Noticias

Shetland, the beloved BBC crime drama, has been renewed for two more seasons by the Beeb in news that will be welcomed across the entire United Kingdom. Ashley Jensen, who joined the series in its eighth season, to replace original star Douglas Henshall, who departed in July 2022, will be returning as her character Di Ruth Calder. Jensen will be joined by regulars Alison O'Donnell as Di Alison 'Tosh' McIntosh, Steven Robertson as DC Sandy Wilson, Lewis Howden as Sgt Billy McCabe, and Anne Kidd as forensic pathologist Cora McLean, with an announcement to be made regarding further casting news in the near future.

After Di Jimmy Perez deliberately sacrificed his career in the name of justice (if not the law) and went off to pastures new with nurse Meg at the end of series seven, Shetland now has a new sheriff in town. Sort of.

While DS Tosh performs the duties of acting Di at Lerwick Police Station, detective Ruth Calder has come up from London in search of a missing witness in a serious crime case. It just so happens that Calder is an old Shetlander who left the islands as a teenager and was glad to be rid of the place, where she’s confronted by some old ghosts.

Ugly Betty and Agatha Raisin’s Ashley Jensen plays Calder, along with a new guest cast of Scottish stars as well as Shetland’s returning favourites. The latter includes Alison O’Donnell as DS Alison ‘Tosh’ McIntosh, Steven Robertson as DC Sandy Wilson,...

Shetland is a thrilling Scottish crime drama with complex characters and a captivating atmosphere that keeps viewers hooked. In season 6, episode 1, Di Pérez investigates the murder of a lawyer while dealing with interference from a teenager and a potential organized crime connection. The final episode reveals the truth about a series of murders and cover-ups, leading to unexpected arrests and leaving Di Pérez in a precarious position.

Shetland season 6 was a thrilling chapter in the Scottish crime drama series as it maintained a sense of mystery, intrigue, and tension from beginning to end. Shetland takes place on the titular archipelago, roughly 100 miles off the northeast coast of Scotland. It follows Detective Inspector Jimmy Pérez (Douglas Henshall) who must solve a series of dangerous crimes. As Pérez investigates these mysteries, he is accompanied by Detective Sergeant Alison "Tosh" McIntosh (Alison O'Donnell) and Detective Constable Sandy Wilson (Steven Robertson).

Like many other great TV mysteries,...

Shetland is a gripping Scottish crime drama set in the eponymous Scottish archipelago, known for its darker and more sinister edge. The Shetland cast has seen changes over the years, but the performances continue to impress, with the show remaining a critical darling. The show reinvents the small-town crime genre with each passing year, making it one of the best shows set in Scotland.

Even though the Shetland cast has grown and changed over the course of its near-decade on the air, the featured players never fail to deliver in the gripping Scottish crime drama. Debuting in 2013 on BBC One, Shetland is set on the eponymous Scottish archipelago and follows the men and women of the local police force who investigate crimes that disrupt the sleepy community. With its distinctly Scottish environs and small-town crime aspects, Shetland is a unique specimen among other British crime dramas because of its darker and more sinister edge,...

The Boy Friend by Sandy Wilson will come direct to Toronto from an acclaimed, sell-out season at the prolific Menier Chocolate Factory in London and prior to a West End transfer, will have a new star. Stage and screen actor Kelsey Grammer will make his Canadian stage debut in this new production. The Boy Friend will be performed March 29 to May 3, 2020 at Toronto's Princess of Wales Theatre. Mr. Grammer will star as Lord Brockhurst.

Jack F. Lee born John Francis Lee, beloved musical director of both stage and screen, passed away peacefully on March 2, 2016 in his home at the age of 86. Mr. Lee was one of Broadway's leading conductors and musical directors who worked with composerslyricists John Kander amp Fred Ebb, Cy Coleman amp Dorothy Fields, Jule Styne, Richard Rogers, Stephen Sondheim, Charles Strouse, Alan Jay Lerner, Maury Yeston, Robert Wright amp George Forrest, Sandy Wilson, Bob Merrill, Betty Comden amp Adolph Green and Harvey Schmidt amp Tom Jones.

The 15th anniversary celebration of the Whistler Film Festival wrapped Sunday night, living up to its title as ‘Canada’s coolest film fest’ by hosting more premieres, filmmakers, industry executives, and celebrities than ever before, including unique experiences from films, music and parties to high adrenaline races.

