The first recording today starts with BBC Switch signing off. There’s a trail for Radio 1Xtra.
There’s the Heroes Peter BBC2 ident, and a trail for Sports Personality of the Year.
Then there’s a repeat showing of Heroes Unmasked – Finale which we caught on its first showing.
Media Centre Description: Behind the scenes at the drama series Heroes. During one of the final scenes, a night shoot on the streets of LA, the production team discuss the completed series. Even heroes need a break, and the cast and crew enjoy a well-earned after series party. They look forward to the possibilities of series two and speculate on what destiny has in store. Includes Masi Oka (Hiro Nakamura), Zachary Quinto (Sylar), Jack Coleman (Mr Bennet) and Milo Ventimiglia (Peter Petrelli).
Recorded from BBC TWO on Saturday 8th December 2007 17:43
BBC Genome: BBC TWO Saturday 8th December 2007 17:45
After this there’s the Nathan BBC2 ident and the BBC One Comedy Christmas trail. Then the recording stops after a few minutes of What the Papers Say.
The next recording starts with the programme already in progress. It’s another episode of Robin Hood – Walkabout (a reference to Nic Roeg’s film starring Jenny Agutter?). Genome once again has two different start times, the Radio Times start is 19:10 (which is what the Media Centre used) but the BBC Online time as a full ten minutes earlier, at 19:00. This is pretty poor scheduling.
Anyway, what I’ve missed is the whole pre-credits sequence in which the Sheriff is having nightmares about the pact that Robin stole, then he wakes up to find himself in the middle of the forest, having sleepwalked (or sleepridden) there. Meanwhile, back at the castle, an envoy from Prince John is looking for the Sheriff for a regular weekly check. If anything has happened to the Sheriff, he has to inform Prince John, and the whole of Nottingham will be razed to the ground.
Gisborne, at Marian’s urging, sends Allan to ask for Robin’s help finding the Sheriff.
John is worried about the poor, and that this search will stop food getting to them.
The Sheriff swaps clothes with a man he meets walking.
Then he goes back to a woman he met earlier, Ceris, who’s in the woods with her children at one of Robin’s drop points. He suggests that she can find Robin Hood’s camp and steal his treasure with a bit of subterfuge.
Gisborne tries to make a deal with Sir Jasper (who’s played by Lee Ross (off of Press Gang)) but he stands to profit significantly from the rebuilding of a destroyed city, so he’s quite keen to see Nottingham burn.
John and Djaq are checking the regular drop points in the forest when they come across the woman with the Sheriff, and they’re all wailing, pretending to have just buried a child. It’s very much the French and Saunders “My baby! My baby!” The Sheriff has disguised himself as a blind old beggar.
Naturally, John and Djaq are taken in by this performance, and decide to take them to the camp so they can feed them.
Robin and Much find the man who swapped his rags for the Sheriff’s pyjamas. “A little man. Ugly. Said my rags would help him find important papers in the forest.” Robin realises that means the Sheriff is looking for the camp so now it’s a race to get to the camp.
Sir Jasper tells Gisborne that he will be spared by the King’s men as he’s a member of the black knights, as will his family. He uses this as another opportunity to propose to Marian, and she has to keep avoiding it.
Back at camp, Ceris and the Sheriff attack Little John, and her boys run round his legs with rope, like snowspeeders around an AT-AT walker.
The Sheriff finds the pact.
But Robin arrives in the nick of time.
It’s getting close to sunset, and Sir Jasper’s army prepare to burn the city down.
But Robin drops the Sheriff off, again in the nick of time. They tried to make these sequences tense, but since we already knew that Robin had the Sheriff, and even had cutaways to him riding towards Nottingham, it seemed unlikely anything bad would happen.
Media Centre Description: The Sheriff sleepwalks into Sherwood Forest as Prince John’s messenger arrives to check all is well. Finding him absent, the messenger summons Prince John’s army to raze Nottingham to the ground at sunset. Desperate times compel Gisborne to rely on Robin’s tracking skills to find the Sheriff, but Robin realises the Sheriff has stumbled onto an opportunity to regain the Pact of Nottingham. Gisborne risks his life standing by Marian as they fight to save the people of Nottingham.
Recorded from BBC ONE on Saturday 8th December 2007 19:08
BBC Genome: BBC ONE Saturday 8th December 2007 19:10
After this, there’s a Strictly voting reminder. Then there’s a larger than usual chunk of National Lottery Who Dares Wins. I was amused at one of the items in the ‘Previously’ section where they’re trying to think of winners of the Nobel Peace Prize, and one contestant suggests “Jeux Sans Frontières” instead of “Médecins Sans Frontières”.
The final recording today starts with the end of an episode of A Perfect Spy.
There’s a nice animated advert for DAB Digital Radios.
Also (trigger warning) there’s a trail for Russell Brand On The Road.
Then, a repeat of Lead Balloon – Idiot which we saw just a couple of days ago.
Media Centre Description: Sitcom about ex-celebrity comedian Rick Spleen. Rick’s agent Mel’s other client, ex-ice skating champ Gina Therese, has a new series coming up. Rick scoffs at the idea of an ice skater hosting a chat show: until she asks him on as a guest. At home, Magda asks his advice on where to take her friend sightseeing when she visits England.
Recorded from BBC FOUR on Saturday 8th December 2007 20:58
BBC Genome: BBC FOUR Saturday 8th December 2007 21:00
After this there’s a trail for 1957: Never Had It So Good?
And for a Dance Season.
Then, a have to renew the Trigger Warning because the recording finishes with the start of More Dawn French’s Men Who Do Comedy featuring Russell Brand.