New Challenges, Scrumptious Cases & Saucy Showbiz!

Hello world! Welcome back to another blog. This is another TV instalment, where the show I’m going to be talking about include the second series of the woman navigating new challenges around parenthood, a crime drama that has scrumptious recipes that had a lot of clues, and the first season of quite possibly the sauciest show based on the novel by the late Jilly Cooper that focused on the world of competing showbiz companies. So without further ado, here are my thoughts on these three shows!

Amandaland:

The first show I’m going to talk about is Amandaland, starring Lucy Punch and Joanna Lumley, and featuring Rochenda Sandall.

This second series continues the more adventures Amanda gets up to, including building her social media presence and also seeking a new house.

Lucy Punch reprised her role as the eccentric Amanda. This series saw her continue to build her following on her company senuous, whilst also navigating new challenges but in a comedic way. These included promoting a coffee shop similar to the one in her previous home, getting a new house, and needing to wear glasses. But the way she goes about those scenarios I think is brilliant, and Lucy definitely has a way of making some of those situations relatable. Ontop of that, there was also the challenge of her mother Felicity, reprised by TV royalty by Joanna Lumley. I just love how she just casually somehow makes Amanda’s life a little bit more complicated, and also whilst her driving may seem abit risky, she made it quite entertaining. But all in all she was a crucial part of Amanda’s life, giving her tips and also helping her get the dream house, even if the result wasn’t quite what Amanda was expecting at the end of the series (and I’ll let you watch it yourself to find out). There was also Amanda’s friend Anne, played by Phillipa Dunne, who once again had some interesting experiences when it came to certain topics. One of them was her “conversation” with ChatGPT, and that one in particular was quite entertaining. But her reaction to when she got some life changing news (positive ones) made me howl with laughter, which also gave me my reason as to why along with Fi (who I’ll mention in the next paragraph), she’s one of my favourite characters. Samuel a Anderson also reprised his role as Amanda’s neighbour Mal. Once again he was both someone who playfully teased her about some situations, like in episode 3 “Soha Sofa” when there was a mystery about an adult item, but was also there for her at her low point. He was also once again proving to be a good dad to his son Ned but in a humorous way as Ned’s step dad JJ kept showing him up. But he was relieved to see that Ned was appreciative for his efforts and that’s what it’s all about. 

There was also the return of many other characters that all had an impact on Amanda and her journey. One of them was the quirky Fi, played by Rochenda Sandall. Throughout this series she was my favourite character of them all, mainly because her positive energy is exactly the sort of thing I need to surround myself with (much like Rochenda herself), and we saw her with a new companion in Bobby the dog, which got me having some of the most relatable moments. There was also Fi’s wife Della played Siobhán McSweeney, who was in Hawaii on a job, and Bobby the dog did cause some friction between the two. But she eventually warmed up to him, and it brought their family together (with a moment from Bobby that reminded me of my dog Margo being hilarious). And I loved Rochenda’s and Siobhán’s on screen connection, particularly at the end of the series when Della revealed of a new job she was offered, and how Fi encouraged her to go for it knowing that long distance went fine last time. JJ, played by Ekow Quartey, was also being the same self conscious person he was in the previous series (but in an entertaining way). One of them included episode 1 “Careers talk” when his speech about his career ended on an embarrassing note, and also how he was sorting out his bank accounts and cancelled an important subscription. But there were moments as well where in episode 6 “Prom” he accidentally got covered in a drink which made me laugh, mainly because of how unexpected it was. But equally he was a good step dad to JJ, and still showed Mal that Ned loves them both equally, bringing the co parent method to good use. The children were also growing up and having their own adventures. Manus, played by Alexander Shaw, was still a cheeky chappy who was using language Felicity didn’t understand (which was entertaining), and Georgie played by Miley Locke, was growing up fast, still being embarrassed by Amanda in some situations (which I can relate to), but equally showed appreciation for her. She was also back on track with Anne’s son Darius, played by Jack Veal, who sneakily used a excuse on getting an ID in episode 5 to bend the rules (but what teenager wouldn’t). Morten, played by Anya McKenna-Bruce, was once again a rebellious teen like Fi and Della, but deep down she was a good friend to Georgie, and as long as they weren’t hurting anyone, then that’s all that matters. And Ned, played by Archie Smith, was your average teen who yes liked living with JJ, but appreciated Mal trying to work hard to be there for him, particularly when it came to building the shed and also making a curry which didn’t go to plan (but was also quite entertaining). There was also a appearance in Mal’s ex wife Abs, played by Harriet Webb, who easily pushed Amanda’s buttons throughout the series (but in an entertaining way). But I loved a moment at the end of the series where she praised Mal for just having a roof over his head since their split, which was a lovely moment to see. There were also actors who had brilliant supporting roles in Amanda’s adventures. These included Ellie the coffee worker in episode 2, played by Juliette Motamed, who helped Amanda with her social media platform, Elspeth played by Pam Harris in episode 4, who was the woman who owned a house Amanda was aiming to by, Finlay in episode 5 played by Ebenezer Gyau, an options worker who was quite the smooth talker when helping Amanda find a pair of glasses, and Tony Limo guy in episode 6 played by Daniel Fearn, who mistook Amanda’s business for something else when needing a limo! 

