip one. Boy meets boy at bus stop. Boy flirts with boy and uses a ruse to get his phone number while holding boy's wedding gown for him. A classic tale.

A big thanks to The Gays Of Daytime blog for the original tip off!

The Cult Of Tovey

(Or: Chiver Me Timbers, It's Russell!)

I've been out and proud about my love for Russell Tovey, favourite history boy and totally squeezable interstellar Ensign. And me, well I love a good costume, of that there's no denying. Costume drama queen? So very, very present!



OMG, squeeeee. Couldn't you just die? Russell Tovey as John Chivery in BBCs "Little Dorrit". I don't know John Chivery from John Cleese, but I hope he's totally sweet and kinda sexy, in a cute stickie out ears sort of way. Only in a frock coat and top hat. That would be good. I'm getting all Dickensian just thinking about it.

5 Things About Wednesday 29th October: Bingetastic Wednesday Edition

• Hump day! Hump-diddly-ump day! Rejoice.
  
• It's only just after 11am on a miserable wet day here, and one of the guys from the warehouse just said "I'm going on a KFC run, do you want anything?". I think the volume and enthusiasm with which I responded "Shit yeah!" could be heard in the farthest reaches of the warehouse.
  
• And yes, I'll regret it as soon as I've eaten it. Nothing makes me judge myself harsher than submitting to a KFC binge. Welcome to the eye of the shamestorm.
  
• I realised last night that I'm watching less commercial tv, and more clips of shows I can't get on tv on youtube. Currently obsessed with "Top Design" (Nathan has to win. Eddie needs to get over himself and the fact that he WORKS FOR MARTHA STEWART. And Preston needs to get under my sheets.), and John-Paul and Craig's romance on the English soap "Hollyoaks".
  
• If it weren't for the fact that they've disabled the sound on our work pcs (on account of the NO FUN policy) I'd probably be watching them right now.

Chase Those Ponies!

I'm channel surfing at home and just came across a tv show about people with sleep disorders, and they are showing people doing bizarre things in sleep clinics, talking, chasing phantom ponies around the room etc, in their sleep. OMG. It just makes me want to try and get the footage from MY sleep clinic visits. Youtube here I come! (Actually, probably just drooling, kicking my legs and snoring like a bastard.)

20 Minutes In, And It's Excruciating

I'm watching the Emmy's. OMG, it's only just started but train wreck so far. The red carpet frock thing, so many awkward moments. Lisa Rinner (who?) talking about her boob sweat, and a frail looking Cloris Leachman talking about peeing herself during rehearsals for Dancing With The Stars. Awkward. (I hear her partner wants to do a switcheroo now, maybe for Lance Bass.)

Oprah is introducing the show and she's fuller figured again! (All the Oprah shows we get here are old.) The opening number with the 5 'reality' show hosts was rambling and not the least bit entertaining. But big loves to The Shatner and Jeremy Piven for calling them on it. OMG, Seacrest is talking and I just almost shut down completely... I think I need to see what's on the other channels...

[Updated: Ok, Steve Carrell and Ricky Gervais were funny. Thank you Baby Jebus.]

[More Updated: Yay, Betty White! However, OMG Mary Tyler Moore is a legend/genius etc but she has passed the age where she can do sleeveless. I mean no disrespect but the upper arms are kind of scary and she has other options, you know.]

New Diversions (Or: Entertainment For The Budget Savvy Homosexualist!)

I was in Kinokuniya early this evening and noticed they had a big display of classic Penguins for $9.95. Bargain! Plus they're so titchy, and the covers are kind of thin, and the paper is kind of even thinner. In other words, a bit of a non-modern experience in this post-modern world. Sized and flexible enough for a blazer pocket. You know, should the punting on the river get tiresome.

I have an informal list in my head, the Books I Should Read Before I Die list, and it just so happened that a bunch of them were on the display. I was going to grab three, but then decided to just grab two.



Pretend for a minute you don't know me, what about me would you derive from this selection? Oscar & Truman. Here's a hint the third book, the one I put back, was by E.M. Forster. Anyone? (OK, another hint - I can't whistle either.)

Anyhoo, there is a theme, and that theme is entertainment on a budget!

I also bought two discounted DVDs yesterday. One most excellent, and one... well, nice try. The excellent one was Season 1 of a little show you may have heard of, a little show about Vince Noir (King of the Mods) and Howard Moon (the Jazz Maverick, Monsoon Moon and don't you forget it) and their adventures in the Zooniverse... called The Mighty Boosh. (Wikipedia entry.)





OMG, hi-larious. It was one of those shows I caught snippets of every now and then late at night, and heard good buzz about, but never saw a full episode of. Well I caught a full Season 3 episode on SBS the other night and knew the buzz was true. So I picked up Season 1 post haste, and wasn't disappointed.

The other DVD was a, well, earnest and well intentioned gay film called Defying Gravity. Now I will freely admit that when it comes to judging harshly, I usually give indie gay flicks a bit of a free pass. Traditionally they have been hard to get made, with low budgets, and often with a cast of actors that are just starting their careers. (Actually, according to imdb some of them had no film or tv career they are aware of after this flick. Including the supporting actor whose name I adore - Seabass Diamond.)

There were a couple of quite good performances in the film, but they just threw the weaker actors into sharp relief. Not in a good way. With a more polished script and a more experienced director (this was his only directorial effort, although he has had a full writing and editorial career) some of those gaps might have been smoothed over. So nice try and good intentions, but I won't be adding it to my list of faves (either part 1, or part 2).

You know, I still might go back and get that Forster. And maybe the Gabriel Garcia Marquez... was he a poof too?

5 Things About Tuesday, 26th of August: Teetering On The Edge Of Self Loathing Edition

• I have that feeling like Spring is just around the corner. Today was mild, and sunny without a cloud in the sky, and just right for deciding to make the 45 minute plus walk home from work.
  
• I did the walk yesterday too, although today was warmer and more pleasant.
  
• Post Olympics tv! So what does Channel 9 dish up? One and a half hours of craptastic "Two And A Half Men". Are they serious?
  
• Although, maybe I shouldn't judge. Right now I'm watching people fall off things on "Wipeout". (But it's the snarky commentary that makes it. Big dirty balls! Snerk.)
  
• I think I might have lost all self respect. (It could be worse, I could have watched "Two And A Half Men")
  

Perfect In Almost Every Way

OMG, there aren't many consolations for being at home on a Saturday night, but watching "Breakfast At Tiffany's" commercial-free on ABC2 is one of them. This is week 5 or something of a Saturday night Audrey Hepburn retrospective and tonight we're standing straight at Tiffany's. (Last week we were Thinking Pink, and falling in love in Paris with Fred Astaire, in "Funny Face". And yes, sadly I was home last Saturday night too that means.)



Audrey has just realised that the incredibly beautiful young George Peppard (proof below) is in fact, essentially, a male prostitute. Those eyes, so blue! And it's about this point in the film that you realise it's a way more subversive affair than the beautiful dresses and silly Mickey Rooney Japanese characterisation would imply.



Note to self, time to buy the Truman Capote book after all.