Tom Baker tops Doctor Who poll

Tom Baker is the most popular Doctor Who, according to the results of the latest tellytunes poll.

Baker, who played the fourth incarnation of the Timelord from 1974 to 1981, bagged 36% of the 477 votes cast. Second with 29% of the vote was the original Doctor, William Hartnell, who starred from the launch of the series in 1963 until 1966. Third in the tellytunes poll was the current Timelord, David Tennant, with 13%.

The poll was carried out on the tellytunes website after the publication of the results from a similar poll in the official Doctor Who magazine which found David Tennant to be the most popular of all the Doctors. I was personally suprised by the result given Tennant's relatively short reign in the role and suspected that his victory may have been less to do with the tenth Doctor's charisma and more down to the bulk of Doctor Who magazine readers being younger, current fans of the show rather than viewers from the bygone times of wobbly sets and dodgy monster creations made of paper mache.

Baker's appearance at the top of our poll would seem to back this up, although I tend to feel that most people's choice of favourite Doctor Who is always as much as generational thing as anything - in other words, you like best whoever was the Doctor when you grew up watching the show. Although I'd argue that this theory does not perhaps apply to anyone growing up in the Colin Baker era - as everyone knows that he was crap!

Full results of the telytunes poll are as follows:

Tom Baker (1974-81) - 36%
William Hartnell (1963-66) - 29%
David Tennant (2005-present) - 13%
Jon Pertwee (1969-1974) - 8%
Christopher Eccleston (2005) - 7%
Colin Baker (1984-86) - 3%
Peter Davidson (1981-84) - 2%
Patrick Troughton (1966-69)- 1%
Sylvester McCoy (1987-89) - 1%
Paul McGann (1996) - 0%

And the results are....due sometime after midnight!

One down, two to go in the reality TV stakes this week as Hannah Waterman and Marti Pellow took the crown in tonight's final of Just The Two Of Us. It's spent a decent chunk of the week up against ITV's Soapstar Superstar and C4's Celebrity Big Brother but has certainly managed to come out on top in at least one aspect - the ability to string out the results show in the most complicated manner possible.

It feels like the producers of the show have sat down in front of ever other results show on TV and, like a clone of Little Britain's Andy, have spotted each different element and cried "I want that one!". The result is the most long-winded elements of every other show all rolled into one.

For those who've not managed to stay awake long enough to witness it, here's roughly how the scoring and results all work. Firstly, the esteemed judging panel (pictured below) give their own marks. At the end of the show, the public get to start running up their phone bills on the premium rate voting lines to make up the other half of the score, ala Strictly Come Dancing.

At the start of the results show (well, I say "start" but there is, of course, the obligatory 15 minutes of waffle and recaps ahead of it), the running is narrowed down to the bottom three. One of the judges then gets to save one of the three. Cue Simon Cowell hollering "Oi, that's my idea".

Then we're down to the last two who next have to perform again, giving the public time to phone in again to save their favourite while notching up an bit of extra cash for the network in an "I'm A Celebrity" style. As an aside, I've never quite understood the point in making the bottom-scoring acts sing/dance again when clearly, by the nature of their position, they are actually the acts which the public least want to see again.

Anyway, finally, with the will to live all but drained from the viewing public, we eventually get down to finding out whose for the boot before the losers then close the show with their swansong, leaving me once more asking why on earth would we want to hear yet again from the crappest act of the night?

In a way, ITV have got the right idea on Soapstar Superstar - they just chuck them out as soon as the show begins - with Gemma Atkinson chucking them out throughout her performances :-). And it looks as though Celeb BB will be going down its usual plan of just having evictions at random when it suits the schedule - which is fine just as long as they don't then bring half of the buggers back again afterwards.

Incidentally, funny to see that, by the twist in the rules, Jade is up for eviction on the first chuck-out of the series. After all the hype and build-up, I would be hilarious if she went on the first night. Highly unlikely I know seeing as a sizable chunk of the British public seem to have taken her to their hearts, but I can always hope...

~~steve~~

www.tellytunes.com

Top 20 TV Themes of 2006

Family Fortunes was the most searched-for TV theme of 2006 via the tellytunes theme finder.

Office presentations, versions of the game being played at home/school/work and mobile ringtones accounted for much of the demand for the theme and associated sound effects - with the famous "uhh-uhhhh" incorrect answer sound effect proving the most popular of the bunch.

