The really horrendous thing about knowing that I can’t say anything about what I just saw without spoiling it for people is like that moment when you really need a wee but you can’t leave just yet and you start to do that stepping from side to side jiggling ‘I need a wee’ dance. Well, actually it’s not but that’s kind of what I’m doing right now and I promised myself that I wouldn’t go for a wee until I’d finished the first paragraph. ‘Scuse me.

Ahhhhh, that’s better.

Rightio, so I was wrong about the Osterhagen Key. I was wrong about… well, I never put the other things I was guessing about on here because I am not clever enough to talk about them without revealing things to the people that haven’t seen them yet.

Let me just say this. Russell T. Davies is a very very clever man. He knew knew knew that the cliff hanger from last week would drive all the free publicity he would ever need. And then to do what he did with this episode. Can we please clone lots of TV writers from individual cells of his body?

Now I know there are going to be a lot of people out there who didn’t like this episode, who will pick on the odd plot hole and convenient twist but the excitement and joy and anger and sadness I felt during this episode meant for me this is a success.

Television programmes have become so much about looking good or being clever that sometimes the pure joy of watching an hours good storytelling is lost. There is a fight, well - mild disagreement - at work about good TV, as one side stacks up with Big Brother, The X Factor, I’m A Celebrity, The Jeremy Kyle Show and all the soaps… and then there’s my side with anything written by Aaron Sorkin, Heroes, Battlestar Galactica, Dexter, Brothers and Sisters, and of course Doctor Who. When asked why I had such a downer on reality based programming I started off by saying if I want to watch people making idiots of themselves I’ll go and sit on a bench in any town in the country.

The thing is we, in the UK, are lucky enough to live in a country where we have Freedom of Speech… and I think we take this for granted. Like in an episode of The West Wing where Toby gives a Russian journalist press credentials grudgingly and says that she should treat the privilege of being able to print better… With the way the laws are changing and rights are being taken away… should we not treat all forms of communication better? And shouldn’t we be aspiring to higher forms of entertaining instead of constantly scrabbling round in the dirt?

Oh… sorry. I’m feeling very holier than thou right now. Whenever a TV show lift my spirits I get this way. I feel like we should all be able to achieve so much more. And if a children’s TV show (for that is what Doctor Who is - so stop talking about how simply things worked out) can make me feel this way then why shouldn’t more adult TV?

The really quite funny thing, for me, is that there are lots of people who blame US entertainment for dumbing down TV and yet some of the most aspiration and inspirational shows come from that side of the Atlantic. And a secondary funny thing is that people are always yelling about the ‘Nanny State’ as the Governments try and stop us doing harm to our bodies by smoking, eating and drinking too much - why aren’t they regulating the large amount of crap on TV that is slowly but surely destroying our minds?

And if a show that makes us think comes with some eye candy like David Tennant then all the better for it. And while this should be the space for the obligatory picture I can in no good conscience put one here from the episode without revealing things. You know how to Google if you want them!

Update:

I forgot to mention that as well as fantastic TV I got the equally brilliant news that the prize I won over at Psuedotherapy is a custom made mug - which rocks as it means it will facilitate one of my favourite things ever - the drinking of coffee. So thanks SJ - you really are quite the brilliant person!

Yes, I know that there are important things going on in the world and I am upset, appalled, disgusted and ashamed of all of them, but today, my whole day was leading up to one 45minute period.  Doctor Who. The Stolen Earth.

THERE ARE NO SPOILERS HERE (Go here if you want them).  I’ve learned my lesson on that one over and over and over.  I was gibbering like a fool at the end of it. Like. A. Fool.

I mean my head knew that the thing that appeard to happen couldn’t have possibly happened but my heart was pounding like a… poundy thing and I had a tear of excitement right from… pretty much the first moment.  And… when The Doctor and Donna went to the… place and then… the look of panic on Donna’s face was much like my own.  Scary.