I don’t think I had any downsides to it other than having moments where I didn’t belly laugh. But I must say I laughed more than I did in the first series, mainly from Anne with her own curiosities and JJ spilling beer on himself in episode 6. But I knew the drama and I knew it was going to be entertaining throughout. 

Overall I would give series 2 of this show a 4.95. It was chaotic, quirky and showed Amanda on a new path when it came to her children growing up and having her own self discoveries. With series 3 being announced recently, I can’t wait to see how she navigates challenges like Georgie and Manus going to 6th form along with choosing which university they go to. 

A Taste For Murder:

The next show I’m going to talk about is A Taste For Murder, starring Warren brown, Christina Dell’Anna and Phyllis Logan.

This tells the story of widow DCI Joe Mottram, who goes to Italy to bond with his daughter, only to get roped into solving local mysteries within the Italian culture. 

Warren Brown took on the role of DCI joe Mottram. A grieving widow who lost his wife Sofia (Carolina Gonnelli), and took the trip to Italy as a way to help grieve with his daughter Angelica. But he was soon roped into cases which for him was a way of coping, and whilst he claimed in episode 4 that he couldn’t talk about her, it in episode 6 where he explained his childhood and how Sofia had changed his life. It was then he also explained how the death of Sofia affected him, and how he doesn’t want the same for his daughter. I know Warren has been in lots of things, but for me this was the first show where I’ve seen him play a good guy. So it was a nice change and he played the role wonderfully. Angelica, played by Beau Gadson, was quite the character in this show but for the right reasons. I could also tell she was close to Sofia than to Joe, hence why she was abit more rebellious, which caused friction when she made a decision about her future at the end of the series. But when Joe explained his childhood, it made her realise the stuff he had to go through, which changed her opinion of him completely. I do love the father daughter connection Warren and Beau brought to the show, and as someone who lost a parent at a young age, they also showed the reality of how to navigate grief beautifully, and the impact it can have on a relationship between a parent and child. Two people that made an impact on joes grieving process was his in-laws and Angelica’s grandparents Elena and Gennaro, played by Phyllis Logan and Urbano Barberini, who each had different views to Joe when it comes to talking about Sofia and Angelica, and they each have him clues when it came to the cases. Elena was more open minded and had more of a laid back approach when it came to looking after Angelica. Yes she knew that Angelica was a child, but also knew the boundaries and was comforting when an incident happened in episode 5. She also gave Joe some pearls of wisdom, where at the time it was needed. Gennaro was more stubborn due to financial problems with the main villain of e dhow Rocco Di Bassi (who I’ll mention in the next section)after revealing of Sofia’s plans in Italy, but showed a caring side, particularly in episode 4 when Joe admitted he couldn't talk about her. But both of them gave good analogy of foods linking to clues which helped Joe solve mysteries. These included Star of the show in episode 1 linking to an ingredient in a meal Sofia made, a distraction technique in episode 3 when it came to the murder mystery. switching labels in episode 4 linking to sauces and name changing through time when making a ragu. When Joe was in these cases, he had the help of Inspector Lara Sarrancino, played by Christiana Dell’Anna. She wasn’t afraid to bend the rules to get what she wants, and she explained her backstory in episode 2 about why she became an officer, with her parents secretly not approving of her lifestyle. But one thing for sure is that you wouldn’t want to mess with her, and she even helped Joe with Sofia’s death and how it happened, giving a big clue which for me just wants a second series to happen. There was also Lara’s colleague Deputy inspector Gianni Gallo, played by Marouane Zotti. He was shown to have a more relaxed approach and had room for a joke and abit of banter as seen in episode 2, but he also took things seriously when appropriate, showing that he has a nice balance of not putting too much pressure on himself, but also know when to get his head down and look for clues for the case. 