The theme to ITV's X Factor was the second most-sought-after theme of the year, with many people again recreating the show in schools or at home while others simply saying how much they liked the theme. Sing-a-long favourite The Littlest Hobo came in as third.
Requests for themes and effects for work presentations, school lessons/projects and family recreations of favourite quizzes also contributed largely to the appearance of several other shows in the top ten with Countdown and Deal Or No Deal holding fourth and fifth place respectively. Bullseye was the eighth most-popular theme of the year with Who Wants To Be A Millionaire at 10.

The nostalgists amongst you helped to put Captain Pugwash at six and orchestral gem Black Beauty at nine. I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here completes the top ten with a placing at number seven.

The full Top 20 TV Themes of 2006 were as follows:

01. Family Fortunes
02. X Factor
03. Littlest Hobo
04. Countdown
05. Deal Or No Deal
06 Captain Pugwash
07. I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here
08. Bullseye
09. Black Beauty
10. Who Wants To Be A Millionaire
11. Thomas The Tank Engine
12. Mastermind
13. Top Gear
14. Blockbusters
15. Only Fools And Horses
16. Match Of The Day
17. Grange Hill
18. Doctor Who
19. Catchphrase
20. Baywatch

The Face (or what's left of it) is in the House

So the madhouse is full again with 11 more celebrities locked up inside the Big Brother house for a few weeks. Many have already described this year's line-up as disappointing (what, no Hoff??!?) but then I think the line-up is disappointing every year on paper - but still usually ends up being a success. Who'd have thought on the entrance night of last year's CBB that the most-shown clip of the series would feature George Galloway and Rula Lenska?

And so, with her hair scraped back in a slap-head ponytail style to rival Catherine Tate's Lauren character, Davina shouts and gurns her way in the usual manner through the welcomes for this year's motley crew...

Not to be outdone by I'm A Celebrity's David Gest scoop last year, BB opens with the entrance of its own Michael Jackson storyteller, brother Jermaine. Next in is former Miss GB and up-and-coming WAG Danielle Lloyd, who was apparently shocked to discover that the photo shoot she did for Playboy showed her breasts. Surely she was there when they took the photos?

This stunning insight into the WAG mind was followed swiftly by either an incredibly excited or extremely drunk Ken Russell. (I'm sure he's not always been quite that nuts, has he??) Next in is former S-Clubber Jo O'Meara (she of the manly jaw and dodgy back) followed by, for me, the biggest surprise of the night - Leo Sayer. I'm yet to decide if he's going to be very funny or just extremely annoying. Next in is Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty followed by Sunday Mirror columnist Carole Malone.

Punk rocker Donny Tourette follows, swearing and two-finger saluting the crowd in a manner which hasn't really been fashionable or particularly amusing since about 1979. Following the tabloid build-up of the day, Ian 'H' Watkins topped the league of least unexpected contestants and duly made his entrance (he's gay you know - shocker, who'd have thought it).

Former Kenny Everett cohort Cleo Roccos was next in, with my biggest (and, to be honest, somewhat involuntary) cheer of the night saved until last with the entrance of A-Team star Dirk Benedict. The Face. Although the nation should now call him by his full name, What the hell happened to his Face.

Much amusement was gained from the usual treat of checking back through the tabloids to see just how badly wrong they'd got it. David Hasslehoff? Robert Kilroy Silk? Su Pollard? Julie Goodyear? Paul Michael Glaser? Adam Ant - he was a cert surely?? 10/10 as ever thought to Pop Bitch who were bang on the money with their list published early yesterday.

But, alas, it looks like the red tops are bang on the mark with the reports of Jade Goody and her family entering the house later in the week. Can't stand the woman myself, mainly because I've never really been able to truly believe that she's that thick. Plus her mum scares the crap out of me quite frankly. Still, at least it's not Nicky from last year.

And speaking of scary, the most concerning quote of the night definitely goes to Jermaine Jackson who, when asked by Davina if brother Michael would be watching, revealed that "Michael has a way of seeing everything". Be afraid - be very afraid...

~~steve~~

www.tellytunes.com

The reality deluge begins

I'm sorry to report that I have already broken my first New Year's Resolution - "I shall not be tempted to watch TV that I know is going to be crap just to try and eek some vague whiff of entertainment from it".

Credit for this personal failure lies firmly in the laps of BBC1's Just The Two Of Us and ITV1's Fortune: Million Pound Giveaway.

