13-year-old Tolly (Alex Etel) is sent to stay with his grandmother (Maggie Smith) at her old house, Green Knowe at the end of World War II. His father is missing in action and his mother has gone to see what she can find out in London. There has been a rift in the family so Tolly and his grandmother really don’t know each other well, and are a bit antagonistic at first.

There’s a separate story some generations back, appearing as ghosts or spirits to Tolly, who becomes quite involved in this other world of racism and discrimination, getting to know a blind teenager called Susan and her family. Gradually the past and present stories intertwine and he discovers a long-lost secret.

Nicely done, albeit with some inevitable plot-holes. Adapted from the book ‘Chimneys of Green Knowe’, with some liberties taken, but these are somewhat explained by the interesting ‘Extra’, an interview with Julian Fellowes who directed it.

Intended for older children, this appealed to us as adults too. Some quite tense moments, and some parts which were quite moving. Not quite four star level, but I’d like to have given it more than three!

It’s taken us six months to watch this, the last full season with David Tennant as the Doctor. Great first episode featuring Kylie Minogue, who would have made a good companion, but it was not to be. Donna – Catherine Tate – appears in episode Two, a quirky and somewhat amusing one featuring some weight loss pills, and the cute aliens known as adipose (which can now be bought as plush toys!).

I didn’t much like Donna at first, but her lack of romantic interest in the Doctor was quite refreshing, and she grew in confidence as the series progressed – making her eventual departure, in the last episode, tragically final.

There are threads running through this series which make it more complicated than the old series used to be, but there are still quite a mixture from the cuddly Adipose to the terrifying Vashta Nerada, not to mention the ancient daleks with their battle cry ‘exterminate’, which still makes me shudder and want to hide behind the sofa, as I did as a child.

Lots of companions re-appear in this series, including one from the Doctor’s future (is that ‘pre-appear?’) and there’s a delightfully light-weight episode featuring Agatha Christie, a society hostess played by Felicity Kendall, and a script which includes a large number of titles of Agatha Christie’s books.

The final DVD contains a wonderful documentary, seeing into the lives of those involved in the show, with script-reading, filming and post-production. David Tennant is brilliant throughout.

Great stuff… I just wish I’d known sooner that there are some extra episode from 2009 which are chronologically between Series Four and Series Five. So we need to get hold of them before we can move on to see Matt Smith as Doctor.

Judi Dench is excellent as Queen Victoria, initially portrayed as still in deep mourning, three years after the death of her beloved husband. The public – and parliament – are trying to persuade her to return to public duties but she refuses.

John Brown (Billy Connolly) who was one of her husband’s servants and confidants is sent for; he takes the Queen out for rides, and with his sometimes brash, always honest approach manages to bring her out of her depression, where the rest of her staff failed. They become very good friends – the film does not suggest anything more, despite the title – but this in itself gives rise to more gossip.

Lovely photography, excellent main characters; Victoria in particular ages gracefully and perfectly as the story progresses. There isn’t really all that much plot; it’s character-driven and while not gripping, was very watchable. Some deep emotion and a few moments of light humour. I would like to have given three-and-a-half stars but for once erred on the side of generosity.

Paige (Julia Stiles)is studying to be a doctor in Wisconsin, and is highly focused on her work. Although she doesn’t want romance (having no time free) she’s a likeable, believable young woman.

Eddie (Luke Mably) is the Crown Prince of Denmark. He likes nothing more than fast cars and fast women… and is also utterly bored. so he goes to study in the US, in the hope of finding even more flirtatious women. His minder Soren (Ben Miller) accompanies him, and Eddie decides to be incognito, determined to throw himself entirely into student life.

There are plenty of amusing moments as Eddie and Soren learn to deal with the squalid nature of student accommodation and the demands of university classes. Eddie and Paige find themselves unwilling lab partners, and – unsurprisingly – their initial hostility develops into a real friendship…

Oh, it’s predictable, of course. At least, the ending is. But there’s a lot in this film, which is more intelligent than the DVD cover would suggest. There’s an insight into the US understanding of European royal life: probably unrealistic, but with rather stunning costumes. There’s also a very funny interlude at Paige’s home town, where Eddie takes part in a traditional lawnmower race at a country fair.

It’s Julia Stiles who really carries this film, as far as I’m concerned. Expecting a bit of silliness, we enjoyed this film very much.

Dame Maggie Smith is brilliant as the romantic novelist Emily Delahunty with a sordid past, who now owns a large villa. On her way to Rome by train, a terrorist bomb explodes, killing four passengers, injuring others – including Emily – and orphaning a child.