There were other people that shaped Joes time in Capri. These included Luca, played by Alessandro Fella, who in episode 1 was accused of a crime after revealing his criminal past. But if it wasn’t for Joe’s intervention he wouldn’t have been released from prison, and he was also a confidant for Angelica in episode 4 linking to Daniele (who I’ll get onto in a moment). He also helped Joe with the main villain of the show and overall he was one of my favourite characters to watch. Not only because of his good looks, but because he showed that kindness when needed. Another person who had an impact on Joes life was restaurant worker Daria, played by Gaia Scodellaro. I thought she was very caring, and she and Joe had a lot in common when mentioning about her family in episode 3, and cooking a meal together in episode 5 where a moment happened between the pair. But she knew deep down that he was still grieving for Sofia, and despite appreciating Elena not wanting Joe to grieve alone (as she set them up), she didn’t want to do anything that felt like a betrayal to Angelica. But she was on hand to help Joe with her, and I loved their connection on screen. And a real life sweetheart as well. There was also Italian local Daniele, played by Alessandro Bedetti. Understandably Joe had his suspicions due to being the protective parent he was to Angelica, and even she had suspicions in episode 4 when spotting him suspected to dealing drugs. Despite Joe getting the seal of approval, he was right to initially be suspicious when he was about to do something horrific to her episode 5, b thankfully Joe came to the rescue. It was then revealed in episode 6 how he was working as part of a gang linking to Di Bassi, and despite a plan to use him as bait went wrong, he soon got what he deserved. If there is a second series, it would be interesting to see him in a court trial and the sentence for his crimes. But my guess is he’ll be in prison for a VERY long time. There have also been many actors who came as supporting roles for each case. To make a few, those included Episode 3s Andrea and Santorini played by Giuseppe Bonifati and Rocco Fasano. I loved their connection on screen and I could see how much their job as murder mystery hosts meant to them. I could also see Santorini’s grief when a dreadful fate happened to Andrea, but equally showed commitment to the police into helping them solve the crime whilst also getting justice himself. There was also Camilla the author, played by Claudia Jolly, who was targeted as a suspect but eventually got cleared of her name, and Oscar Miller and Max Murray, played by Henry Felix and Deni Sankovic, two actors where Oscar was caught in the crime after Max gave Joe the distraction technique clue to solve the case. There was also divers Sadie and Nick Mayweather, played by Kosha Engler and James Anderson, where Nick met a dreadful fate, and their colleague Luisa and her step son Leo played by Kaisa Hammerlund and Fred Pearce. Luisa was a shifty one, as she would’ve been the obvious suspect, but even I was surprised when Leo was the main culprit, admitting he was targeting someone else and Nick. This just shows me that he has mastered the art of surprise, and Fred did a brilliant job at taking that note on board. But the main villain of the show was mafia leader Rocco Di Bassi, played by Bruno Bilotta. Let’s just say I wouldn’t want to get in his bad books, particularly when Elena made her feelings clear to Gennaro about his reputation, but he stuck with it anyway after revealing his reasons for working with him. His colleagues Fabio, played by Yurji Buzzi, and Bernardo, played by Duncan Bucan, were people who made Joe the target after making Angelica feel uncomfortable, but eventually got caught after revealing their role in the case linking to a shark in episode 6. And that was karma for them right there, knowing they will go down not only for the crime, but for their involvement with Di Bassi. 

I think my only downside to the show was the ending. I don’t want to reveal all, but let’s just say that despite Joe making a decision and respecting Angelica’s, the ending showed that there’s definitely more to come along with Lara revealing a vital clue in Sofia’s file. 