I began watching Fortune mainly to see just how much it ripped off Channel 4's Secret Millionaire (well, that's my excuse anyway). The answer was "quite a bit" but this was not so much Secret Millionaire more Egotistical Millionaires Who Would Like You To Come Out In Public And Beg Them For A Cut Of Their Cash. And, sadly, beg they did.

First up was a guy who had slimmed down from 26 stone to a reasonable size and wanted £5000 for a tummy-tuck operation. All was going well until he let slip that he earned £40k a year himself and he was prompted told to bugger off and pay for it himself.

Next came the heartstring-puller of the night - an 11-year-old lad asking for money to send kids with cancer on holidays. A worthwhile cause indeed and all credit to the lad for having the guts to come out and do it - but if it's as worthwhile as the likes of Jeffrey Archer and Duncan Bannatyne cooed it was, does it really have to take an 11-year-old begging in public to the loaded fatcats to get the money donated?

A varied assortment of other oddities proceed to come out to haggle for some cash, with mixed success, including a pair of 16-year-old train enthusiasts who did as much for the train spotter stereotype as Chantelle has done for the credibility of Essex women.

The biggest winners of the night though were the Millionaires themselves, who had such a small price to pay in the end for getting their already over-inflated egos massaged by the begging "little people", and presenter Richard Madeley who has succeeded in not only managed to escape the wife for a night, but has also landed possibly the easiest job on the box, involving little more than saying hello, goodbye and "back after the break" a few times.

Meanwhile, over on BBC1, Vernon Kay and Tess Daly open this week's gluttony of b-list celebrity talent/reality shows with a new series of pro-celeb karaoke show Just the Two Of Us. I read a comment in the press the other day about the husband and wife presenting duo which hoped for their sake that their off-screen chemistry was a damn sight better than their on-screen partnership which, once again, looked about as uncomfortable and cringe-worthy as it gets.

The show did produce a couple of corkingly funny moments though - the best of which was the pairing of EastEnders' Jim Branning (actor John Bardon) with soul diva Jocelyn Brown for a quick chorus of the Corr's "What Can I Do To Make You Love Me". If you missed it, keep an eye out on YouTube - it's only a matter of time before it ends up on there (I'll post the clip up if I get chance later).

And the show ended with a brilliant "insult to injury" moment (or rather very nearly injury to insult) when, having just been announced as the first to be chucked off the show, former T'Pau'er Carol Decker found the backdrop of the set coming down on her before she'd finished sharing in the customary "Really sorry to see you go - but I'm sooo much better than you" hugs from her fellow contestants.

And so onto tonight where, if today's tabloids are to be believed, the likes of David Hasselhoff, Adam Ant, H from Steps, Former Miss GB Dannielle Lloyd, Jade Goody, Robert Kilroy Silk and about 3 dozen other stabs in the dark are all limbering up for the launch of the new series of Celebrity Big Brother. I've tended to find the last couple of series of Celeb BB far more entertaining than the main show so fingers crossed. Watch this space...

~~steve~~
www.tellytunes.com

The best of the bad Christmas bunch...

With the last of the Ferrero Rocher finally consumed at tellytunes Towers, it's time to break free of the Christmas-induced vegetative state and get back to normality. Well, as normal as spending half your spare time writing about TV and TV themes can be...

So, how was your Christmas and New Year telly viewing then? If it's anything like mine, pretty dire I would imagine! It's always much easier to criticise though than to compliment, so I'll begin with the positives...

Firstly, who'd have thought that the Vicar of Dibley would take the Christmas TV Ratings crown? And, more alarmingly, who'd have thought I'd have watched it AND laughed at it. Certainly, not I - or, I would imagine, a large percentage of the other 12.something million viewers who, like me, had probably lost the ability to move and stretch for the remote by 9pm on Christmas Day night and ended up watching it by default.

The storyline was as schmaltzy as ever and most advancing punchlines could be spotted more clearly than a Buncefield smoke plume, but somehow it was very laugh-out-loud funny. (I blame the Christmas sherry.)

Channel Four's Big Fat Quiz of the Year also proved a much bigger laugh than originally anticipated - with David Walliams' schoolboy strop at not winning making for priceless TV. After catching various bits of the show again on repeat during the more baron gaps in the schedules, I'm still yet to decide how much of it was a comedy act and how much was genuine sulking.