I assume this is set in about the 1950s, based on the cars, old-fashioned record players and general props. It’s a character-based story: As the survivors recover, Emily invites them, including the orphaned Aimee, to stay at her house in Umbria. There they begin to find some healing… at least, until Aimee’s rather cold uncle arrives.

Gorgeous scenery, and wonderful acting by Dame Maggie, who must have been about 70 when this was made but could easily pass for 60. Her character does seem rather strange towards the end, forcing confidences and drinking too heavily, but the story flows well, and the ending, if a little unlikely, is very satisfying.

Rated 12 in the UK, and that seems about right given the flashbacks of past abuse in Emily’s life.

Wonderful stuff! Marty (Michael J Fox) is a teenager in 1985, who finds himself going back in time by thirty years in his eccentric friend Doc’s time travelling Delorian car. There he meets his parents just before they have their first date, and is in danger of changing history in a way that endangers his own life…

There are plot holes, of course, but the reconstruction of the town in 1955 works brilliantly, and after a bit of a slow start the story is quite gripping, even though I had seen it a couple of times before. Great excitement at the climax… and a surprise ending which I had not totally remembered.

Now a classic, this is highly recommended for the whole family.

Meryl Streep stars in this moving film as Roberta, a newly single mother of two, who applies for a job teaching violin at an inner city school. Based on a true story, it follows her early attempts to help impoverished students to care about music, to work at their playing, and to achieve beyond their wildest dreams. She hits prejudice, aggression, and laziness… but gradually, over the years, many students find her classes inspirational and fulfilling.

Then comes the blow: the music class no longer has funding. And then comes an exciting final part of the story when Roberta – aided by many parents and staff – decides to fight the decision and raise funds herself. It’s mesmerising stuff, extremely well done, and quite moving in places. Highly recommended.

We enjoyed Father of the Bride, so this was a welcome sequel. Steve Martin plays the slightly hapless George Banks and Diane Keaton is brilliant as his long-suffering wife Nina. In this story, their married daughter Annie makes an announcement which is no surprise to anyone other than George… and then Nina finds herself feeling unwell. Meanwhile George manages to sell the family home to a wealthy Arab, only to learn that it’s going to be knocked down rather than lived in…

Humour that verges on slapstick at times is interspersed with some quite poignant moments, and a tense climax, with a bitter-sweet ending which we, as empty nesters, could relate to all too strongly.

Theoretically the film stands alone, but it works much better seen as a satisfying sequel to the original ‘Father of the Bride’. Recommended for a bit of light relaxation.

The plot is a little confusing in this film, because it’s made up of several loosely connected subplots about relationships. The cast of main characters is larger than I’m comfortable with, and the majority of the actors are well-known in other fields. So there’s Hugh Grant as a new British Prime Minister who develops a bit of a thing for a new domestic worker. There’s Colin Firth as a writer whose wife cheat son him, and who then falls for a domestic worker who doesn’t speak any English. Then there’s Alan Rickman, Keira Knightly, Emma Thompson… I am no movie buff but even I know these people. And Thomas Brodie-Sangster, whose name I did not recognise but whose face was familiar from such diverse productions as Nanny McFee and Doctor Who.

The scenes with young Thomas as an orphaned boy getting to know his stepfather are perhaps the most moving of all. Several of the subplots are slightly amusing, one or two others quite deep… and a couple seemed utterly pointless. I was particularly unimpressed with somewhat explicit scenes from a couple who were supposedly making a porn film despite being very shy. It was rather gross rather than comedic. And there was a totally pointless and feeble thread with some nerdy guy whose name I have forgotten already, who wanted to get girls – nothing at all to do with love – and decided to travel to the US to get them.

Still, the acting is very well done, and despite the large cast I found myself keeping up with most of the storylines… and while I’m not sure I’d watch it again, it made an enjoyable light evening’s viewing.

A bushman in an idyllic society comes across a coke bottle, discarded from a small plane. At first everyone finds constructive uses of it, but gradually they start to fight, and experience emotions such as anger and jealousy for the first time. So Xi (played by a real bushman called N!xau), one of the men, decides to walk to the ends of the earth to return it to the gods.

Meanwhile a young and attractive teacher is on her way to Botswana, being met by a rather klutzy scientist, and some guerillas try to assassinate the president. Xi gradually meets people in so-called civilized society, and finds it all very difficult to deal with – leading to some amusing moments. It could have been condescending, but the film actually pokes fun at supposedly advanced civilization, seeing the bushman tribe as the ideal, and Xi – who is brilliant – gradually learning about life outside his home.

Some slapstick humour which is actually very amusing, and lots of misunderstandings… very well done despite low budget; this was a surprise hit in 1980, and there’s a fascinating ‘extra’ about the real bushmen actors – who were rather different from the people they portrayed.

I liked it better than I expected to.