In a surprising programming move by the ABC, Parkinson in Australia (also on iview), is quietly being repeated every Thursday morning from 12.30am. Not seen since 1979, two episodes screen back-to-back every week with guests like Paul Hogan and Ita Buttrose. There is even a disclaimer beforehand warning about 1979 “attitudes” that might offend some viewers today.
A different type of history is fuelling Aussie screenwriter Craig Pearce at the moment. His latest collaboration with Baz Luhrmann, Elvis, opens in cinemas on June 23. In the meantime, the series he created and wrote, Pistol, the story of the Sex Pistols, is now streaming on Disney+.
Pistol is directed by the great Danny Boyle, so it’s a shock that the first episode isn’t peak Danny Boyle yet. Episode one is centred around guitarist Steve Jones, as played by Aussie actor Toby Wallace, who also played a young Michael Hutchence in INXS: Never Tear Us Apart (7plus).
Pistol is slow to fire up, despite characters like Vivienne Westwood (Talulah Riley), Malcolm McLaren (Thomas Brodie-Sangster) and Chrissie Hynde (Sydney Chandler). Luckily, the arrival of Johnny Rotten (Anson Boon), Sid Vicious (Toby Wallace) and Jordan (Maisie Williams) in the second episode bodes well for its future.
Keeley Hawes in The Midwich Cuckoos
If the premise for The Midwich Cuckoos (Stan) seems familiar, it’s probably because the creepy children drama is better known as Village of the Damned. Originally a British movie from 1960, before a disappointing John Carpenter remake in 1995, this version returns to its English village setting, and stars Keeley Hawes and Max Beesley.
It’s brave to move away from its better-known title, so good on them for being authentic and returning to the 1957 sci-fi novel from John Wyndham, who also wrote The Day Of The Triffids. The first episode of The Midwich Cuckoos is really good, so this might be its best adaptation yet.
Irma Vep (Binge and Foxtel) is a bizarre new HBO miniseries. It is based on a 1996 French movie about the remaking of a 1915 French silent crime film serial, Les Vampires. Now it’s eight hours long as Hollywood movie star Mira (Alicia Vikander) comes to Paris to star in a modern Les Vampires remake.
Irma Vep
The good news is this is no Emily In Paris, meaning no cliched croissant or Eiffel Tower moments. Instead, there’s more of a sophisticated Call My Agent vibe, with behind-the-scenes romantic entanglements and a catsuit costume that turns its leading lady into a real life cat thief.
The Janes (Thursday on Binge and Foxtel) is a very timely documentary about a group of Chicago women who created their own abortion clinic before it was legal. It ends with the relief all the women felt when Roe vs Wade was passed into law in 1973, but since these interviews were filmed, that landmark decision is now under threat. Watch and weep.
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This week we look at Pistol, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Boys, Stranger Things, Irma Vep and The Janes. Andrew’s special retro TV series is Pan Am (7plus) which stars Margot Robbie in her first major US role after leaving Neighbours.