granaryboys

Thank God that Paramount in the UK show Frasier every night so I can watch it over and over again. David Hyde Pearce steals the show as Niles Crane, the extremely witty, acid tongued brother of Frasier who delivers his "put downs" with his chin in the air and the wide eyed innocence of a naughty school boy. His unrequited love for Daphne has driven me to laughter and tears over the years, but drove me to even more tears in the last episode - I do hope he wasn't dreaming! Together, Niles and Frasier are a pair of utter snobs and will go to any lengths to outdo one another (and the rest of Seattle), whether it be at an auction or buying their father a present he doesn't really want. ( All Martin really wants is his beer and his green nylon reclining chair by the TV).

Not only is this series extremely clever and most probably contains some of the best dialogue every written, it also has a leaning towards slapstick which again works exceptionally well, especially if you know the characters. Situations spiral out of control time and time again the outcome sometimes blatantly obvious, the twisting path there bringing the laughs.

All the characters are fab especially Martin - the dad who simply analyses people and situations in seconds, whilst Frasier and Niles are busy over complicating everything. A special mention to Eddie the Jack Russell who I believe made it onto the front cover of Newsweek before any other cast member - a very cool pooch!

I can't really specify any one episode as they have all been so brilliant, but watch out for the one in which Frasier writes his own grandscale theme tune - again Martin's simplicity wins through. Also, the one where he invites his new boss for dinner as a date for Daphne, unfortunately he has eyes for Frasier, another great example of double entrende throughout.

My only criticism of this series is the "English" accents - they're not quite right!! Not everyone in England talks with a Cockney accent especially Daphne's brother as he is supposed to be from Manchester!! Still, a fabulous series which I hope continues to be strong for another few years. Frasier will make you laugh and cry, your heart will ache for Niles you will be exasperated with Frasier himself and intensely dislike Bulldog. The greatest tragedy would be for Frasier to become stale and embarrassing, a series this intelligent and poignant deserves to end on a very high note.

A brilliant film with loads of excellent one liners to titillate. Eddie Murphy plays a fab part as G, you're never quite sure if he is as innocent as he makes out! Is he a fraud or not? Jeff Goldblum is also excellent as "Robert Ricky" the cynical shopping channel executive. Watching how "conformists" react to an alternative lifestyle provides many laughs - watch out for the urineade scene. Every time this film is on, I find myself settling down to watch just a few minutes, then of course I end up watching it all. I have a feeling it has already joined Wayne's World as one of of those films where you lie in wait for your favourite scenes, then recite them! Definitely well worth watching especially if you have a quirky sense of humour. Fab.