TV & Satellite Week – September 2002

Catering for the seemingly insatiable appetite for celebrity chefs, BBC2’s new comedy Posh Nosh stars Richard E. Grant (left) and The Fast Show’s Arabella Weir as Simon and Minty, a culinary couple with a taste for the finer things in life. Together, the aristocratic restaurateurs plan to wipe the kitchen floor with Delia, Jamie and Nigella by bringing high-class cuisine to an appreciative public.

2002

According to Denise Richard appears to be “Productively employed on voice-overs for Channel 4 at present” – or so it seems sometimes!

One instance of such being on a show called “Divas” which aired recently (watch out for a repeat on E4). It’s a trend I tells ya!

Has anyone else heard of any REG voiceovers?

There’s been some sad news recently concerning the death of screen actor Michael Elphick at age 55.

Michael played the part of Jake, the poacher, in “Withnail And I” and although only a relatively small part in the film he did inspire Withnail to utter the line “Don’t threaten me with a dead fish!”, which was one of the film’s most notable and oft-quoted lines.

Elphic also appeared in films such as “the Elephant Man” and in the television soap “Eastenders”.

We at The REG Temple would like to extend our condolences to Michael’s family and friends.

On a happier note, several of the REGiment have recently seen the film “Hildegarde – A Duck Down Under” which stars REG as the villain. Expect a bit of a review of the film shortly on the site.

For U.K. fans, REG will be appearing on a programme about the Spice Girls tonight at 9 pm on Channel 4.

A Case Of Evil (one of the two upcoming Sherlock Holmes films in which REG is appearing) will air on the USA Network on October 25 at 8:00pm and 1:00am EST and on October 26 at 5:00pm EST. REG plays Sherlock’s brother Mycroft in the film and the write-up states:

“London’s master criminal Moriarty needs to get Sherlock Holmes out of the way – and he’ll stop at nothing to do it.

Twenty-something Sherlock Homes hasn’t yet become a legendary detective when he battles the criminal in “A Case of Evil.” He’s still a super-smart, sexy society star with a growing reputation among the young women of London.

Moriarty is trying to corner the opium market with his powerful new drug, heroin, and Holmes is the only one who can stop him. So Moriarty hatches an elaborate plan: He stages his own death and lures Holmes into a trap with the help of a beautiful woman. The detective, distracted by his burgeoning celebrity, falls for the trick.

Once ensnared, Holmes becomes a pawn in Moriarty’s evil game – the criminal systematically forces the sleuth to become addicted to heroin. Only a last minute rescue by his new friend Dr. Watson can save the day.”

Finally, REG is just one of the celebrities who have contributed a piece of artwork for the Dorset Wildlife Trust’s “Outline An Orchid” Auction. To read a little more about it and see Richard’s work, click here.

Thanks to Sue W, Paula, Joan, Joann and Denise for the news.

A month or so ago the REG Temple learned that a prestigious British furniture manufacturer, Wesley-Barrell, had designed a sofa which was inspired by Richard. We decided to hold back on the report until we had a picture of said sofa to show everyone, and after much discussion, emailing and general wrangling we’re pleased to report that our efforts have finally borne fruit.

We now have a press release from Wesley-Barrell featuring “The Grant Chaise”, along with the original article from their website, and hope to have some more pictures sometime in the near future. One of our intrepid REGimental reporters will be summarily dispatched to the showroom for some exclusive pictures of the sofa in all it’s glory. She might even include a “first hand account” of how it looks, feels and smells if we’re lucky.

For now though you can read all about “The Grant Chaise” here.

The Temple’s thanks are extended to Sue W for the initial report, Nikki Dunstan from Wesley-Barrell and last, but not least, Agent “Deep Blue”.

;-)

Finally, Gary first queried the Temple about it a week or so ago and then it was confirmed by the man himself. It’s true, Richard has given voice to the Homepride Sauces “producer” in the recent television advertisements showing in Britain. If you haven’t heard him already, then keep listening.

Richard E Grant, Pierce Brosnan, John Hurt, Michael Parkinson, Bridget Jones’s Diary actor Colin Firth and Ralph Fiennes are among a host of stars to flex their artistic skills to help a London high school gain visual arts college status. Teddington School asked celebrities to contribute their drawings to help raise £50,000 required to make it eligible for a government scheme to improve its art facilities and bring art to neighbouring communities. You can read the entire article – courtesy of Hello Magazine.com – here.

Thanks to Sue W for the news.

Meanwhile Rosemary has sent me an article from Saga Magazine’s September 2002 issue which I’ve reproduced, in part, here. It’s originally from a book apparently, but I’m not sure at this stage how much REG appears in it.