Overall I would give the show a full house of 5 out of 5. It was tense, dramatic and the food featured not only made my mouth water, but also provided Joe with vital clues for the crimes itself. I just hope there’s a series 2 so that not only do we find out what happens after the cliffhanger, but Joe also finds out more about Sofia’s death after the clue Lara gave. 

Rivals:

The final show I’m going to talk about is Rivals, with a star studded cast, which include Alex Hassell, Aidan Turner and David Tennant. 

As stated in IMDb, the synopsis goes as follows:

"Follows Rupert Campbell-Black and Tony Baddingham as they have a longstanding rivalry that comes to a head."

The main star was Rupert Campbell-Black played by Alex Hassel. A former Olympian and MP, he was quite known to be a ladies man. But deep down he was secretly lonely, and a flashback in episode 7 as to why he retired from showjumping May be that reason, therefore doing what he does is secretly a way to escape what happened. Standing in his way was Corinium owner Tony Baddingham, played by David Tennant. I must say he does play the villain well, and despite having a similar past to Rupert, he was hellbent in making his life a living nightmare. There was also presenter Declan O’hara played by Aidan turner, a former BBC presenter who originally worked for the BBC, but Tony offered him a job to help pay his debt. But Declan, initially hating Rupert, soon formed a friendship after rupert flipped a question he got asked in episode 4, which made second rethink everything and start up his own company Venturer. I also loved his speech at the end about why TV brings people together, and it’s definitely something to take on board for future references. And a big part of that was thanks to his daughter Agatha “Taggie” O’hara, played by Bella McLean. Whilst I might not be dyslexic and she might not be autistic, I definitely relate to her when she admits to taking a lot of responsibility for the family and feeling out of place. I think that’s why she was one of the very few people who saw Rupert in a different light, and despite him making a move that annoyed her in episode 2, from episode 3 onwards, her fondness for him grew more and more to the point where they admitted their feelings for each other in the final episode. I do think that Alex’s and Bella’s on screen chemistry shows both on and off screen, as I read that they are really good friends in real life because of the show, which made it more lovely to see. And also who wouldn’t want to work with their best friends?!?! There was also producer Cameron Cook, played by Nafessa Williams. She was the definition of girl power, and wasnt afraid to speak her mind when mentioning ideas to move Corinium forward. But getting involved with Tony she knew it was a dangerous game, and it was only in episode 6  and 7 where after getting involved with Rupert, she was able to see Tony’s true nature. And I wasn’t expecting her to take action like she did at the end, so I would be interested to see how they evolves during the second season. Amongst the Venturer crew was tech expect Freddie jones, played by former eastenders royalty Danny Dyer. He definitely knew his stuff, and was also the voice of reason when things got heated. And I think whilst he loved his family dearly, he knew that there was something missing romantically speaking. This was in the form of the O’Hara’s neighbour Lizzie vereker, played by Katherine Parkinson. She is someone I’d definitely want to be friends with, as she’s quirky, loyal and a brilliant writer, something that her husband James (who I’ll get onto in a moment) didn’t see. But Freddie accepted her for who she was and vice versa, and was a massive fan in f her adult romance novels. And their intimate moment at the end of the series wasn’t cringy at all, but a relief for both of them to be their true selves without judgement. I loved Danny’s and Katherine’s chemistry when portraying those characters, and after seeing a spoiler of them in Celebrity Gogglebox, that moment was just the beginning of an exciting but dangerous affair. 