The Whistler Film Festival’s Pandora Audience Award went to British-American romantic drama "Carol," directed by Todd Haynes from the screenplay by Phyllis Nagy (Variety 10 Screenwriters to Watch class of 2014) starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, which received its Canadian premiere at Whistler. The Wff Audience Award runner-ups were "The Legend of Barney Thomson," character-actor Robert Carlyle's first theatrical feature and directorial debut, which received its North American premiere at the festival, followed by Ricardo Trogi’s mid-life crisis dramedy, Quebec film "Le Mirage," the highest grossing and most popular Canadian film of the year so far. The Wff Audience Award is a non-cash prize presented to the highest-rated film as voted by the audience.

Paul Gratton, Director of Programming had this to say about this year’s event: "We were very fortunate to open this year's fest with the Canadian premiere of "Carol," a film we are convinced will be a major contender in this year's awards season race. The festival took off from there, with many sold out screenings, packed and newsworthy industry sessions, and over 450 guests who made a point of trekking out to beautiful Whistler to support their films and talk business with the high-level movers and shakers also in attendance. 2015 represented another step forward towards making Wff the coolest festival in the world. Can't wait 'til next year.”

Total attendance for this year’s fest was 13,233 attendees (a 18% increase over 11,273 in 2014) . This included 7,740 film-screening attendees and 3,533 special event attendees (Signature Series, Music Café, ShortWork Showcase, R-Rated Party, Awards Brunch, L’Oreal Men Expert Bobsleigh Race and Celebrity Challenge Ski Race), in addition to 2,530 Summit attendees. Several of the feature films were at or near capacity, including: "Born to be Blue," "Chasing Bansky," "Forsaken," "How to Plan and Orgy in a Small Town," "Legend,""Legend of Barney Thomson," "Numb," "The Lady in the Van," "the Steps," and "Trumbo."

Designed to facilitate international alliances and financial partnerships, Wff’s industry Summit program presented 30 interactive sessions that addressed a range of issues affecting the film, television, and digital media industry. Overall Summit attendance was at 86% capacity with 2,530 attendees (a 13% increase over 2,231 in 2014) including 855 delegates (on par with 2014). The Whistler Summit directly connects to Wff’s slate of project development programs designed to provide creative and business immersion experiences for 42 Canadian artists including its Feature Project Lab, Praxis Screenwriters Lab, Aboriginal Filmmaker Fellowship, and Music Café. Wff also collaborates with several industry organizations by hosting specific third party initiatives at the Whistler Summit including the Women in the Director’s Chair Industry Immersion, Women in Film & Television Film Market Preparation Mentorship, and the Mppia Short Film Award Pitch with the Motion Picture Production Industry Association and Creative BC. In addition to the

204 scheduled meetings (a 10% increase over 186 in 2014) that took place during the Summit, there was again a notable increase in unscheduled meetings that took place outside of scheduled blocks proving the festival remains an important place for the industry to meet and do business. Industry guests came from Canada, USA, UK, India, and China to participate, and included some of the top talent and executives in the business.

Film met music when Morning Show, one of the ten-featured BC artists from Wff’s Music Café, performed the live score for "He Hated Pigeons." Wff’s Music Café, which expanded to include two showcases over two days and featured five music supervisors, was well received with several deals in the works and over 526 guests in attendance.

Toronto’s first-time feature director Jamie M. Dagg’s "River" dominated Whistler prize-giving, winning for best Canadian feature, Best Director and Best Screenplay in the Borsos Competition for Best Canadian Feature presented by the Directors Guild of Canada – British Columbia. The jury also awarded French-Canadian actor Paul Savoie with Best Performance in a Borsos Film for his performance in "The Diary of an Old Man," as well as provided honorable mention for Rossif Sutherland’s work in "River" and Laura Abramsen’s roles in "Basic human Needs" and "The Sabbatical." Lastly, Best Cinematography in a Borsos Film, presented by I.A.T.S.E. Local 669, went to cinematographer Dylan Macleod for "He Hated Pigeons," directed by Ingrid Veninger. The Borsos Jury was comprised of three accomplished film industry artists that included the highly versatile director and screenwriter and WFF15 Alumni Carl Bessai ("Rehearsal), beloved actor and director Marc-André Grondin , and award-winning producer extraordinaire, Kim McCraw.