Through a Christmas spent largely sharing the same TV as my wife, mother, mother-in-law and gran-in-law, the deluge of soaps was unavoidable. But hats-off to Emmerdale who managed to come up with some corking laughs and the best soap whodunnit since JR Ewing and Phil Mitchell were both perforated by gunfire. While admittedly "Who pushed Tom King through the window of his first-floor bedroom?" doesn't quite have the same ring to it as "Who shot JR?", the contrived build-up was still hugely entertaining. Personally, my money's on Batley the dog, back from the dead and out to avenge his previous owner Edna Birch.

Other shows which went down well in chez tellytunes were:
The Sarah-Jane Adventures - proving that Doctor Who spin-offs can work
After Thomas - the perfect Boxing Day night cosy drama featuring the brilliant young acting talent of Andrew Byrne
Doctor Who - still nowhere near as good as is should be but Catherine Tate proved slightly less annoying than expected and it made for a good escape from the post-Christmas depression of December 27th
Derren Brown's 'Something Wicked This Way Comes' - Still can't work out whether I like or loathe the guy, but the show made for fabulous watching.

Right that's enough of the positivity. Now onto the post I really wanted to get off my chest...

~~steve~~
www.tellytunes.com

..and the worst

So, from the Christmas crackers to the brussel sprouts of the Christmas schedules and top of the list is EastEnders and the demise of Pauline Fowler.

I've never been a big fan of the Christmas Day death and misery that EastEnders seems annually obliged to throw at us but I was actually quite looking forward to seeing the end of the old battleaxe. But, what could have been an explosive exit a few weeks earlier with the house fire storyline turned into a complete damp squib of an ending. No wonder Wendy Richard had a monk on about it for so many months. Her big exit scene came and went even quicker than the sudden miraculously-appearing snowstorm which managed to deliver 3 inches of snow to the Square in under half an hour (and be completely gone again by Boxing Day morning).

Another let-down was It Started with Swap Shop which, as you see from this post, I was originally looking forward to hugely. Unfortunately, I gave up after about 35 minutes - around the time when Noel deliver his sixth crap Deal-or-No-Deal-related gag of the show. Quote of the show went to my wife, who is too young (just!) to remember the original show but, on seeing Maggie Philbin delivering her third link of the night, enquired "Was she always this rubbish?". Thankfully I don't remember that being the case, no. Although Maggie wasn't the only presenter of the night who looked like she was working from an autocue for the first time in about 15 years.

Challenge Anneka was another revival that I'd been looking forward to hugely. Now it wasn't dreadful but, again, not as good as I remember it. I'm hoping that it was perhaps just the huge seriousness of the cause (Tsunami aid in Sri Lanka) that served to dampen some of the comedy and fun that I remember the show for and that, come the new series which is no doubt now inevitable, it'll be all fun and frollicks again when she's back in the UK building children's playgrounds on run-down council estates in Bury. (And the cartoon opening featuring the road-crossing hedgehogs needs bringing back too! Although at least they kept the old theme!)

Little Britain Abroad seems, by general consensus, to have been much less funny than it could have been, although Lou and Andy stranded on the desert island proved the one saving sketch for me - particularly Lou spelling out the SOS signal in stones "Help, we're in a bit of a kerfuffle"!

Finally, top of my list of worst of the worst shows of the festive period, mainly due to its overwhelming "how the hell did this make it to a prime time Christmas slot" factor was ITV's pre-Christmas offering Whatever Happened To Gareth Gates? "He went and got pissed for 4 years and is probably now about to make his comeback, hence this god-awful show" was my rather cynical suggestion just as the opening titles rolled. And what do you know - we then proceeded to sit through an hour-long advert for Gareth's up-and-coming new album. Still, could have been worse I suppose - it could have been Whatever Happened To Michelle McManus?

So, what's widely been acknowledged as a generally crappy year for TV in general ended true to form with a less-than-spectacular Christmas line-up. Fingers crossed that Michael Grade can work his magic at ITV in the coming year and get things back on track for next Christmas. Either that or we end up suffering the same festive TV fate as American audiences. Their most-watched show of Christmas Day was Deal or No Deal - shown on NBC which was the only major American network to broadcast new programmes on Christmas Day. Seems the likes of Fox and ABC gave up on Christmas viewing a long time ago...

~~steve~~
http://www.tellytunes.com/