Exploring Parenthood, Nottingham Royalty & More Adventures From The Chatty Man!

Hello world! Welcome back to another blog. I will be taking you through my final TV reviews of 2025, and it’s safe to say that I ended it on a high. These include a second series of a comedy show exploring Parenthood, series 3 of the show starring Nottingham Royalty Vicky McClure, and series 3 of the chatty man’s childhood. So without further ado, here is what I thought of these three amazing shows to end the year on a high! 

Daddy Issues:

The first show I’m going to talk about is Daddy Issues, starring Aimee Lou Wood and David Morrisey.

Following a brilliant first series, this show sees Gemma adapting to life as a new mum, whilst also getting herself into mischievous adventures with her dad Malcom. 

Gemma (aimee lou wood) definitely had her work cut out now that she’s a new mum. But still, that didn’t stop her from being ether quirky funny human she is, and I could definitely tell that Aimee really grew into her role of Gemma massively. We also saw a progression in Malcom (David Morrisey) and his role of being a grandad. Yes he may still have the mentality of a child, but there are moments in which he is a brilliant grandad, as seen at the end of episode 1, his unique present in episode 3, and in episode 6 when he wanted to do something for Saide’s future. And the appearance of his dad Jackie (who I’ll mention in the next section) definitely gave him limiting beliefs as a parent and a grandparent. But I’m just glad he didn’t end up down that path, as if I had to choose someone who had to behave as a traditional man, or a man child, give me a man child any day. 

There were other characters from the first series who one again helped Gemma and Malcom through the world of parenting and grandparenting. These included Gemma’s friend Cherry (Taj Atwal) who helped Gemma with Sadie, making her see from her own experience that being a parent is a gift. Sand after having a tift In episode 4, their friendship was a key point in Gemma’s life. There was also pharmacist Xander (Arian Nik) who was there to support Gemma towards the end of the series. I was gutted when he revealed he was seeing someone who wasn’t seen in the series, but I praise Gemma for picking herself up and not let that wallow her for Sadies sake. There was also Malcom’s friend Derek (David Fynn) who sure seemed abit stubborn at times, but deep down he actually cares for Malcom’s best interests, and that his toughness is actually an act. We also saw his secret addiction in episode 3 which I’ll be honest, a lot of people can relate to it, and also saw an emotional side in episode 2 when he roped Malcom into a plan of his. Gemma’s sister Catherine (Sharon Rooney) also made her mark once again, and Gemma somehow got roped into her plan to help her and Gary conceive a baby whilst also trying to get the gossip on her and Malcom. And there was also Rita and Winnie at the salon (Sarah Hadland and Chris Kerry), with Rita still having the hits for Malcom whilst also giving Gemma words of wisdom, whilst Winnie’s one liners never cease to amaze me! There was also the appearance of Malcom’s dad Jackie (Philip Jackson), who after having a flashback, I could see why Malcom is the way he is, and the appearance of Malcom’s brother Tommy (Kevin Bishop), also increased his fears of holding Gemma back. But Gemma made it clear that she wants him to stay with her on her own decision, but also for the sake of Sadie. Also a huge shoutout to Ruth Madeley, Soph Galustian, Nathan Foad and Ross Grant for being brilliant day player roles, with Ruth being a fellow holiday maker and mum Charmaine, Soph being police officer Suki (who had the hots for Cherry), Ross being a supermarket assistant and Nathan being the job interviewer. Without them, there wouldn’t be a show. 

I think my only downside was that Gemma and Xander didn’t get together properly. But I’m glad he was still there to support her throughout the series as seen in episode 5 and a gift from him to Sadie in episode 6.

Overall I would give the show a full house 5 out of 5. It was funny, chaotic, and also some heartfelt moments. I do hope that there is a third series, so then we could see how Gemma adapts to life going back to work whilst juggling being a parent to Sadie and her personal life. 

Trigger Point:

The next show I’m going to talk about is Trigger Point, starring Vicky McClure and casted by Isabella Odoffin.

This new series saw Lana Washington on a different mission, whilst dealing with her mental health following events from the past 2 series and her battles in this one.

Lana Washington (Vicky McClure aka Nottingham queen), was definitely facing a battle whilst contending with a new threat. But let’s just say that despite this, she’s wanting to get the job done. But the death of her friend Rich Manning (Mark Rowley), definitely threw a spanner in the works. This was seen in episode 4 when she was unable to save a capture, when she took one too many pills, but Hassan (who I’ll mention in a moment), managed to help her get out of the building. But somehow she uses her grief to her advantage when she comes face to face with bomber Steve Wyles (James Flemyng), who is out for revenge, hence why he did what he did throughout the series. James fitted perfectly in his role, as we often know him for playing villains/people you wouldn’t want to get on their bad side. At the end of the series, Lana uses her battles to help get through to the bomber, and this led to Steven revealing why he did what he did to the many victims in the case, one of which was Ned Cole (Michael Gould). 