Other Whistler award winners included "Last Harvest" by first-time female director Hui (Jane) Wang that won the World Documentary Award presented by Tribute.ca with honorable mention for Brian D. Johnson’s "Al Purdy Was Here." The Best Mountain Culture Film presented by Whistler Blackcomb went to Anthony Bonello’s "Eclipse." The Canadian ShortWork Award went to "Withheld" directed by Johnathan Sousa, with an honorable mention to Amanda Strong and Bracken Hanuse Corlett’s Mia’. The International ShortWork Award was awarded to "Dissonance" by Germany filmmaker Till Nowak, with Langara College’s Canadian ShortWork Award for Best Screenplay given to Jem Garrard’s "The World Who Came to Dinner." Emily Carr University of Art and Design’s Lawrence Lam won the ShortWork Student Award presented by Capilano University Film Centre for "The Blue Jet," and Maja Aro won the Mppia Short Film Award for "Hoods" presented by Mppia and Creative BC, which consists of a $15,000 cash award plus up to $100,000 in services. The Alliance of Women Film Journalists (Awfj) Eda Awards gave Best Female-Directed Narrative Feature to Valerie Weiss’ "A Light Beneath Their Feet," Best Female-Directed Documentary to Hui (Jane) Wang’s "Last Harvest," with a special mention for Brian D. Johnson’s "Al Purdy Was Here." In addition, Céline Devaux’s "Sunday Lunch" took home the Best Female-Directed Short Award.

Receiving Wff’s Trailblazer Award and Tribute presented by Pandora, British-born Canadian actor, film producer, and film director Kiefer Sutherland discussed his extensive acting career spanning film, stage and television, with CTV Film Critic Jim Gordon , followed by the Western Canadian Premiere of his latest film, "Forsaken." Scottish-born Robert Carlyle , one of the most recognizable actors today, graced the Festival’s red carpet at this year’s Spotlight event as Wff’s Maverick Award honoree and sat down with Jim Gordon to discuss his bold choices that have led to the creation of some of the most dynamic, memorable, and beloved characters of our time before the North American Premiere of his directorial debut, "The Legend the Barny Thomson." One of Canada's hardest working and most accomplished character actors, Bruce Greenwood was the recipient of Wff’s Career Achievement Award, at the World Premiere of his latest film "Rehearsal," directed by admired Wff Alumni Carl Bessai.

The Whistler Film Festival proudly hosted the Variety 10 Screenwriters to Watch for the fourth consecutive year hosted by Variety Vice President and Executive Editor, Steven Gaydos . This year’s slate of screenwriters in attendance included Bryan Sipe ("Demolition"), John Scott III ("Maggie"), Meg LeFauve ("Inside Out"), Mike Le ("Patient Zero"), and Emma Donoghue ("Room"), who also delivered a Master Class for the Wff Praxis Screenwriters Lab participants.

To top it all off, Lauren Lee Smith ("How to Plan an Orgy in a Small Town"), Jakob Davies ("The Birdwatcher"), Taylor Russell and Rustin Gresiuk ("Suspension") were recognized as Wff’s Rising Stars sponsored by Ubcp/Actra at this year’s Keynote Filmmaker Luncheon presented by Pacific Northwest Pictures, and all had films premiering at the fest.

Over 400 guests attended the fest with other notable talent in attendance with films premiering at the fest including: actor Rossif Sutherland ("River"), director Jon Cassar ("Forsaken"), actor Callum Keith Rennie ("Born to Be Blue"), director/writer Sandy Wilson ("My American Cousin), actors Aleks Paunovic, Stefanie von Pfetten, Marie Avgeropoulos and Colin Cunningham ("Numb"), actors Chelah Horsdal and Alex Zahara ("Patterson's Wager"), actor Sage Brocklebank ("Suspension"), actors Gabrielle Rose and Camille Sullivan ("The Birdwatcher"), actor Rebecca Dalton ("The Colossal Failure of the Modern Relationship"), actor Paul Savoie ("The Diary of an Old Man"), director and founder of the Toronto Film Critics Association Brian D. Johnson ("Al Purdy Was Here"), director and co-founder of World Elephant Day Patricia Sims and co-director Michael Clark ("When Elephants Were Young"), "The Steps" director Andrew Currie and actor Steven McCarthy , and award-winning directors Philippe Lesage ("The Demons") and Ricardo Trogi ("The Miracle"). Veteran director Bruce McDonald attended as a mentor of the Wff Praxis Screenwriters Lab, as well as Canadian actress, writer, filmmaker, comedian, and social activist Mary Walsh , who participated in the Women In The Director’s Chair program and got a standing ovation as Wff’s Keynote Speaker at the Filmmaker Luncheon.