Throughout the journey, there have been other characters who supported Venturer, and then there are people who had supporter Corinium first then moved to Venturer, and people who have stayed loyal to Venturer. But really there have been people who have their own Jo ruined. These included Declan’s wife Maud O’Hara, played by Victoria Smurfit. I had mixed opinions on her, as yes I get why Maud needed that attention knowing that Declan was busy with making the money to provide for his family, but I felt like she was just bored and didn’t anted him to notice her. I think that’s why she tried to seduce many of the men, which included Rupert, but was knocked back by his affection for Taggie, and the other was her former work colleague Malhar (Charlie de Milo who you may recognise for playing imran Habeeb in Coronation Street). But deep down she was secretly pleased at the end of the series when Venturer got the result they wanted, but with her going to London to take an acting opportunity, it would be interesting to see how they navigate their marriage in the swing season. There was also Freddie’s wife Valerie “Mousie” Jones, played by Lisa McGrills. I could see why Freddie loved her, but I do kind of see why there were some bits where he wondered if he ever loved her, particularly when she made him go on a diet he deep down didn’t want to do. I’m just interested to see in season 2 if she’ll even notice the connection Freddie and Lizzie have and if she’ll take action about it. GThere was also James Vereker, played by Oliver Chris, who yes was a successful presenter, but a horrible husband to Lizzie. You know they do a character well when they get you to believe they are a villain. As I’m sure Oliver is a nice person in real life, but he definitely made me want to hate James for how he treated Lizzie (and I don’t blame Lizzie at all for cheating on him). One person he was romantically involved with was Sarah Stratton, played by Emily Atack, someone who like Maud wanted abit of fun and excitement, and was pleased to be working on TV for him. I must say kudos to Emily for getting on a show like this, as after watching a documentary about being sexually harassed online, and after opening up about her body image, it’s shows like this that I guess help with their confidence. I just felt bad for Sarah’s husband Paul Stratton, played by Rufus Jones, a conservative MP who was just wanting to love her deeply. There was also Tony’s brother Bas Baddingham, played by Luke Pasqualino. Let’s just say he’s quite the ladies man, particularly in episodes 2 and 6 where he really showed them his things, but equally he shows care and empathy, particularly in episode 7 when he confronts Maud. Those traits I think make him my favourite character and if he were to come onto me, I would take that chance! A lover and a gentleman at the same time. Amongst the chaos was secret lovebirds Charles Fairburn and Gerald Middleton, played by Gary Lamont and Hubert Burton. I liked their story, as it shows the reality of having a same sex relationship in the 80s. Whilst Charles secretly didn’t want to hide, Gerald wanted to do thing’s traditional so that they can be together. But that news affected Charles’ health, and it was when Taggie showed him kindness when opening up about his mother’s deteriorating health when he realised he needed to move away from Corinium. He is also someone I’d want to be friends with, and Gary portrayed the role or Charles very well! Monica Baddingham, played by Claire Rushbrook, was also someone to watch out for, as at first she didn’t notice Tony’s secret. But after a hint from Valerie, and after noticing in episode 7 the connection between him and Cameron, it was clear that Tony wasn’t fully honest with her. And good on her for giving him that ultimatum, and after seeing a spoiler clip on TikTok, season 2 maybe explore a different kind of connection for Monica. There was also Tony’s and Monica’s son Archie Baddingham, played by Louis landau, who had a real reputation and wasn’t afraid to bend Tony’s rules, along with Beattie johnson, played by Annabel Scholey, who only appeared in episodes 1 and 8, but she made an impact not only on Rupert, but for both the outcome of Venturer and Corinium. And finally there was Taggies siblings Patrick O’Hara, played by Gabriel Tierney, and Caitlin O’hara, played by Catriona Chandler. With Patrick, he definitely had his sights set on Cameron in episode 3, and tried every little thing he could to pursue her which kudos to him for trying, and for Caitlin, despite being at boarding school, she was able to support Taggie amongst the drama, particularly when it came to their parents and their arguments. I have a feeling as well that season 2 will see a Romeo and Juliet style theme when she gets involved Romantically with Archie, and I’m all here for it! 

I think one of my downsides was the moment Corinium colleague Daysee (played by Lara Peake) had to go through that ordeal with Reverend Fergus Penny (David Chandler) in episode 5, which was quite hard to watch. I’m hoping that when I watch season 2, she’ll be more open about her abuse and use it as her superpower. There was also a moment in episode 6 where let’s just say that the sexual tension between all of the characters was abit too much for me. That’s just my personal thoughts on it. 

Overall I would give the show a 4.90. It was dramatic, funny in some places and definitely sexual, maybe abit too much for my liking, but Devon’s speech at the end on how TV can bring people together really balances out nicely. With the first 6 episodes of season 2 now out, and with 6 more to come in November, I can’t wait to see how Venturer and Corinium navigate their rivalry when it comes to making great TV, along with the developments of the connections people have with each other.

And that is it for my latest instalment of TV Reviews. Let me know which show you watched and your thoughts on them.

See you soon for another blog. Until next time…

This is The Autistic Actress signing off :)