Once again, many of Lanas colleagues, friends and family had an impact on her journey to stopping Steven. These were her Expo team Danny (Eric Shango), who aspired for bigger dreams as a detective, and despite a tiff in episode 3, he was by Lanas side and supported a decision her parents gave her at the end of the series. There was also colleague Hassan (Nabil Elouahabi), who amongst the danger within the series, was able to find some humour. He also revealed to have a relationship with forensic officer and lands friend Sonya (Kerry Godliman), who showed concern for her when she found pills in her bag. But I know that Sonya was only being a good friend and wanting what’s best for her. When Danny had to take some time off, newcomer Wren Cheshire (Maisie Ayres), took his place for the time being. I wasn’t sure if the group would be her thing, but by the end of the series she fit in and was pet of the family. There was also DS Helen Morgan (Natalie Simpson), who is doing a brilliant job in her role, and has grown to make good friends with Lana despite dating the same guy from the second series. And I love the support for one another when their boss had different views on how to tackle the case. DCI/DI Amar Batra (Maanuv Thiara), made it clear that he was the boss. Although it did cause some conflict with Lana, but eventually came to his senses that the sooner Steven was caught the better. And Lanas parents Val and Jeff (Kevin Eldon and Tamzin Griffin) had some more troubles, with Jeff losing his job. But a decision they made yes made Lana question whether staying in London is the best, but she knew that’s where she wanted to be. But I admire Val and Jeff for looking out for her best interests.

I think my only downside was that the gang didn’t find out the real reason why Rich did what he did that ended his life following his traumatic experience in episode 1. But sometimes it’s things like this that are left to be kept in the dark. 

Overall I would give it a full house. It was tense, unexpected and a journey of how past events can affect a job. 

Changing Ends:

The final show I’m going to talk about is series 3 of Changing Ends, starring Alan Carr, Oliver Saville and casted by Catherine Willis.

The third series sees a young Alan navigate love, puberty and more adventures in his youth

Alan and his love of darts, what the teacher would say about his future being a prison warden and exploring his sexuality.

Oliver Savell once again brought the role of the young chatty man to life. And there were things I didn’t know about him, the fact that he got into darts (and I wonder if he still plays abit to this day) and was originally given a job prediction as a prison warden. But the biggest story was his exploration of his sexuality, with the object of his desires being in the form of fellow student Jake (Austin Taylor). I had a feeling that Jake secretly took a liking to Alan, and I was gutted for the outcome at the end of the series. But present Alan once again narrated his story wonderfully, and his storytelling made the show. We also saw Alan’s dad Graham Carr (Shaun Dooley) and his journey on getting the cobblers on the league. It tells me that being a football manager can be stressful, and he did get a lot of hate for it. But I loved the moment in episode 5 where Graham couldn’t say the word gay due to fear of alan being bullied for it. What this tells me is that Graham deep down does love alan, but finding the right words is abit difficult for him. But the other two members of the Carr family really also had their own adventures. Christine (Nancy Sullivan) really tried to over exaggerate Grahams success of getting into the league, although I can understand her offence when Graham made some remarks about the family, and I’m glad she didn’t find out about grahams adventures in Preston in episode 5. And Alan’s brother Gary (Taylor Fay), who just seems to do his own thing, although his reaction to Christine’s girls night in during episode 5 was hilarious. 

Like the last series, we saw old and new faces whilst exploring young Alan’s journey. These included Alan’s friend Kay (Dotty Davies), who stood by Alan’s side and was supportive of his sexuality as seen in the last episode. I don’t know if Kay was Alan’s friend in real life, but she is a representation of those who make Alan’s journey to where he is today an important one. There was also the quirky eccentric miss Gideon (Cariad Lloyd), who once again continued to inspire Alan. Now I don’t know if what happened in episode 4 happened in Alan’s actual story, but even I would be mortified if I was put in a situation where everyone would know my sexuality. And she even had a secret thing for Alan’s PE teacher Mr Chapman (David Mumeni). Other characters who impacted Grahams life included club owner Rob (Colin Salmon who you might recognise as George Knight in Eastenders), who made the decision to leave following not having the money to support Graham. But Graham had a lot to contend with when Ron got replaced, and I’ll let you watch the series to find out just show outgoing he is, and not in a good way. Just as a hint, for me personally they were abit too much, but on the flip side at least they had the energy and not cared at all. I also mentioned Jake (Austin Taylor), and he seemed to be the only student other than Kay who came to Alan’s defence. But that often was met with prejudice from bully Leslie (Logan Matthews) and student Georgie (Lucy Chambers), who had a part to play in Alan’s heartbreak in the last episode. There was also the return of neighbours Ange and Nigel (Gabby Best and Harry Peacock). Ange still being your typical annoying neighbour who can’t seem to take a hint, and Nigel over exaggerating on certain situations again, and I do get why their son Charlie (Rourke Mooney) seems to be annoyed every time they get themselves into these scenarios. We also saw new neighbours Jez and Tom (Tom Stephen and David Ames) who Christine made very welcoming. Even though they didn’t say specifically they were gay and together, the little hints I got were enough for me and hopefully the viewers to get the idea. And I just hope that the next series will see them appear and hopefully inspire a young Alan to come out and be his true authentic self. 

I think my only downside was the end of the series, and the outcome Young Alan had in regards to Jake. But with the announcement of series 4 already being filmed, it would be interesting to see how Alan would move on from the scenario whilst also finding the courage to come out to his friends.

Overall, I would give the show a 4.95. Once again, it had wit, humour, and episode 5 in particular made me laugh my head off. I just can’t wait for series 4 and for Alan to tell more tales of his childhood and hopefully we see the moment of when he comes out!

And that is it for my final TV Reviews of the year. Let me know if you’ve seen any of them, and if you haven’t, I hope I gave you something to start on during the holidays.

See you soon for another blog. Until next time…

This is The Autistic Actress signing off :)