My American Cousin

Written and Directed by Sandy Wilson

Canada, 1985

Sandy Wilson’s My American Cousin is an endearing, semi-autobiographical tale centering on one golden summer in a precocious girl’s life. In 1959 British Columbia, 12-year-old Sandy (Margaret Langrick) lives on a gloriously scenic ranch populated with her family and a group of friends who help out on her father’s cherry orchard. It’s an idyllic setting, but the terminally bored pre-teen is histrionically unimpressed.

“Nothing Ever Happens!” she scrawls in her journal.

But excitement unexpectedly arrives when Sandy’s 17-year-old American cousin Butch (John Wildman) pulls up in a dazzling, red Cadillac convertible. With duck-tail hair, pressed blue jeans, and a pack of cigarettes wrapped in the sleeve of his white t-shirt, he is a walking James Dean clone, which is especially exotic in a town whose theater has yet to play Rebel Without A Cause.

Sandy’s...

Graceful stage actor who stood out in Doctor Who on TV and the film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

In a long and distinguished career, the actor Aubrey Woods, who has died aged 85, covered the waterfront, from West End revues and musicals to TV series and films, most notably, perhaps, singing The Candy Man in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971), starring Gene Wilder, and playing the Controller in the Day of the Daleks storyline in Doctor Who (1972).

Tall and well-favoured in grace and authority on the stage, he played Fagin in the musical Oliver! for three years, succeeding Ron Moody in the original 1960 production. He was equally in demand on BBC radio, writing and appearing in many plays, including his own adaptations of the Mapp and Lucia novels by Ef Benson (he was a vice-president of the Ef Benson society).

In the early part of his career he...

BBC One has ordered more episodes of crime drama Shetland.

The show - based on Ann Cleeves's novels - will return for a new six-part series, comprised of three two-parters.

Douglas Henshall will reprise the lead role of Detective Jimmy Perez for filming this summer, ahead of a 2014 broadcast.

ITV Studios exec Elaine Collins said: "I'm thrilled by the terrific response we've had to Shetland. The Scottish landscape is one of the most beautiful places on earth and I'm delighted to be given the opportunity to work again with Douglas Henshall and the team on Ann Cleeves's wonderful Shetland stories."

Shetland launched as a pilot two-parter last month, opening with 6.4m viewers.

The new episodes will be based on Cleeves's stories Raven Black, Dead Water and Blue Lightning.

Shetland actor Steven Robertson - who plays PC Sandy Wilson - previously spoke to Digital Spy about his hopes for a full series.

Review James Stansfield 10 Mar 2013 - 22:00

Is new two-part BBC crime adaptation Shetland a friendlier version of The Killing? James checks out the first episode...

This review contains spoilers.

There’s more than a hint of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo in the Beeb’s latest stab at crime drama. Set about as close to Scandinavia as a British drama can get, Shetland uses the remoteness of its setting to convey the sense of community shattering that the Swedish screen version of Stieg Larsson's debut novel did too. Ultimately Shetland isn’t as dark as anything that has filtered its way down from our friends in the North, this is primetime BBC One, not Four after all but its opening half made for an entertaining and likeable hour of television.

Things begin with an elderly Mima Wilson rummaging through her old photos when a strange noise draws her out of her middle-of-nowhere house,...

A new murder-mystery series set against the stunning Scottish backdrop of the Shetland Isles debuts on BBC One this Sunday night. Shetland is based on the novels by Ann Cleeves and stars Primeval's Douglas Henshall as lead detective Jimmy Perez.

Also starring is actor and Shetlands native Steven Robertson (Being Human, Luther) who spoke to Digital Spy about the two-part crime drama, his hopes for more Shetland and why the role of PC Sandy Wilson is a nice break from playing killers and creeps...

Shetland is based on a series of books - for those unfamiliar with the novels, what is the show all about?

"This one is based on the novel Red Bones - which is actually the third novel in a quartet. They're all set in various areas of Shetland - a couple of them are real places and a couple were invented by the author [Ann Cleeves].

"Each...

If you're frantically scouring the internet and flipping through your TV guide of choice, seeking out scoop and new UK airdates, then take a break and breathe easy - the Tube Talk Q&A is the one-stop-shop for all your telly needs!

