
Ricky Tomlinson sits back in his chair and takes a fond look back at the much-loved comedy series The Royle Family, sharing his memories of playing head of the family Jim Royle and his experiences working with the show’s co-creator Caroline Aherne, who, as well as writing the show with co-star Craig Cash, also played Jim’s daughter Denise. Ricky talks about how a chance encounter helped him get the part of Jim, recounts what it was like filming some of the show’s most iconic moments, and tries to get the bottom of the origins of Jim’s famous, below-the-belt catchphrase.


Ricky Tomlinson sits back in his chair and takes a fond look back at the much-loved comedy series The Royle Family, sharing his memories of playing head of the family Jim Royle and his experiences working with the show’s co-creator Caroline Aherne, who, as well as writing the show with co-star Craig Cash, also played Jim’s daughter Denise. Ricky talks about how a chance encounter helped him get the part of Jim, recounts what it was like filming some of the show’s most iconic moments, and tries to get the bottom of the origins of Jim’s famous, below-the-belt catchphrase.
2023-12-25
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7.1An exploration —manipulated and staged— of life in Las Hurdes, in the province of Cáceres, in Extremadura, Spain, as it was in 1932. Insalubrity, misery and lack of opportunities provoke the emigration of young people and the solitude of those who remain in the desolation of one of the poorest and least developed Spanish regions at that time.
8.0Worldy renowned for his masterpiece The Housemaid (1960), Kim Ki-young debuts with his first short film I Am a Truck (1953), which was sponsored by UN and made a year after the armistice of the Korean War. This film is a fascinating glimpse into the mind of a soon-to-be powerful auteur and influential filmmaker in the post-war Korean cinema, if not the whole history of Korean cinema.
0.0Adolfo Kaminsky started saving lives when chance and necessity made him a master forger. As a teenager, he became a member of the French Resistance and used his talent to save the lives of thousands of Jews. The Forger is a well-crafted origin story of a real-life superhero.
7.1A group of people are standing along the platform of a railway station in La Ciotat, waiting for a train. One is seen coming, at some distance, and eventually stops at the platform. Doors of the railway-cars open and attendants help passengers off and on. Popular legend has it that, when this film was shown, the first-night audience fled the café in terror, fearing being run over by the "approaching" train. This legend has since been identified as promotional embellishment, though there is evidence to suggest that people were astounded at the capabilities of the Lumières' cinématographe.
7.5Werner Herzog's documentary film about the "Grizzly Man" Timothy Treadwell and what the thirteen summers in a National Park in Alaska were like in one man's attempt to protect the grizzly bears. The film is full of unique images and a look into the spirit of a man who sacrificed himself for nature.
0.0Arturo Urbiola, independent singer/songwriter, talks about the influence music has had on his life, it's impact, and what's in store for his artistic career after becoming a father.
Short news featurette produced by Pathe-RKO after the Russians launched the first orbiting satellite, Sputnik. It is a patriotic 'call to arms' from the threat posed by this and the need for Americans to spend more on education in general and a college education in particular. A visit to the University of Buffalo highlights its science programs and the need for more graduates from all technical disciplines if America is to rise to the challenge. It bemoans the fact the PhDs earn less than a mechanic and the need to re-order priorities.
6.8Doctors of the Dark Side is the first feature length documentary about the pivotal role of physicians and psychologists in detainee torture. The stories of four detainees and the doctors involved in their abuse demonstrate how US Army and CIA doctors implemented the Enhanced Interrogation Techniques and covered up signs of torture at Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. Interviews with medical, legal and intelligence experts and evidence from declassified government memos document what has been called the greatest scandal in American medical ethics. Based on four years of research by Producer/Director Martha Davis, written by Oscar winning Mark Jonathan Harris, and filmed in HD by Emmy winning DP Lisa Rinzler, the film shows how the torture of detainees could not continue without the assistance of the doctors.
5.012 years later, a failed school short film is resignified to share the multiple experiences that exist in the creation of a film.
7.0Every year, tens of thousands of children are forced to leave their countries unaccompanied by an adult.
7.6Since the late 18th century American legal decision that the business corporation organizational model is legally a person, it has become a dominant economic, political and social force around the globe. This film takes an in-depth psychological examination of the organization model through various case studies. What the study illustrates is that in the its behaviour, this type of "person" typically acts like a dangerously destructive psychopath without conscience. Furthermore, we see the profound threat this psychopath has for our world and our future, but also how the people with courage, intelligence and determination can do to stop it.
Insomnies is an impressionistic look at the city at night, avoiding the clichés of commercial or tourist films and suggesting instead a lifestyle rhymed by windshield wipers and the music of The Honeymoon Killers. The film is flashing back-and-forth and ultimately leaves, like an arabesque of light and colour made of lines, curves and angles.
6.6They come from all walks of life and have lived for almost a century. They have lived through the upheavals of history. They are funny, moving and rebellious. They surprise and amaze us. Yet we rarely hear their voices. This film is an invitation to travel across France and meet them: the Old People.
7.0A promotional video for the film “Death and Rebirth.” Released on January 25, 1997, it contains an overview of the series’ plot, cast interviews, a music video for “Soul’s Refrain,” and several trailers for the film.
6.1John Shepherd spent 30 years trying to contact extraterrestrials by broadcasting music millions of miles into space. After giving up the search, he makes a different connection here on earth.