But then joy joy joy.  And then horror.  Ooo… another big nemesis back with lots and lots of reasons how that could be.  And Rose?  Whiney.  I mean, great she was there but whiney…

And it’s just lucky (or really really sad) that I watch all the other spin offs so I knew who everyone else was…

I’m shutting up now… but I think I know what the Osterhagen Key is.  And if I’m right?  Oooooooo…

Right, I’m going back to the BBC to watch it again.  For those outside the UK - go - download!  Waste no time!

Barring alien invasion or anything truly exciting happening today I think it’s safe to say that I can review 2007 as ‘fair to middling’. Yep, there has been some truly horrible bits and, yet, some bloody marvellous moments too. It’s all balanced out in the end. Of course, didn’t think I’d be back at my parents at the close of the year, but I have a job I enjoy and no work related stress going on. Can’t complain.

Had you asked me yesterday, ooo, complain? I was doing the whole mumbling under my breath, grinding of my teeth bit. It was not pleasant. It was mostly to do with the totally lack of internet. For those of you who didn’t see my Twitters, the broadband died 10 days ago. It died at the same time as the new TV was installed but I chalked that up to coincidence (yeah, right) and moved right on to swearing about Virgin Media instead. The tech guy on the phone was completely unhelpful as they always are and gave me no alternative way of getting online. He also told me that Firefox was not compatible with Virgin broadband, and that I should use Internet Explorer. When I advised him I was using a Mac, he still insisted that I needed Internet Explorer. That was the moment I knew, I just knew, that I was completely screwed.

After a 30 minute phone call he told me that he would send out an engineer…

In 10 days.

I mean, I know it’s the holidays and probably their busiest time but seriously?! 10 days?! I then released the anger and frustration I had been holding onto an, well, vented about how that really didn’t work for me and how on earth was I supposed to get through the Christmas period without onlineyness. He muttered something about not being able to do anything else and I begged him to take me through what the tech would check and do and I would check and do. Then he got all official about unofficial installations and basically you bugger about with our equipment and ooo there’ll be trouble… I dropped into sulk mode and Twittered from my mobile.

Fast forward to today (Yes, Christmas happened and it was lovely and the usual and TV was great. Yes… Doctor Who… Am not saying anything about it. Just allow me this:

and I’ll move on.)

Yes, today…

The technician shows up, complete with those plastic things over his work boots, and after about two minutes he tutted and pointed out the main cable coming into the building had been unplugged and re-plugged into an isolator on the cable feeder. He explained that whoever had installed the TV was obviously a muppet (I would like to point out that this is my word and not one that a representative of Virgin would ever use to describe an installer-monkey (actually that’s insulting to monkeys (sorry monkeys)) from the fecking useless company that installed the TV. I mean there was ABSOLUTELY NO NEED for him to even touch the cable connections. Pulling out the scart connection and replugging it in. That’s installing the TV. Oh, and pressing automatic retune. Please tell me why oh why he had to fiddle with wires that had nothing to do with the job he was doing?

Oh, wait. HE. Man. Male. Balls.

No no no no no no no NO.

I am not ending 2007 on a men are useless rant. i refuse to. Because men are lovel, wonderful creatures who I will never understand.

And short of the blinding hangover I am bound to have in the morning I think I have tomorrow’s post.

Have a wonderful New Year’s Eve. I hope you have fun in whatever you are doing to celebrate the turning of the year. I have a bottle of Southern Comfort and Jools Holland’s Hootenanny in my future.

Love you all!

Rubbish small post for big huge thing.  On Children in Need tonight a mini episode of Doctor Who, Time Crash, will be/ has been shown… featuring my first Doctor, Peter Davison (as well as the delicious David Tennant)!  It’s only on the BBC website for the next seven days… To be found hereOkay, feel good now… only 1 month and 7 days to a new episode! Okay, life getting in the way of blogging today. Weekend here now!