This week, we've got news on the return of Cuckoo and The Bridge, plus transmission dates for Us series like Revolution and Touch - and still more besides! So get reading...

Any confirmed start date for Revolution yet? And is it as good as the hype from the States would have us believe?

Sky1 previously confirmed that Revolution - the sci-fi thriller from Supernatural creator Eric Kripke and geek god Jj Abrams - was due to launch in the UK in March, and we're now hearing whispers that the 22nd of that month has been pencilled in as a premiere date...

As for whether you should take the...

"Don't Knock the Music!" week continues at Trailers from Hell, today with director-producer Dan Ireland introducing Ken Russell's fantastic Twiggy-starrer "The Boyfriend." Set on the French Riviera during the roaring 20's, Sandy Wilson's smash 1954 London musical production ran for 2,078 performances to great acclaim. Julie Andrews made her Broadway debut in the starring role the same year, but when Ken Russell mounted his 1971 film version he chose current pop culture icon Twiggy for the lead, and she gave an unexpectedly charming and delightful performance. However, notorious MGM honcho James Aubrey reduced the Us running time from 136 to 109 minutes. In 1987 MGM/UA's Mike Schlesinger engineered a reissue of the uncut version, which is now available on DVD from Warner Archive.

Set on the French Riviera during the roaring 20′s, Sandy Wilson’s smash 1954 London musical production ran for 2,078 performances to great acclaim. Julie Andrews made her Broadway debut in the starring role the same year, but when Ken Russell mounted his 1971 film version he chose current pop culture icon Twiggy for the lead, and she gave an unexpectedly charming and delightful performance. However, notorious MGM honcho James Aubrey reduced the Us running time from 136 to 109 minutes. In 1987 MGM/UA’s Mike Schlesinger engineered a reissue of the uncut version, which is now available on DVD from Warner Archive.

Here’s the original trailer.

The defiant romantic of British cinema never lacked for critics but his prime inspiration was surely in music

Part glam rocker, part wild-haired conductor, Ken Russell was the populist maestro of the screen, the great defiant romantic of British cinema. Russell's films showed his great love for music and composers: Elgar, Tchaikovsky, Delius, Strauss, Liszt – and Sandy Wilson and Roger Daltrey. Other film-makers might have found their creative impetus in novels or plays; Russell's inspiration was surely primarily in music. His ideas, his images, his rows, his career itself were all one colossal, chaotic rhapsody.

His adventures were a rebuke to British parochialism, literalism and complacency, and he had something of Kubrick's flair for startling or mind-bending spectacle. Russell gave us the nude wrestling scene between Alan Bates and Oliver Reed in the Oscar-winning Women In Love (1969) in which each actor, with Russell's cheerful consent, was said to have taken...

No, you don't see this everyday, although for a certain segment of the population, I'm sure there's a wish that it were more prevalent. It's a statue of Angelina Jolie breastfeeding.

So outside of fetishism, what's going on? Daniel Edwards, the artist who rose to fame for his similar piece featuring Briney Spears birthin' on a bearskin rug, says it's a "celebration of family and home" but believe what you want. Edwards calls his latest work Landmark for Breastfeeding, and it will be on display next month in Norman, Oklahoma - outside of Oklahoma City - before debuting in London. Hailing from the Sooner State, I'm not entirely sure how this will go over there.

Said Sandy Wilson of Phantom-Financial, the group behind Edwards' sculpture, “We believe the statue sends a beautiful message by promoting the acceptance of public breastfeeding. Mothers should be encouraged to nurture their babies anywhere." The...

A naked Angelina Jolie will be gracing the streets of Oklahoma City in September - a life-size statue of the Hollywood actress breastfeeding has been created by New York-based artist Daniel Edwards.

The bronze sculpture of mother-of-six Jolie, titled Landmark for Breastfeeding, was inspired by the star's W magazine cover last year, in which she was snapped by boyfriend Brad Pitt breastfeeding her newborn twins.

The statue depicts Jolie sitting nude as she suckles twins, one of whom is of African descent.

It is set to be unveiled in the Oklahoma City Metro area on 11 September as part of World Breastfeeding Week.

Sandy Wilson of Phantom-Financial, the organisation behind the Jolie artwork, says, "We believe the statue sends a beautiful message by promoting the acceptance of public breastfeeding. Mothers should be encouraged to nurture their babies anywhere."

The sculpture will go on show in London later this year.