Are you not entertained?

December treats from me to you ✨

Hello hello,

I felt a bit stressed about writing this month’s newsletter because I don’t feel at all on top of what’s what at the moment. It’s that time of year when suddenly everything is coming out at once, and the Hollywood marketing machine is absolutely relentless. I know you know that Wicked, Gladiator II and Emilia Pérez are out and you’re probably sick of hearing about them, as am I (I did love Gladiator II BUT THAT’S NOT THE POINT).

I haven’t even scratched the surface of all the films and shows that have recently come out and I’ve decided I’m not sorry. It feels wrong to just guzzle things down in a mad rush — things that have taken teams of people years of blood, sweat and tears to produce. So if you, like me, are struggling to keep up, then let’s celebrate going at our own leisurely pace; take our sweet time to enjoy the things we do get round to seeing; and remember that this is supposed to be fun.

So in that spirit, this is a very light newsletter, with just a sprinkling of things that have brought me joy this month, in case you find yourself in need of recommendations over the holidays. Hope you have a wonderful festive period ✨

❤️ Heartburn — All hail Nora Ephron, Queen of rom-coms. I love Sleepless in Seattle, When Harry Met Sally and You’ve Got Mail and was excited to read her novel, Heartburn. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the book, but I watched the film adaptation the other day and loved it. It stars a young Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson, as well as Stockard Channing (who I’m also watching in The West Wing and just realised is Rizzo in Grease - mind blown). The start of the film is a masterclass in opening scenes. It perfectly sets up the story in the first two minutes, with barely any dialogue. We KNOW they are going to end up together and we KNOW it’s not going to work out because they are fundamentally incompatible. Anyway, I enjoyed it. And the theme tune was stuck in my head for weeks. Available on Amazon Prime.

❤️ The Day of the Jackal — This is a great series for anyone who has a James Bond shaped hole in their lives. It stars Eddie Redmayne as a former soldier turned for-hire assassin and Lashana Lynch as the tenacious MI6 officer tasked with tracking him down. It’s a classic cat-and-mouse story with exciting stand-offs, amazing sets and a great soundtrack. It’s also just been renewed for another season. Available to stream on NowTV.

❤️ Bad Sisters — I really loved season one of Bad Sisters and so far season two hasn’t disappointed. We pick up the story a few months after we left it, with the sisters moving on with their lives after the murder of JP ‘the prick’. That is, until a dead body is found floating down the river and everything comes back up to the surface (excuse the pun). This series also has the bonus of starring the one and only Fiona Shaw. Available on AppleTV.

And a couple of non film/TV bonus bits…

🎁 Jancis Robinson: An Understanding of Wine — I love Masterclass and BBC Maestro — if you need a good Christmas present idea or want to give yourself a little festive treat, I recommend signing up. This masterclass with Jancis Robinson, the FT’s wine reviewer-in-chief, is brilliant. She’s extraordinarily knowledgable and unpretentious and walks you through the history of wine, what to look out for and how to choose a good bottle when you’re out and about. Given it’s the season for a little tipple you might as well know something about it.

🎁 sweet things — Singer-songwriter extraordinaire Olivia Dean has a lovely playlist called sweet things, which is nicely soundtracking my month.

🎁 The Truth About The Holiday Cottage — Finally, this Substack piece is doing the rounds. It was shared in one of my favourite newsletters, Pandora Sykes’ Books + Bits. Anyway for fans of The Holiday it’s a wonderful insight into how they filmed it in the village of Shere in Surrey, from a long-time villager. I’ve always wondered if the snow was real.

The Truth About The Holiday Cottage